Elbow Lake
depth
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Depth scale
Survey readout
Elbow Lake is mapped to a depth of 21 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 39 acres in Ogemaw County, Michigan.
Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.
- Deepest sounding
- 21 ft
- Mean depth
- 7.9 ft · estimated
- Surface area
- 39 acres
- Estimated volume
- 312 acre-ft · 102M gal
- Shoreline
- 1.58 mi · irregular
- Aquatic vegetation
- 4% of surface · NDVI estimate
- Public access
- No public DNR launch identified
Additional depth details6 contours
- Contour depths
- 0–21 ft
- Recorded point soundings
- 21 ft
66.7% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 8.1% is deeper than 20 ft. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.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.
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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
- 44.20149, -84.03740
- MI DNR lake ID
- L8204
- Vertical exaggeration
- 2.97×
- Basemap
- USDA NAIP · public domain
- Model size
- 2.1 MB
Watercraft rules
county-enforced local controls · MI DNROfficial rule details1 rule
Paddling
Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-08-21Elbow Lake has a mostly natural, lightly developed setting, well sheltered geometry, little nearby major-road exposure. Watercraft controls: Restricted hours.
Why this score?5 components
Included in the index
| Component | Rating | Points of weight | Measurement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural setting | Very Good | 22.8 of 35 | 70% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (47% forest, 21% wetland; 20% developed) |
| Geometric wind exposure | Excellent | 29.4 of 29 | mean fetch 411 m · 83% 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 | Excellent | 15.2 of 18 | relatively isolated from major roads · 30 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 78 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 4% 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 — 47% forest and 21% wetland cover within 150 m of shore
Compare Michigan lakes by Paddling Index →
Fish you might catch
from angler catches & active stocking4 species with recent evidence in this lake — sized relative to each other. Illustrations are AI-generated representative adults in everyday colours, not photographs (provenance).
Crappie
Bluegill
Hybrid SunfishstockedFishing rules for this lake Beta
Size and daily limits for the 4 species found here — 4 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 · 1997–2025Master Angler catches recorded on this lake — too few to show a pattern, so they are listed individually.
DNR stocking
state stocking record · 2018–2018Fish the Michigan DNR has planted in this lake — what was added, distinct from what a survey netted above.
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 distanceBait & tackle nearby
licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distanceElbow Lake — common questions
How deep is Elbow Lake?
The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Elbow Lake is 21 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 Elbow Lake?
Elbow Lake covers about 39 acres in Ogemaw County, Michigan.
What is the average depth of Elbow Lake?
The estimated mean depth of Elbow Lake is 7.9 ft, calculated from the survey contours.
What fish are in Elbow Lake?
Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include bluegill, crappie, hybrid sunfish, fathead minnow. The page shows the evidence behind each.
Is there public access to Elbow Lake?
No public launch for Elbow 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.
