The rivers and lakes of Fermanagh are heavy with fish and Lough Erne has claimed many world coarse angling match records. The trout and salmon fishing is good too - so good in fact, that the locals tend to ignore the coarser kind. The intermittent barking of a raven from the limestone cliffs or an occasional visit from a circumspect whooper swan is likely to be the only encounter of the non-piscatorial kind because Fermanagh is still wonderfully empty of crowds. The complete angler's every need is catered for, on and away from the water: there are clearly marked access points, easy parking, well stocked tackle shops,

convenient hotels and B&Bs, good restaurants and pubs. If you are not fishing or cruising or enjoying the water in one way or another there is plenty to do in Fermanagh. Castle Coole, the Palladian mansion house designed by Jarnes Wyatt for the Earl of Belmore at Enniskillen, was completed in 1796. It contains magnificent woodwork, fireplaces, furniture and a library. Florence Court, seat of the Earls of Enniskillen, has sumptuous rococo plasterwork; in the gardens is the original Florence Court yew tree (taxus baccata fastigiata) now found all over the world.