East Branch Ontonagon River
Fishing and stocking
Rainbow trout water; one stocking on the 2026 record, in May. One of 4 stocked waters on the Houghton County record.
Houghton County · Michigan · see it on the national map
The year here
stocked last 7 days announced ahead · tap a tick for details
What swims here
Rainbow trout
Stocking record 2026
Agency feed checked Oct 14.
| Date | Species | Size | Fish | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 28 | Rainbow trout | adult | 20,955 | completed |
When to fish East Branch Ontonagon River
| Major periods (~2 h) | Minor periods (~1 h) | |
|---|---|---|
| Today | 9:35-11:35 am and 9:58-11:58 pm | 3:52-4:52 am and 4:04-5:04 pm |
| Tomorrow | 10:21 am-12:21 pm and 10:45 pm-12:45 am | 5:06-6:06 am and 4:23-5:23 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 Central Time (CDT).
What the record actually says
- Last stocked May 28
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)
| Drifted bait | single salmon egg or half a crawler under light split shot, rolled along the bottom |
| Small jerkbaits | floating minnows in the 2 to 3 inch class for the deeper bends |
| Waders or wet-wading boots | stocked stream fish stack in the obvious pools; getting to the next one is the edge |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Trout Creek Pond | 12 mi | May 12 |
| Ontonagon River | 15 mi | Sep 9 |
| Clear Lake | 17 mi | Apr 30 |
| Emily Lake | 18 mi | May 5 |
| Killdeer Lake | 26 mi | May 4 |
Follow Houghton County stocking: RSS / Calendar (iCal) / Print the schedule