Derryclare Lough () is a

freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does include ...

lake at the entrance of the Inagh Valley, in

Connemara Connemara (; )( ga, Conamara ) is a region on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of western County Galway, in the west of Ireland. The area has a strong association with traditional Irish culture and contains much of the Connacht Irish-speak ...

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

, in the west of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Geography

Derryclare Lough is located about east of

Clifden Clifden (, meaning "stepping stones") is a coastal town in County Galway, Ireland, in the region of Connemara, located on the Owenglin River where it flows into Clifden Bay. As the largest town in the region, it is often referred to as "the Cap ...

on the

N59 road The N59 road is a national secondary road in Ireland. It commences in County Sligo, south of Sligo Town at the Belladrehid interchange with the N4 north of Ballysadare. The route circles around the west of Ireland, passing west from Sligo into ...

. The

Twelve Bens , photo=Boats and mountains, Roundstone (6047965086).jpg , photo_caption= View of the range from Roundstone village. , region = Connacht , region_type = Provinces of Ireland , translation = The peaks of Beola , language = Irish language ...

mountain range lies to the north of the lake, with the Ben of

Derryclare Derryclare () is a mountain at the southern edge of Twelve Bens mountain range in Connemara National Park in County Galway, Ireland. At , it is the 119th–highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin list, and the 145th–highest peak on the Vandele ...

overlooking the lake itself. Derryclare Lough is fed from rivers from

Lough Inagh Lough Inagh () is a freshwater lake in the Inagh Valley, in Connemara, Galway, in the west of Ireland. Geography Lough Inagh is located about east of Clifden on the R344 road in the Inagh Valley. The Twelve Bens range lies to the west of the ...

, which itself is fed from several mountain streams in the area, but most importantly from the ''Gleninagh River'' that starts high up in the ''Gleninagh Valley'' on the slopes of

Benbaun Benbaun () is a mountain in County Galway, Ireland. With a height of , it is the 72nd highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin scale, and the 88th highest peak on the Vandeleur-Lynam scale.Mountainviews, (September 2013), "A Guide to Ireland's M ...

and

Bencollaghduff Bencollaghduff () at , is the 93rd–highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin scale, and the 115th–highest peak on the Vandeleur-Lynam scale.Mountainviews, (September 2013), "A Guide to Ireland's Mountain Summits: The Vandeleur-Lynams & the Ar ...

, and the ''Tooreennacoona River''. Derryclare Lough flows into Ballynahinch Lake, where it eventually joins the Owenmore River, and flows into Bertraghboy Bay.

Fishing

Derryclare Lough is noted for its lake and river fishing with spring salmon,

grilse Salmon () is the common name for several commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family Salmonidae, which are native to tributaries of the North Atlantic (genus ''Salmo'') and North Pacific (genus ''Oncorhynchus' ...

and

sea trout Sea trout is the common name usually applied to anadromous (sea-run) forms of brown trout (''Salmo trutta''), and is often referred to as ''Salmo trutta'' morpha ''trutta''. Other names for anadromous brown trout are sewin (Wales), peel or peal ...

, and the fishing is done from "Butts" (e.g. long piers from the shore), and particularly the ''Derryclare Butts'', ''Glendollagh Butts'', and the ''Greenpoint Butts''. The Lough and its fishing rights are privately owned and controlled by local fishing lodges in the Inagh Valley. Irish fishing author, Peter O'Reilly, said about Derryclare Lough that "This fishery has everything".

Scenic location

The lake is a popular scenic location, and extensively photographed, and offers views directly into the ''Glencoaghan Valley'' of the Twelve Bens and the peaks of the '' Glencoaghan Horseshoe'', a 16–kilometre 8–9 hour route that is considered one of Ireland's best hill-walks. The lough bounds the 19-hectare Derryclare Nature Reserve a ''Statutory Nature Reserve'', and the larger 789-hectare Derryclare Wood, a

Coillte Coillte (; meaning "forests"/"woods") is a state-owned commercial forestry business in Ireland based in Newtownmountkennedy. Coillte manage approximately 7% of the country’s land, and operates three businesses - their core forestry business, a ...

owned commercial

conifer Conifers are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single ...

forest.

Gallery

File:Derryclare Lough, Twelve Bens.jpg,

(centre),

Bencorr Bencorr () at , is the 82nd–highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin scale, and the 102nd–highest peak on the Vandeleur-Lynam scale.Mountainviews, (September 2013), "A Guide to Ireland's Mountain Summits: The Vandeleur-Lynams & the Arderins", ...

(left), and

(far left) File:Derryclare Horseshoe, Connemara, Ireland.jpg,

with the rest of the '' Glencoaghan Horseshoe'' in cloud File:Derryclare Lake, Connemara.jpg, View into the '' Glencoaghan Horseshoe'' from Derryclare Lough

Bibliography

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References

{{IrishTrails