BirdTroutOpen the map How to get to the Manistee River, Michigan
MDNR's access file puts 26 public sites on the Manistee River — 2 walk-in sites and 24 launches, spread over Crawford, Kalkaska, Manistee, Missaukee and Wexford. 28 blocks of public land touch the river, which is where you can stand without asking — 375,802 acres between them, counting each unit whole rather than the part beside the water. The nearest town we map is Traverse City, 12.1 miles from the river's midpoint in a straight line, with the water south of the town.
Nearest towns
| Town | Distance | Direction to the river |
|---|---|---|
| Traverse City | 12.1 mi | south |
| Cadillac | 25.0 mi | north-west |
| Grayling | 42.9 mi | west |
| Roscommon | 49.0 mi | west |
Straight-line distance from the river's midpoint, and the direction you would travel from the town to reach it. The roads are not mapped here, so there is no drive time — a travel time nobody measured is the kind of number that gets somebody lost.
Public access sites
| Site | Type | River mile | County |
|---|---|---|---|
| M-72 (fee) | canoe launch | 166.6 | — |
| Hole in the Wall | canoe launch | 162.7 | — |
| Hole in the Fence | canoe launch | 161.6 | — |
| Tree Farm | canoe launch | 160.5 | — |
| Yellow Trees Landing | canoe launch | 156.8 | — |
| Burnt Cabin (fee) | canoe launch | 152.6 | — |
| CCC Bridge State Forest Campground (fee) | canoe launch | 150.0 | — |
| 4 Mile Bend (fee) | canoe launch | 148.3 | — |
| 3 Mile Bend (fee) | canoe launch | 146.0 | — |
| West Sharon Road (fee) | canoe launch | 139.7 | — |
| Tin Can (fee) | canoe launch | 135.1 | — |
| Sand Banks (fee) | canoe launch | 132.9 | — |
| Smithville (fee) | boat launch | 129.3 | — |
| Rainbow Jim Bridge (fee) | boat launch | 119.3 | — |
| Lucas Road (fee) | boat launch | 114.4 | — |
| US-131 Roadside Park (fee) | boat launch | 102.3 | — |
| Old US-131 SFCG (fee) | canoe launch | 100.2 | — |
| Baxter Bridge (fee) | boat launch | 89.0 | — |
| Harvey Bridge (fee) | boat launch | 68.6 | — |
| Manistee River Woodpecker Creek | walk in | 50.3 | Manistee |
| Tippy Dam State Recreation Area Upper (fee) | boat launch | 32.5 | — |
| Manistee River Tippy Dam South | walk in | 32.4 | Manistee |
| Tippy Dam State Recreation Area Lower (fee) | boat launch | 32.1 | — |
| Bridge Street | boat launch | 2.9 | — |
| Arthur Street (fee) | boat launch | 1.9 | — |
| First Street (fee) | boat launch | 0.3 | — |
2 walk-in, 24 launches, from MDNR's own access file. River mile is measured up from the mouth along this river's drawn axis.
Public land on the water
- Traverse City Management Unit — Michigan DNR, 113,281 acres in all
- Cadillac Management Unit — Michigan DNR, 59,656 acres in all
- Pere Marquette State Forest - Cadillac Unit — Michigan Department of Natural Resources, 49,904 acres in all
- Manistee National Forest - Manistee Ranger District — United States Forest Service, 33,473 acres in all
- Au Sable State Forest - Grayling Unit — Michigan Department of Natural Resources, 31,565 acres in all
- Pere Marquette State Forest - Traverse City Unit — Michigan Department of Natural Resources, 25,982 acres in all
- Cadillac State Forest Area — State Dept. of Natural Resources, 24,323 acres in all
- Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit — Michigan Department of Natural Resources, 16,147 acres in all
- Manistee National Forest — U.S. Forest Service, 6,918 acres in all
- Kirtland Warbler Unit Manistee — State Dept. of Natural Resources, 5,302 acres in all
- Manistee River State Game Area — Michigan Department of Natural Resources, 4,033 acres in all
- Camp Grayling Military Reservation — State Dept. of Natural Resources, 2,846 acres in all
- Public Water Access Site — Michigan DNR, 1,011 acres in all
- Consumers Power Co. — OTHF, 333 acres in all
- Manistee, Michigan Wild And Scenic River — DESG, 311 acres in all
- Grayling Management Unit — Michigan DNR, 275 acres in all
- Manistee River — Michigan DNR, 168 acres in all
- Tippy Dam State Recreation Area — public, 105 acres in all
- Manistee River Roadside Park — public, 79 acres in all
- Douglas Recreation Area / First Street Beach / Lighthouse Park — City, 29 acres in all
- Village Park — City, 18 acres in all
- Kohn Family Nature Preserve — public, 17 acres in all
- Douglas Park — public, 14 acres in all
- North Riverwalk And Veterans Memorial Park — public, 4 acres in all
- Veterans Memorial Community Park — public, 3 acres in all
- Manistee Municipal Marina Park — public, 2 acres in all
- U.s. Coast Guard - Station Manistee — public, 2 acres in all
- Rainbow Jim's — public, 1 acre in all
Ownership from PAD-US as the state publishes it. Where a block has its own page, the name links to it.
More about Manistee River
Manistee River — live water temperature, regulations and access
- Is the Manistee River good for brook trout?
- Is the Manistee River good for brown trout?
- Is the Manistee River good for rainbow trout?
- When to fish the Manistee River, Michigan
- Manistee River fishing report
- Manistee River fishing regulations