South Branch Paw Paw River

Fishing, stocking, and current conditions

Brown trout water; 2 stockings on the 2026 record, all in April. One of 6 stocked waters on the Van Buren County record. A USGS gauge reports from this water, so the conditions card on this page is live.

Van Buren County · Michigan · see it on the national map

last stocked Apr 27 179 days ago

best window 10:44 pm-12:44 am solunar major today

Water right now 4.36 ft gage height flow 69.6 cfs USGS gauge 04102148 (SOUTH BRANCH PAW PAW RIVER NEAR PAW PAW, MI) · read 7:30 pm this evening

2 stockings 2026

2,600 fish reported

The year here

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

What swims here

Brown trout 2 stockings

Stocking record 2026

Agency feed checked Oct 14.

Date	Species	Size	Fish	Status
Apr 27	Brown trout	adult	1,400	completed
Apr 27	Brown trout	adult	1,200	completed

When to fish South Branch Paw Paw River

	Major periods (~2 h)	Minor periods (~1 h)
Today	10:22 am-12:22 pm and 10:44 pm-12:44 am	4:38-5:38 am and 4:53-5:53 pm
Tomorrow	11:08 am-1:08 pm	5:49-6:49 am and 5:16-6:16 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 27

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 (brown trout stocked 2 times 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
East Br Paw Paw River	3.6 mi	Apr 27
Brush Creek	6.9 mi	Apr 27
Sand Creek	10 mi	May 20
Shafer Lake	10 mi	Apr 1
Pine Creek	14 mi	Apr 27

Follow Van Buren County 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.