Freestone · Mixed · Indiana, US

Trail Creek

Trail Creek (bend to bridge)

Trail Creek is Indiana's compact Michigan City tributary with a real Lake Michigan salmon/steelhead run — it has public access sites and is notable because Indiana has far fewer classic steelhead tributary options than Michigan or New York.

Prime · Steelhead
Egg pattern · 12–16
Primelive now
About as good as it gets
River steady at a fishable height. On the feed top to bottom — start on the rises with a dry, drop a nymph if they stay down.
90% confidence
What moved it
  • Level0.61 mLast reading 5h ago
  • Water temp11.5°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Egg pattern
Egg pattern12–16
A dependable searching pattern for these waters.
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
0.61 m
Last reading 5h ago
Water temp11.5°C
ClarityClear
Weather12°C
WindS 8 km/h
Pressure1023 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

Live readings only. Trends shown where the gauge supports them.

Water temperature for Steelhead
Ideal
11.5°Cideal 4–13°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Steelhead
When
Steelhead Oct–Apr; salmon Sep–Oct when runs materialise
Where
Trail Creek is Indiana's compact Michigan City tributary with a real Lake Michigan salmon/steelhead run — it has public access sites and is notable because…
Why this works
Excellent — conditions well-balanced, with water temperature particularly in your favour.
Likely species
Mayflies
Chironomids
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 5 active hatches hour by hour as a supporter.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Supporters see the full sub-surface read.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

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Evidence
Records-basedModerate confidence

Based on species-occurrence records, not local invertebrate surveys.

Through the year
0–3 scale · October highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Brown DunHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Quill GordonHatch
2
2
Blue QuillHatch
2
3
2
HendricksonHatch
2
2

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Steelhead fly box
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Indiana licence and Lake Michigan trout/salmon rules
  • Verify public access sites, ladder/dam exclusion zones and current size/creel rules before launch.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 1
St. Joseph River
54 km
Steelhead · Chinook salmon · Coho salmon
Gallery · 2
  1. Trail Creek (bend to bridge)
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Trail Creek is Indiana's compact Michigan City tributary with a real Lake Michigan salmon/steelhead run — it has public access sites and is notable because Indiana has far fewer classic steelhead tributary options than Michigan or New York. Treat it as access-site driven and rule-sensitive.

  • Mixed
Water quality · US Clean Water Act
  • Aquatic life: Supporting
  • Fish consumption: Impaired
  • Recreation: Impaired
What this classification means

Fish consumption: Consumption advisory (Polychlorinated Biphenyls PCBs) — fish for sport, not the table.

Recreation: Bacteria/pathogen advisory — mind wading cuts and immersion.

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'TRAIL CREEK (SALMONID)' (INC0115_01), 2024 Integrated Report. Aquatic Life use: Fully Supporting. Listed impairment causes: Pathogens, Polychlorinated Biphenyls PCBs. This is a Clean Water Act assessment-unit classification (the US analogue of WFD), not a live reading.

Status is for the Clean Water Act assessment unit covering this reach.

EPA ATTAINS (Clean Water Act) · INC0115_01

Why this score · for Steelhead
  • Temperature10028% weight
  • Flow8022% weight
  • Clarity9518% weight
  • Feeding Time7513% weight
  • Pressure757% weight
  • Insect activity6512% weight
Related guides
Euro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts