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Fly fishing near Gaylord, Michigan
114 waters with a page on this site lie within 30 miles of Gaylord, Michigan — North Branch Au Sable River, Intermediate River and Jordan River among them. 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 7 fly shops. Everything below is measured or published — no ranking on this page is ours.
The water
| Water | Distance | Miles | July mean |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Branch Au Sable River | 16.3 mi | 37.0 | — |
| Intermediate River | 24.3 mi | 35.5 | — |
| Jordan River | 20.0 mi | 35.1 | — |
| West Branch Big Creek | 22.1 mi | 33.8 | — |
| North Branch Boardman River | 29.7 mi | 27.3 | — |
| East Branch Big Creek | 23.2 mi | 25.6 | — |
| Torch River | 27.0 mi | 20.0 | — |
| Bear River | 21.4 mi | 19.6 | — |
| North Branch Manistee River | 28.4 mi | 19.4 | — |
| West Branch Sturgeon River | 13.9 mi | 18.6 | — |
| East Branch Au Sable River | 20.0 mi | 17.7 | — |
| Rapid River | 26.8 mi | 17.0 | — |
| Pine River | 25.9 mi | 15.5 | — |
| Middle Branch Big Creek | 21.4 mi | 12.5 | — |
| Cedar River | 21.7 mi | 11.6 | — |
| Deer Creek | 19.8 mi | 11.3 | — |
| Club Stream | 10.8 mi | 11.2 | — |
| South Branch Boyne River | 15.5 mi | 11.2 | — |
| Kolke Creek | 16.1 mi | 10.7 | — |
| Mill Creek | 22.6 mi | 9.5 | — |
| Black Creek | 26.9 mi | 9.5 | — |
| Crooked Creek | 28.9 mi | 8.6 | — |
| Warner Creek | 17.4 mi | 8.5 | — |
| Porter Creek | 21.5 mi | 8.5 | — |
| Goose Creek | 21.4 mi | 8.1 | — |
| Crapo Creek | 17.1 mi | 8.0 | — |
| Grass River | 25.7 mi | 8.0 | — |
| Horton Creek | 24.5 mi | 7.8 | — |
| Inwood Creek | 29.0 mi | 7.8 | — |
| North Branch Spring Brook | 18.2 mi | 7.5 | — |
| Grass Creek | 25.2 mi | 7.5 | — |
| Wright Creek | 24.8 mi | 7.3 | — |
| Haymeadow Creek | 22.0 mi | 7.1 | — |
| Monroe Creek | 25.7 mi | 7.1 | — |
| Portage Creek | 26.9 mi | 7.1 | — |
| Green River | 18.0 mi | 6.9 | — |
| McGeach Creek | 28.9 mi | 6.7 | — |
| Stewart Creek | 12.4 mi | 6.6 | — |
| Bradford Creek | 17.3 mi | 6.6 | — |
| North Branch Boyne River | 15.9 mi | 6.3 | — |
| South Branch Spring Brook | 16.9 mi | 6.1 | — |
| Boyne River | 18.6 mi | 6.0 | — |
| Minnehaha Creek | 20.5 mi | 6.0 | — |
| Susan Creek | 26.7 mi | 5.8 | — |
| Sohn Creek | 27.3 mi | 5.8 | — |
| Skinner Creek | 26.9 mi | 5.6 | — |
| North Branch Cedar River | 20.4 mi | 5.5 | — |
| Hay Marsh Creek | 19.2 mi | 5.4 | — |
| Crofton Creek | 29.9 mi | 5.3 | — |
| Mud Creek | 20.1 mi | 5.2 | — |
| Wilkinson Creek | 27.3 mi | 5.2 | — |
| Chub Creek | 16.9 mi | 5.0 | — |
| Collins Creek | 17.9 mi | 4.7 | — |
| Barker Creek | 25.2 mi | 4.7 | — |
| Little Rapid River | 26.5 mi | 4.6 | — |
| Marion Creek | 26.4 mi | 4.4 | — |
| Paradine Creek | 27.8 mi | 4.3 | — |
| Marl Creek | 14.6 mi | 4.2 | — |
| Mill Creek | 19.2 mi | 4.2 | — |
| Woolcott Creek | 20.6 mi | 4.2 | — |
| Collar Creek | 26.0 mi | 4.1 | — |
| Sheridan Creek | 21.3 mi | 4.0 | — |
| Schoofs Creek | 22.2 mi | 4.0 | — |
| Kocher Creek | 20.7 mi | 3.9 | — |
| Bennett Creek | 22.5 mi | 3.9 | — |
| Finch Creek | 23.4 mi | 3.9 | — |
| Failing Creek | 28.6 mi | 3.8 | — |
| Moyer Creek | 16.7 mi | 3.7 | — |
| Barger Creek | 20.7 mi | 3.6 | — |
| Marvon Creek | 19.3 mi | 3.5 | — |
| Guyer Creek | 28.3 mi | 3.5 | — |
| Cascade Creek | 17.6 mi | 3.4 | — |
| Frenchman Creek | 17.9 mi | 3.4 | — |
| Stevens Creek | 17.9 mi | 3.4 | — |
| Eastport Creek | 27.4 mi | 3.4 | — |
| Morrison Creek | 26.8 mi | 3.3 | — |
| Brown Creek | 22.6 mi | 3.1 | — |
| Cold Creek | 22.9 mi | 3.1 | — |
| Allen Creek | 13.9 mi | 3.0 | — |
| Licks Creek | 16.4 mi | 3.0 | — |
| West Branch Minnehaha Creek | 19.8 mi | 3.0 | — |
| Mason Creek | 26.9 mi | 3.0 | — |
| Bartholomew Creek | 21.7 mi | 2.9 | — |
| Blackjack Creek | 12.6 mi | 2.8 | — |
| Todd Creek | 21.2 mi | 2.8 | — |
| Hauenstein Creek | 25.5 mi | 2.8 | — |
| Whisky Creek | 29.4 mi | 2.8 | — |
| Stanniger Creek | 20.8 mi | 2.7 | — |
| Rattlesnake Creek | 18.7 mi | 2.6 | — |
| Saunders Creek | 14.5 mi | 2.5 | — |
| Schoolhouse Creek | 17.5 mi | 2.5 | — |
| Hitchcock Creek | 22.1 mi | 2.5 | — |
| Wakeley Creek | 28.5 mi | 2.5 | — |
| Gimlet Creek | 18.1 mi | 2.4 | — |
| Severance Creek | 20.7 mi | 2.4 | — |
| Landslide Creek | 17.5 mi | 2.1 | — |
| Fisk Creek | 23.8 mi | 2.1 | — |
| Simpson Creek | 25.6 mi | 2.1 | — |
| Shanty Creek | 22.7 mi | 2.0 | — |
| Barker Creek | 28.3 mi | 2.0 | — |
| Cramer Creek | 16.9 mi | 1.9 | — |
| Scott Creek | 19.3 mi | 1.9 | — |
| Lilak Creek | 20.8 mi | 1.9 | — |
| Antrim Creek | 28.7 mi | 1.9 | — |
| Desmond Creek | 27.6 mi | 1.7 | — |
| Spring Brook | 18.6 mi | 1.5 | — |
| Kuznick Creek | 16.4 mi | 1.3 | — |
| Section Thirteen Creek | 17.0 mi | 1.3 | — |
| Crow Creek | 23.7 mi | 1.3 | — |
| Liscon Creek | 24.3 mi | 0.7 | — |
| North Branch Flies-Only — named stretch | 16.3 mi | — | — |
| The Pigeon Artificial-Lures Water — named stretch | 16.5 mi | — | — |
| Holy Water — named stretch | 25.3 mi | — | — |
| Flies-Only Water — named stretch | 27.9 mi | — | — |
Straight-line distance from the middle of town to the middle of the water. The roads are not mapped here, so this page does not give you a drive time it did not measure.
A 3-day plan
North Branch Au Sable River
Nearest listed access: Stephans Bridge (canoe launch), 9.6 mi, or Au Sable River At Spite Avenue (walk in), 9.6 mi.
Intermediate 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.
Jordan 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
- MNRTF Parcel 165 — 10.9 mi
- Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit — 12.6 mi
- Kirtlands Warbler Wildlife Management Area — 13.0 mi
- Jordan River Natural Area — 13.4 mi
- Pigeon River Country State Forest — 16.0 mi
- Kirtland Warbler Unit Lovells — 18.6 mi
- Young State Park — 18.6 mi
- MNRTF Parcel 79 — 18.8 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Otsego Lake-Mini Cabin (fee) | 6.8 mi | MDNR |
| Otsego Lake-Modern Campground (fee) | 6.9 mi | MDNR |
| Lake Marjory State Forest Campground (fee) | 11.3 mi | MDNR |
| Pickerel Lake State Forest Campground (Otsego) (fee) | 12.9 mi | MDNR |
| Johnson's Crossing Trail Camp (fee) | 13.1 mi | MDNR |
| Round Lake State Forest Campground (fee) | 13.1 mi | MDNR |
| Pigeon Bridge State Forest Campground (fee) | 13.6 mi | MDNR |
| Big Bear Point State Forest Campground (fee) | 15.2 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
- Fuller's North Branch Outing Club — 18.1 mi, Lovells
- Gates Au Sable Lodge — 24.7 mi, Grayling
- Old AuSable Fly Shop — 25.4 mi, Grayling
- The Fly Factory — 25.7 mi, Grayling
- Bearcub Outfitters — 27.6 mi
- Onaway Outfitters — 31.6 mi, Onaway
- The Outfitter — 31.7 mi
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
- North Branch Au Sable River
- Intermediate River
- Jordan River
- West Branch Big Creek
- North Branch Boardman River
- East Branch Big Creek