Michigan Flies
Leaping rainbow trout

Michigan Flies

Scientifically selected and hand-tiedfor Great Lakes State rivers

What should be on the end of my line?

Four questions. The answer is a ranked box for that river on that date, with the reasons.

Fish
SetupWhat do these mean?

Pick every rig you're carrying. “Other” ranks by timing alone.

How much to trust the answer

  • SScientific. Papers, DNR, USGS.
  • AAngler consensus. Shop charts, guides.
  • IInferred. Our extension, marked.

Every line in the ranked box carries one. About the data

Caught on our flies

Spring steelhead in May, fall Chinook in September, on the Two Hearted, on patterns tied at our bench. The calendar behind this site is the same one we fish.

Pick your river

44 reaches in the five regions of the DNR weekly fishing report. The U.P. runs about three weeks behind the Au Sable; the southwest runs ten days ahead. Every dot on the plate is a river page.

Au Sable River (Holy Waters and Main Stream to McMasters)Au Sable River, North BranchAu Sable River, South Branch (Mason Tract)Au Sable River below Mio (Trophy Water to Alcona)Au Sable River below Foote DamManistee River, Upper (CR 612 to CCC Bridge)Big Manistee River below Tippy DamLittle Manistee RiverPine River (Manistee tributary)Boardman RiverJordan RiverPigeon River (Pigeon River Country)Sturgeon River (Cheboygan County)Black River (Otsego and Montmorency Counties)Platte RiverBetsie RiverRifle RiverPere Marquette RiverMuskegon River below Croton DamBig Sable River above Hamlin LakeBig Sable River below Hamlin Lake (Ludington State Park)White RiverRogue RiverGrand River (Sixth Street Dam)St. Joseph River (Berrien Springs)Kalamazoo RiverDowagiac RiverHuron River (Proud Lake, Ann Arbor, Flat Rock)Clinton River and Paint CreekTwo Hearted RiverBlind Sucker RiverFox River (Seney)Escanaba RiverOntonagon RiverCarp River (Mackinac County)Chocolay RiverBig Huron River (Baraga County)Yellow Dog RiverPresque Isle RiverSturgeon River (Baraga and Houghton Counties)St. Marys River (Sault rapids)Tahquamenon RiverAnna RiverSalmon Trout River
  • Southeast Lower
  • Southwest Lower
  • Northeast Lower
  • Northwest Lower
  • Upper Peninsula

Southeast Lower Peninsula

-14 d vs Au SableAll 2 rivers

Southwest Lower Peninsula

-14 to -10 d vs Au SableAll 7 rivers

Northeast Lower Peninsula

0 to +10 d vs Au SableAll 9 rivers

Northwest Lower Peninsula

-8 to +14 d vs Au SableAll 11 rivers

Upper Peninsula

+18 to +21 d vs Au SableAll 15 rivers

Most asked for

From the Two Hearted box, our first batch. Each fly with the natural it imitates and the grade of the evidence behind it. Sales will reorder this list once checkout opens.

The whole Two Hearted boxAll 136 patterns

From the river

Our own photographs from the Two Hearted, 2022 to 2026. Every fish in them took a fly we tied. The water behind them is the river's own tannin over sand.

More from our trips on the Two Hearted page

How much to trust each line

S

Scientific or agency. Peer-reviewed papers, Michigan DNR reports and weir counts, university checklists, USGS gauges. Thin for hatches: Hex degree days, Michigan caddis being date-driven, a steelhead movement model, two DNR diet studies.

A

Angler consensus. Fly shop hatch charts, guides, magazines. Most Michigan-specific dates rest here, and the site says so rather than dressing them up.

I

Inferred. Our reasonable extension when no source spoke to Michigan. Marked so you can weigh it yourself.

Live numbers on the board are USGS provisional readings. Calendar windows shift by river region and are gated by water temperature within a week of your date. About the data.