Clinton River

The Clinton River is the most accessible trout and steelhead fishery in southeastern Michigan, flowing 77 miles through the northern suburbs of Detroit before emptying into Lake St. Clair at Mount Clemens. For many Michigan fly fishers, the Clinton is their home water — the river where they threw their first streamer, landed their first steelhead, or learned to read current seams. It drains a heavily urbanized watershed spanning Oakland, Macomb, and Lapeer counties, which makes its surviving fishery all the more remarkable. Michigan DNR and the Clinton River Watershed Council have invested decades of effort in improving water quality, removing barriers to fish passage, and restoring riparian habitat. The upper reaches above Pontiac hold surprisingly good populations of resident brown trout in cold, spring-fed stretches, while the lower river below the M-59 corridor becomes one of metro Detroit's most productive steelhead runs each spring and fall.