Betsy Lake
depth
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Depth scale
Survey readout
Betsy Lake is mapped to a depth of 7 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 1,367 acres in Luce County, Michigan. Coverage is sparse: about 55% of this lake lies well away from any surveyed contour, so most of the shape shown there is interpolated between distant measurements rather than mapped.
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 sounding
- 7 ft
- Mean depth
- 4.8 ft · estimated
- Surface area
- 1,367 acres
- Estimated volume
- 6,520 acre-ft · 2,124M gal
- Shoreline
- 8.81 mi · irregular
- Aquatic vegetation
- 1% of surface · NDVI estimate
- Trophic state
- Mesotrophic · satellite estimate · details
- Public access
- No DNR launch listed · check with Tahquamenon Falls State Park
- In
- Tahquamenon Falls State Park · Michigan DNR
Additional depth details4 contours
- Contour depths
- 0–7 ft
- Recorded point soundings
- 7 ft, 4 ft, 3 ft
100% 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 Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.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. Color shows surveyed depth; dark lines are the survey's own isobaths.
- Coordinates
- 46.62799, -85.27051
- MI DNR lake ID
- L29700
- Basemap
- USDA NAIP · public domain
- Model size
- 2.3 MB
Lake productivity & trophic state
Satellite estimateSatellite-estimated classification: Mesotrophic. Moderate nutrient levels and biological productivity. Based on satellite estimates of summer chlorophyll-a (LAGOS-US LANDSAT, 2020). No lake-specific measurement is available in this dataset.
Trophic state describes how biologically productive a lake is, based on indicators such as nutrients, algae and water clarity. It is not a swimming-safety or overall water-quality rating.
What do the categories mean?
- Oligotrophic≤ 2 µg/L · lower nutrient and algae levels, often clearer water and lower biological productivity.
- Mesotrophic · this lake2–7 µg/L · moderate nutrient levels and biological productivity.
- Eutrophic7–30 µg/L · higher nutrient levels and biological productivity, often with more algae or aquatic plant growth.
- Hypereutrophic> 30 µg/L · very high nutrient levels and biological productivity, with a greater potential for heavy algae growth and low water clarity.
Bands are summer (June–August) mean chlorophyll-a, the green pigment in algae, at the EPA 2012 National Lakes Assessment thresholds. Trophic condition can change over time and by measurement method. Source: Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership Conservation Planner; satellite chlorophyll-a estimates from LAGOS-US LANDSAT.
Paddling
Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-09-23Betsy Lake has a heavily wooded and largely undeveloped setting, notable open-water exposure, 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 | 31.4 of 35 | 81% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (2% forest, 79% wetland; 0% developed) |
| Geometric wind exposure | Mixed | 7.8 of 29 | mean fetch 2,371 m · 0% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · long fetch in some 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 · 0 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km |
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 1% 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 — 2% forest and 79% wetland cover within 150 m of shore
Compare Michigan lakes by Paddling Index →
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 distanceBetsy Lake — common questions
How deep is Betsy Lake?
The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Betsy Lake is 7 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 Betsy Lake?
Betsy Lake covers about 1,367 acres in Luce County, Michigan.
What is the average depth of Betsy Lake?
The estimated mean depth of Betsy Lake is 4.8 ft, calculated from the survey contours.
Is there public access to Betsy Lake?
No public launch for Betsy Lake appears in the Michigan DNR access data, but Betsy Lake lies inside Tahquamenon Falls State Park (Michigan DNR), which runs its own facilities and is not covered by that data. Check with the park for launch details.
