Douglas Lake
depth
Get directions
Depth scale
Survey readout
Douglas Lake is mapped to a depth of 80 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 3,742 acres in Cheboygan County, Michigan.
Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey (depths read from the survey's isobath field; this lake's summary-depth column is blank in the source).
- Deepest mapped contour
- 80 ft
- Mean depth
- 17.3 ft · estimated
- Surface area
- 3,742 acres
- Estimated volume
- 64,776 acre-ft · 21,107M gal
- Shoreline
- 14.14 mi · irregular
- Aquatic vegetation
- 1% of surface · NDVI estimate
- Public access
- Boat Launch
Additional depth details9 contours
- Contour depths
- 0–80 ft
- Recorded point soundings
- 80 ft, 60 ft, 30 ft
Other waters with a public launch on this map: Lancaster Lake. Their launches are not marked on the model — only Douglas Lake’s own are.
51.7% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 33.7% is deeper than 20 ft; the survey shows 5 distinct basins. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.
Compare with another lakeProvenance
Sources: MI DNR inland lake contours, USGS 3DEP, USDA NAIP (public domain), OpenStreetMap (ODbL), MI DNR Boat Launches.
⚠ Not for navigationSpot an error? Send a correction
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
- 45.57926, -84.69345
- MI DNR lake ID
- L30182
- Vertical exaggeration
- 7.02× below the waterline; land at true scale
- Basemap
- USDA NAIP · public domain
- Model size
- 2.4 MB
Paddling
Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-08-21Douglas Lake has a partly natural setting, long open-water fetch, nearby higher-volume roads. 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 | Good | 19.7 of 35 | 61% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (29% forest, 32% wetland; 22% developed) |
| Geometric wind exposure | Modest | 1.5 of 29 | mean fetch 4,062 m · 0% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · long open-water fetch |
| 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 | Mixed | 6.9 of 18 | nearby higher-volume roads · 44 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 3,070 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 1% 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 — 29% forest and 32% wetland cover within 150 m of shore
Compare Michigan lakes by Paddling Index →
Fish you might catch
from angler catches, DNR surveys & active stocking26 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
Bowfin
Walleye
Burbot
Largemouth Bass
White Sucker
Smallmouth Bass
Brown BullheadBullhead
Black Bullhead
Black CrappieCrappie
Yellow Bullhead
Yellow Perch
Bluegill
Rock Bass
Pumpkinseed
Green Sunfish
Logperch
Bluntnose Minnow
Central Mudminnow
Spottail Shiner
Iowa Darter
Mimic Shiner
Sand ShinerFishing rules for this lake Beta
Size and daily limits for the 26 species found here — 26 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.
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
Notable catches
Master Angler program · 1997–2025Trophy-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.
Catch details by species9 species
Biggest on record
Bait: artificial lure (10) · live bait (3) · crawler (3)
Method: spincasting (25) · still fishing (15) · drift fishing (6) · trolling (3)
Fishery
surveyed 2014 · DNR SFR 2016-215Gamefish Smallmouth Bass 291 · Northern Pike 116 · Largemouth Bass 64 · Bowfin 11
Panfish Bluegill 609 · Pumpkinseed 372 · Rock Bass 223
All survey species23 species
Gamefish
Panfish
Bullhead & catfish
Forage & nongame
DNR stocking
state stocking record · 1979–2024Fish the Michigan DNR has planted in this lake — what was added, distinct from what a survey netted above.
Non-native species records
4 recordsMussels & snails
- Acute Bladder Snail
- European Fingernail Clam
- Zebra Mussel
Plants & algae
- 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.
At the lake
community-mapped amenities · straight-line distanceBait & tackle nearby
licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distanceDouglas Lake — common questions
How deep is Douglas Lake?
The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Douglas 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 Douglas Lake?
Douglas Lake covers about 3,742 acres in Cheboygan County, Michigan.
What is the average depth of Douglas Lake?
The estimated mean depth of Douglas Lake is 17.3 ft, calculated from the survey contours.
What fish are in Douglas Lake?
Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include burbot, largemouth bass, northern pike, smallmouth bass, walleye, black bullhead. The page lists all 26 species and the evidence behind each.
Is there public access to Douglas Lake?
Yes. The Michigan DNR boat-launch data identifies 1 public access site on Douglas Lake, including Douglas Lake.
