Fly Fishing Au Sable River Michigan This includes a Au Sable fishing report
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery: We can get flies to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Please see the bottom of this column for ordering options.
We also have custom Perfect Fly selections in 3 different price ranges for this stream that come with or without fly boxes. They make excellent gifts. Click Here To Order or Call us at 800 594 4726 or email us at sales@perfectflystore.com.
Type of Stream
Freestone
Species
Brown Trout
Rainbow Trout
Brook Trout
Steelhead
Salmon
(Wild trout/hatchery and wild raised
steelhead and salmon)
Size
Medium
Location
Northeastern Michigan
Nearest Towns
Grayling
Trout and Steelhead season varies
Seasons:
Fly fishing the Au Sable River is good
any time of the year. It is a very diverse stream.
Special Regulations
Yes, sections of C & R. See current
special regulations
Spring:
Springtime brings about the most aquatic insect hatches and some of the best trout fishing.
Summer:
Summer can be good, especially the night fishing during the big Drake hatches.
Fall:
Fall may be the best all around time to fish the Au Sable. It is big brown trout time.
Winter:
Early winter steelhead fishing can be okay, all depending on the weather.
Access:
Good
Non-Resident License
State of California
Recommended Tackle & Gear
Fly Line:
5 or 6 weight
Leaders:
Dry fly: 9 & 12 ft., 5 or 6X, Nymphing:
71/2 ft., 3 or 4X, Streamers 0-2X
Tippets:
Dry fly: 5 or 6X, Nymphing: 3 or 4X,
Streamer 0-2X
Best Fly Rods:
Perfect Fly Superb Five or Ultimate Six
Fly Reels:
For 5/6 fly line
Fly Floatants and Misc Items:
Floatants, KISS Strike Indicators
Tools & Accessories:
Nippers, forceps, retractors, etc.
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery:
Email us at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations. We can get flies and gear to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Your can also call us at 800-594-4726 and we will help you decide what flies and gear to use. All orders are shipped free in the U.S. If under a $100 order requiring Priority mail is a charge of only $8.10. Orders over a $100 are shipped free via Priority Mail.
Copyright 2013 James Marsh
Au Sable River Michigan – Fishing Report – April 26, 2024 The stream is flowing a little below a normal level and clear. Good Light Green and red, or blood Midge hatches, are taking place. Little Brown stoneflies, Blue winged olives, Hendricksons/Red Quills and Little Black Caddis are also hatching good. We continue to get good reports from customers fishing it for trout and steelhead.
Stream Conditions:
Rate: 196 cfs
Level: 4.82 ft
Afternoon Water Temperature: 53
Clarity: clear
USGS Real-Time Stream Flow Data at Luzerne MI
Weather Forecast: (click the link below to see more detailed weather info)
Recommended Trout Flies:
Brown Sculpin and White Belly Sculpin and Articulated streamers, size 6/4
Black Matuka and Olive Matuka Sculpin, size 4/6
Blue-winged Olives: size 16, nymphs, emergers, duns, spinners
Quill Gordons: 12/14, nymphs, emerging duns, duns, spinners
Blue Quills: 18nymphs, emergers, duns, spinners
Little Black Caddis: 18, pupa, adults
Little Brown Stoneflies: 12, nymphs, adults
Green Sedge Caddis, size 16/14, larva, pupa and adults
Hendricksons/Red Quills: 12/14, nymphs, emergers, duns and spinners
Recommended Steelhead Flies:
Perfect Fly Great Lake Steelhead Flies
Egg flies:
Estaz Egg flies, dark and light shade
Veiled Beadhead Crystal Egg Fly
Steelhead nymphs:
Giant Black Stonefly nymphshttps://perfectflystore.com/product-category/flies/perfect-generic-steelhead-salmon-flies/great-lakes-steelhead/spey-flies/
Comets – dark and light shades
Cinnamon Caddis
Green sedges
Streamers:
Egg Sucking leeches, dark and light shades
Flesh fly
Buggers, dark and light shades
Spey Flies:
Hot Flash Spey
Red and Yellow Spey
Silver Ribbed Peacock Spey
Perfect Fly Great Lake Salmon Flies
Fly Fishing On The Au Sable River In Michigan: This big river starts north of Grayling Michigan and flows for about a hundred miles before emptying into Lake Huron. It is one of the countries top trout fishing destinations. Its upper section consist of water from the North, South and the main stem of the Au Sable river. The river also has a great steelhead fishery below Foote Dam in the last few miles of the river. The big river flows from its headwaters in the same direction as the nearby Manistee River. The Au Sable empties into Lake Huron, but the Manistee Lake Superior. At Grayling, Michigan, the main stem is joined by the East Branch of the Au Sable. Not far from there, at a place called Burton’s Landing, the Graying’s nine-mile long, “fly fishing only – catch and release” section begins. This section is called the “Holly Water” by the locals. This special regulation section ends at Wakeley Bridge. This part of the river is wide but fairly easy to wade. Its bottom is mostly sand and gravel. Fly fishing the Au Sable River is a truly pleasurable experience. Access to this part of the Au Sable River is easy. There are several locations where one can launch boats and wade. Stephan Bridge and Thendara Road are the two most popular access points in this area of the river.From the Wakeley Bridge downstream to Mio Pond, the river gets larger with more pools and a fewer runs. The fishing is excellent in both of these upper sections. This section is deeper and more difficult to wade but it holds some big trout. This area of the Au Sable River can be accessed at the Whirlpool off Cherry Creek Road and the Parmalee Bridge. From Mio Dam downstream to the McKinley Bridge you will find some of the river’s largest trout. This area is best fished from a drift boat due to the strong current and depth but it is possible to wade in places depending on the water levels. This area of the river can be accessed at Perry Creek, the McKIinley Bridge and Comins Flats. The South Branch of the Au Sable River joins the main stem in this section. The South Branch also has excellent fishing and also includes a “catch and release”, artificial only section from Chase Bridge downstream to Lower High Banks. The South Branch is easy to wade. The South Branch of the Au Sable River flows from Houghton Lake past the town of Roscommon. It joins the main stem not far below the Wakeley Bridge. The North Branch of the Au Sable River also has some great fly fishing opportunities. It enters the main stem of the Au Sable just downstream of the South Branch. Brown trout, some rainbows, and lots of brook trout are found in the North Branch. After passing through Lovells, it flows into the main stem of the Au Sable a few miles downstream of the South Branch. The lower section of the Au Sable River is an excellent steelhead fishery. The section from Foote Dam downstream to Lake Huron has runs of both steelhead and salmon. This is a large section of water. It can be waded at times but it can also be dangerous. It’s best to fish it from the banks or a boat. Steelhead fishing generally runs from November through March. Fly fishing the Au Sable River ranks up there with any of the best trout and steelhead streams in the Eastern United States. It’s a year- round, high quality fishery. It’s famous for its “MIchigan Caddis” hatch, which is actually the large Hexagenia Limbata mayfly. Anglers have an opportunity to catch some large brown trout on imitations of this mayfly. If you haven’t already done so, we suggest you plan a trip to fish this great river.
Fly Fishing Guide to the Au Sable River: You should first make sure you check out our Au Sable River fishing report. It will tell you what is hatching at the time. There are a huge number of aquatic insect hatches that takes place on this river. Often,the strategies and techniques depend greatly on these insects. There is almost eighty miles of good trout fishing on the Au Sable. It is a freestone the trout in the headwater areas are small to medium brown, brook and rainbow trout. The thirteen mile section from Fredrick to Grayling is a relatively shallow, easy wading stream with mostly brook trout. There are a few browns in this area. As mentioned in the introduction, the section below Grayling is the nine mile catch and release area. It is heavily fished during the prime season. Roads, the North Down River Road and the South Down River Roads closely follow along this section of the river. The section from Wakeley Bridge downstream to McMasters Bridge is know for its brown trout. The bottom of the river changes from gravel and small cobble to mostly a sand bottom with deep pools. This area can be accessed from White Pine Campground, Conners Flat and Rainbow Bend Campgrounds.Almost thirty miles below Grayling, there is a trophy section of the Au Sable. It starts at Mio and runs to McKinley. This area has plenty of large trout but is best fished from a drift boat. The spring steelhead season starts in late March. The best fishing is in April. About half of the fish are hatchery planted fish. They are indicated by a clipped fin. The fall run of steelhead takes place from about the middle of October through November. When the salmon are spawning around the first of November, the steelhead can be caught below the beds on egg patterns of flies below Foote Dam. They are also caught swinging large streamers through section of the river. Normally, sink tip lines are used for this.In addition, both the North and the South Branches of the Au Sable provide excellent fishing, especially for the wading angler. The Au Sable is known for its aquatic insects. As you will see in our hatch section, there are many different species and rather large quantities of them. Being able to fish imitations of what is about to hatch and what is hatching is necessary in many cases. The best approach is to pay attention to the hatch charts. If nothing is hatching when you are fishing, you should be fishing imitations of what is most available for the trout to eat in the nymphal stage. If it is near the hatch time for a certain insect, most likely the best bet is to fish an imitation of its nymph or larva. Streamers are always a good choice especially if the water is off color or it is early or late in the day. There are plenty of big brown trout in the river and streamers are often the best fly to catch them.
Au Sable Hatches and Flies: Our information on aquatic insects is based on our stream samples of larvae and nymphs, not guess work. We base fly suggestions on imitating the most plentiful and most available insects and other foods at the particular time you are fishing. Unlike the generic fly shop trout flies, we have specific imitations of all the insects in the Au Sable and in all stages of life that are applicable to fishing. If you want to fish better, more realistic trout flies, have a much higher degree of success, give us a call. We not only will help you with selections, you will learn why, after trying Perfect Flies, 92% of the thousands of our customers will use nothing else. 1-800-594-4726 This stream has an abundance of hatches that occur throughout the season. Keep in mind that it is a long river and when we list an insect as hatching in a time slot, that doesn’t mean it will be hatching in every section of the stream and its tributaries at the same time. In our opinion, the most important insect that hatches on the Au Sable River is the Blue-winged Olives. Of course there’s more than one species and some of them are bi-brooded and maybe even tri-brooded. The first hatch usually occurs around the first of April and last until about the middle of May. The next wave of the little BWOs is usually around the last week of June. They hatch almost through the month of July. Near the end of August there will be more of them hatching. This last hatch last into the first week or so of October. About the last week of April the Hendrickson hatch usually starts. It can be very prolific. These mayflies normally hatch for about a month in varies sections of the river. About that same time, Blue Quills will start to hatch. It usually last about three weeks. Most locals call this a Mahogany Dun hatch. Around the middle of May, American March Browns will also hatch is the faster water areas of the river. It last for about a month. At the same time, or the middle of May, you may also find some Sulphurs starting to hatch. This hatch can last to the middle of June. Brown Drakes start hatching about the last week of May and last for about a month. The first of June you should find some Gray Drakes hatching. They can last up to a month. About the second week of June and lasting until the middle of July, the hatch that the Au Sable River is famous for takes place – The Great Olive Wing Dun, or what locals sometimes call the Michigan Caddis. This is mostly an evening event. Don’t forget the Yellow Drakes. They usually start around the last week of July and can last two or three weeks. The Slate Drake hatch last about a month, or from around the middle of July until the middle of August. In the faster water sections, you will find some Light Cahills. They hatch for most of the month of June. The later season hatches include the Mahogany Duns. Both the Mahogany Duns and Little Yellow Quills start around the first of August and last for about a month. Caddisflies are also very plentiful on the Au Sable River. There are many species but the most important are the Cinnamon Caddis species. They start about the first of June and can last all the way until the end of August. Green Sedges start around the first of June also. This hatch usually last about six weeks. There is more than one species of them. Remember, their larva, or the Green Rock Worms, are around all year exposed to the trout. Imitations of them work just about anytime. The first hatch of caddisflies is usually the Little Black Caddis. They will start about the last week of April and last for around three weeks. There’s some White Miller Caddisflies that hatch for about the entire month of August. These are long-horn caddisflies. There’s some Great Autumn Brown Caddisflies that hatch starting near the end of August. They hatch at night and usually last for about a month. The Au Sable River also has some stoneflies. Of course these are usually found in the faster sections of the streams. Little Winter stoneflies hatch in April. Yellow Sallies (Little Yellow stoneflies) are probably the most plentiful of them. They start hatching around the end of May and last until the middle of July. There’s also some Golden Stoneflies that hatch during the month of June. You will also find some Little Brown Stoneflies hatching in June. Terrestrial insects can be important during the summer months. Ants are plentiful around the stream from about the end of June all the way to mid October. The flying ants are usually found from about the middle of August to the middle of September, but don’t hold your breath. They show up when they want to. Imitations of beetles and grasshoppers will produce trout during the months of July, August and September. Midges are around year-round and imitations of their larvae, pupae and the adults will produce most anytime but the most important times are during cold weather when few other insects are hatching. Streamers are very popular flies on the Au Sable River. Imitations of sculpin, baitfish, leeches all produce. They are very good flies for catching the larger brown trout, especially in low light and dingy water conditions. Streamers also work great for the Steelhead. As you can see, there’s a lot of aquatic insects that hatch on this great river. At “Perfect Fly,” we have specific imitations of all of them. If you haven’t already done so, please give our flies a chance to perform for you. They are not only are the most realistic flies you can buy, they are the most effective at catching trout. Steelhead Flies: You may want to have a large selection of small egg flies in natural colors such as gold, orange, Oregon cheese, peach, and cream in hook sizes #8 and 10’s. Our “Perfect Fly” Giant Black Stonefly Nymphs in hook sizes 6 also work well. Our “Perfect Fly” Hex (Great Olive Winged Drake) nymphs in a hook size #6 also work great. So do our Green Caddis larvae imitations or Green Rock Worms in a hook size 12. Steamers also work for the steelhead. Thank you for viewing our Au Sable fishing report.