Nothing live is published for this water, so there is no reading or verdict today. The readings section below says what we checked.
The Black River is a freestone river in Michigan, listed as Blue Ribbon by Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
Michigan Department of Natural Resources lists 4 species, including brook trout, brown trout and rainbow trout. 1 guide and 1 shop nearby are listed here; the nearest destination hub is Grayling & the Au Sable.
The Black River in Cheboygan County, Michigan. Photo: SweetCanadianMullet, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Black River is a freestone river in Michigan. Our destination hub Grayling & the Au Sable is 31 mi away in a straight line and lists it among its waters. The Black River that flows north to the Cheboygan River.
No real-time gauge on this water. We found no active USGS gauge on Black River or on its stream system within about 25 miles, and no dam operator publishes data for it. A missing gauge says nothing about the water itself. Find the gauges nearest Black River
Start from the agency's public access map. Nothing on this page grants or implies access: check the agency map, posted signs and landowner permission before you fish.
Nothing on this page grants or implies access.
Shops and guides within 40 miles
Map of Black River: gauges, shops and guides
Map of Black River, and shops and guides with an exact address within 40 miles.
Restrooms within 2 miles of Black River in a straight line, nearest first, with what anglers found when they went. The map says a restroom is there, not whether it is clean or open today.
No restroom mapped within 2 mi yet — add one you know.
Campgrounds, fishing access sites and boat ramps often have one that isn't on the map yet.
Restroom locations and map details: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License, read Oct 24, 2026. Ratings, answers and photos are members' own; who shared them is never shown, and every photo is reviewed before it appears. Visits older than 18 months no longer count. Distances are straight-line miles, not driving. Nothing here grants access to private land. Community guidelines.
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not East Branch Black RiverThe Au Sable River from the Highbanks, Huron-Manistee National Forests. Photo: Jessica Piispanen / USFWS, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Not East Branch Black River.
Michigan · about 12 mi
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not Pigeon RiverThe Manistee River, Michigan. Photo: Eric Schmuttenmaer, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Pigeon River.
Michigan · about 14 mi
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not West Branch Sturgeon RiverThe Boardman River in the Brown Bridge Quiet Area, near Traverse City. Photo: Phoenix-Five, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not West Branch Sturgeon River.
Michigan · about 23 mi
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not Hunt CreekThe Pere Marquette River in autumn, Manistee National Forest. Photo: Yetiwriter, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Hunt Creek.
Michigan · about 27 mi
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not Gilchrist CreekThe Muskegon River near Newaygo, Michigan. Photo: Marc Steensma, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Gilchrist Creek.
Michigan · about 28 mi
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not Middle Branch Big CreekThe Huron River at Ann Arbor, Michigan, from the Broadway Street bridge. Photo: Chris Rycroft from Madison, Wisconsin, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Middle Branch Big Creek.
Michigan · about 33 mi
Seasons, limits, special regulations and closures for each reach are on the agency pages below. Read them before you go.
Each comes from the agency's own published list; where the list names a reach it is quoted. A designation applies to the listed reach, not necessarily the whole water. Listed in the finder under trout.
On the Blue Ribbon Trout Streams list (Michigan Department of Natural Resources, read 2026-10-16). All waters with this designation
On the Gear-Restricted Trout Streams: artificial lures only list (Michigan Department of Natural Resources, read 2026-10-16). All waters with this designation
Quoted word for word from the agency page on the date shown. Many quotes name the reach they cover and apply only to that part of the water. Rules change; the linked page is the authority.
“Black R. between Kleber Dam and Red Bridge (T35N, R1E, S5) unlawful to fish in any manner during April 1 – June 15.”
Michigan Department of Natural Resources · read 2026-10-14
“Lower Black R. from Alverno Dam down to Mograin Bridge, no fishing April 1 – May 14.”
Michigan Department of Natural Resources · read 2026-10-14
Measured from the NHDPlus High Resolution (flowlines and waterbodies) (U.S. Geological Survey, read 2026-11-04) for this water’s own mapped feature. Rounded figures; they describe the channel, not today’s conditions.
Whole Black River, not only this reach.
Areas the Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), public access (U.S. Geological Survey, Gap Analysis Project, read 2026-11-05) lists as owned or held in easement and open to the public, crossed by the mapped channel of the whole Black River. Boundaries are mapped, not surveyed. Nothing on this page grants or implies access: check the agency map, posted signs and landowner permission before you fish.
23.5 of 73.3 mi on public land
Nothing on this page grants or implies access.
Listings marked Unclaimed are built from open map records and the business's own website: confirm licensing, rates, dates and hours directly.
1 guide name it on their website
The species the agency lists here; presence varies by reach and season.
Listed by the state agency
Species guide
Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), illustration by Duane Raver for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Photo: Duane Raver, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Species guide
Brown trout (Salmo trutta), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service illustration. Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Species guide
Brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis), illustration by Duane Raver for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Photo: Duane Raver, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
2 hatches charted for the region, not measured on this water. From Michigan DNR.
Hex (Hexagenia) (June to July) · Mayflies, stoneflies and caddisflies (June)
Grayling sits at the head of the Au Sable River in northern Lower Michigan, with the upper Manistee River a few miles west and the Boardman River toward Traverse City.
Destination hub · 31 mi away in a straight line
Matched on the fish the agencies list for both waters first, then the same water type, an official designation or flagship listing on both, and a similar mapped size where USGS hydrography covers both.
At most two waters per country. A shared fish is a listing, not a promise: presence varies by reach and season.
Like the Black River? Same fish, overseas.
Flagship waterThe Tongariro River from the Tree Trunk Gorge track. Photo: Pseudopanax at English Wikipedia, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Freestone riverThe Sava Dolinka below the confluence with Beli potok. Photo: Savinjc, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Freestone riverThe Credit River at Streetsville. Photo: Mustang Joe, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Flagship waterThe Clutha River / Mata-Au at Albert Town, near the Hāwea confluence. Photo: Photo by Lewis: Verduyn-Cassels, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Otago, New Zealand
Same fish: rainbow & brown trout · also a freestone river
Freestone riverThe Humber River at Raymore Park, south of Lawrence Avenue, Toronto. Photo: Risker, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Flagship waterThe River Moy at Banada Priory. Photo: Andreas F. Borchert, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Southern seasons open while ours close.
Flagship waterPenstock Lagoon, Central Highlands, Tasmania. Photo: Mike Cline, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Freestone riverRepresentative photo · not Río PetrohuéThe Río Puelo at Las Gualas, Cochamó. Photo: Nicolás from seno de reloncaví, Chile, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Río Petrohué.
Lake or reservoirRepresentative photo · not Lago LlanquihueThe Río Simpson passing Coyhaique, Aysén. Photo: Manxuc, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Lago Llanquihue.
Lake or reservoir
Flagship waterRepresentative photo · not Mataura RiverThe Oreti River near Lumsden, Southland. Photo: Krzysztof Golik, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped, via Wikimedia Commons Not Mataura River.
Flagship waterGreat Lake, Tasmania. Photo: Peripitus, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
What to bring on a guided float fishing trip: rain gear, polarized sunglasses, sun protection, a dry bag and your license. Most guides supply rods and flies. Estimated prices and where to buy.
Usually supplied by the guide; a 9′ 5–6 weight if you bring your own · Trout on most western float rivers
Open the checklistSeams, shelves and soft water, shown on real rivers.
Public YouTube videos from established channels, chosen by us to support this page. Not sponsored; the creators are not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear.
Not sponsored All videos on reading water
Indicator rigs, depth and detecting the take.
Public YouTube videos from established channels, chosen by us to support this page. Not sponsored; the creators are not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear.
Not sponsored All videos on nymphing
Trip stories anglers chose to share publicly and tagged with Black River.
No stories from here yet.
Not a statement of access, fish presence or conditions.
A water page organises discovery. It does not assert public access, legal access, current fish presence, guide availability or fishing conditions.
Flows, gauge statistics and flood stages come from USGS and the National Weather Service when the page is shown. Regulations, stocking, species and season statements link to the agency that publishes them; this page copies only the species names and the quoted sentences. Guide and shop listings come from the Legendary directories. Position: a point on the mapped channel of “Black River”, halfway along its length in Michigan, from the USGS high-resolution hydrography (NHDPlus HR), read 4 Nov 2026. It marks the water, not a particular access or reach. Water type is our own classification.
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not East Branch Black RiverThe Au Sable River from the Highbanks, Huron-Manistee National Forests. Photo: Jessica Piispanen / USFWS, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Not East Branch Black River.
Michigan · about 12 mi
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not Pigeon RiverThe Manistee River, Michigan. Photo: Eric Schmuttenmaer, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Pigeon River.
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not West Branch Sturgeon RiverThe Boardman River in the Brown Bridge Quiet Area, near Traverse City. Photo: Phoenix-Five, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not West Branch Sturgeon River.
Michigan · about 23 mi
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not Hunt CreekThe Pere Marquette River in autumn, Manistee National Forest. Photo: Yetiwriter, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Hunt Creek.
Michigan · about 27 mi
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not Gilchrist CreekThe Muskegon River near Newaygo, Michigan. Photo: Marc Steensma, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Gilchrist Creek.
Michigan · about 28 mi
Blue RibbonRepresentative photo · not Middle Branch Big CreekThe Huron River at Ann Arbor, Michigan, from the Broadway Street bridge. Photo: Chris Rycroft from Madison, Wisconsin, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Middle Branch Big Creek.
Michigan · about 33 mi
