Winter Steelhead in Minnesota: River Run Timing and Flows

Q: When do steelhead run in Minnesota?

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources describes spring run from Apr 1 to Jun 30. North Shore steelhead run once the streams lose their ice, usually late March or early April, with adults still moving upstream into early summer.

Q: Which Minnesota rivers have winter steelhead?

The rivers Minnesota DNR names with steelhead in the river between December and April include the Knife River, French River, Lester River, Stewart River, Gooseberry River, Split Rock River, Baptism River, Sucker River and 2 more. Each one is listed below with its agency timing and the source sentence.

Q: Where is the Minnesota steelhead fishing report?

Minnesota DNR publishes the Lake Superior Fishing Reports (stream conditions and smelt updates) (weekly), the Knife River fish trap report (2024) (annual) and the Lake Superior spring creel survey (2025) (annual). All are linked below.

Q: Which Minnesota steelhead rivers get hatchery fish?

Minnesota DNR records hatchery releases or returns on the Knife River, French River, Lester River and Sucker River.

Q: How high is the Knife River running today?

The rivers table reads the latest discharge straight from USGS for the Knife River, the one Minnesota steelhead river here with a USGS discharge gauge, and sets each flow beside the gauge's median for today's date from its full record.

Q: Is the steelhead run the same as the fishing season in Minnesota?

No. A run window is when the fish move, and it is biology. Seasons, licences and river closures are set by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and change inside a year; its current regulations are linked beside the rivers table.

Q: Are Minnesota steelhead native?

Great Lakes steelhead are a stocked and naturalized fish. New York DEC writes that steelhead have been stocked in Lake Erie since the late 1800s and, though not native to the system, are now a naturalized part of its fish community. In Minnesota, Minnesota DNR describes spring run Apr 1 to Jun 30.

Rivers and flows

Minnesota steelhead rivers, run timing and flow today

Each river below is one Minnesota Department of Natural Resources names for steelhead, with the timing it gives and the sentence it came from. Beside it, the latest discharge from the river’s USGS gauge and the median discharge for today’s date across that gauge’s years of record, so a reading of 150% means the river is carrying half again its usual flow for the day.

Minnesota steelhead rivers named by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, with the latest USGS discharge and water temperature and the median discharge for today’s date over each gauge’s record.
River	Run timing	Hatchery	Flow now	Median for today	Water temp
Knife RiverLower Shore The DNR's index stream for wild steelhead, with adult and juvenile traps; 274 adults were estimated to return in spring 2024, and it was stocked with Superior strain steelhead for the first time in fall 2023 and spring 2024. Minnesota DNR source USGS gauge 04015330	ice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun	Hatchery fish	Loading	Loading	Discharge only at this gauge
French RiverLower Shore Adults returning here are trapped and seined for eggs that keep the captive Lake Superior strain broodstock going. Minnesota DNR source	ice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun	Hatchery fish	Run timing from Minnesota DNR, with the note and source beside it.
Lester RiverLower Shore One of the two rivers that receive the annual clipped yearling stocking, and the top river for legal steelhead in the 2025 creel. Minnesota DNR source	ice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun	Hatchery fish	Run timing from Minnesota DNR, with the note and source beside it.
Stewart RiverLower Shore Drew the most angling effort of any Lower Shore creel station in spring 2025. Minnesota DNR source	ice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun	See the note	Run timing from Minnesota DNR, with the note and source beside it.
Gooseberry RiverLower Shore A Lower Shore creel station where legal steelhead were recorded in 2025. Minnesota DNR source	ice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun	See the note	Run timing from Minnesota DNR, with the note and source beside it.
Split Rock RiverLower Shore The northern end of the DNR's Lower Shore survey region. Minnesota DNR source	ice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun	See the note	Run timing from Minnesota DNR, with the note and source beside it.
Baptism RiverUpper Shore The busiest Upper Shore creel station in 2025. Minnesota DNR source	ice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun	See the note	Run timing from Minnesota DNR, with the note and source beside it.
Sucker RiverLower Shore Stocked with 20,000 steelhead fingerlings in October 2025. Minnesota DNR source	ice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun	Hatchery fish	Run timing from Minnesota DNR, with the note and source beside it.
Devil Track RiverUpper Shore Had the best Upper Shore catch rate in the 2025 spring creel. Minnesota DNR source	ice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun	See the note	Run timing from Minnesota DNR, with the note and source beside it.
Beaver RiverUpper Shore The southern end of the DNR's Upper Shore survey region. Minnesota DNR source	ice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun	See the note	Run timing from Minnesota DNR, with the note and source beside it.

Run calendar

When steelhead are in Minnesota rivers

The months Minnesota DNR gives for each river, laid on a July to June year so a winter run reads as one bar. Rain and water temperature move the weeks inside those months from one year to the next.

Knife RiverLower Shoreice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun
French RiverLower Shoreice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun
Lester RiverLower Shoreice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun
Stewart RiverLower Shoreice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun
Gooseberry RiverLower Shoreice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun
Split Rock RiverLower Shoreice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun
Baptism RiverUpper Shoreice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun
Sucker RiverLower Shoreice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun
Devil Track RiverUpper Shoreice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun
Beaver RiverUpper Shoreice out (late Mar or early Apr) to Jun

Spring run
Nov, the current month

Minnesota steelhead months by river, from Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Fish in the river across Apr to Jun.

The runs, in Minnesota DNR’s words

Spring run, Apr 1 to Jun 30. North Shore steelhead run once the streams lose their ice, usually late March or early April, with adults still moving upstream into early summer. The adult traps capture annual spawning runs of adult steelhead in the spring (ice-out in late-March or early-April through July) and many other adult salmonids (i.e., brook and brown trout, coho, chinook, and pink salmon) that spawn in the fall (September through ice-formation in late-October or early-November). Source

Water temperature and the run

By mid-October the run has intensified as the water temperatures of the streams drop to the optimum range of 45-58 degrees F for migration.
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

A person in waders and a knit cap crouching in brown river water, holding a bright silver steelhead with a pink cheek low at the surface — A steelhead from a Lake Erie tributary in late November, kept low in the water. Steelhead are not native to the Great Lakes; New York has stocked them in Lake Erie since the late 1800s, and they run up tributaries from the lakes in fall, winter and spring. “Great Lakes Steelhead” by ColtonOrbaker, CC BY-SA 3.0

Reports

Minnesota steelhead reports and counts

Where Minnesota DNR publishes the current picture: fishing reports, weir and hatchery counts, and creel surveys, each with how often it is updated.

Lake Superior Fishing Reports (stream conditions and smelt updates)Minnesota DNR, fishing report, weeklyStream conditions and smelt updates , including steelhead run timing, begin once anglers start fishing in North Shore streams. Reports are posted here every Thursday through Memorial Day.
Knife River fish trap report (2024)Minnesota DNR, weir count, annualA total of 204 individual unclipped adult steelhead were captured in the Knife River traps in spring 2024.
Lake Superior spring creel survey (2025)Minnesota DNR, creel, annualThe Lake Superior spring angler surveys begin when ice clears and anglers begin fishing in streams, which occurs anytime between late-March and early-May.

Mist lifting off a wide river on a cold grey morning, bare and yellowing trees on both banks and a bridge faint in the distance — Mist on the Salmon River in New York on an October morning. The Lake Ontario tributaries take their first steelhead in fall, and fish keep entering through the winter into spring. “Can you tell how cold it must be on the salmon river - panoramio” by Ron Shawley, CC BY 3.0

Elsewhere

Steelhead run timing in other states

Questions about Minnesota steelhead

When do steelhead run in Minnesota?

Which Minnesota rivers have winter steelhead?

Where is the Minnesota steelhead fishing report?

Which Minnesota steelhead rivers get hatchery fish?

How high is the Knife River running today?

Is the steelhead run the same as the fishing season in Minnesota?

Are Minnesota steelhead native?

River timing from Minnesota Department of Natural Resources pages, each linked beside its river. Flow, water temperature and the daily median from the USGS Water Services. Compiled September 21, 2026.

Minnesota salmon run timingThe chinook and coho runs on the same rivers, in the months before the steelhead.Minnesota trout stockingThe same species as a freshwater fish, stocked on a schedule.Minnesota river levelsEvery USGS gauge in the state against its own record for the date.