The villages of Tulla, Broadford and Feakle are ringed by thirty to forty lakes — collectively known as the East Clare Lakelands. Grouped between the River Fergus to the west and Lough Derg to the east, they offer an unhurried world of still water, coarse fishing, wildlife watching and long quiet walks. Dronagiri sits in the heart of it all.
Lough Derg
Lough Deirgeirt~20 MIN DRIVE
SWIMMING * WATERSPORTS *WALKING *HERITAGE *WILDLIFE
Ireland’s third largest lake and the largest on the River Shannon, Lough Derg stretches across the borders of Clare, Tipperary and Galway. On the Clare shore, the lake offers two Blue Flag beaches at Ballycuggaran and Mountshannon, making it a rare and beautiful place for an open-water swim. Watersports enthusiasts can paddleboard, kayak, sail and canoe along 160 kilometres of marked water trails. Walking and cycling routes run the length of the shoreline, bringing the lake into view at every turn.
Rising from the water near the village of Mountshannon is Inis Cealtra — Holy Island — one of the most important monastic sites in Ireland, accessible only by boat. Founded around 520 AD, the island holds the ruins of six churches, a 24-metre round tower, four high crosses, a holy well and a graveyard still in use today. It sits on the UNESCO World Heritage tentative list alongside Glendalough and Clonmacnoise. The boat crossing from Mountshannon takes just five to ten minutes and is a journey worth making.
For fishing information around Lough Derg Click here
Lough Bridget
Also known as Silvergrove~10 MIN DRIVE
FISHING * WILDLIFE * WALKING
A 90-acre coarse fishery near Bodyke, Lough Bridget is one of the most rewarding lakes in East Clare. Its still, reed-fringed waters hold bream, roach, tench, perch and pike, and specimen tench have been recorded here. Thirty well-maintained fishing stands line the Silvergrove shore, with several adapted for wheelchair access, and boats can be launched directly from the lakeside car park. Even if fishing isn’t your reason for visiting, the lake rewards a slow walk along its edges — lily pads reaching across the shallows, the occasional heron standing perfectly still, the water holding the sky.
Rosslara Lough
Ros Láithrigh~5 MIN DRIVE
FISHING & WILDLIFE
Set in open countryside near Tulla and Feakle, Rosslara is known among local anglers as a fine lake for tench. The surrounding landscape is really beautiful. There is a small car park and a short walk to a gate – climb over the style and keep walking around and you will find a number of concrete piers where you can either swim or fish from.
Kilgory Lake
Coill Guaire~15 MIN DRIVE
FISHING * WILDLIFE * WALKING
Of all the lakes in East Clare, Kilgory may be the most atmospheric. Its 70 acres sit in picturesque woodland and bogland, flanked by heather-covered hills that give it a sense of magical isolation rarely found so close to a road. Twenty-two causeway fishing stands of stone extend out over the reeded edges — primarily a bream fishery, but the setting alone is worth the visit. Walk the shoreline in the early morning and you may have the whole place to yourself, the hills reflected perfectly in still water. We only recently discovered this lake and it’s gorgeous.
Clondorney Lake
Cluain Doirne~10 MIN DRIVE
FISHING & WILDLIFE
A 40-acre reed-fringed lake just two kilometres north of Tulla on the Gort road, Clondorney sits right beside the road and is one of the most accessible lakes in the area. Its sheltered waters hold perch, rudd, bream and pike, and a car park and fishing platforms make it easy to settle in for a quiet few hours. The reeds along the near bank provide important habitat for waterbirds — a good place to sit quietly with binoculars as dusk approaches and the lake comes alive.
Lough Grainey
Lough Gréine — Lake of the Sun~15 MIN DRIVE
SWIMMING * FISHING * WALKING * WILDLIFE * FOLKLORE
The largest lake in East Clare (besides Lough Derg), Lough Grainey sits in the Slieve Aughty mountain range and has been drawing people to its shores for centuries. Its Irish name — Lough Gréine, Lake of the Sun — hints at something of its character: surrounded by hills, scattered with islands, and rimmed with ancient oakwood. On the lake shore, Cahermurphy Forest offers scenic walks and a quiet lakeshore picnic site. The lake is also a safe and popular place to swim, with a community swimming tradition stretching back generations.
Lough Grainey holds a remarkable place in Irish literary history. In 1780, the Clare poet Brian Merriman dreamed himself asleep on its shores at the opening of his celebrated poem Cúirt An Mheán Oíche — The Midnight Court — one of the great works of Irish-language literature. A stone carved with the poem’s opening lines stands at the water’s edge today. The valley around the lake is now home to the Lough Grainey Nature Sanctuary, a community-led rewilding project working to restore the ancient oak forest that once covered these hills and protect the rare birds, plants and animals that make their home here — including pine marten, hen harrier and otter.
Lough Aye
East Clare Lakelands~10 MIN DRIVE & walk
FISHING *WILDLIFE *WALKING
One of the quieter, lesser-known lakes of the East Clare Lakelands, Lough Aye is very off the beaten track and you rarely meet anyone here. The landscape shifts from open bogland to low hill. It’s a bit of a trek to get to it but if you’re up for a hike it’s not too far from Dronagiri.
Doon Lake
Loch Dúin~20 MIN DRIVE
FISHINGWILDLIFE
Near the village of Broadford, Doon Lake is a noted pike fishery that has produced some impressive catches over the years. Divided into two sections joined by a smaller pond in the centre, it is best explored by boat — which can be arranged locally — though the natural bank space is generous and the water accessible from three sides. Set in peaceful, unspoilt countryside, Doon is the kind of place where time moves at the pace of the water: slowly, and without urgency.
Lough Bunny
Lough Buinne — Lake of the Flood~35 MIN DRIVE
SWIMMING * WILDLIFE * BURREN * WALKING
To the west, on the edge of the Burren, lies one of our favourite swimming lakes. Lough Bunny’s water is a shade of turquoise so vivid it seems almost improbable for Ireland: clear, luminous and calm, with the folded limestone drama of Mullaghmore Mountain rising behind it. The colour is not an illusion — it comes from the exceptional clarity and purity of the water itself. No river feeds this lake; its water rises from a network of underground springs filtered through the limestone karst beneath the Burren, and drains away through sinkholes rather than flowing out to sea. The result is water of extraordinary clarity, low in nutrients and algae, and quite unlike any lake in the west of the county.
Great for swimming, Lough Bunny’s shallow waters make it a safe and gentle spot — easy to wade into (but can be slippy on the rocks), warm by Clare standards on a summer’s day, and peaceful in a way that feels earned rather than accidental. The ruins of a medieval tower house stand silently on the north east shore, and the lake sits within both the Burren National Park and a Special Area of Conservation — a place protected precisely because it is rare. A half-day trip west from Dronagiri, and one that will stay with you.
For specific information about fishing in East Clare visit the following links:
Coarse fishing near to Dronagiri
https://fishinginireland.info/coarse/shannon/tulla/
https://fishinginireland.info/coarse/shannon/killaloe/
Pike fishing near Dronagiri
https://fishinginireland.info/pike/shannon/tulla/
Trout fishing
https://fishinginireland.info/trout/shannon/fergus/
https://fishinginireland.info/trout/shannon/
Sea fishing on the atlantic coast.
https://fishinginireland.info/sea/shannon
Stay at Dronagiri
Our cabins sit at the heart of East Clare’s lake district — the perfect base for days spent wandering, fishing, swimming or simply watching the light move across the water.