Deadman Lake

Alger County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

12ft Max
depth

50 acres 6 contours 27% weedy

Paddling Index81Very GoodMedium confidenceaway from major roads · sheltered geometry · wooded shoreline

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Depth scale

024681012

The lake

Survey readout

Deadman Lake is mapped to a depth of 12 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 50 acres in Alger County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest mapped contour: 12 ft
Mean depth: 5.3 ft · estimated
Surface area: 50 acres
Estimated volume: 263 acre-ft · 86M gal
Shoreline: 1.51 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation: 27% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: No public DNR launch identified

Additional depth details6 contours

Contour depths: 0–12 ft
Recorded point soundings: 12 ft

98.7% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 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 Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.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

Alger County, Michigan · 15 nearest of 105 lakes and 1 bay · 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: 46.54574, -86.05025
MI DNR lake ID: L29891
Vertical exaggeration: 3.0×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.4 MB

Paddling

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

81 / 100Very GoodData confidence: Medium

Deadman Lake has a heavily wooded and largely undeveloped 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

Component	Rating	Points of weight	Measurement
Natural setting	Excellent	29.6 of 35	85% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (61% forest, 24% wetland; 10% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Excellent	26.3 of 29	mean fetch 575 m · 45% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
Watercraft controls	None identified	8.8 of 18	No special watercraft restriction identified in the current DNR source. Motors permitted, subject to general law.
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	15.7 of 18	relatively isolated from major roads · 1 MDOT-classified segment within 1.2 km, peak 132 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: Moderate — approximately 27% 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 — 61% forest and 24% 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.

Quick answers

Deadman Lake — common questions

How deep is Deadman Lake?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Deadman Lake is 12 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 Deadman Lake?

Deadman Lake covers about 50 acres in Alger County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Deadman Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Deadman Lake is 5.3 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

Is there public access to Deadman Lake?

No public launch for Deadman 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 Alger County