Avalon Lake

Montmorency County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

74ft Max
depth

389 acres 9 contours Public access

Paddling Index48Modest

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Depth scale

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The lake

Survey readout

Avalon Lake is mapped to a depth of 74 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 389 acres in Montmorency County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest sounding: 74 ft
Mean depth: 34.8 ft · estimated
Surface area: 389 acres
Estimated volume: 13,530 acre-ft · 4,409M gal
Shoreline: 3.13 mi · round
Aquatic vegetation: 0% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Boat Launch

Additional depth details9 contours

Contour depths: 0–74 ft
Recorded point soundings: 74 ft

Other waters with a public launch on this map: Long Lake. Their launches are not marked on the model — only Avalon Lake’s own are.

21.7% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 71.2% is deeper than 20 ft. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.

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Location

Montmorency County, Michigan · 15 nearest of 35 lakes · tap a dot for that lake

Chart data

Provenance

Sources: MI DNR inland lake contours, USGS 3DEP, USDA NAIP (public domain), OpenStreetMap (ODbL), MI DNR Boat Launches.

⚠ Not for navigation

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Map details & sources5 sources

All layers registered to one bounding box; positions in WGS 84.

Survey-derived depth contours drape over USGS 3DEP elevation, with a USDA NAIP aerial basemap and OpenStreetMap shoreline. Colour shows surveyed depth; dark lines are the survey's own isobaths.

Coordinates: 45.10280, -83.95608
MI DNR lake ID: L8725
Vertical exaggeration: 1.4×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.4 MB

Paddling

Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-08-21

48 / 100ModestData confidence: High

Avalon Lake has a mixed natural and developed setting, moderate open-water exposure, some nearby classified roads. No special watercraft restriction is identified in the current source.

Why this score?5 components

Included in the index

Component	Rating	Points of weight	Measurement
Natural setting	Mixed	8.2 of 30	43% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (34% forest, 6% wetland; 38% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Good	12.0 of 25	mean fetch 1,416 m · 0% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · moderate open-water fetch
Watercraft controls	None identified	7.5 of 15	No special watercraft restriction identified in the current DNR source. Motors permitted, subject to general law.
Public access	Good	12.8 of 15	1 site with DNR boating-facility records · 1 ramp lane · 10 trailer spaces
Road isolation	Good	7.9 of 15	some nearby classified roads · 30 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 2,034 vehicles/day

Additional paddling considerations

These describe the lake but are not part of the v1 Paddling Index and do not change the number above.

Wake sensitivity: Low — wide enough that wakes disperse over most of the lake
Aquatic vegetation: Low — approximately 0% mapped coverage · NAIP aerial imagery (NDVI)
Observed motorized activity: Unknown — No lake-level measurement of boat traffic is available. Legal permission to operate motors is not evidence of use.
Wildlife habitat potential: Limited — 34% forest and 6% wetland cover within 150 m of shore

Compare Michigan lakes by Paddling Index →

How this index is calculated. The Paddling Index is a relative composite derived from lake geometry and public environmental, access, roadway and watercraft-control data. It is not a user review, a safety rating, or a prediction of an individual outing. Differences of a few points should not be treated as meaningful — an 84 and an 82 are broadly comparable. Components and weights: natural setting 30%, geometric wind exposure 25%, watercraft controls 15%, public access 15%, road isolation 15%; observed motorboat activity is weighted 0% because no defensible lake-level measurement exists. Where a component has no data the remaining weights are renormalized and the confidence rating is lowered; below Medium confidence no number is shown. Sources: MI DNR Boating Access Sites (2026-08), MI DNR Watercraft Control Areas (2026-08), USGS/MRLC NLCD Land Cover (2021), MDOT Annual Average Daily Traffic (2025) and MI DNR bathymetric survey outline (0 ft isobath). Conditions change quickly — check current weather and local conditions before going out.

Fish you might catch

from angler catches, DNR surveys & active stocking

11 species with recent evidence in this lake — sized relative to each other. Illustrations are AI-generated representative adults in everyday colours, not photographs (provenance).

Northern Pike

Lake Trout

Brown Troutstocked

Rainbow Troutstocked

Splake

Largemouth Bass

White Sucker

Smallmouth Bass

Brook Troutstocked

Black Crappie

Yellow Perch

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 11 species found here — 11 open to harvest.

These are hook-and-line size, daily limit and season rules. Gear, spearing and bow fishing, spawning closures and rod limits are set by other Fisheries Orders and are not shown here.

Black CrappieOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 25 (FO-215 · statewide inland) The 25 is in any combination of the sunfishes — Bluegill, Pumpkinseed, Black and White Crappie, Rock Bass, Green, Longear and Redear Sunfish, Warmouth and hybrids — not 25 of each (FO-215.23A).

Brook TroutOpen to harvestMinimum size: 10" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-254 · Type B) Five (5) trout, except that the daily possession limit shall not include more than three (3) trout 15 inches or greater.

Beta. This panel is newly published. Every value is parsed from the Michigan DNR fisheries orders and hand-checked against the printed digest, but the coverage and wording are still under review. If anything here disagrees with the Michigan DNR's Fisheries Orders or its printed digest, the DNR is right — the signed Fisheries Order is the legal text; the digest summarises it.

Designated Type B trout lake — season open for the entire year; tackle: all types of natural bait and artificial lures may be used.

Brown TroutOpen to harvestMinimum size: 12" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-254 · Type B) Five (5) trout, except that the daily possession limit shall not include more than three (3) trout 15 inches or greater.

Lake TroutOpen to harvestMinimum size: 15" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-254 · Type B) Five (5) trout, except that the daily possession limit shall not include more than three (3) trout 15 inches or greater.

Largemouth BassOpen to harvestMinimum size: 14" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-215 · statewide inland) The 5 is in any combination of Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass, not 5 of each (FO-215.23A).

Northern PikeOpen to harvestMinimum size: 24" · Daily limit: 2 (FO-215 · statewide inland)

Rainbow TroutOpen to harvestMinimum size: 12" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-254 · Type B) Five (5) trout, except that the daily possession limit shall not include more than three (3) trout 15 inches or greater.

Smallmouth BassOpen to harvestMinimum size: 14" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-215 · statewide inland) The 5 is in any combination of Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass, not 5 of each (FO-215.23A).

SplakeOpen to harvestMinimum size: 12" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-254 · Type B) Five (5) trout, except that the daily possession limit shall not include more than three (3) trout 15 inches or greater.

White SuckerOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no possession limit (2026 DNR digest · all other species)

Yellow PerchOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 25 (FO-215 · statewide inland)

From FO-206.26 (eff. 2026-04-01) / FO-215.23A (eff. 2023-09-15) / FO-254.25 (eff. 2025-10-10), checked against the 2026 Michigan Fishing Regulations digest · verified 2026-08-24. Regulations can change — Michigan DNR rules are the controlling source; verify current regulations before fishing. Official regulations

Compiled from registered Master Angler catches, Michigan DNR fishery surveys and Michigan DNR stockings within the last 10 years. Silhouettes are stylized and scaled to typical adult sizes relative to one another. Presence is not a promise — fishing isn’t a sure thing.

Notable catches

Master Angler program · 1998–2025

Trophy-size fish anglers caught here and registered with the DNR — what people have actually caught, distinct from what a survey netted or the state stocked below.

11Catches recorded

4Species

Splake8 recorded · to 29.2″ · latest 2025

Largemouth Bass1 recorded · to 22″ · latest 2003

Northern Pike1 recorded · to 42″ · latest 1998

Smallmouth Bass1 recorded · to 21″ · latest 2025

Biggest on record

Northern Pike42″ · 1998 · trolling

Splake29.2″ · 2020

Splake26″ · 2022 · trolling · live bait

Splake26″ · 2017 · ice fishing

Splake25.5″ · 2023 · still fishing · live bait

Bait: live bait (6)
Method: ice fishing (5) · spincasting (2) · trolling (2) · still fishing (1)

Master Angler entries are fish that met the program’s minimum size and were registered by the angler — they show what this lake has produced, not what a day here will produce. A catch on record is history, not a species listing: “Fish you might catch” lists only species with current evidence. Source: Michigan DNR Master Angler data.

Fishery

surveyed 2010 · DNR SFR 2011-114

354Fish sampled

9Species

Gamefish Smallmouth Bass 48 · Lake Trout 30 · Northern Pike 3 · Largemouth Bass 2

Panfish Yellow Perch 43 · Black Crappie 1

All survey species8 species

Gamefish

Smallmouth Bass48 caught

Lake Trout30 caught

Northern Pike3 caught

Largemouth Bass2 caught

Panfish

Yellow Perch43 caught

Black Crappie1 caught

Forage & nongame

Splake175 caught

White Sucker51 caught

Stocking: During the 1930s, Avalon Lake started receiving fish stocking efforts from MDOC to supplement the existing fish community.

This survey reported catch counts without lengths. Source: Michigan DNR Status of the Fishery Resource report (counts summed across survey years).

DNR stocking

state stocking record · 1981–2026

Fish the Michigan DNR has planted in this lake — what was added, distinct from what a survey netted above.

Splake819,102 stocked · 1983–2026 · 70 plantings

Brook trout1,112 stocked · 1986–2026 · 2 plantings

Brown trout14,836 stocked · 2012–2017 · 12 plantings

Rainbow trout137,294 stocked · 1981–2016 · 11 plantings

Lake trout290 stocked · 2009–2012 · 3 plantings

Source: Michigan DNR Fish Stocking Database.

Non-native species records

No non-native species recorded in the available dataset. This does not confirm that no non-native species are present.

Source: Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership Conservation Planner; underlying nonindigenous species records from the USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species database.

At the lake

community-mapped amenities · straight-line distance

⛻ Campground≈0.8 mi

🚿 Restrooms / vault toilet≈0.3 mi · 2 mapped

From OpenStreetMap community mapping — shown only where something is mapped; an amenity missing here may still exist. Distances are straight-line. Verify before you rely on it. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Bait & tackle nearby

licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distance

A-1 Woods & Waters Inc.≈3.8 mi141 N State St, Hillman · Google · Apple

Mom & Pop's One Stop≈5.6 mi19991 M 32 W, Hillman · Google · Apple

Jack's Landing Resort≈9 mi20836 Tennis Rd, Hillman · Google · Apple

Dealers licensed by the Michigan DNR to sell live bait; listing is not an endorsement. Distances are straight-line, not driving — and call ahead: hours and stock change. Source: Michigan DNR retail bait dealer data.

Quick answers

Avalon Lake — common questions

How deep is Avalon Lake?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Avalon Lake is 74 ft. That is the deepest depth the historical survey map records, which may differ from the deepest point of the lake itself.

How big is Avalon Lake?

Avalon Lake covers about 389 acres in Montmorency County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Avalon Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Avalon Lake is 34.8 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Avalon Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include brook trout, brown trout, lake trout, largemouth bass, northern pike, rainbow trout. The page lists all 11 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Avalon Lake?

Yes. The Michigan DNR boat-launch data identifies 1 public access site on Avalon Lake, including Avalon Lake.