Belle Lake, Central
depth
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Survey readout
Belle Lake, Central is mapped to a depth of 15 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 27 acres in Luce County, Michigan.
Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.
- Deepest mapped contour
- 15 ft
- Mean depth
- 7.8 ft · estimated
- Surface area
- 27 acres
- Estimated volume
- 208 acre-ft · 68M gal
- Shoreline
- 1.25 mi · irregular
- Aquatic vegetation
- 7% of surface · NDVI estimate
- Public access
- No public DNR launch identified
Additional depth details3 contours
- Contour depths
- 0–15 ft
- Recorded point soundings
- 15 ft
69.1% 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 Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.
Compare with another lakeProvenance
Sources: MI DNR inland lake contours, USGS 3DEP, USDA NAIP (public domain), OpenStreetMap (ODbL), MI DNR Boat Launches.
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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
- 46.48318, -85.81518
- MI DNR lake ID
- L27514
- Vertical exaggeration
- 3.0×
- Basemap
- USDA NAIP · public domain
- Model size
- 2.0 MB
Paddling
Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-08-21Belle Lake, Central 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 | 30.1 of 35 | 86% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (76% forest, 8% wetland; 6% developed) |
| Geometric wind exposure | Excellent | 29.4 of 29 | mean fetch 337 m · 100% 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 | 17.6 of 18 | relatively isolated from major roads · 3 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 287 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
- Low — approximately 7% 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 — 76% forest and 8% wetland cover within 150 m of shore
Compare Michigan lakes by Paddling Index →
Belle Lake, Central — common questions
How deep is Belle Lake, Central?
The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Belle Lake, Central 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 Belle Lake, Central?
Belle Lake, Central covers about 27 acres in Luce County, Michigan.
What is the average depth of Belle Lake, Central?
The estimated mean depth of Belle Lake, Central is 7.8 ft, calculated from the survey contours.
Is there public access to Belle Lake, Central?
No public launch for Belle Lake, Central appears in the Michigan DNR access data. That is not the same as the lake being private -- municipal and private ramps are not in that source.
