Northern Michigan Fishing Report – Steelhead & Trout Conditions | April 24, 2026
Trout Opening Weekend!
Opening Day weekend is upon us and we are really excited to be switching gears from a wash out of a spring steelhead season to TROUT!! The rivers and creeks are all still swollen from the snow melt and rains here in the North Country. Please exercise caution when wading and take a saw with you if you are planning on floating any of the area rivers. The water is up and dirty in many areas, and things have really moved around with the flooding. BE CAREFUL! I would really recommend fishing up higher in river systems and hit some small creeks. The temperatures have been great and there will be hendricksons out in the afternoons, but be prepared with streamers and nymphs. Marco was out with some clients on the Upper Manistee fishing streamers and the visibility is really good, but the waters are still up. There are some road closures to consider as well. This high water will really be great for the streams once we hit the late summer months and the fish have been really well fed with so many worms over the past couple of weeks.
I was down on the Manistee River this week checking out access points and river flows and Cliff took a motorcycle ride to get a gauge on where we are in being able to fish certain areas as we look to target fish with streamers. The Lower Manistee River below Tippy is going to take a few weeks to settle down and get ready for a bumper crop of mosquitoes! The Lower Middle sections of the Manistee have clarity but the river is out of the banks in many places. The rivers will really start to get into shape from the top down, so focus your efforts on the upper reaches of your favorite river.
Manistee River Report
The Big Manistee Below Tippy is still really high and dirty, with limited visibility. Steelhead may still be around in limited numbers, but the water temperatures have been in the mid 50”s so the fish are spawning and leaving pretty quickly. I am looking forward to the waters below Tippy to get in shape for some pre-spawn bass action, we shall see. Looking at the access points below the dam down to Bear Creek and Rainbow bend, I found the water was still over the banks in those areas and water was all through the woods. In 30 years of guiding I have never witnessed the water at these levels. It is quite amazing.
Upper Manistee River Report
The “flies only” section of the Manistee River is going to be in good shape for the opener, just bigger than normal. The clarity is in great shape and Cliff said he saw some feeding activity on the surface when he was checking things out the other day. Be careful below CCC Bridge! There will be log jams in the choke points and a group of guides will work on those sections next week. My advice is to focus your fishing from the Deward Section to CCC Bridge for the next week. Be prepared with Hendricksons and Stoneflies for dries and go heavy on streamers and nymphs. Sparkle minnows, mini dungeons, circus peanuts should be in your arsenal!
Platte River
The Platte River is in excellent shape, and there should be a few steelhead around if you are targeting trout in this river, be prepared to see a steelhead around here or there. Nymphs and streamers would be my choice on this watershed for trout.
Boardman Ottaway River
The Boardman-Ottaway River in the upper sections will be in better shape than from Garfield Road downstream. Fishing with streamers and nymphs will be key in the upper reaches of this river. Your energy should be placed on fishing for a bit and moving to the next spot. This strategy should prove successful this weekend.
Enjoy the weekend everyone and stop by the shop for some fresh leader and tippet, flies, wader repair kits and a new fly line! We will be open 7 days a week starting this week! See you soon.