Crooked Lake

Montmorency County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

51ft Max
depth

49 acres 8 contours Public access

Paddling Index78Goodhigh-speed boating prohibited · sheltered geometry

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Depth scale

01020253040455051

The lake

Survey readout

Crooked Lake is mapped to a depth of 51 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 49 acres in Montmorency County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest sounding: 51 ft
Mean depth: 19.7 ft · estimated
Surface area: 49 acres
Estimated volume: 974 acre-ft · 317M gal
Shoreline: 5.33 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation: 15% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Boat Launch

Additional depth details8 contours

Contour depths: 0–51 ft
Recorded point soundings: 51 ft, 45 ft

28.7% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 50.2% is deeper than 20 ft; the survey shows 3 distinct basins. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.

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Location

Montmorency County, Michigan · 15 nearest of 35 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: 44.97471, -84.15234
MI DNR lake ID: L3097
Vertical exaggeration: 1.94×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.4 MB

Watercraft rules

county-enforced local controls · MI DNR

High-speed boating prohibitedwhole lake, as mapped

Official rule details1 rule

High-speed boating prohibited“High-speed boating and water skiing prohibited”

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

78 / 100GoodData confidence: High

Crooked Lake has a partly natural setting, well sheltered geometry, some nearby classified roads. Watercraft controls: High-speed boating prohibited.

Why this score?5 components

Included in the index

Component	Rating	Points of weight	Measurement
Natural setting	Good	18.4 of 30	66% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (21% forest, 44% wetland; 18% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Excellent	25.0 of 25	mean fetch 317 m · 97% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
Watercraft controls	High-speed boating prohibited	12.8 of 15	High-speed boating prohibited
Public access	Good	12.8 of 15	1 site with DNR boating-facility records · 1 ramp lane · 1 trailer space
Road isolation	Good	9.2 of 15	some nearby classified roads · 16 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 2,488 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 15% 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 — 21% forest and 44% 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 angler catches, DNR surveys & active stocking

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

Northern Pike

Walleye

Largemouth Bass

White Sucker

Smallmouth Bass

Brown Bullhead

Black Bullhead

Black Crappie

Yellow Perch

Bluegill

Rock Bass

Green Sunfish

Golden Shiner

Central Mudminnow

Blacknose Shiner

Iowa Darter

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 16 species found here — 16 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 BullheadOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no possession limit (2026 DNR digest · all other species)

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).

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.

Black BullheadOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no possession limit (2026 DNR digest · all other species)

Blacknose ShinerOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no possession limit (2026 DNR digest · all other species)

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).

Brown BullheadOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no possession limit (2026 DNR digest · all other species)

Central MudminnowOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no possession limit (2026 DNR digest · all other species)

Golden ShinerOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no possession limit (2026 DNR digest · all other species)

Green SunfishOpen 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).

Iowa DarterOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no possession limit (2026 DNR digest · all other species)

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).

Northern PikeOpen to harvestMinimum size: 24" · Daily limit: 2 (FO-215 · statewide inland)

Rock BassOpen 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).

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).

WalleyeOpen to harvestMinimum size: 15" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-215 · statewide inland)

White SuckerOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no possession limit (2026 DNR digest · all other species)

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 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 · 2020–2023

Trophy-size fish anglers caught here and registered with the DNR — what people have actually caught, distinct from what a survey netted or the state stocked below.

5Catches recorded

1Species

Bluegill5 recorded · to 10.6″ · latest 2023

Biggest on record

Bluegill10.6″ · 2020

Bluegill10.5″ · 2021 · ice fishing · live bait

Bluegill10.1″ · 2023 · still fishing · live bait

Bluegill10.1″ · 2021 · ice fishing · live bait

Bluegill10.1″ · 2020

Bait: live bait (3)
Method: ice fishing (2) · still fishing (1)

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.

Fishery

surveyed 2014 · DNR SFR 2014-189

722Fish sampled

16Species

Gamefish Northern Pike 20 · Smallmouth Bass 14 · Largemouth Bass 3 · Walleye 3

Panfish Yellow Perch 255 · Rock Bass 170 · Bluegill 155

All survey species16 species

Gamefish

Northern Pike20 caught · to 27″

Smallmouth Bass14 caught · to 18″

Largemouth Bass3 caught · to 13″

Walleye3 caught · to 22″

Panfish

Yellow Perch255 caught · to 7″

Rock Bass170 caught · to 7″

Bluegill155 caught · to 9″

Green Sunfish13 caught · to 3″

Black Crappie4 caught

Bullhead & catfish

Black Bullhead14 caught · to 15″

Brown Bullhead1 caught

Forage & nongame

Central Mudminnow32 caught · to 3″

Golden Shiner14 caught · to 3″

Iowa Darter9 caught

White Sucker9 caught · to 22″

Blacknose Shiner6 caught

Stocking: of Natural Resources 2014-189 Status of the Fishery Resource Report Page 2 Fisheries surveys expanded in the 1940s at Crooked Lake and came on the heels of stocking efforts of a variety of species in the late 1930s and early 1940s.

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 · 1986–2017

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

Walleye99,348 stocked · 1986–2017 · 13 plantings

Source: Michigan DNR Fish Stocking Database.

Non-native species records

2 records

Plants & algae

Eurasian Watermilfoil
Purple Loosestrife

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.

Bait & tackle nearby

licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distance

Atlanta Hardware≈2.1 mi12374 State St, Atlanta · Google · Apple

Gill-Roy's Hardware≈9.8 mi4421 Hanson Ave, Lewiston · Google · Apple

E & D Log Homes≈10.7 mi · (989) 390-18441026 E Hwy M-32, Johannesburg · 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

Crooked Lake — common questions

How deep is Crooked Lake?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Crooked Lake is 51 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 Crooked Lake?

Crooked Lake covers about 49 acres in Montmorency County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Crooked Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Crooked Lake is 19.7 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Crooked Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include largemouth bass, northern pike, smallmouth bass, walleye, black bullhead, black crappie. The page lists all 16 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Crooked Lake?

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