Crooked Lake

Van Buren County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

48ft Max
depth

113 acres 10 contours

Paddling Index42ModestMedium confidencerestricted hours · sheltered geometry

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Depth scale

05101520233033404548

The lake

Survey readout

Crooked Lake is mapped to a depth of 48 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 113 acres in Van Buren County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest sounding: 48 ft
Mean depth: 18 ft · estimated
Surface area: 113 acres
Estimated volume: 2,029 acre-ft · 661M gal
Shoreline: 2.33 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation: 2% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: No public DNR launch identified

Additional depth details10 contours

Contour depths: 0–48 ft
Recorded point soundings: 48 ft, 45 ft, 33 ft, 23 ft

39.5% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 40.7% is deeper than 20 ft; the survey shows 2 distinct basins. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.

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Location

Van Buren County, Michigan · 15 nearest of 36 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.

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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: 42.07781, -86.19657
MI DNR lake ID: L23433
Vertical exaggeration: 2.05×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.2 MB

Watercraft rules

county-enforced local controls · MI DNR

Restricted hourswhole lake, as mapped

Official rule details1 rule

Restricted hours“Hours for high-speed boating and water skiing”

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

42 / 100ModestData confidence: Medium

Crooked Lake has a substantially developed setting, well sheltered geometry, nearby higher-volume roads. Watercraft controls: Restricted hours.

Why this score?5 components

Included in the index

Component	Rating	Points of weight	Measurement
Natural setting	Modest	0.7 of 35	27% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (20% forest, 5% wetland; 50% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Excellent	25.9 of 29	mean fetch 577 m · 33% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
Watercraft controls	Restricted hours	10.9 of 18	Restricted hours
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	Mixed	4.2 of 18	nearby higher-volume roads · 67 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 3,706 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: Limited — 20% 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.

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

🎢 Playground≈0.3 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).

Bait & tackle nearby

licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distance

Happy Jake's LLC≈8.9 mi24992 Marcellus Hwy, Dowagiac · Google · Apple

Rice's Sports Center - 1≈9.2 mi · (269) 621-4216516 E Main St, Hartford · Google · Apple

Elinee bait & Tackle≈10.1 mi5605 Paw Paw Lake rd, Coloma · 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 48 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 113 acres in Van Buren County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Crooked Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Crooked Lake is 18 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

Is there public access to Crooked Lake?

No public launch for Crooked Lake appears in the Michigan DNR access data. That is not the same as the lake being private -- municipal and private ramps are not in that source.

More lakes in Van Buren County