Fish Lake
depth
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Depth scale
Survey readout
Fish Lake is mapped to a depth of 35 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 31 acres in St. Joseph County, Michigan.
Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.
- Deepest mapped contour
- 35 ft
- Mean depth
- 14.7 ft · estimated
- Surface area
- 31 acres
- Estimated volume
- 459 acre-ft · 150M gal
- Shoreline
- 0.86 mi · round
- Aquatic vegetation
- 2% of surface · NDVI estimate
- Public access
- No public DNR launch identified
Additional depth details5 contours
- Contour depths
- 0–35 ft
- Recorded point soundings
- 35 ft
43.1% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 43.1% 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 Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.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
- 41.85286, -85.39699
- MI DNR lake ID
- L14587
- Vertical exaggeration
- 2.49×
- Basemap
- USDA NAIP · public domain
- Model size
- 1.8 MB
Paddling
Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-08-21Fish Lake has a mostly natural, lightly developed setting, well sheltered geometry, limited 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 | Very Good | 22.7 of 35 | 70% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (38% forest, 32% wetland; 20% developed) |
| Geometric wind exposure | Excellent | 29.4 of 29 | mean fetch 406 m · 89% 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 | Very Good | 11.9 of 18 | limited nearby major-road exposure · 6 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 6,203 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 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
- High — 38% forest and 32% wetland cover within 150 m of shore
Compare Michigan lakes by Paddling Index →
Fish you might catch
from active stockingNo recent catch, survey, or stocking data for this lake.
Historically stocked, no recent evidence: Rainbow Trout (last planted 1991) — not shown above.
DNR stocking
state stocking record · 1979–1991Fish the Michigan DNR has planted in this lake — what was added, distinct from what a survey netted above.
No stockings recorded since 1991 — shown as history.
Non-native species records
1 recordOther invertebrates
- Freshwater Jellyfish
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.
Bait & tackle nearby
licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distanceFish Lake — common questions
How deep is Fish Lake?
The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Fish Lake is 35 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 Fish Lake?
Fish Lake covers about 31 acres in St. Joseph County, Michigan.
What is the average depth of Fish Lake?
The estimated mean depth of Fish Lake is 14.7 ft, calculated from the survey contours.
Is there public access to Fish Lake?
No public launch for Fish 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.
