Lough Gill

What is kayaking Lough Gill like?

Follow in the wake of W.B. Yeats on this literary paddle to the Isle of Innisfree, immortalised in his famous poem. Lough Gill is framed by the limestone plateau of Slish Wood and the Hazlewood sculpture trail. The lake's still waters mirror the surrounding hills, and otters are frequently spotted at dawn along the wooded shores.

How do I paddle Lough Gill? Put-in, take-out and logistics

Lough Gill stretches roughly 8 km east of Sligo town and is fed by the Bonet River at its eastern end, draining west into the Garavogue River which flows through Sligo centre. Launch from Doorly Park on the north-western shore, where there is a concrete slipway beside the rowing club and free parking along the road. The first section follows the northern shore past Hazlewood House, an 18th-century Palladian mansion now surrounded by a sculpture trail through mixed woodland — the limestone cliffs above Hazlewood drop vertically into the lake and are worth paddling close to for the geological detail.

When is the best time to paddle Lough Gill?

The Isle of Innisfree sits in the south-eastern quarter of the lake, roughly 6 km from the put-in. It is a tiny uninhabited island — barely 20 metres across — but its literary significance is enormous: W.B. Yeats immortalised it in 'The Lake Isle of Innisfree,' written in 1888 while he was homesick in London. Landing is possible on the small stony beach on the northern side, though the island is so small that a circumnavigation takes only a few minutes. The return journey along the southern shore passes beneath Slish Wood (the 'Sleuth Wood' of Yeats's poetry), a dense oak-hazel woodland on steep limestone. Lough Gill is relatively sheltered by the hills on both sides, but easterly winds can funnel down the length of the lake and make the return from Innisfree slow going. Otters are genuinely common here — early morning paddlers along the wooded southern shore stand a good chance of a sighting.