Belas Lake

Cass County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

15ft Max
depth

54 acres 3 contours Public access 52% weedy

Paddling Index88Very GoodMedium confidenceaway from major roads · sheltered geometry · wooded shoreline

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Depth scale

051015

The lake

Survey readout

Belas Lake is mapped to a depth of 15 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 54 acres in Cass County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey (depths read from the survey's isobath field; this lake's summary-depth column is blank in the source).

Deepest mapped contour: 15 ft
Mean depth: 4.9 ft · estimated
Surface area: 54 acres
Estimated volume: 264 acre-ft · 86M gal
Shoreline: 1.14 mi · round
Aquatic vegetation: 52% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Boat Launch

Additional depth details3 contours

Contour depths: 0–15 ft
Recorded point soundings: 15 ft

86.9% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.

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Location

Cass County, Michigan · 15 nearest of 32 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: 41.93899, -85.87964
MI DNR lake ID: L30488
Vertical exaggeration: 3.0×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.1 MB

Paddling

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

88 / 100Very GoodData confidence: Medium

Belas Lake has a heavily wooded and largely undeveloped setting, well sheltered geometry, little nearby major-road exposure. 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	Excellent	35.3 of 35	98% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (27% forest, 71% wetland; 2% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Excellent	28.3 of 29	mean fetch 501 m · 55% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
Watercraft controls	None identified	8.8 of 18	No special watercraft restriction identified in the current DNR source. Motors permitted, subject to general law.
Public access	Not listed	—	No DNR-listed access site. Township, county and road-end launches are not in this source, so this is not evidence that access is poor — the component is excluded and the remaining weights are renormalized.
Road isolation	Excellent	15.3 of 18	relatively isolated from major roads · 6 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 181 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: Moderate — narrow in places — wakes would carry across parts of the lake
Aquatic vegetation: High — approximately 52% 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: High — 27% forest and 71% 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 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 DNR surveys

8 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

Bowfin

Bullhead

Black Crappie

Yellow Perch

Bluegill

Warmouth

Pumpkinseed

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 8 species found here — 8 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).

BluegillOpen 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).

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.

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

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

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

PumpkinseedOpen 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).

WarmouthOpen 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).

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 Michigan DNR fishery surveys. Silhouettes are stylized and scaled to typical adult sizes relative to one another. Presence is not a promise — fishing isn’t a sure thing.

Fishery

481Fish sampled

8Species

Gamefish Bowfin 6 · Northern Pike 3

Panfish Bluegill 263 · Pumpkinseed 128 · Warmouth 20

All survey species8 species

Gamefish

Bowfin6 caught · to 26″

Northern Pike3 caught · to 27″

Panfish

Bluegill263 caught · to 8″

Pumpkinseed128 caught · to 6″

Warmouth20 caught · to 5″

Yellow Perch12 caught · to 8″

Black Crappie4 caught · to 8″

Forage & nongame

Bullhead45 caught · to 10″

Stocking: Bluegills were stocked in 1936 and 1937 and largemouth bass in 1948.

Length is the largest fish netted in the survey, not an angler record. Source: Michigan DNR Status of the Fishery Resource report (counts summed across survey years).

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.

Bait & tackle nearby

licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distance

Elk Park Feed Store≈3.1 mi60559 Calvin Center RD, Vandalia · Google · Apple

Happy Jake's LLC≈10 mi24992 Marcellus Hwy, Dowagiac · Google · Apple

Hall's Bait Shop≈10.6 mi15573 US 12, Union · 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

Belas Lake — common questions

How deep is Belas Lake?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Belas Lake is 15 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 Belas Lake?

Belas Lake covers about 54 acres in Cass County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Belas Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Belas Lake is 4.9 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Belas Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include northern pike, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin, bullhead, pumpkinseed. The page lists all 8 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Belas Lake?

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