Lochore Meadows Country Park

Lochore Meadows Country Park sits near Lochgelly in Fife, with fishing centred on Loch Ore — the loch right at the heart of the park. It’s an artificial, subsidence loch linked to the area’s former coal-mining history, giving the venue a bit of character before you’ve even clipped up. Handy one to keep in mind if you fancy a day combining fishing with a proper wander around the park.

• 1 lake: Loch Ore
• Fish: carp
• Tickets from: Fishing permit — £5 per rod; allows up to three rods per person
• Find it: Lochore · KY5 8BA

Based on how each lake is set up — not a ranking.

Lochore Meadows Country Park sits near Lochgelly in Fife, with fishing centred on Loch Ore — the loch right at the heart of the park. It’s an artificial, subsidence loch linked to the area’s former coal-mining history, giving the venue a bit of character before you’ve even clipped up. Handy one to keep in mind if you fancy a day combining fishing with a proper wander around the park.

There’s one fishery loch listed here, and no separate stocked lakes are identified. The loch’s surface area and dimensions aren’t published, while the fish species present aren’t specified either. So, don’t arrive with a nailed-on target or a swim plan based on guesswork. Treat it as a new-water session: have a look around first, watch the margins, note any obvious features and ask at the Willie Clarke Visitor Centre what anglers are finding and which areas are currently suitable.

Fishing is available throughout the year, but every angler needs a permit. You can buy one on the day or in advance from reception at the Willie Clarke Visitor Centre. The listed price is £5 per rod, although that permit allows up to three rods per person. Children aged 16 and under can fish free. It’s worth getting the permit sorted before unpacking the kit, then checking any current advice at the centre while you’re there.

This is a catch-and-release venue, with every fish caught required to go straight back into Loch Ore. Bring the kit you’d normally want for careful returns, including suitable landing and unhooking gear, as rods, nets and bait aren’t available for hire. With no species information published, keep your approach flexible and pack sensibly for a general session rather than loading the barrow with one very specific set-up.

There are some firm no-go areas, so don’t just grab the first appealing peg. Fishing is prohibited in the nature reserve, from the pebble and sand beach, and in the Outdoor Education compound and around its jetties. A maximum of three rods per person may be fished or fully mounted at one time, and you can’t look after another angler’s rods. Permits and fish aren’t transferable either, so keep everything properly linked to the person fishing.

The wider park makes this a useful day out, with the visitor centre, Lochside Café, walking and cycling routes, play areas, picnic and barbecue spots, golf and watersports. Accessible routes and all-terrain mobility scooters are also available. Fishing enquiries can be made to the Willie Clarke Centre with the fishery or at LochoreMeadows.General@fife.gov.uk. Before heading off, it’s worth checking the current fishing advice, confirming where you can fish and making sure your permit is bob on for the session.

Good background reading. Most of it is a few years old, so treat it as a starting point and ask on the day.

Videos linked by the fishery

• Our read

  Checked Sept '26 — “Lochore Meadows offers year-round fishing on Loch Ore, with a simple £5 permit system and catch-and-release rules. It’s a handy park venue with plenty going on for non-anglers too, but species, lake size and daily fishing hours aren’t published.”

This is our own summary of recurring public feedback and the venue details we checked, not a copied customer review or a promise you’ll catch. Feedback changes, so we keep it separate from the Tackle Index score.