Pere Marquette River

The Pere Marquette River in western Michigan was the first river in the United States to be stocked with brown trout, receiving the historic 1884 shipment from Germany that forever changed American trout fishing. Today the river remains one of the finest trout and salmon streams in the Great Lakes region, flowing through a beautiful hardwood forest landscape with sand and gravel substrates that support excellent wild brown trout reproduction and serve as critical spawning habitat for migratory steelhead and salmon. The flies-only section of the upper PM, a ten-mile stretch of classic riffle-pool water, holds wild brown trout that average 12 to 16 inches with fish over 20 inches available to anglers who fish the deeper pools and undercut banks with patience and skill.

Beyond the resident trout fishery, the Pere Marquette is one of Michigan's premier steelhead rivers, with runs of chromium-bright Great Lakes steelhead entering from October through April that rival their Pacific Northwest counterparts in size and fighting ability. The fall salmon run, primarily Chinook salmon averaging 15 to 25 pounds, adds another dimension to the fishing calendar. The river's gentle gradient and wadeable depths make it accessible to anglers of all skill levels, and its designation as a National Wild and Scenic River ensures that the surrounding landscape remains as undeveloped and beautiful as the fishing is productive.