Big Trout Lake

Marquette County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

15ft Max
depth

26 acres 3 contours Public access

Paddling Index82Very Goodsheltered geometry · wooded shoreline · away from major roads

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Depth scale

051015

The lake

Survey readout

Big Trout Lake is mapped to a depth of 15 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 26 acres in Marquette County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest mapped contour: 15 ft
Mean depth: 9.5 ft · estimated
Surface area: 26 acres
Estimated volume: 245 acre-ft · 80M gal
Shoreline: 1 mi · lobed
Aquatic vegetation: 12% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Boat Launch

Additional depth details3 contours

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

44% 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 Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.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

Marquette County, Michigan · 15 nearest of 79 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: 46.34528, -87.34341
MI DNR lake ID: L32609
Vertical exaggeration: 3.0×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 1.7 MB

Paddling

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

82 / 100Very GoodData confidence: High

Big Trout Lake has a heavily wooded and largely undeveloped setting, well sheltered geometry, limited 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	25.0 of 30	84% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (56% forest, 27% wetland; 10% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Excellent	25.0 of 25	mean fetch 345 m · 100% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
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 · 3 trailer spaces
Road isolation	Very Good	11.8 of 15	limited nearby major-road exposure · 13 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 935 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 12% 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 — 56% forest and 27% 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 DNR surveys & active stocking

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

Brown Troutstocked

Rainbow Trout

Largemouth Bass

Black Crappie

Yellow Perch

Bluegill

Pumpkinseed

Historically stocked, no recent evidence: Brook Trout (last planted 2000) — not shown above.

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 7 species found here — 7 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.

Designated Type E 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: 15" · Daily limit: 3 (FO-254 · Type E) Three (3) trout.

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).

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).

Rainbow TroutOpen to harvestMinimum size: 15" · Daily limit: 3 (FO-254 · Type E) Three (3) trout.

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 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.

Fishery

surveyed 2021 · DNR SFR 2023-358

1,111Fish sampled

6Species

Gamefish

Largemouth Bass12 caught · to 12″

Rainbow Trout1 caught · to 15″

Panfish

Bluegill931 caught · to 7″

Black Crappie27 caught · to 12″

Yellow Perch16 caught · to 10″

Forage & nongame

Pumpkinseed124 caught · to 9″

Stocking: No official evaluation is documented on this stocking event other than a brief seine survey by Dr.

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).

DNR stocking

state stocking record · 1980–2026

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

Brown trout16,300 stocked · 1996–2026 · 13 plantings

Rainbow trout106,894 stocked · 1980–2019 · 34 plantings

Brook trout500 stocked · 1999–2000 · 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.

Bait & tackle nearby

licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distance

Gwinn Bait & Tackle≈6.1 mi · (906) 346-333056 N Billings St, Gwinn · Google · Apple

Kassel's Korner≈8.2 mi · (906) 249-18626400 US 41 S, Marquette · Google · Apple

Marquette Adventures LLC≈10.5 mi · (906) 362-7916263 Kawbawgam Rd, Marquette · 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

Big Trout Lake — common questions

How deep is Big Trout Lake?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Big Trout 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 Big Trout Lake?

Big Trout Lake covers about 26 acres in Marquette County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Big Trout Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Big Trout Lake is 9.5 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Big Trout Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include brown trout, largemouth bass, rainbow trout, black crappie, bluegill, pumpkinseed. The page lists all 7 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Big Trout Lake?

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