Guided Trips

Fermanagh's Upper and Lower Lough Erne total around 30 miles of water between them, joined by 10 miles of the River Erne. Between the two loughs there's excellent pike habitat, a good population of pike, and a multitude of different locations to explore — which is exactly why the boat drifts rather than anchors: there's a lot of productive water to cover, and the drift lets Stuart get to where the pike are actually holding.

A basic outfit is a 9ft 9-weight fly rod matched with a 9- or 10-weight line. For sink rate, a DI3 (or sink-3) is a good all-rounder, sinking at around three inches per second. Stuart recommends fishing a dedicated pike fly line — its aggressive front taper is what makes casting the big flies pike fishing calls for actually possible.

Because pike have sharp teeth, a trace is non-negotiable: titanium or steel, around 15 inches, ahead of a leader of 25lb mono at four or five feet. For the fly itself, modern synthetic materials outperform old-style rabbit strip, which holds water and is miserable to cast once it's wet.

For your own safety on the boat: a life vest, a cap, and glasses. The glasses are for eye protection from a wayward hook — and because you'll want to see a pike following your fly right up to the boat.

What tackle is provided on a guided day is on enquiry — ask when you get in touch.

Pike look hardy. They look tough. But, as Stuart says in the DAERA film, “they aren't” — and welfare comes first on every trip.

Landed fish go straight onto a landing mat, using a net or a sling to bring them in. Long-nose pliers and forceps are kept to hand rather than packed away in a box or a bag, because that's what actually makes unhooking quick — better for the angler, and better for the fish. Hooks are barbless, which makes a huge difference to how easily and cleanly a fish comes free. Smaller pike are unhooked at the side of the boat, in the water, without being lifted in at all.

The aim throughout is minimum time out of the water, with every fish supported until it swims away.

In the DAERA film, Stuart lays out the season himself: pike fishing traditionally starts in autumn, runs right through winter, and generally stops at the end of May. He recommends stopping in June, because rising air and water temperature reduce a pike's chances of recovering after being caught.

The fishing changes through that stretch too. In autumn, most pike sit in mid-water, and a fish finder is useful for reading depth and finding the drop-offs where pike wait to ambush prey. Through winter they sit deeper, so a heavier sinking line such as a DI7, at around seven inches per second, gets a fly down to them; extra insulation is worth having on the boat, and the last hour of light is often productive. By spring, pike move into shallower, weedy bays, and floating or intermediate lines come into their own.

None of that is a booking calendar — it's simply when and how the fishing changes across the year. Dates and availability are on enquiry.

Booking is by enquiry, not online checkout. Send a message and Stuart will come back to you.

Prices on enquiry