Shanty Creek flows into the Grass River. The stream system has no tributaries. The stream originates about 2.75 miles above its mouth in forested uplands on the Shanty Creek Resort property. The lower quarter-mile of the stream flows through a streamside-swamp, a portion of which is part of the Grass River Natural Area and open to the public. The greatest elevation of the Creek’s headwaters is 738 feet. The stream drops 146 feet in elevation, for an average stream gradient of about 53 feet per mile. The stream system is crossed by Scenic Highway (M-88). At M-88, the stream is about eight feet wide and one foot deep, with a sand bottom. The stream water is unstained and normally clear. Thermal characteristics of the stream indicate that it has high levels of ground water inputs. An environmental survey conducted by the Grass River Natural Area in 1984 found that the mean monthly stream temperature never rises above 68 degrees F. and that fast, turbulent flow conditions generally prevail. Brook, brown, and rainbow trout; and slimy sculpins were found to dominate the upper reaches of the Creek. Aquatic mosses and filamentous algae were abundant and Elodea, water cress, and white water crowfoot were present. The stream is located in Custer Township (Antrim County). Shanty Creek is designated as a trout stream by the MDNR.