BM
Batcke's Manistee River Lodge
Wellston, MI
Fishes Manistee River
River · Northern Michigan · Michigan
Manistee River Fishing Guides and Conditions, Michigan
Michigan trout and steelhead water with two personalities: the cold upper river above Hodenpyl and the big tailwater below Tippy Dam that draws salmon and steelhead crowds.
Gauge location. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Guides on the Manistee River
Claimed profiles take booking requests. Unclaimed profiles are built from public records so the river is never empty; the guide can claim or remove one any time.
About the Manistee River
The Manistee is two rivers with one name. Above Hodenpyl Dam it is a classic northern Michigan trout stream, sand-bottomed and spring-fed, running through jack pine and cedar with wild browns, stocked rainbows and brook trout in the feeder creeks. Below Tippy Dam it is a big, powerful tailwater and one of the most productive salmon and steelhead fisheries in the Great Lakes, with a run that starts in late summer and does not really stop until spring.
The upper river is float country. Guides run drift boats and long river boats through the reaches near Sharon, Smithville and Sherman, throwing hex patterns on June nights and streamers the rest of the season, and the Manistee hex hatch is a Michigan institution worth planning a trip around. The lower river below Tippy is a different sport entirely: chinook from September, coho behind them, steelhead from October through April, fished from boats and from a heavily used bank fishery near the dam.
The Sherman gauge covers the upper river above the impoundments and is the number that matters for trout floats. Readings in the several-hundred to low-thousand cfs range are comfortable; spring melt and heavy rain push it up and color the sand-bottomed water, which clears again within a few days. Below Tippy, flows are set by the dam and run much higher, so read that reach by release schedule rather than by this gauge.
Kalkaska, Mesick and Wellston serve the upper river; Manistee and Brethren serve the tailwater. Both halves are busy in their seasons, and the salmon crowd below Tippy in September is its own experience.
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Access
CCC Bridge and Sharon: upper river access in the Manistee River State Forest.
Smithville and Sherman: mid-upper access points near the gauge, boat launches and camps.
Hodenpyl Dam Pond: the bottom of the upper trout water.
Tippy Dam Recreation Area: the famous bank fishery below the dam.
High Bridge: the standard lower-river boat launch below Tippy.
Bear Creek and Rainbow Bend: lower river access toward Manistee.
Manistee Lake and the harbor: the mouth, for run timing and pier fishing.
Seasons
April through June: trout season opens, then caddis, sulphurs and the June hex hatch at night.
July and August: terrestrials and mouse fishing after dark on the upper river.
September and October: chinook and coho below Tippy Dam, the busiest weeks of the year.
November through April: steelhead in the lower river, with a spring run that peaks around ice-out.
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Questions
What is the current flow on the Manistee River?
As of Sep 6, 2:30 am, the USGS gauge MANISTEE RIVER NEAR SHERMAN, MI reads 1,110 cfs, the 77th percentile for this date, with water temperature 63.5 F. Conditions update every 15 minutes.
What species can you catch on the Manistee River?
Anglers target Brook Trout, Brown Trout, Chinook Salmon, Rainbow Trout, Steelhead on the Manistee River in Michigan.
Are there fishing guides on the Manistee River?
GuidedFloats lists 3 guides and outfitters on the Manistee River. Claimed profiles accept booking requests; unclaimed profiles are built from public records and link to the business.
Where can you access the Manistee River?
CCC Bridge and Sharon: upper river access in the Manistee River State Forest. Smithville and Sherman: mid-upper access points near the gauge, boat launches and camps. Hodenpyl Dam Pond: the bottom of the upper trout water. Tippy Dam Recreation Area: the famous bank fishery below the dam. High Bridge: the standard lower-river boat launch below Tippy. Bear Creek and Rainbow Bend: lower river access toward Manistee. Manistee Lake and the harbor: the mouth, for run timing and pier fishing.
When is the best time to fish the Manistee River?
April through June: trout season opens, then caddis, sulphurs and the June hex hatch at night. July and August: terrestrials and mouse fishing after dark on the upper river. September and October: chinook and coho below Tippy Dam, the busiest weeks of the year. November through April: steelhead in the lower river, with a spring run that peaks around ice-out.
Where are the fishing regulations for the Manistee River?
Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Michigan agency site: https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/things-to-do/fishing/regulations