Boardman River
Michigan · Grand Traverse
- County: Grand Traverse
- Shoreline outline: not yet matched (basemap OSM)
The pin is approximate, near the middle of the water. The shoreline on the map comes from OpenStreetMap.
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Overview
The Boardman River runs through Grand Traverse County and enters Grand Traverse Bay of Lake Michigan in Traverse City. Michigan DNR stocks brown trout, steelhead, Chinook salmon and coho salmon as needed under its fisheries plan for the bay and river. DNR runs a weir near the mouth, where returning salmon are harvested in September and October, while lake trout, brown trout, steelhead and Atlantic salmon are passed upstream. The river is the site of a 20-plus-year restoration. Sabin Dam was removed in 2018, and in 2025 the Union Street Dam and its fish ladder were replaced by FishPass. FishPass can sort and pass desirable fish while blocking invasive sea lamprey.
Regulations
Special rules and closures apply near the weir and on parts of the river. See the current Michigan Fishing Regulations: https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/things-to-do/fishing
Stocking history
| Species | Qty | Size | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chinook Salmon | 96113 | 9.0 | 05-04-2026 |
| Coho Salmon | 91373 | 13.9 | 04-29-2026 |
| Rainbow Trout | 16947 | 20.0 | 04-13-2026 |
| Lake sturgeon | 10 | 17.3 | 10-16-2025 |
| Lake sturgeon | 160 | 15.8 | 10-12-2025 |
| Lake sturgeon | 137 | 16.7 | 09-27-2025 |
| Lake sturgeon | 2 | 18.0 | 09-20-2025 |
| Lake sturgeon | 14 | 15.5 | 09-19-2025 |
| Lake sturgeon | 61 | 16.1 | 09-18-2025 |
| Lake sturgeon | 10 | 16.6 | 09-17-2025 |
| Lake sturgeon | 300 | 16.0 | 09-13-2025 |
| Lake sturgeon | 1 | 42.7 | 05-08-2025 |
| Lake sturgeon | 1 | 52.5 | 04-30-2025 |
| Lake sturgeon | 4 | 35.0 | 04-25-2025 |
| Coho Salmon | 43400 | 14.1 | 04-24-2025 |
| Rainbow Trout | 8250 | 19.5 | 04-16-2025 |
Michigan Department of Natural Resources