Chris Izworski, reporting from Michigan on the current state of the Au Train River this Wednesday morning in the early reach of summer.
The USGS gauge at station 04043016 shows fifteen cubic feet per second at a stage height of 67.7 feet. This is gin-clear, low-water season on the Au Train, the kind of flow that asks for precision and patience rather than brute force. The river moves quietly through the Hiawatha National Forest, where the water temperature stays down in the mid-fifties overnight and climbs into the low sixties by late afternoon. These are June numbers, honest numbers, the kind that keep trout active and make afternoon fishing possible if you pay attention to what is rising.
The air is warm today. Eighty-three degrees by mid-afternoon under full sun, with light southwest wind at five to ten miles per hour. Tonight will drop to fifty-four under mostly clear skies, and Thursday brings the first possibility of rain showers in the late day. That weather system could change the complexion of the hatch windows, but for now the pattern is stable: warm afternoons, cool nights, and clear water that rewards careful wading and accurate casts.
What Is Hatching
The sulphurs are tailing off now in early June, but you will still see sporadic activity in the late afternoon hours, especially on overcast stretches or where the canopy holds shade over the water. Size 14 and 16 Sulphur Comparaduns or Sparkle Duns work when the fish are selective. The brown drakes are starting to appear in the evening, though they have not yet hit full swing. These are size 10 insects, and you will want a good flotation pattern like a Cripple or an Extended Body Drake to match them when they begin emerging after eight in the evening.
The real story this week is the Isonychia. These are active throughout the day in fast pocket water and along the bubble lines where the current breaks over cobble and small boulders. Size 12 and 14 Dun or Emerger patterns in slate and maroon will take fish that are holding just under the surface in those feeding lanes. The Isonychia nymphs are big, active swimmers, and a size 10 or 12 Soft Hackle or Pheasant Tail swung through the current seams produces strikes when the surface activity is slow.
Where to Go
The Forest Road 2276 access upstream of the campground puts you into good pocket water and small pools where the current is manageable at this flow. Work the shaded runs early in the day, and focus on the head of the pools and the tailouts where trout will move into position as the afternoon warms. Downstream, the national forest stretch below the Buck Bay Road crossing holds deeper runs and undercut banks that shelter fish through the midday heat. These sections fish best in the late afternoon and evening when the surface activity picks up.
At fifteen cubic feet per second, you can wade carefully across most of the river, but the bottom is cobble and slick in places. Felt soles or carbide studs are not optional. The fish are spooky in low clear water, so stay low, keep your profile out of their sight lines, and make your first cast count. A poorly placed cast or heavy footfall will shut down a pool for twenty minutes or more.
The Practical Read
This is technical fishing. The Au Train does not hand you anything in June. Leaders should be twelve feet minimum, tapered to 5X or 6X, and your presentations need to be drag-free from the moment the fly touches the surface. Fish the mornings with nymphs and soft hackles, switch to dries when you see rising activity in the afternoon, and if the brown drakes show up after eight in the evening, be ready with a headlamp and a good supply of size 10 dry flies. The water is low enough now that you can read every current seam and holding lie, and the fish are holding exactly where you would expect them to hold: in the shade, near structure, and close to the food lanes.
Thursday’s chance of rain may bump the flow slightly and could extend the evening hatch window if clouds move in early. Watch the sky, and do not discount the value of a cloudy afternoon when the fish feel comfortable moving into shallow water to feed.
For live flow readings, hourly weather updates, and current reports from the Au Train and other Upper Peninsula rivers, visit michigantroutreport.com, where the network tracks conditions across the state in real time.