Chris Izworski, reporting from Michigan on the current state of the Jordan River this Saturday morning in late May. The gauge at 04127800 shows 201 cubic feet per second and a height of 3.6 feet, which is elevated for the Jordan but not uncomfortable. The river is flowing with clarity and purpose, enough volume to cover the gravel runs and give the trout room to work, but not so much that wading becomes a problem or the fish lose their feeding stations. The sky is clear, the forecast calls for sun and a high of 73 degrees, and the afternoon should be warm enough to bring insects to the surface.
The Jordan is a small river by most standards, a designated Wild and Scenic stream that runs cold and quick through the cedar and hemlock forests of Antrim County. It does not have the width or the celebrity of the Au Sable, but it has clarity and pocket water and wild brook trout that will come to a dry fly if you approach them correctly. At this flow, the banks are full and the current is steady. You will not find easy water today, but you will find fishable water, and that is what matters.
What Is Hatching
Sulphurs are the primary event now on the Jordan, appearing in the late afternoon and early evening, typically between five and seven o’clock. These are Ephemerella dorothea, size 14 or 16, pale yellow mayflies that drift in loose clusters and bring the trout up in the slower pockets and tailouts. You will want a Sulphur Comparadun size 14 or a Sulphur Sparkle Dun in the same size, something that sits low in the film and does not look like it is trying too hard. The hatch is not heavy, but it is consistent, and if you find a fish working you can often stay with it for twenty minutes or more.
Caddis are present throughout the day, tan and olive bodied, size 14 or 16, and they are more opportunistic than the sulphurs. An Elk Hair Caddis size 14 will work in the riffles and runs, especially in the late morning and early afternoon before the mayflies start. March browns may still appear sporadically, though we are near the tail end of that hatch. A March Brown Dry size 12 is worth carrying if you find larger fish working in the heavier current.
Where to Go
The Jordan has limited public access, and you need to know where you are allowed to fish. The most reliable access is at Graves Crossing on Old State Road, where there is a small parking area and a clear path to the river. From there you can work upstream or down, though upstream will give you more brook trout and downstream will give you more browns. The water near Graves is classic Jordan structure: tight bends, undercut banks, pockets behind boulders, short runs that empty into small pools.
Another option is downstream near the mouth at Lake Charlevoix, though that water fishes more like a slow tailwater than a freestone stream. If you want the full experience of the Jordan, stay upstream in the forest stretches. The wading is not difficult at this flow, but it is technical. You will be stepping on cobble and gravel, working around deadfall, and keeping your casts short. This is not a river where you stand in one place and cover fifty feet of water. You move carefully and you fish the water directly in front of you.
The Practical Read
The Jordan fishes best in the evening during late May, and today will be no exception. Plan to be on the water by four o’clock if you want to catch the sulphur activity, and do not leave until the light is gone. The fish here are not large, but they are wild, and a ten inch brook trout in clear water is worth more than a stocked brown twice its size. Use a 7.5 foot leader tapered to 5X or 6X, and make sure your tippet is fresh. The Jordan does not forgive sloppy presentations.
The flow today is workable, the weather is stable, and the hatches are predictable. If you fish the Jordan with patience and attention, you will be rewarded. This is not a river that gives itself easily, but it is a river that teaches you how to read small water, how to see structure, how to move through a forest stream without disturbing what you came to find.
For live USGS flow data, hatch updates, and current conditions across Michigan’s trout rivers, visit michigantroutreport.com and explore the full network of reports.