Chris Izworski, reporting from Michigan on the current state of the Pere Marquette River this Saturday morning in early June. The gauge at 04122500 reads 661 cubic feet per second at 1.8 feet, which puts the PM in classic mid-season shape: clear, wadeable, and responsive to the light that filters through the canopy along the flies-only water below M-37. The forecast calls for sun today with temperatures climbing to 82 degrees, then a warm Sunday at 88. Nights will stay cool in the mid-fifties. These are the conditions that make the Pere Marquette what it is in June, a river built for long evenings and patient presentations.
The Window This Week
We are in the transitional week between the sulphur flush of late May and the brown drake emergence that begins in earnest around mid-month. The sulphurs are still present but thinning, showing best in the slower pools and glides during the last hour of light. Expect sporadic spinner falls rather than the dense clouds we saw two weeks ago. A Sulphur Comparadun in size 14 or 16 will still move fish if you find rising trout, but do not count on blanket coverage. The brown drakes are beginning to stir. I have not seen full flights yet, but the nymphs are active in the soft sediment along the Manistee National Forest stretches, and early scouts are appearing after dark. By next weekend, the drakes should be reliable. Fish a size 10 or 12 Rusty Spinner or a deer hair drake pattern in the failing light and into full dark. This is not a hatch you fish at midday.
What Is Emerging Now
Beyond the sulphurs and the pending drakes, the caddis have been steady all week. Tan and olive caddis are coming off sporadically through the afternoon, enough to keep trout looking up but not enough to create a feeding lane you can count on. An Elk Hair Caddis in size 14 or 16 is the practical choice. Fish it in the broken water at the head of pools and along the current seams where the river bends through the cedars. Isonychia are also beginning to show. These are big, strong mayflies that emerge in the faster water, and they do not come off in numbers that match sulphurs or drakes, but the trout remember them. A size 12 or 14 dun or emerger fished in the riffles and along the shelf drops can produce takes from fish that are not showing on the surface. This is searching water, not matching a hatch, and it requires patience.
Where to Go
The flies-only water below M-37 is where you want to be. The stretch from Claybanks downstream through Indian Bridge holds trout that have seen pressure all spring and will not forgive sloppy casts, but the fish are there and they are feeding. Wade carefully. The clarity at 661 cfs means the trout can see you as well as you can see them. Focus on the deeper runs where the current slows against the bank and the overhanging alders provide cover. These are not flashy holes, but they hold fish that will rise if the presentation is clean. Upstream, the water around Bowman Bridge and through the public access near Walhalla is fishing well in the mornings before the sun gets high. Nymphing with a sulphur or caddis emerger under an indicator can be productive through midday when the surface is quiet. After 7:00 p.m., move back to the slower pools and watch for risers.
The Practical Read
This is the week to fish evenings and to stay later than feels comfortable. The Pere Marquette in June does not give up its best water in the bright hours. The brown drakes are coming, and when they do, the fishing will turn dark and deliberate. Bring a headlamp, know your exit route, and be prepared to fish by feel as much as by sight. The current conditions favor dry fly work, but do not ignore the subsurface. A soft-hackle swung through the tailouts or a lightly weighted nymph drifted through the ledge rock can pull strikes when nothing is showing on top. The flow is stable, the temperatures are right, and the river is in that brief window between hatches when the trout are looking but not locked in. That is the window to fish.
For live USGS conditions, updated forecasts, and access to the full Michigan Trout Network, visit michigantroutreport.com.