Indiana’s Trail Creek

Micro Steelheaders Heaven

The fish were lying in a small three feet deep pocket directly in front of me. My careful upstream wading approach allowed me to get within three feet of the two 10lb+ Skamania Steelhead. The river was maybe 18 feet across in this area and filled with cement blocks, logs and other stream debris. It was a cloudy October morning. The water was its typically clay stained color with about 3½ feet of visibility and a water temperature of 58°. I carefully flipped my #3 silver home made spinner 6 feet in front of the resting fish. I retrieved my flashy friend within 4 inches of the bigger fish and he obliged by casually moving over and inhaling my spinner. I set the hook and the fish violently shook his head side to side. Meanwhile I adjusted my footing to prepare for battle. As my front foot hit bottom, the large fish jumped 3 feet straight up, shook his whole body, and snapped my 14lb test like sewing thread. I cussed as I lost my third steelhead of the morning. This scenario is repeated nearly daily from July through March on Indiana’s Trail Creek.

Trail Creek has recently become one of my favorite steelhead rivers. This tiny creek host large runs of Skamania steelhead, Michigan strain steelies, Coho and Chinook salmon and is my all time best producer of summer run steelhead. Although the river flow is slowest of any river I have ever fished for steelhead and fishing sighted anadromous trout and salmon without any takers can be down right frustrating, I still enjoy time spent fishing this diminutive river.

Trail Creek has played a large part in the development of Indiana’s Skamania stocking program. Indiana received their first Skamania steelhead from Washington State in 1971 but the results from the first attempt to start a viable steelhead fishery was stymied due pollution and mishaps in handling the yearlings. In 1975 the Mixsawbah Hatchery opened for business and received Skamania eggs directly from Washington. By 1976 the eggs had hatched and over a quarter million yearlings were released. In 1980 a virus (IHN) at the Washington hatchery eliminated Indiana’s source of Skamania eggs. This forced the Indiana DNR to develop a home grown Skamania program. In 1981, they started the program by trapping over 400 adult steelhead in Trail Creek. These first adults produced over 100,000 smolts for planting and this fledgling program has now become the egg source for other Skamania stocking programs. In 1994, Indiana used their new weir at the South Bend fish ladder for harvesting steelhead for egg take. A lamprey barrier was installed on Trail Creek in 2012 and now this is the location of the egg take for the Indiana’s Skamania program.

Although it was originally stocked to provide an off shore trolling fishery, the returns to the creek are excellent and have improved due to the river cleanup efforts of the community and the Indiana DNR. This effort has resulted in a unique steelhead fishery to say the least. Recently the Indiana DNR decide to move all skamania plants into Trail Creek and the St Joseph River. The result is the Indiana DNR stock approximately 90,000 Skamania steelhead into Trail Creek instead of the 60,000 that Trail use to get. This should result in a better run in upcoming years.

While Trail Creek is a small river and has very little gradient, it has a fairly stable flow. The creek is about 25 miles long and meanders north through Laporte County before dumping into southern Lake Michigan at Michigan City. Trail Creek splits just upstream from US 20 and both branches hold fish. The average depth of the creek is about 2 feet and the average width is about 20 feet. The bottom of the river consists primarily of either sand or clay with very little spawning gravel. In addition, there is plenty of river clutter such as logs and various man made items for the fish to hold in or near. Although I have caught naturally reproduced resident brown trout and steelhead smolts in Trail Creek, the steelhead run is made up of mostly hatchery raised steelhead. There is very little natural reproduction due to the lack of spawning substrate. Trail Creek flows through a heavily wooded mature forest. These trees shade the river and in turn keep the water temperature down low 70°’s during the hottest part of summer and protect the shallow creek from fish spooking sun light. I do not typically fish Trail until August when the water temperature is in the mid 60°’s or lower because I prefer to release all the steelhead I catch. I try to plan my August trips after a few cool nights to ensure that I encounter lower water temperatures. The lower water temperature allows me to release the fish I hook unharmed. Trail Creek is also a flashy stream by nature due to the clay/sand substrate and the proximity of the creek to farm land. It takes approximately 3 to 4 days for the river to drop and clear into fishable levels and clarity for most steelheading techniques after a major rain event with the upper creek clearing a day or so earlier than the lower creek.

While the creek runs though mostly private land, public access to Trail Creek is available at US 20, North of US 35, at Johnson Road south of US 20 and at Creek Ridge County Park. There is a considerable amount of private land along Trail Creek and it is illegal in Indiana to wade through posted private property. If asked politely, a few of the private land owners will allow access to the creek. Be sure to respect the rights of property owners if you decide to visit Trail Creek. Public access to trail creek is available at :

• Site next to the DNR building; Hansen Park (E Street)
• Winding Creek Cove (8th/Dickson Streets)
• Fire Station #2 (2005 E. U.S. 12)
• Robert Peo Public Access (Liberty Trail)
• Karwick Nature Park (Karwick Road)
• U.S. 35 (Chapala Parkway)
• Trail Creek Forks (U.S. 20)
• Johnson Road (Johnson/Wozniak Roads)
• Creek Ridge Park (7943 W. County Road 400 North)

No fishing is allowed within 100 feet upstream of the Trail Creek sea lamprey barrier or downstream to the Pottawattomie Country Club Golf Course property line located adjacent to Springland Avenue in Michigan City.

Trail Creek is almost a four season fishery but it is best known for its summer run of steelhead. A few scattered Skamania enter the stream in late May or early June. The Skamania steelhead run begins in earnest in July and peaks in late July thru September depending on the weather patterns that year. The best fishing usually occurs 2 to 3 days after a good rain with the upper creek clearing a day os so sooner than the lower creek. You want to hit the creek just as it settles into fishable shape and before it gets pounded by fishermen. The fish will move in the high water and are most aggressive when the river drops. The fish seem to go stale after a couple of days of low water and high fishing pressure. Trail Creek will be down right crowded on weekends during the peak of the Skamania run through the Chinook run (Mid July to Mid October) so it pays to fish on weekdays. Fishing in Trail Creek during mid October can be difficult due to the large amount of floating leaves in the river. In late October, a few fall run fish from the plants of Michigan strain steelhead start to appear. November tends to be a slower month because the number of Skamania dropping back into the big lake is larger than the number of fall running of winter steelhead. The run of fall fish lasts for about a month and a half. It often pays to fish the lower stretches of the river a couple of days after a rain so you can intercept some of these fresh run chromers. Some of these fish spend the winter in Trail with the remaining Skamania steelhead so the fishing stays good all winter long provided the river is not frozen. Because the stream is located in the steelhead banana belt, the creek is not prone to freezing except during extended periods of extreme cold weather. Although some of the Michigan strain winter run steelhead begin running in late October or early November, the bulk of these fish enter the river in late February through March with the returning Skamania. Cold weather can delay the timing of this run. High water can be a problem in the spring, so make sure to check the river gage or call one of the local bait shops for the latest river conditions. You can can the latest fishing report at https://www.in.gov/dnr/fish-and-wildlife/fishing/indiana-fishing-reports/ and you can check the river height at https://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?site_no=04095300 .

Bait fishing is by far the most prevalent approach used when fishing for steelhead in Trail Creek. Lately shrimp seems to be the most common bait, followed by spawn, wax worms, crawlers, and minnows. Plunking (still fishing with a hook & sinker rig with bait on the bottom) with shrimp, spawn, or worms is a popular bait fishing technique on Trail due to its slow current. The best place to do this is in the many deep holes found on the creek. Remember to plunk fish close to shore and out of the main current in during periods of high water. Drift fishing is another popular bait fishing approach used on Trail. Using light weight lead and a small diameter line is necessary to combat the slow water found on Trail Creek. The slow current also makes it necessary to tend the drift as well. Drift fishermen will also find that a shorter pole in the 7–8 foot range works best on Trail Creek due to its small size. Some drift fishermen on Trail do well with flies. Because Skamania steelhead are quick hitters, the most popular fly patterns have short tails. Bobber fishing is the third prevailing bait technique on Trail Creek. Bobbers work well in the slow current and allow you to fish snag free in the clutter filled holes. Pencil bobbers that allow you to make a true drift through fish holding seams are the best. Shrimp under a bobber can work well at times, so can a jig and wax worms. Some successful spawn bag fishermen include some fluorescent red coloring in their spawn bags due to the low visibility often encountered on Trail and the Skamania steelhead’s apparent preference for the color.

My favorite way to fish for steelhead on Trail Creek is the weighted spinner. I prefer to carefully wade in an upstream direction and cast my spinner upstream to quarter of upstream. It is important to use an upstream wading approach to prevent spooking the fish. This is especially important when you are fishing for sighted fish. It is interesting that while most experts agree that faster broken water is the best holding water for summer run steelies, the Skamania Steelhead in Trail often lie in shallow slow water. In fact, I have hooked very few Skamania Steelhead from the faster broken water in Trail Creek. Polarized sunglasses are required equipment with this technique as you will often see steelhead lying in the shallow water. Be sure to wade slowly and quietly and cast to all sighted fish. I use size #2 through #3 polish and plain brass spinners and #3 through #4 silver plated spinners with plenty of red tape and tubing when fishing Trail. I evaluate the atmospheric and river conditions when choosing a spinner. For instance, if it is cloudy and the water clarity is 2–3 feet, I will probably use a silver plated # 3. If the sun comes out in the afternoon, I will drop to a #2 plain or polished brass spinner. If the visibility is down in the 1–2 foot range, I may use a #4 silver spinner to attract the fish. If I am fishing sighted fish in shallow water, I usually use a brass #2 to keep from spooking the fish and snagging the bottom. Spinner performance and weight are other important factors to consider when selecting a spinner for Trail Creek. Due to Trail Creek’s small size most of your casts will have to be upstream to reach fish that are unaware of your presence. Spinners used on Trail must spin when cast upstream and retrieved slowly with the current, and must be light enough to not snag the bottom on a slow retrieve.

Fishing licenses are available on line at https://www.in.gov/dnr/fish-and-wildlife/indiana-fish-and-wildlife-online-license-system/ .

Trail Creek offers a unique brand of micro steelheading. The run of Skamania steelhead provides the Great Lakes steelheader an opportunity to start the fall season early. In addition, Trail offers an alternative location for excellent winter and spring action as well. So hit the road to Trail!