Michigan Lake Depths
NESW

Blind Lake

Washtenaw County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey
80ft Max
depth
70 acres 10 contours
Paddling Index73GoodMedium confidenceaway from major roads · sheltered geometry · wooded shoreline
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Depth scale

The lake

Survey readout

Blind Lake is mapped to a depth of 80 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 70 acres in Washtenaw County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest mapped contour
80 ft
Mean depth
27 ft · estimated
Surface area
70 acres
Estimated volume
1,883 acre-ft · 614M gal
Shoreline
1.86 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation
2% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access
No DNR launch listed · check with Pinckney Recreation Area
Borders
Pinckney Recreation Area · Michigan DNR · 69% of shoreline
Additional depth details10 contours
Contour depths
0–80 ft
Recorded point soundings
80 ft

38.4% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 50.1% is deeper than 20 ft. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.

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Chart data

Provenance

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
42.41541, -84.01999
MI DNR lake ID
L19690
Vertical exaggeration
1.4×
Basemap
USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size
2.3 MB

Paddling

Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-09-23
73 / 100GoodData confidence: Medium

Blind Lake has a mostly natural, lightly developed 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

ComponentRatingPoints of weightMeasurement
Natural settingVery Good22.0 of 3568% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (52% forest, 16% wetland; 19% developed)
Geometric wind exposureExcellent26.5 of 29mean fetch 548 m · 32% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
Watercraft controlsNone identified8.8 of 18No special watercraft restriction identified in the current DNR source. Motors permitted, subject to general law.
Public accessNot 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 isolationExcellent15.6 of 18relatively isolated from major roads · 6 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 1,277 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 2% 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
Moderate — 52% forest and 16% wetland cover within 150 m of shore
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 bathymetric survey outline (0 ft isobath), USGS/MRLC NLCD Land Cover (2021), MI DNR Watercraft Control Areas (2026-08) and MDOT Annual Average Daily Traffic (2025). Conditions change quickly — check current weather and local conditions before going out.

Fish you might catch

from angler catches & active stocking

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

Historically stocked, no recent evidence: Rainbow Trout (last planted 1985), Splake (last planted 1982) — not shown above.

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 3 species found here — 3 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.

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).
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).
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 summarizes it.
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).
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).
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).

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 2026-09-15. Regulations can change — Michigan DNR rules are the controlling source; verify current regulations before fishing. Official regulations

Compiled from registered Master Angler catches 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 · 1997–2023

Master Angler catches recorded on this lake — too few to show a pattern, so they are listed individually.

Largemouth Bass24″ · 1997 · still fishing
Smallmouth Bass21″ · 2009 · spincasting
Crappie14.8″ · 2023 · spincasting · artificial lure
Crappie14.2″ · 2022 · spincasting · artificial lure
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.

DNR stocking

state stocking record · 1979–1985

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

Rainbow trout17,000 stocked · 1979–1985 · 6 plantings
Splake6,000 stocked · 1981–1982 · 2 plantings

No stockings recorded since 1985 — shown as history.

Non-native species records

1 record

Mussels & snails

What does non-native mean?

USGS records identify non-native species that have been documented for this lake or its shoreline. Non-native does not necessarily mean invasive, and historical records do not confirm current presence.

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
⛻ Campgroundon the lake · 4 mapped
🚿 Restrooms / vault toileton the lake · 8 mapped
🎢 Playground≈0.5 mi
🥾 Hiking trailhead≈0.7 mi · 3 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
Tab's Custom Cuts≈4.3 mi14500 Holmes Rd, Gregory · Google · Apple
Dinkelville Melons≈7.4 mi · (517) 548-41331006 W Schafer Rd, Howell · Google · Apple
Mike and Tina's Party Store≈7.6 mi · (517) 985-604413100 Territorial Rd, Stockbridge · 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

Blind Lake — common questions

How deep is Blind Lake?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Blind Lake is 80 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 Blind Lake?

Blind Lake covers about 70 acres in Washtenaw County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Blind Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Blind Lake is 27 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Blind Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, crappie. The page shows the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Blind Lake?

No public launch for Blind Lake appears in the Michigan DNR access data, but Blind Lake has 69% of its shoreline in Pinckney Recreation Area (Michigan DNR), which runs its own facilities and is not covered by that data. Check with the park for launch details.