Northern Michigan Fishing Report – Steelhead & Trout Conditions | April 30, 2026

Welcome to your Northern Angler fishing report. This is Marco Ross giving you the lowdown on what we are seeing on the water.

Manistee River

Flows are coming down in the upper river with good clarity from Lucas Road on up. Flows are still high, so please use caution when wading or floating. The boys at the shop, along with Ed McCoy, were able to get out and clear fallen trees to make the river navigable again. On the upper Manistee, M-72 to Sharon has been cleared, and we are continuing to work on the water below that as there are still some large trees down.

We haven’t been out much this past week, but when we did get out, it was a pretty slow bite. We saw a few hennies and some stoneflies, but the high water has helped the fish move up for them. Our best game has been throwing larger flies and trying to solicit an aggressive territorial bite rather than a hunger bite on more natural patterns.

The water below Tippy is still off-color but has dropped significantly since the last report. Fish larger nymphs or egg imitations to help fish locate your fly. Once clarity improves, brown trout fishing should really start to pick up. For the time being, fishing should be focused on the first few miles below the dam, as the creeks flowing into the river are still adding sediment to an already colored-up system.

Boardman River

The upper Boardman, from Brown Bridge on up, is still high but fishable. Your best approach right now is throwing streamers and fishing all the slow pockets along the banks and inside bends. Flies in the 2–4 inch range should do the trick, with yellows and olives working best for us.

Covering water has been key, as the fish are full from all the worms introduced into the river. Finding an aggressive fish and invading its zone has been our best bet for a bite.

Fishing should only continue to improve as water levels come back into shape, and we should start seeing trout come up for mayflies soon. May and June are fantastic times to target trout. We typically start off throwing streamers, then hope to see some bugs later in the day. It’s a great way to mix multiple tactics in hopes of fooling our weary trout.

Give us a call to book a trip or stop into the shop for more up-to-date river reports, help picking out flies, or getting set up with a new outfit. We’ve got your back!