Fly Fishing around Detroit...

[big flounder]

This coming year I'll have to travel to downtown Detroit for business quite a bit. I'm not comfortable taking my fishing kayak and having it in the back of my truck bed while parked in a parking garage for a week, but would really like to take my waders and fly rods to do some evening fishing. I'm not looking for honey holes, just some general guidance. I'm game for anything that will bite a fly, including urban carp. Input? Thanks in advance for the help!

 

[ddb]

In your shoes I'd forego any solitary fly fishing explorations in a downtown urban area like Detroit with high crime and over taxed law enforcement. The last time I was home there I saw a vanity license plate FELON and a t shirt with the logo "Cover me I'm going for bread'

There are local guides who specialize in fly fishing and can put you on small mouth. pike, and muskies in Lake Sinclair, the Detroit River and lots of inland lakes nearby.

Good luck,

ddb

 

[Kata2012]

North of detroit, the paint creek in Rochester is decent. It's about a 20 mile drive. Many people like to fish at the Yates Cidar Mill entrance. When are you going to be in the area?

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[jr spey]

In your shoes I'd forego any solitary fly fishing explorations in a downtown urban area like Detroit with high crime and over taxed law enforcement. The last time I was home there I saw a vanity license plate FELON and a t shirt with the logo "Cover me I'm going for bread'

There are local guides who specialize in fly fishing and can put you on small mouth. pike, and muskies in Lake Sinclair, the Detroit River and lots of inland lakes nearby.

Good luck,

ddb

I think by Lake Sinclair ddb actually means Lake St. Clair. If you Google Lake Sinclair it comes up Lake St. Clair as well. Great place for smallies, some pike, and is internationally known for large musky. A guided trip will be pricey unless you can find someone to share the costs.

 

[big flounder]

Thanks guys. I'll check some places out as well as local guides. Right downtown the crime isn't as bad as one would think and they've really cleaned downtown Detroit up from what it used to be I'm told. Not sure I would venture far from the hotel late at night, but otherwise I feel pretty safe downtown. I think it's when you get into the areas away from downtown that you need to worry.

Belle Isle is a spot for me to check out with the fly rod as there are some small lakes there. Even bluegills with the 3wt would be better than sitting in my hotel room.

 

[ejsell]

Just saw this post, I'd contact Schultz outfitters. They guide steelhead alley and the Huron River just outside of detroit. Downtown detroit is not too bad but anything outside of the entertainment/sport district might get sketchy fast. Might want to consider a guide trip from them just to get the lay of the land.

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[ramjet]

April there is a special c and r season for stocked trout at Proud Lake Rec area, about an hour from “the hood”.

There are many places to access the Huron River, which is wadeable in a lot of places, for smallmouth, rock bass, etc. Start in downtown Ypsilanti, but don’t stay out after dark. You’ll probably lose some flies on sunken shopping carts and the like. There are parks upstream of Ann Arbor on the river, but thats a longer drive.

I’m not familiar with fishing with a fly rod right down town. In mid May to early June, there will be white bass ( like a 14-15 inch long bluegill) in the Detroit River. They will eat white 3” long streamers all day long if you can find a bunch of them..again, not sure about shore fishing, but the first time I took my boat out for them, I caught 130 in about 4 hours. That was non stop fishing, just to see if I could. Let me know if you’re out in that timeframe and we could see if the weather, wind, and my schedule work together. If not, there is a fishing pier you might try by the Detroit River wildlife refuge. I know they were putting it in a couple years ago, but since then, I’ve been fishing more up stream. Hope some of that helps.

Oh..not really fishing, but the Michigan fly fishing club meets about a half hour or 45 minutes from downtown... mffc.org. I think.

 

[big flounder]

Thanks everyone for the input, I greatly appreciate it! I wonder how the pond fishing on Belle Isle would be. Might be something to keep me busy with the 3wt if nothing else.


Oh and ramjet, thanks for the heads up about the MFFC meeting up that way! I work second shift when I'm not in Detroit and can't attend my local club's meetings. I might be able to attend more meetings and events with the MFFC than I can my own club. Lol

 

[dennyk]

This could be a stretch for you and your schedule, but if you are stuck there on the weekends you may want to explore the Shiawassee River watershed. Lots of access points and very good Smallmouth fishing. Northern Pike are abundant in the river as well.

I have 2 trips booked with a guide on the river, one in May for Smallmouth the other in the latter part of August for Northerns. The guide I'm using is a friend of mine, if you would like to speak to him about the area feel free to PM me and I'll send you his contact information.

Good Luck!

Denny

 

[benglish]

Get off my lawn.