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Fly fishing near Grayling, Michigan
89 waters with a page on this site lie within 30 miles of Grayling, Michigan — South Branch Au Sable River, North Branch Au Sable River and West Branch Big Creek 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 6 fly shops. Everything below is measured or published — no ranking on this page is ours.
The water
| Water | Distance | Miles | July mean |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Branch Au Sable River | 14.4 mi | 51.5 | — |
| North Branch Au Sable River | 14.0 mi | 37.0 | — |
| West Branch Big Creek | 15.6 mi | 33.8 | — |
| North Branch Boardman River | 20.6 mi | 27.3 | — |
| East Branch Big Creek | 19.6 mi | 25.6 | — |
| West Branch Muskegon River | 17.3 mi | 23.8 | — |
| Beaver Creek | 7.9 mi | 20.3 | — |
| North Branch Manistee River | 12.2 mi | 19.4 | — |
| Dead Stream | 12.6 mi | 18.9 | — |
| The Cut | 12.7 mi | 18.6 | — |
| East Branch Au Sable River | 9.6 mi | 17.7 | — |
| Rapid River | 19.6 mi | 17.0 | — |
| Big Cannon Creek | 13.0 mi | 15.1 | — |
| Haymarsh Creek | 13.7 mi | 13.5 | — |
| South Branch Boardman River | 20.0 mi | 13.3 | — |
| Middle Branch Big Creek | 18.8 mi | 12.5 | — |
| Cedar River | 19.5 mi | 11.6 | — |
| Kolke Creek | 11.1 mi | 10.7 | — |
| Wolf Creek | 20.3 mi | 10.0 | — |
| Lost Creek | 26.2 mi | 9.7 | — |
| Black Creek | 9.1 mi | 9.5 | — |
| Crooked Creek | 29.8 mi | 8.6 | — |
| Cherry Creek | 28.2 mi | 8.5 | — |
| Goose Creek | 9.2 mi | 8.1 | — |
| Crapo Creek | 16.9 mi | 8.0 | — |
| Pierson Creek | 12.7 mi | 7.6 | — |
| Little Cannon Creek | 14.4 mi | 7.6 | — |
| Taylor Creek | 18.5 mi | 7.5 | — |
| Wright Creek | 19.6 mi | 7.3 | — |
| East Creek | 17.5 mi | 7.2 | — |
| Portage Creek | 7.4 mi | 7.1 | — |
| Haymeadow Creek | 26.3 mi | 7.1 | — |
| Robinson Creek | 13.4 mi | 6.9 | — |
| Hudson Creek | 14.3 mi | 6.9 | — |
| Green River | 18.1 mi | 6.9 | — |
| Bradford Creek | 9.1 mi | 6.6 | — |
| South Creek | 18.2 mi | 6.4 | — |
| Cole Creek | 12.5 mi | 6.2 | — |
| Big Creek | 25.4 mi | 5.9 | — |
| Sohn Creek | 17.3 mi | 5.8 | — |
| North Branch Cedar River | 18.9 mi | 5.5 | — |
| Crofton Creek | 16.5 mi | 5.3 | — |
| Big Devil Creek | 11.8 mi | 5.1 | — |
| Chub Creek | 13.7 mi | 5.0 | — |
| Hickey Creek | 12.6 mi | 4.8 | — |
| Barker Creek | 12.2 mi | 4.7 | — |
| Maple Creek | 13.9 mi | 4.6 | — |
| Little Rapid River | 16.3 mi | 4.6 | — |
| Addis Creek | 11.8 mi | 4.4 | — |
| Woods Creek | 24.0 mi | 4.4 | — |
| Woolcott Creek | 18.2 mi | 4.2 | — |
| Collar Creek | 11.7 mi | 4.1 | — |
| Wolf Creek | 29.0 mi | 4.1 | — |
| Sheridan Creek | 22.1 mi | 4.0 | — |
| Finch Creek | 18.6 mi | 3.9 | — |
| Douglas Creek | 13.5 mi | 3.8 | — |
| Failing Creek | 16.1 mi | 3.8 | — |
| Antler Creek | 27.0 mi | 3.7 | — |
| Barger Creek | 23.7 mi | 3.6 | — |
| Waterhole Creek | 15.0 mi | 3.5 | — |
| Crane Creek | 23.3 mi | 3.5 | — |
| Frenchman Creek | 11.1 mi | 3.4 | — |
| Cascade Creek | 16.8 mi | 3.4 | — |
| Stevens Creek | 17.8 mi | 3.4 | — |
| Morrison Creek | 11.3 mi | 3.3 | — |
| Nelson Creek | 16.2 mi | 3.2 | — |
| Cold Creek | 18.5 mi | 3.1 | — |
| Hauenstein Creek | 13.4 mi | 2.8 | — |
| Sauger Creek | 13.4 mi | 2.7 | — |
| Stanniger Creek | 22.6 mi | 2.7 | — |
| Willow Run | 10.2 mi | 2.6 | — |
| East Branch Wolf Creek | 20.0 mi | 2.6 | — |
| Rattlesnake Creek | 24.2 mi | 2.6 | — |
| Wakeley Creek | 11.3 mi | 2.5 | — |
| Saunders Creek | 20.3 mi | 2.5 | — |
| Simpson Creek | 3.3 mi | 2.1 | — |
| Landslide Creek | 17.2 mi | 2.1 | — |
| Shanty Creek | 18.6 mi | 2.0 | — |
| Barker Creek | 19.3 mi | 2.0 | — |
| Desmond Creek | 18.4 mi | 1.7 | — |
| Section Thirteen Creek | 16.8 mi | 1.3 | — |
| Crow Creek | 17.8 mi | 1.3 | — |
| Asum Creek | 14.8 mi | 1.2 | — |
| Little Devil Creek | 12.0 mi | 0.8 | — |
| Pup Creek | 19.4 mi | 0.6 | — |
| Holy Water — named stretch | 6.7 mi | — | — |
| Flies-Only Water — named stretch | 9.7 mi | — | — |
| Mason Tract — named stretch | 11.4 mi | — | — |
| North Branch Flies-Only — named stretch | 14.0 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
South Branch Au Sable River
Nearest listed access: South Branch Au Sable River Forest Rest (walk in), 2.3 mi, or South Branch Au Sable River Potters Landing (walk in), 2.6 mi.
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.
West Branch Big Creek
Nearest listed access: North Branch Au Sable River At Morley's (walk in), 4.3 mi, or Au Sable River At Rainbow Bend (walk in), 6.1 mi.
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
- Hanson Hills Recreation Area — 2.5 mi
- Hartwick Pines State Park — 6.0 mi
- Kirtland Warbler Unit Manistee — 7.9 mi
- MNRTF Parcel 79 — 10.4 mi
- Natural Area South Branch AuSable River — 11.9 mi
- Natural Area South Branch AuSable River Area — 13.0 mi
- Tisdale Triangle — 13.5 mi
- Conners Marsh Flooding State Wildlife Management Area — 13.8 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 |
|---|---|---|
| AuSable River State Forest Campground and Canoe Camp (fee) | 3.0 mi | MDNR |
| Burton's Landing State Forest Campground (fee) | 3.3 mi | MDNR |
| Keystone Landing State Forest Campground (fee) | 4.4 mi | MDNR |
| Hartwick Pines-Rustic Cabin (fee) | 4.8 mi | MDNR |
| Lake Margrethe State Forest Campground (fee) | 5.0 mi | MDNR |
| Hartwick Pines-Modern Campground (fee) | 5.5 mi | MDNR |
| Hartwick Pines-Group Use Area (fee) | 6.0 mi | MDNR |
| 4 Mile Trail Camp (fee) | 6.3 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
- Old AuSable Fly Shop — 0.0 mi, Grayling
- The Fly Factory — 0.3 mi, Grayling
- Gates Au Sable Lodge — 7.8 mi, Grayling
- Village Outfitters — 12.7 mi, Roscommon
- Fuller's North Branch Outing Club — 15.0 mi, Lovells
- Ausable River Outfitters — 28.6 mi, Mio
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
- South Branch Au Sable River
- North Branch Au Sable River
- West Branch Big Creek
- North Branch Boardman River
- East Branch Big Creek
- West Branch Muskegon River