Current Works Guide Service

Ted Kraimer breaks the Boardman into three: an upper river of brook trout, a middle section below the old Brown Bridge dam that holds brookies and browns, and a lower river running from the Union Street dam through Traverse City into West Grand Traverse Bay. The access points he names are Ranch Rudolph, The Forks, Sheck’s Place, Trail Camp and Brown Bridge Road on the upper water, a few bridge crossings and Schumsky’s on the middle, and Beitner Road below that. This is wading water rather than boat water, with overhanging trees on the upper river that reward a roll cast. Steelhead are caught through the fall, winter and spring, salmon push in from late August, and the lower river also gives up smallmouth, rainbows, pike, walleye and lake trout.