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Betsie-Platte weekend fly fishing trip
33 waters in the Betsie-Platte watershed, Michigan, have a page here, the largest of them Betsie River, Platte River and Leland River. May, June and July carry the most recorded hatches, 19 insects in May, 26 insects in June and 24 insects in July. In range: 8 blocks of public land with a page of their own, 8 state-forest campgrounds and 6 fly shops. Everything below is measured or published — no ranking on this page is ours.
The water
| Water | Miles | July mean |
|---|---|---|
| Betsie River | 57.2 | — |
| Platte River | 32.6 | — |
| Leland River | 15.8 | — |
| Crystal River | 10.7 | — |
| Cedar Run | 10.2 | — |
| Bowens Creek | 8.2 | — |
| Little Betsie River | 8.0 | — |
| Rice Creek | 8.0 | — |
| Schimke Creek | 7.5 | — |
| Cold Creek | 7.0 | — |
| Crystal Lake Outlet | 6.7 | — |
| Houdek Creek | 6.3 | — |
| Mason Creek | 6.3 | — |
| North Branch Platte River | 6.3 | — |
| Victoria Creek | 6.2 | — |
| Carter Creek | 5.6 | — |
| Dair Creek | 5.3 | — |
| Herring Creek | 5.2 | — |
| Shalda Creek | 4.5 | — |
| Kinney Creek | 4.3 | — |
| Merbert Creek | 4.2 | — |
| Pickerel Creek | 4.1 | — |
| Shetland Creek | 3.4 | — |
| Stanley Creek | 3.4 | — |
| Toohey Creek | 3.3 | — |
| Brundage Creek | 3.1 | — |
| Round Lake Creek | 3.1 | — |
| Collison Creek | 3.0 | — |
| Otter Creek | 3.0 | — |
| Clearbrook Creek | 2.9 | — |
| Hansen Creek | 2.4 | — |
| Lime Creek | 2.2 | — |
| Herring Lake Outlet | 1.1 | — |
Ordered by mapped length. July mean is measured at the USGS gauges standing in each river; a dash means no gauge on it reports temperature.
A 3-day plan
Betsie River
Nearest listed access: Kurick Road (canoe launch), 1.6 mi, or County Line Bridge (canoe launch), 1.9 mi.
Platte River
Nearest listed access: Turtle Lake (boat launch), 2.6 mi, or Grass Lake State Forest Campground (boat launch), 4.0 mi.
Leland River
No site in the state's access file falls within twelve miles of this water's centre, so the way in is public ground and road crossings.
Assembled, not written: the days are the largest waters in range, longest first, and each one carries the nearest site in Michigan's own access file — measured from the middle of the water, so it is a place to start looking rather than a landing on that river. Fish them in whatever order the weather gives you.
Hatches to hit
The months with the most recorded hatches in northern lower Michigan: May (19), June (26), July (24).
| Insect | Months | Hook |
|---|---|---|
| Fish Eggs | October–January and April | #10–16 |
| Little Black Stonefly | January–April | #16–18 |
| Little Brown Stonefly | February–April | #12–16 |
| Blue-Winged Olive | March–May and September–November | #16–22 |
| Blackfly | April–June | #18–22 |
| Blue Quill | April–May | #16–18 |
| Cranefly | April–June and September–October | #6–10 |
| Grannom | April–May | #14–16 |
| Green Rock Worm / Green Weenie | April–June and September–October | #10–14 |
| Hendrickson | April–May | #12–14 |
| Little Black Caddis | April–May | #16–20 |
| Alderfly | May–June | #10–14 |
| Caterpillar | May–September | #8–14 |
| Crayfish | May–October | #4–8 |
Recorded from northern lower Michigan, earliest first. The year-round records sit at the bottom because they are true and they are not news.
Public land in range
- Platte River Fish Hatchery — 3.0 mi
- Grass Lake Flooding State Wildlife Management Area — 4.7 mi
- Interlochen to Kaleva Trail — 5.5 mi
- Betsie Valley State Trail — 7.5 mi
- MNRTF Parcel 1 — 7.7 mi
- Lake DuBonnet Flooding State Wildlife Management Area — 8.8 mi
- Misty Acres: The Borwell Preserve — 9.5 mi
- Betsie River State Game Area — 12.7 mi
Blocks of ground with a page of their own, nearest first. Ownership from PAD-US as Michigan publishes it.
Camping and lodging
| Campground | Distance | Operator |
|---|---|---|
| Platte River State Forest Campground (fee) | 2.4 mi | MDNR |
| Veterans Memorial State Forest Campground (fee) | 2.6 mi | MDNR |
| Grass Lake State Forest Campground (fee) | 5.1 mi | MDNR |
| Lake Ann State Forest Campground (fee) | 7.5 mi | MDNR |
| Lake Dubonnet State Forest Campground (fee) | 8.2 mi | MDNR |
| Lake Dubonnet Trail Camp (fee) | 8.3 mi | MDNR |
| Interlochen Duck Lake-Modern (fee) | 8.8 mi | MDNR |
| Interlochen Green Lake-Rustic (fee) | 8.8 mi | MDNR |
State-forest and state-park campgrounds from Michigan's own file. This site holds no hotel or motel data and does not pretend to: what it can tell you is where the public ground is.
Fly shops
- The Northern Angler — 18.3 mi, Traverse City
- Streamside Orvis — 18.6 mi, Traverse City
- Hawkins Outfitters — 18.8 mi, Traverse City
- Andy's Tackle Box — 22.1 mi, Brethren
- Schmidt Outfitters — 28.0 mi, Wellston
- North Shore Outfitters — 38.5 mi, Northport
From OpenStreetMap and a curated list, across all five states on this site. Call before you drive — a shop in a file is not a shop that is open.
Before you go
- Michigan regulations
- Michigan fishing report
- Betsie-Platte watershed
- Betsie River
- Platte River
- Leland River
- Crystal River
- Cedar Run
- Bowens Creek