The Ridge Pool in the Middle of Ballina

You learn where the Ridge Pool sits in Ballina, why its town-centre location on the River Moy made it known for salmon fishing, and what a first visit looks like on foot. The Wikipedia page describes the pool as one of the most popular spots on the river, set right in the centre of town.

Why does a pool in the middle of town matter for salmon?

Ballina lies at the mouth of the River Moy near Killala Bay, in the Moy valley and the civil parish of Kilmoremoy, with the Ox Mountains to the east and the Nephin Mountains to the west. That position on a short river between inland water and the bay favours salmon fishing, and the Ridge Pool puts that fishing where you can reach it without leaving town. The Irish name is Béal an Átha, meaning mouth of the ford, which tells you that the crossing point came before the streets around it. At the 2022 census the population of Ballina was 10,556, so you are looking at a working town pool rather than a remote beat. You hear traffic, you see shops and houses close by, and the water stays in view.

Where exactly is the Ridge Pool on the Moy?

The River Moy forms the traditional border between County Mayo and County Sligo, and the town occupies two baronies, Tirawley on the west bank and Tireragh on the east bank. The Ridge Pool sits in the centre, where Ridge Pool Road runs on one side and Barrett Street lies on the other. Two road bridges frame the central river for orientation. The Armstrong and West Bridge, also called the Lower Bridge, was built in 1835, and the Hamm Bridge, also called the Upper Bridge, was built the following year, 1836, by Thomas Hamm at a cost of 3,000 pounds. Both bridges are limestone and have 4 and 5 arches respectively, and traffic moves in a one-way direction around them and is often backed up on both sides. The pool sits in a town at the mouth of the Moy, so sea, estuary and fresh water meet within a short walk.

What does the fishing-rod bridge change for a visitor?

The Salmon Weir Bridge is a pedestrian bridge over the River Moy from Barrett Street to Ridge Pool Road. It was designed to resemble a fishing rod and was opened in July 2009. For a first visit that matters because you can stand over the water without watching traffic, look up and down the river, and get a clear sense of where the pool starts and ends. You can cross slowly, stop in the middle, and see how the current moves past the banks and under the arches nearby. The bridge also links the two sides of the centre, so you can start on one bank, cross, and continue along the other bank without a long detour. If you arrive with bags or with children, the absence of cars on that crossing makes the first look easier.

How is the pool fished when you stand and watch?

The page connects Ballina with salmon fishing and names the Ridge Pool as a favoured place in the middle of town, and the Wikipedia page does not publish fishing methods, permits or catch figures for the Ridge Pool. What you can take from that is limited and practical. You come to watch fishing that happens in an urban setting, where access is on foot and the banks are close to streets and paths. You do not need to hike into hills or arrange a boat to see the water. You look for anglers working a defined town pool rather than a long rural stretch. Because the detail on rules and methods is not on that page, you leave questions about tickets, seasons and tackle to the local fishery information on the bank and for the angling pages linked from this magazine, such as salmon fishing on the River Moy explained.

Is July a useful month for a first look?

The Ballina Salmon Festival is held annually in July in the town, and that timing shapes what you will find around the Ridge Pool. The festival includes Heritage Day, when much of the centre of the town is closed to traffic and the streets are occupied by stalls and demonstrations of vintage vehicles. If you want activity, stalls and crowds within a short walk of the water, July gives you that setting. If you want quiet banks and easy movement, a festival day will feel different from a normal weekday. You can plan food, parking and walking around the closures rather than through them. For dates and other events across the seasons, the guide to festivals in Ballina through the year helps you place the salmon festival among the rest.

What does a short walk show beyond the water?

A first visit works best as a loop that includes the river and the streets beside it. Work on St Muredach's Cathedral began in 1827, the stone was quarried locally and the roof and ceiling were completed before the Great Famine, the spire was completed in 1855 and by 1875 the organ had been commissioned. The streets consist mainly of three- and four-storey Georgian and Victorian buildings, with Georgian housing on the banks of the Moy, the Ice House building now converted into a hotel, and the former Provincial Bank of Ireland building now housing the Jackie Clarke Museum. In 2009 the Jackie Clarke Collection went on display when the Clarke Museum opened in the old Provincial Bank. Belleek Castle Museum is another attraction nearby, and Belleek Woods covers 200 acres of forest under the management of Coillte and the Belleek Woods Enhancement Group. You can move from pool to bridge to museum without using a car.

How do you reach the river without a car?

Ballina Bus Station hosts a Bus Éireann bus depot, and the route currently runs seven services a day between Ballina and the capital. In 2007 Bus Éireann launched a direct bus from Dublin Airport to Ballina. By road, the N26 is the main road to Dublin and leaves the town south to Foxford, and after Swinford joins the N5 to Dublin, while the N59 comes from Belmullet and Crossmolina in the west and goes through the town to Sligo to the northeast. The R314 is a regional road to Killala and then Ballycastle, and the R294 goes to south County Sligo through the Windy Gap in the Ox Mountains and is used as an alternative route to Dublin through Tubbercurry and Boyle. By rail, Ballina station is located on the N26 beside the bus station, trains stop at Foxford before terminating at Manulla Junction where passengers can connect to trains going to Castlebar, Westport or Dublin at Heuston Station, trains to Dublin operate three times daily and on Friday evenings a train operates direct from Dublin to Ballina. Ireland West Airport is about 50.7 km, or 31.5 miles, from Ballina, with a shuttle about five times a day to Charlestown for a connecting bus. Check the train route via Manulla Junction, walk to the Salmon Weir Bridge, and start your visit on foot at Ridge Pool Road.