Best Tippecanoe River Fly Fishing

Northeast of Lafayette and south of Monticello, the Tippecanoe River has 18 miles of exceptional fly fishing waters below Oakdale Dam to the confluence with the Wabash River. The Tippecanoe River is well known for its smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, spotted bass and rock bass.

Most fly fishermen use McKenzie-style drift boats to float the Tippecanoe River due to daily dam releases from Oakdale dam. The best floating can be expected from 500cfs to 2,500cfs. There is very limited public access for wading due to large amounts of private property lining the river.

The two most popular put-in access points are just below Oakdale Dam and at the SR18 bridge. Many fishermen float either the upper 9 miles above SR18 or the lower 9 miles below SR18 to the Wabash River confluence.

If you are determined to wade, there are a few access points near the bridges for SR18, CR725N, West Bicycle Bridge Road and Pretty Prairie Road.

Note: All trout streams in Indiana are catch-and-release from January 1st to April 14th. Stocked trout streams are closed the last two weeks of April. Open season limits are a total of five trout per day with a daily max of one brown trout.

Overall, Tippecanoe River is the 2nd most popular fly fishing river of all 15 fly fishing spots in Indiana.