How to Book Fishing at Kielder (with Kids)

Thanks to our writer Bethanie for sharing this post. Always check with Kielder Waterside Park for the most up to date information when making plans. AD - the links in this post are affiliate links.

Would it surprise you to learn that Kielder is the largest man-made lake in northern Europe? It is also home to one of the largest areas of forest in England.

With this in mind, I couldn’t think of a better place to spend the day. We visited recently and took the kids fishing there.

In this blog post, I share what there is on offer fishing wise at Kielder and why it makes for a great day out.

Getting to Kielder.

Kielder may seem pretty remote to get to, but the drive over is very scenic and once there you can easily spend a full day either walking or cycling the many footpaths, exploring the forest (the kids will love the new Zog trail) or hiring a boat to go out on the lake.

The lake itself boasts twenty-six miles of footpath, winding alongside the lake and up into the forest. With this distance in mind, you will find a number of car parks dotted along the shoreline, meaning you can park up and make the most of whichever spot you choose.

If you have come specifically for the fishing, you will need to head first of all to Tower Knowe Visitor Centre to pick up a fishing permit. To get here use the postcode: NE48 1BX.

[You will need to have access to a car to visit Kielder.]

Before you visit:

You can purchase your fishing permit from the visitor centre but if you rather you can also purchase it online before you go.

If you do this online, it will ask for your vehicles registration number as this also counts as your parking ticket. Purchase online here.

Kielder Waterside is in the process of updating their retail stock of purchasing tackle, so it is currently advised that you take your own. You can pick up starter kits from the Hardy Store in Alnwick.

You will be fishing for trout in the lake so make sure you have the appropriate bait before you visit.

Something else to think about, is that you pay a set amount for how many fish you catch. For example, our fishing permit allowed us to catch up to eight fish which we then had to bring home.

It might be a good idea to pack a cool box in the car to safely transport the fish home and straight to the freezer. (Or dish out to family members if like us you don’t like eating trout!).

Fishing Kit Essentials

Hire a boat:

Hiring a boat at Kielder is a great way to explore the lake and a fun way to fish! We were hoping to do this when we visited but the children need to be over the age of eight, and as we had our five-year-old with us this wasn’t possible.

Credit : Waterside Parks

So, if you are planning on hiring a boat, make sure everyone is over the age of eight and there are at least two adults on board. Life jackets are provided and you can choose to either hire the boat for a full day or half a day.

The cost of boat hire is as follows:

Full day hire mid-week - £16

Full day hire at weekends - £20

Half day hire (mid-week only) - £13

Pricing for fishing:

A day permit costs £26 with a catch limit of eight fish. It is an extra £5 to add another rod to this permit.

A family and couples permit costs £40 with a catch limit of twelve fish.

Under 17’s permit £10 and has a catch limit of two fish.

You can check the most up-to-date prices here.

This would be a bit mind boggling to me, so I recommend two options:

Purchase a day permit and pay the extra £5 to add a second rod. This means you can fish with two rods and catch up to eight fish for £31. If you are fishing with younger children, this means you have enough hands to fish together sharing a rod, as opposed to one each.

If you are fishing with older children, I would probably opt for the family ticket and this gives you space to catch more fish as well.

We have been fishing at Kielder before and caught nothing but then another time filled our quota of eight easily. So it really is luck (or a good fishing technique).

What we like about fishing at Kielder:

For me, personally, it is the view. Whilst my children and husband love to fish, I’m not really a fan and sit quite happily on a fishing chair watching them. If I get bored of this, there are footpaths to explore and nice walks around where the family are fishing from.

The kids love it because they find fishing exciting and we were also lucky enough to witness an Osprey swoop down and show us how it’s done: catching a fish in it’s claws before flying away. That was quite a sight and a reminder of how much wildlife there is at Kielder.

We parked in the Hawkhope Car Park (NE48 1BH) which is just on the other side of the Dam. From here we walked around a quarter of a mile to a suitable place to set up camp beside the lake.

We took a picnic, plenty to drink and sun cream as well as layers in case it cold by the lakeside. It made it a great day out and a perfect way to fill a day perhaps over the summer holidays.

Learn more about fishing at Kielder and check their official website for the most up-to-date information here: https://www.watersideparksuk.com/park/kielder/fishing/

You can also follow Fishing with Northumbrian Water on Facebook here.