Elk Lake
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Depth scale
Survey readout
Elk Lake is mapped to a depth of 150 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 7,683 acres in Antrim County, Michigan. The same survey chart also carries a spot sounding of 192 ft off Zinc's Point, taken during the August 1955 survey and never carried into the digital contour data — which is why Elk Lake is commonly cited deeper than the mapped 150 ft.
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).
The marked point is a 192 ft spot sounding, not a contour. The Michigan DNR chart for Elk Lake carries two kinds of depth: contour rings, and spot soundings printed beside a location dot. Only the rings were digitised, so the basin you see is drawn to the deepest ring, 150 ft — while the marker shows the deeper sounding the same survey recorded off Zinc's Point, placed by registering that chart against this map. Both numbers are the same agency’s; they differ because they measure different things. — Institute for Fisheries Research, Division of Fisheries, Michigan Conservation Department; lake inventory map, marginal survey and soundings, August 1955.
- Deepest sounding
- 192 ft · August 1955 survey
- Deepest mapped contour
- 150 ft
- Mean depth
- 67.1 ft · estimated
- Surface area
- 7,683 acres
- Estimated volume
- 515,200 acre-ft · 167,878M gal
- Shoreline
- 26.24 mi · irregular
- Aquatic vegetation
- 19% of surface · NDVI estimate
- Public access
- Boat Launch
Additional depth details5 contours
- Contour depths
- 0–192 ft
- Recorded point soundings
- No point soundings recorded in source
Other waters with a public launch on this map: Lake Michigan, Lake Skegemog, Birch Lake. Their launches are not marked on the model — only Elk Lake’s own are.
18.6% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 71.9% 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 Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.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
- 44.86854, -85.37888
- MI DNR lake ID
- L5051
- Vertical exaggeration
- 4.51× below the waterline; land at true scale
- Basemap
- USDA NAIP · public domain
- Model size
- 2.3 MB
Paddling
Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-08-21Elk Lake has a substantially developed setting, long open-water fetch, substantial 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 | Modest | 4.6 of 30 | 27% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (6% forest, 19% wetland; 23% developed) |
| Geometric wind exposure | Modest | 1.2 of 25 | mean fetch 7,266 m · 0% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · long open-water fetch |
| Watercraft controls | None identified | 7.5 of 15 | No special watercraft restriction identified in the current DNR source. Motors permitted, subject to general law. |
| Public access | Good | 12.8 of 15 | 2 sites with DNR boating-facility records · 5 ramp lanes · 7 trailer spaces |
| Road isolation | Modest | 0.8 of 15 | substantial nearby higher-volume roads · 154 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 12,773 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
- Moderate — approximately 19% 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 — 6% forest and 19% wetland cover within 150 m of shore
Compare Michigan lakes by Paddling Index →
Fish you might catch
from angler catches & active stocking19 species with recent evidence in this lake — sized relative to each other. Illustrations are AI-generated representative adults in everyday colours, not photographs (provenance).
Muskellunge
Longnose Gar
Northern Pike
Channel Catfish
Lake Trout
Walleye
Brown Trout
Rainbow Trout
Redhorse Sucker
Freshwater Drum
Largemouth Bass
White Sucker
Smallmouth Bass
Menominee Whitefish
Brook Trout
Cisco
Bluegill
Rock Bass
PumpkinseedFishing rules for this lake Beta
Size and daily limits for the 19 species found here — 17 open to harvest, 2 with a special rule or closed season.
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.
Official rule text for this lake
“the minimum size limit for Muskellunge is 50-inches.” — FO-206
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 · 1994–2025Trophy-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 species21 species
Biggest on record
Bait: artificial lure (19) · crawler (13) · leech (8)
Method: spincasting (90) · still fishing (22) · trolling (14) · spearfishing (8)
DNR stocking
state stocking record · 1979–2018Fish the Michigan DNR has planted in this lake — what was added, distinct from what a survey netted above.
At the lake
community-mapped amenities · straight-line distanceBait & tackle nearby
licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distanceElk Lake — common questions
How deep is Elk Lake?
The Michigan DNR survey chart for Elk Lake records two different depths. Its deepest contour ring is 192 ft, which is the figure carried into the digital bathymetry and rendered on the map here. The same chart also shows a spot sounding of 192 ft off Zinc's Point, taken during the August 1955 survey, which was never digitised — so 192 ft is the deepest depth the Michigan DNR actually measured, and 192 ft is the deepest depth it mapped.
How big is Elk Lake?
Elk Lake covers about 7,683 acres in Antrim County, Michigan.
What is the average depth of Elk Lake?
The estimated mean depth of Elk Lake is 67.1 ft, calculated from the survey contours.
What fish are in Elk Lake?
Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include brook trout, brown trout, channel catfish, lake trout, largemouth bass, muskellunge. The page lists all 19 species and the evidence behind each.
Is there public access to Elk Lake?
Yes. The Michigan DNR boat-launch data identifies 3 public access sites on Elk Lake, including Elk Rapids Village Park.
