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Kilkeel River (County Down) — one of the area's fishing spots. About 19 km long. Close by — Castlewellan and Rathfriland. Here you'll find a bite prediction — when fish are active and which hours give the best chances, adjusted for weather and pressure.
Nearest towns and cities
County Down: the months when each species peaks and when it goes quiet. The current month is outlined.
| Fish | January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Perch | active | active | active | fair | fair | active | active | active | active | peak | peak | peak |
| Dace | slow | fair | active | peak | peak | active | active | peak | peak | peak | active | fair |
| Grayling | slow | fair | active | peak | peak | active | active | peak | peak | peak | active | fair |
| Ruffe | slow | fair | active | peak | peak | active | active | peak | peak | peak | active | fair |
| Roach | active | peak | peak | peak | active | fair | fair | fair | fair | active | active | active |
| Barbel | slow | slow | fair | active | active | active | active | peak | peak | active | fair | slow |
| European eel | slow | slow | fair | active | active | active | active | peak | peak | peak | fair | slow |
| Pike | fair | fair | fair | fair | fair | active | active | active | peak | peak | active | active |
| Whitefish | slow | fair | fair | active | peak | active | active | peak | peak | active | fair | slow |
| Zander | fair | fair | fair | fair | fair | active | active | peak | peak | peak | active | active |
| Atlantic salmon | slow | slow | fair | active | peak | peak | active | active | active | fair | slow | slow |
| Bream | slow | slow | fair | active | peak | peak | peak | peak | active | fair | slow | slow |
| Brown trout | slow | slow | fair | active | peak | peak | peak | active | active | slow | slow | slow |
| Rainbow trout | slow | slow | fair | active | peak | peak | active | active | active | fair | slow | slow |
| White bream | fair | fair | active | peak | peak | active | active | active | fair | slow | fair | fair |
| Bleak | slow | slow | active | peak | peak | active | active | fair | fair | slow | slow | slow |
| Chub | slow | slow | slow | active | peak | peak | active | active | fair | slow | slow | slow |
| Crucian carp | slow | slow | fair | active | peak | active | active | active | fair | slow | slow | slow |
| Ide | slow | slow | slow | active | peak | peak | active | active | fair | slow | slow | slow |
| Carp | slow | slow | slow | fair | active | peak | peak | peak | fair | slow | slow | slow |
| Rudd | slow | slow | slow | active | peak | active | active | fair | slow | slow | slow | slow |
| Tench | slow | slow | slow | active | peak | active | active | fair | slow | slow | slow | slow |
| Wels catfish | slow | slow | slow | fair | active | peak | peak | peak | fair | slow | slow | slow |
Other nearby places to fish
Other nearby waters
The course meanders heavily: the current digs a pool on the outside of every bend and builds a bar on the inside. Those pools under the undercut bank are where pike typically sits. Longer than 12 of the 13 rivers nearby.
Wednesday, October 21
Work the cover — snags, weed edges, hole entrances; retrieve the lure with pauses. The water's cold — fish it more delicately and slowly.
Kilkeel River — Wednesday, October 21
The bite is weak — fish are sluggish. A thunderstorm is possible: activity rises before the front and drops after. Peak 08:00–10:00 and 18:00–20:00.
The computed water temperature is around 10 °C — inside the 4–14 °C comfort range for Atlantic salmon, so baseline activity is high.
Atlantic salmon works the twilight: the peaks are pinned to sunrise and sunset — their times are in the sun-and-moon card above.
Pressure is rising 7 hPa over the day — the bite usually settles down after a rise.
One more input — the moon's feeding windows: within their hours the score sits higher than across the rest of the day. The window times are in the “Solunar feeding periods” card below.
October is an average month for Atlantic salmon here.
These are the same values the bite curve above was computed from. How the forecast works
Drizzle · feels like +3°
The day is 4 min shorter than yesterday.
Sunshine hours count direct sun only — cloud cover cuts it, so it is shorter than daylight.
Geomagnetic fieldunsettled, Kp 4
Kp index — NOAA data. Not part of the bite score: catches show no link between geomagnetic storms and the bite.
The windows are set by the moon's transit and rise, and the forecast above already accounts for them: within these hours the bite score sits higher than across the rest of the day, while the day's overall level still comes from the catch-calibrated model.
What are solunar periods?Work the cover — snags, weed edges, hole entrances; retrieve the lure with pauses. The water's cold — fish it more delicately and slowly.
Kilkeel River — Wednesday, October 21
The bite is weak — fish are sluggish. A thunderstorm is possible: activity rises before the front and drops after. Peak 08:00–10:00 and 18:00–20:00.
Drizzle: 7–12 °C