River Shannon

The River Shannon is Ireland's longest river at 360 kilometres, flowing from the Cuilcagh Mountains in County Cavan south through the heart of Ireland to the Atlantic at Limerick. It is the longest river in either Britain or Ireland and its catchment covers roughly 17% of the country.

For anglers, the Shannon is not one fishery but many. The character of the river changes dramatically along its length — from the intimate upper river with its wild brown trout, through the great coarse fishing centres of the midlands where visiting European anglers target bream, roach and pike, past the seasonally flooded callows that hold extraordinary pike and specimen tench, and finally to the lower river at Castleconnell where one of Ireland's most prestigious salmon fisheries operates below the Ardnacrusha dam.

The Shannon system also includes three major loughs — Lough Allen, Lough Ree, and Lough Derg — each with its own distinct fishing character. Coarse fishing on the Shannon requires no licence in the Republic of Ireland. A North Shannon Share Certificate is required for fishing upstream of Banagher Bridge. Salmon and sea trout fishing requires a state licence.

The key angling centres along the Shannon are detailed on their own dedicated pages. Each covers the specific stretches, species, access points, and local services that visiting and local anglers need to plan their fishing.