Troutline

Jordan River

Michigan·Tip of the Mitt·45.08° N, 85.10° W
Flow
195 CFS
Jordan River near East Jordan
Water Temp
—
Condition
Above Normal
Weather
72°F
Smoke
near East Jordan

Insights

Flow
195 CFS — wading range
Solid water for fishing.
Pressure
Pressure dropping
Fish often move up to feed before a front.

The Jordan runs about 25 miles off springs in the hills of Antrim County down through the Jordan Valley to Lake Charlevoix at East Jordan, and it carries a real piece of state history: in 1972 it became Michigan's first designated Natural River under the Natural Rivers Act. The whole valley sits inside an 18,000-acre protected block of the Mackinaw State Forest, so there are no dams, no bankside development, and the water runs clear and cold over cobble, sand, and endless woody structure. The brook trout here are believed to be native — unusual for a Lower Peninsula stream — and the upper river holds them in real numbers under the tag alders and cedar sweepers. Browns and rainbows fill out the resident population, with the bigger browns living in the middle and lower river.

It fishes small and technical. Up top near the headwaters it's a braided, wadeable creek you can step across in places — eager brookies in the back eddies, but tight casting under a closed canopy with beaver ponds and blowdowns to work around. Move below Graves Crossing and the river gains volume and pace fast: the middle runs a 170-190 CFS average (500-600 after a hard rain), too deep and slick-bottomed in most spots to wade safely, so most people float it. Because feeder springs and a cedar canopy hold the water below 65F even in July, hatches run a week or two behind comparable regional rivers, and the fishing carries through midsummer when freestones warm out. The signature event is the Hex (Hexagenia limbata) in late June into July, fished after dark for the biggest browns; the rest of the season leans on BWOs, caddis, and terrestrials on 5X-6X, with streamers swung over submerged logs drawing the aggressive fish.

Pressure is genuinely low for a fishery this good — the tight water, wading difficulty, and short driftable stretches keep the crowds thinner than the nearby Boyne or the Au Sable system. Best public access is the state-forest corridor around Graves Crossing and Pinney Bridge, tied to the 18-mile Jordan River Pathway and the Deadman's Hill overlook. The lower river below Webster Bridge is the "Land of the Giants," where lake-run browns, steelhead, and salmon push up out of Lake Charlevoix — though much of that stretch is private and limited to bridge-crossing and float access. Note that the Jordan River National Fish Hatchery sits in the valley, but its grounds are closed to fishing; it's a landmark, not an access point.

Species

  • Brook Trout
    Primary · May-Sep · 6-12"

    The defining fish and believed to be native — densest in the upper river above Graves Crossing under alder and cedar cover. Eager on dries in the low-pressure tight water.

  • Brown Trout
    Common · Jun-Jul (Hex), Sep-Nov · 10-20"+

    The bigger resident fish live in the middle and lower river and are night-fished during the Hex. Lake-run browns run the lower "Land of the Giants" out of Lake Charlevoix in fall.

  • Rainbow Trout
    Present · May-Sep · 8-14"

    Present throughout but secondary to the brook and brown trout. Lake Charlevoix steelhead also push into the lower river spring and fall under the extended season.

Ideal wading flow100–250 CFS
Blow-out>500 CFS
Ideal water temp50–63°F

Summer is prime — the Hex comes off after dark from late June into July, then Trico and terrestrial brook-trout fishing carries August because the spring-fed, cedar-shaded water stays below 65F when freestones warm out. Fall (September-November) brings lake-run browns, steelhead, and salmon into the lower river. Spring opens with Hendricksons after the last-Saturday-in-April opener. The middle river fishes best around its 170-190 CFS average; 500-600 CFS after hard rain is high, off-color, and dangerous to wade.

Sections

3 sections on this river

Lower Jordan — Webster Bridge to Lake Charlevoix (Land of the Giants)

FloatSteelhead · Salmon · Brown Trout · Rainbow Trout

Larger, deceptively deep flows toward the mouth at East Jordan, with deep holes below Rogers Road where Deer Creek enters. This is lake-run water — the "Land of the Giants" — mostly private and limited to bridge crossings and float fishing. East Jordan is the take-out town on Lake Charlevoix.

Best for: Lake-run brown trout, steelhead (spring and fall), and salmon (fall) on swung streamers and egg/nymph rigs under the extended season.

Middle Jordan — Graves Crossing to Webster Bridge

FloatBrook Trout · Brown Trout · Rainbow Trout · Northern Pike

Swift, deeper water below the M-66 crossing that averages 170-190 CFS and spikes to 500-600 after rain. Deep holes and slippery clay bottoms make wading dangerous, so most fish it as a float from the Graves Crossing state-forest campground put-in. Named holes — "Beer Cooler," "Brown Trout Alley," "Lawyers Lounge" — give up the river's biggest resident browns, and this is the heart of the after-dark Hex fishing. The USGS gauge near East Jordan (04127800) anchors the lower end of this reach.

Best for: Brown trout on streamers swung over submerged logs and Hex dries at night, with brook trout on the seams.

Upper Jordan — Headwaters to Graves Crossing

WadeBrook Trout · Rainbow Trout

A small, braided, wadeable spring creek winding through the Mackinaw State Forest — cobble and sand bottom, heavy woody cover, tag alders, a cedar canopy, and beaver habitat. Tight, technical casting around blowdowns and back eddies. Mostly state land with good public access off the Jordan River Pathway, Pinney Bridge, and the Deadman's Hill overlook. No watercraft is permitted above Graves Crossing, so this is wade-only water.

Best for: Wild, native brook trout on dries (BWO, terrestrials) and small streamers, on 5X-6X in low-pressure tight water.

Regulations

Current fishing rules and restrictions

The Jordan splits into two regulatory zones at Graves Crossing (M-66). Above it, headwaters to Graves Crossing is a Type 1 trout stream on the standard inland-trout season with all-tackle regulations; no watercraft is permitted above Graves Crossing. Below it, Graves Crossing to the Lake Charlevoix mouth is a Type 4 trout stream with an extended season for steelhead and salmon in the lower river.

  • Headwaters to Graves Crossing (Type 1): standard inland-trout season, last Saturday in April through September 30, all-tackle / all-species trout regulations. No flies-only or gear restriction currently in force.
  • No watercraft permitted above Graves Crossing.
  • Graves Crossing to the mouth (Type 4): extended season for steelhead and salmon in the lower river.
  • Michigan all-species fishing license required (age 17+); trout stamp per current DNR rules.

Michigan designates trout reaches by gear type (Type 1 general through Type 4) and changes them annually — the sign at the access point sets the rules, not the river as a whole. A flies-only / gear-restriction proposal for the upper river was pushed around 2022 but not adopted. Reconfirm the Type 1/Type 4 boundary and season dates against the current DNR digest before a trip.

Source: Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Regulations change annually — verify before fishing.

Access & Logistics

Getting there, fly shops, and lodging

Getting There

East Jordan, MI

~4-4.5 hrs N of Detroit and ~3.5 hrs N of Grand Rapids; Gaylord (shops) is ~40 min SE. Nearest commercial air is Pellston (PLN) or Traverse City (TVC).

Fly Shops

Camping & Lodging

Lodging is state-forest camping plus town lodging in East Jordan, Boyne City, and Boyne Falls. Pinney Bridge is a 15-site walk-in state-forest campground on the Jordan River Pathway; Graves Crossing has 10 barrier-free rustic sites at the primary float put-in. Boyne Mountain Resort and Charlevoix add more rooms nearby.

Public access centers on the Mackinaw State Forest corridor — Graves Crossing, Pinney Bridge, and the Deadman's Hill overlook / 18-mile Jordan River Pathway. No watercraft is allowed above Graves Crossing. The lower river below Webster Bridge is largely private, limited to bridge crossings and float fishing. The Jordan River National Fish Hatchery is in the valley but closed to fishing.

Conditions data is live from public monitoring networks. Regulations change annually — always verify current rules with your state fish & wildlife agency before fishing.

More in Michigan

View all 12 rivers

Tip of the Mitt

Pigeon RiverMI

The Pigeon threads the wildest country in Michigan's Lower Peninsula — the 106,000-acre Pigeon River Country State Forest, home of the state's elk herd. A cold, spring-fed, tannin-tinted stream holding wild brook, brown, and rainbow trout, it fishes small and technical up top and opens to lake-run browns near Mullett Lake. Blue Ribbon and Natural River water.

Sturgeon RiverMI

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Other regions

Au Sable RiverMI

The spring-fed river American trout conservation was born on — Trout Unlimited was founded on its banks in 1959, and the flies-only, catch-and-release "Holy Water" below Grayling still grows wild browns and brookies. It's a match-the-hatch dry-fly river whose signature event is the after-dark Hexagenia hatch in late June.

Boardman RiverMI

A spring-fed wild-trout river running from the Forks down to West Grand Traverse Bay in downtown Traverse City — also known as the Ottaway River. It's the water the Adams dry fly was born on, and after one of the Midwest's largest dam-removal projects it runs free again from the headwaters to the bay: wild brook trout up top, heavy browns and a famous night Hex hatch in the middle, and a lower reach that warms into steelhead and salmon water.

Lower Manistee RiverMI

The big migratory tailwater below Tippy Dam near Wellston — thousands of Lake Michigan steelhead, Chinook, and coho stack under the dam, drawing spey swingers and drift boats fall through spring, over a resident 20-inch-plus brown trout fishery in the cold water up top.

Muskegon RiverMI

West Michigan's do-everything tailwater below Croton Dam — cold, steady Consumers Energy releases hold wild browns and rainbows up top while some of the Great Lakes' heaviest steelhead and king-salmon runs stack the length of it. A big drift-boat river and Midwest spey destination, famous for its Gray Drake hatch.

Pere Marquette RiverMI

Michigan's blue-ribbon spring creek and a National Wild & Scenic river — the famous 8.5-mile flies-only, catch-and-release water from M-37 to Gleason's Landing grows wild browns descended from the first brown trout ever stocked in North America, and the lower river fills with Lake Michigan steelhead, Chinook, and coho on the fall and spring runs. Log-jam water fished by wade and low-profile drift boat, with a signature after-dark Hex hatch in late June.

Pine RiverMI

The fastest trout river in the northern Lower Peninsula — a cold, gravel-bottomed freestone that drops roughly seven feet per mile above Tippy Dam. Everything in it is wild: two strains of brown, headwater brook trout, and an unusual population of acrobatic McCloud-strain rainbows. A National Scenic River, and one of Michigan's busiest summer canoe runs, so fish it early, late, or after Labor Day. Trout season only — closed October 1 through late April.