Courtney Lake

Ontonagon County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

41ft Max
depth

31 acres 10 contours Public access

Paddling Index85Very GoodMedium confidenceaway from major roads · sheltered geometry · whole-lake slow-no-wake

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Depth scale

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The lake

Survey readout

Courtney Lake is mapped to a depth of 41 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 31 acres in Ontonagon County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest sounding: 41 ft
Mean depth: 15 ft · estimated
Surface area: 31 acres
Estimated volume: 464 acre-ft · 151M gal
Shoreline: 1.09 mi · lobed
Aquatic vegetation: 6% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Boat Launch

Additional depth details10 contours

Contour depths: 0–41 ft
Recorded point soundings: 41 ft, 36 ft

40.3% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 32.8% is deeper than 20 ft. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.

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Location

Ontonagon County, Michigan · all 13 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: 46.75335, -88.93767
MI DNR lake ID: L32540
Vertical exaggeration: 2.29×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.0 MB

Watercraft rules

county-enforced local controls · MI DNR

Slow — no wakewhole lake, as mapped

Official rule details1 rule

Slow — no wake“Slow--no wake speed”

Where the mapped control areas and the official regulation language differ, the language governs. Official county watercraft controls.

Paddling

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

85 / 100Very GoodData confidence: Medium

Courtney Lake has a mostly natural, lightly developed setting, well sheltered geometry, little nearby major-road exposure. Watercraft controls: Whole-lake slow-no-wake.

Why this score?5 components

Included in the index

Component	Rating	Points of weight	Measurement
Natural setting	Very Good	25.1 of 35	76% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (70% forest, 5% wetland; 18% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Excellent	29.4 of 29	mean fetch 372 m · 100% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
Watercraft controls	Whole-lake slow-no-wake	16.2 of 18	Slow — no wake
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	14.6 of 18	relatively isolated from major roads · 3 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 87 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 6% 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 — 70% forest and 5% 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 angler catches, DNR surveys & active stocking

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

Lake Troutstocked

Brook Trout

Historically stocked, no recent evidence: Rainbow Trout (last planted 1989) — not shown above.

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 2 species found here — 2 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.

Brook TroutOpen to harvestMinimum size: 10" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-254 · Type B) Five (5) trout, except that the daily possession limit shall not include more than three (3) trout 15 inches or greater.

Lake TroutOpen to harvestMinimum size: 15" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-254 · Type B) Five (5) trout, except that the daily possession limit shall not include more than three (3) trout 15 inches or greater.

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 B trout lake — season open for the entire year; tackle: all types of natural bait and artificial lures may be used.

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 registered Master Angler catches, 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.

Notable catches

Master Angler program · 1998–2020

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

Brook Trout18″ · 1998 · fly fishing

Brook Trout17″ · 2016 · spincasting

Brook Trout16″ · 2020

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 · 1979–2025

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

Brook trout90,952 stocked · 1980–2025 · 57 plantings

Lake trout360 stocked · 2011–2020 · 6 plantings

Rainbow trout25,050 stocked · 1979–1989 · 7 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.

At the lake

community-mapped amenities · straight-line distance

⛻ Campgroundon the lake

🏖 Beach / swim areaon the lake

🥪 Picnic area≈0.1 mi

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).

Quick answers

Courtney Lake — common questions

How deep is Courtney Lake?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Courtney Lake is 41 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 Courtney Lake?

Courtney Lake covers about 31 acres in Ontonagon County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Courtney Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Courtney Lake is 15 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Courtney Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include brook trout, lake trout. The page shows the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Courtney Lake?

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