All sixteen steelhead tributaries of Erie County, Pennsylvania — pinned at their Lake Erie mouths, west to east from Conneaut Creek at the Ohio line to Twentymile Creek at the New York line — plus the main access points on Walnut and Elk. Tap any marker for access notes and the prime-flow band we fish it on.
Schematic map — the interactive map could not load. Mouths west to east:
Markers sit at each creek’s lake mouth (or its lowest assessed reach — see sources below). The Walnut and Elk access points share their creeks’ mouth coordinates — their squares are drawn behind the mouth pins, and zooming in separates them. Always confirm current PFBC regulations before fishing — and remember, Trout Run is closed nursery water: fish the lake and beach at Avonia, never the creek.
The full roster from our stream guide, in shoreline order. Flow bands are the ones from our stream guide and flow reference — check today’s conditions before you drive.
Conneaut, Ohio · PA state line
Mouth at Conneaut, Ohio, just west of the PA line; Erie County access at Conneaut Township Park on the PA side.
When it fishes: The big west-side system. Prime at 50–200 CFS on the USGS gauge at Conneaut, OH (04213000); blown out over roughly 450 CFS. Fishes on a delay after rain.
Springfield Township
Raccoon Creek Park, the township picnic area, sits just east of the mouth, with lake-shore access.
When it fishes: Small west-side trib with a brief window: it fishes like a smaller Walnut — best around Walnut's low-prime range and falling — and holds color 24–48 hours after Walnut clears.
Springfield Township
Mouth on the Lake Erie shore in Springfield Township, on the PA Route 5 corridor east of Raccoon Creek.
When it fishes: Runs behind Walnut on the west side: best about a day after Walnut's prime window, and takes 36–72 hours to clear.
Girard / Lake City
Mouth at Lake City. The largest Erie tributary — the late-season workhorse of the Girard/Lake City corridor.
When it fishes: No main-stem gauge. Read the Brandy Run tributary gauge (USGS 04213075): 4–10 CFS and falling is the prime signal. Elk fishes 36–48 hours after high water and clears the slowest of any Erie trib.
Lake City
Elk Creek Access — the park and parking at the creek's mouth, just off PA Route 5 in Lake City.
When it fishes: The put-in for Elk's lower river and the mouth fishery.
Girard Township
Tiny trib reaching the lake in Girard Township, between Elk Creek and Trout Run.
When it fishes: Small, quick water. A brief post-rain window only — it clears in hours.
Avonia Beach · Fairview Township
Avonia Beach at the mouth — the FishUSA Avonia cam watches this water.
When it fishes: ⛔ CLOSED TO FISHING: Trout Run is designated PFBC nursery water — fishing in the creek is prohibited. The lake and beach at the mouth (Avonia) are fishable, and steelhead stage off the mouth in the fall.
Manchester Beach · Fairview / Millcreek
Mouth at Manchester Beach. The most popular steelhead water in Pennsylvania — and this site's home water.
When it fishes: 🏠 HOME WATER. Prime at 50–150 CFS, falling and green, on USGS gauge 04213152. Too low under 15 CFS; blown out over 250.
Fairview / Millcreek
The PFBC Walnut Creek Access and marina — the big lot, the Wall, and the Manchester Hole at the mouth. FishUSA's Walnut cam watches the access.
When it fishes: Start here for the Manchester Hole and the lakefront Wall bite.
Erie bayfront
Comes down through Erie's Frontier Park and enters Presque Isle Bay at the bayfront.
When it fishes: Small urban trib — a brief post-rain window; it clears in hours.
Downtown Erie bayfront
Reaches Presque Isle Bay through the Mill Creek Tube on Erie's downtown bayfront.
When it fishes: Urban creek with a short window after moderate rain.
Lawrence Park
Mouth in Lawrence Park, about a half-mile north of PA Route 5 at Water Street.
When it fishes: East-side 'mile creek,' PFBC Small runoff class: best within a day of rain, on the drop.
Harborcreek Township
Mouth on the Harborcreek shore, east of Erie.
When it fishes: PFBC Small runoff class — fish it within a day of rain as it drops and greens up.
Harborcreek Township
Mouth in Harborcreek Township, just east of Sixmile Creek.
When it fishes: PFBC Medium runoff class — fishes 1–2 days after rain.
Harborcreek Township
Mouth in Harborcreek Township, east of Sevenmile Creek.
When it fishes: PFBC Medium runoff class — fishes 1–2 days after rain.
Harborcreek Township
Mouth in Harborcreek Township, west of North East.
When it fishes: Bigger east-side water, PFBC Large runoff class — comes into shape 2–4 days after rain.
Freeport / Orchard Beach · North East
Mouth at Freeport (Orchard Beach) in North East Township.
When it fishes: PFBC Large runoff class — fishes 2–4 days after rain, on the drop.
NY state line · North East
Mouth at the New York state line — the far-east bookend of Erie's steelhead shore.
When it fishes: PFBC Medium runoff class — fishes 1–2 days after rain, and is usually the first east-side creek fishable again on the drop.
The map shows you where. The Official Erie Steelhead Guide shows you how — hole-by-hole intel, rigs, fly picks, and seasonal timing for every creek on this map.
Buy the Guide — $19.99Every coordinate below was checked against a published source — nothing was eyeballed off the map.
Notes: (1) Godfrey Run, Trout Run, and Twelvemile Creek have no clean GNIS mouth point in the sources we could reach, so their pins use the northernmost site from the PA Sea Grant / NOAA habitat assessment of Lake Erie watershed streams — the lowest assessed reach, at or just above the mouth. (2) Cascade Creek’s main-stem GNIS point sits well upstream; its pin uses the GNIS West Branch Cascade Creek point at bay level, where the creek meets Presque Isle Bay at the Erie bayfront. (3) Crooked Creek is a west-side creek (Springfield Township, between Raccoon Creek and Elk Creek) per GNIS and the NOAA assessment — it is occasionally mislabeled as an east-side creek elsewhere. (4) Elk Creek Access shares Elk Creek’s mouth coordinates; the square is offset on the map for legibility only.