Explore Illinois trout water: the Lake Michigan harbors IDNR stocks with steelhead, coho, Chinook and trout (Waukegan, North Point Marina, Diversey, Jackson and more), the trout streams in Apple River Canyon and White Pines Forest state parks, and the lakes and ponds in IDNR’s catchable trout program, with boat ramps and river gauges.
Check before you fish. Access, stocking and regulations here come from Illinois's own data and can be out of date. Posted signs and landowners' wishes come first, and private land needs permission. The rules that apply are in the Illinois Fishing Digest, and you need a valid fishing license.
Bold where the stream crosses public land; faint and dashed across private land. Gauges are measurement stations; a nearby gauge may be on a different stream.
Stream types · Illinois
Bold where the stream crosses public land
Lake Michigan points are the harbors in IDNR’s 2025 stocking record, placed at each harbor’s IDNR boat ramp. Snagging is allowed only for Chinook and coho from October 1 to December 31 at the harbors the Fishing Digest lists.
Catchable trout sites are IDNR’s current season list, each at the map point of its IDNR waterbody page. No trout may be kept before the season opens (catch and release is allowed earlier at the sites marked as early); opening times vary by site, so check before opening day. An inland trout stamp is required.
Park streams are the stream line within the park: Apple River Canyon (with private land between parcels), White Pines Forest, Lake Le-Aqua-Na and Krape Park. Not placed: Rock Creek in Kankakee River State Park, Green Lake, Horsetail Lake, I&M Canal Lock 14, Lake Strini and Southwind Park.
Highlighted banks adjoin mapped open-access public land, with a roughly 20-meter bank tolerance. Dimmed water has no adjacent open-access parcel recorded in this source. Neither determines legal entry, rights of way or permission to cross private land. Check signs, property rules and the current fishing regulations.
Access markers are source facility locations within about 800 meters of mapped water, not verified parking spaces or guaranteed entry to a particular reach. River-gauge readings describe the gauged location; a nearby gauge on another stream is shown as context.