See every public fishing venue in Indiana on the map, with boat ramps, camping, parking and full rules for each one.
Saint Joseph River is a public river in DeKalb County and Allen County, Indiana, managed by State of Indiana (public / navigable water). You can fish it on an Indiana licence; bank access is at road crossings, parks, Indiana DNR fishing-access sites, Fish & Wildlife Areas, state forests and other public land, and riparian owners control the bank on non-navigable reaches. A trout/salmon stamp is required on the Lake Michigan tributary streams. Public access confirmed via public-trust river.
A northwest-Indiana Lake Michigan tributary (Trail Creek, the Little Calumet East Branch, Salt Creek) — a fall and spring run of steelhead, Chinook and coho salmon and brown trout stocked and dropping down from the lake, plus resident smallmouth and rock bass. A Lake Michigan trout/salmon stamp is required.
It runs roughly 16 miles through the Northern Lakes & Michigan Shore region. Anglers here mostly fish for steelhead, chinook salmon, coho salmon, brown trout; smallmouth bass, rock bass, common carp, channel catfish are also on record. Live flow and gauge height come from the St. Joseph River At Elkhart, In USGS station shown below. The nearest other mapped waters on PiscaMaps are Hurshtown Reservoir and Cedarville Reservoir.
Species from Indiana DNR access and trout-water data.
Night fishing: No statewide night-fishing closure in Indiana. Many state-park and reservoir properties gate at dark or post hours, and some Fish & Wildlife Area lakes are daylight-only — check the property rules. Trotlines, limblines and bank poles are legal on most warmwater rivers and some lakes (not on trout/salmon water) with the gear tagged; the Ohio and Wabash allow more commercial-style gear under a separate permit.
Boats: Most Indiana rivers are waded or floated by canoe, kayak and jon boat; the Ohio, the lower Wabash and the White below Indianapolis take full-size boats.
Bank & bivvy camping: You may fish and float any navigable Indiana river on a fishing licence; bank access is at Indiana DNR fishing-access sites, state parks and reservoirs, Fish & Wildlife Areas, state forests and bridge crossings, and riparian owners control the bank on non-navigable reaches. A trout/salmon stamp is required on the Lake Michigan tributary streams.
Boat ramps: 4 mapped — Boat ramp, Boat ramp, Boat ramp, Boat ramp.
Source: OpenStreetMap contributors.
Loading live flow & gauge height…
Live from USGS gauge 04101000 — St. Joseph River At Elkhart, In. Full gauge data →
Anyone 18-64 needs an Indiana Department of Natural Resources fishing licence — resident annual is about $23, non-resident annual about $60, and short-term (1-day / 7-day) licences are sold. A trout/salmon stamp (about $12) is required to fish for or possess trout or salmon anywhere in the state; on Lake Michigan and its tributaries that stamp also covers the salmon. Indiana residents 64 and older, and anyone under 18, do not need a licence; a resident 'Lifetime' and a low-cost senior licence are available. A single licence covers the DNR reservoirs (no separate lake permit). Buy from the DNR at on.IN.gov/INHuntFish. An Indiana fishing licence covers navigable rivers. The Ohio River is fished on an Indiana or Kentucky licence within the marked reciprocal zone; the Wabash below Terre Haute is an Indiana-Illinois boundary water fished on either state's licence. A trout/salmon stamp is required on the Lake Michigan tributary streams.
Every water carries species, bank & boat access, current regulations and live water conditions — and members get Swim Mapper, Catch Logger and Trip Planner. It's the only US map with a dedicated carp-water layer.
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