Manistee River Trout Report

The Upper Manistee River Trout Fishing report for the Middle of June has us still grinding.   The water levels are still up 3- 4″ above normal for this time of year. It’s been a long drying out period since the flood this spring, but we have had a few more rainy days and several more in the forecast.

Heading into the weekend the upper sections near 72 have been clearing and dropping quicker with a big drop in morning temps around 54 this morning. We were seeing daytime highs around 65-68 last week so a cool down was needed, but I hope it doesn’t last as long as the forecast predicts.  We were ahead of schedule on the hatches, but this week is going to probably put us behind last year on timing. Only time will tell.

Current Conditions

Fishing showed a lot of improvement a couple of weeks ago, but this past week was up and down.  The warmer weather had our water temps staying pretty warm and the bugs were really inconsistent at best. The hatches really sped up last week in the warmup, increased water temps and evening temps also compressed the bite window into the last hour of the day.

The daytime bite suffered on most days in the heat, but we are entering a big cold front that is going to last well into the weekend.  Insect activity late last week into the weekend was very weak for the most part. This is not what I expected, and more insect species are phasing out and we are now in the tweener stage of June as we transition into Hex.  At this point I would be surprised to see them before next week. 

Despite the warmer weather, the spinner falls were mostly nonexistent. The Sulphurs and Mahoganies have run their course along with the Brown Drakes have in the lower sections, fishing this hatch was very frustrating this year and the Houdini Hatch was on full display. 

Hatch Matching Opportunities 

The dry fly fishing improved and then got weird again as the week progressed.  The fishing really got pushed back closer to dark with the hotter weather.  Isonychia fired up this week and then fizzled in the heat. Most of the hatching occurred right before dark. Sunday was a great Iso day as temps dropped substantially and we had a light drizzle all afternoon.  We are looking at a big week for Isonychia with the cold front.  

We had some good numbers of Iso spinners in the air yesterday, but parr for the course they did not spin to the water.  This week will be a grind as our water temps will probably get too low for a lot of good hatching days, but hopefully that changes as the week moves along.  There are still some Bat flies in the evening so don’t forget to keep a small fat Borcher on deck.  We also had Olive Stones, Yellow Sallies, Alder Flies, Golden Stones, Dark Sallies, Pteronarcys Stones, Light Cahills, Yellow Cahills, and a massive hatch of Apple Green Sulphurs.  there hasn’t been any epic hatches yet, but they are doing their thing.  

Brown Drakes have been present in the upper sections this week, but this cold front will probably send them into hiding.  The Isonychia will be our only real hope this week in the cold front until the Hex starts.  At this point the river is going to have to warm pretty substantially before we see the big bugs show up. We have lost 5-6 degrees in most of our sections for our morning Low Temp in the last two days.

Make Your Cast Count

Presentation has still been key. Light tippet, clean drifts, and accurate casts are making the difference for success.  The lighter tippets have been making it harder to win the brawls with our bigger fish, but it’s been necessary to get the bites before dusk.  Blind fishing bigger dries and dry-dropper rigs can help cover water between rising fish. Conditions should improve with stable weather. I’ll take stability in the weather any week, hot or cold, while chasing the hatches. 

Streamer Bite

Streamer fishing on the Upper Manistee has been put on hold for us at the current moment.  The bite windows have been there on the overcast and stormy days, but with the warmer weather our hatches have been our main focus.  Early mornings will be best time to go before the water temps hit 60 in the afternoon. Lamprey imitations have been some of the best producers, especially when worked low and slow through deeper runs, logjams, and undercut banks. On brighter, sunny days, sparkle minnows have been a strong choice, giving off enough flash to grab attention. Vary your retrieve, pause often, and focus on structure where larger trout can ambush an easy meal.

Didymo

Consider the ENTIRE RIVER TO BE CONTAMINATED and treat it as such. Clean, Drain, Dry your gear before entering another Body of Water.  Currently, there are no known effective methods to eradicate didymo once it is established in a river.  To prevent spreading Didymo and other aquatic invasive species, it is critical to thoroughly Clean, Drain and Dry waders, equipment, and boats upon leaving a waterway.

• Clean by removing mud and debris from all surfaces.
• Use a 10% Solution of Dishwashing Soap with hot water for 10 minutes (Example 1 gallon of water is 12.8 oz of Dawn Soap). Then it must dry for 48 hours (mandatory if your fishing different water systems)

New Summer Swag

New Hats and a New Brown Trout T are in stock now. 

Trout Guide Trips 

We have very limited openings available during the peak hatch season. Make sure to book your dates now for 2026!  If you’re looking to book a Trout Guide Trip you can reach us at 231-631-5701 (leave a message or text) or shoot us an email. 

Tight Lines,

Ed