Chippewa River

Fishing, stocking, and current conditions

Rainbow trout water; one stocking on the 2026 record, in April. A USGS gauge reports from this water, so the conditions card on this page is live.

Isabella County · Michigan · see it on the national map

last stocked Apr 30 176 days ago

best window 10:37 pm-12:37 am solunar major today

Water right now 14.12 ft gage height flow 279 cfs USGS gauge 04154512 (CHIPPEWA RIVER AT S HOMER RD NR MIDLAND) · read 7:15 pm this evening

1 stocking 2026

13,423 fish reported

The year here

stocked last 7 days announced ahead · tap a tick for details

What swims here

Rainbow trout 1 stocking

Stocking record 2026

Agency feed checked Oct 14.

Date	Species	Size	Fish	Status
Apr 30	Rainbow trout	adult	13,423	completed

When to fish Chippewa River

	Major periods (~2 h)	Minor periods (~1 h)
Today	10:15 am-12:15 pm and 10:37 pm-12:37 am	4:31-5:31 am and 4:46-5:46 pm
Tomorrow	11:01 am-1:01 pm	5:43-6:43 am and 5:07-6:07 pm

Moon: waxing gibbous, 92% lit. These are solunar periods, the traditional feeding-time theory: majors around the moon's transit overhead and underfoot, minors around moonrise and moonset. Theory, not a measurement. Times are Eastern Time (EDT).

What the record actually says

Last stocked Apr 30

Computed this evening, Oct 23 · Michigan fishing forecast

Gear for this water

It has been a while since the trucks came. The holdovers have spread out and wised up; downsize and fish natural.

For the trout (rainbow trout stocked 1 time here in 2026, moving water)

Light spinning rod	5 to 6.5 ft light or ultralight; short rods cast under branches
Inline spinners	1/16 to 1/8 oz silver or gold; swing them across the current seams
Drifted bait	single salmon egg or half a crawler under light split shot, rolled along the bottom

Suggestions follow from what the state actually stocks here and what kind of water it is, nothing else. No sponsored placements.

Nearby stocked waters

The closest waters with stocking pages of their own, straight-line miles from this one.

Water	Distance	Most recent
Cass River	21 mi	Jun 16
South Branch Tobacco River	23 mi	May 1
Wiggins Lake	30 mi	Jun 16
Pratt Lake	32 mi	Jun 16
Newton Creek	33 mi	May 1

Follow Michigan stocking: RSS / Calendar (iCal) / Print the schedule

Records from Michigan DNR (official page). Placement from USGS GNIS. Schedules change without notice. Seasons, limits, and licenses: Michigan fishing regulations.