Great Bear Lake
depth
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Depth scale
The state-record Warmouth — 1.38 lb — was caught here in 2001. 11″ · Stillfishing · on Live Crawler
Survey readout
Great Bear Lake is mapped to a depth of 58 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 169 acres in Van Buren County, Michigan.
Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.
- Deepest mapped contour
- 58 ft
- Mean depth
- 28.5 ft · estimated
- Surface area
- 169 acres
- Estimated volume
- 4,807 acre-ft · 1,566M gal
- Shoreline
- 3.18 mi · irregular
- Aquatic vegetation
- 4% of surface · NDVI estimate
- Public access
- No public DNR launch identified
Additional depth details11 contours
- Contour depths
- 0–58 ft
- Recorded point soundings
- 58 ft
23.3% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 63.2% is deeper than 20 ft; the survey shows 2 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 Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.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.
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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
- 42.37011, -85.99306
- MI DNR lake ID
- L26681
- Vertical exaggeration
- 1.71×
- Basemap
- USDA NAIP · public domain
- Model size
- 2.4 MB
Paddling
Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-08-21Great Bear Lake has a partly natural setting, generally sheltered geometry, some nearby classified 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 | 17.4 of 35 | 61% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (26% forest, 32% wetland; 33% developed) |
| Geometric wind exposure | Very Good | 22.5 of 29 | mean fetch 734 m · 14% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · generally short 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 | Good | 8.3 of 18 | some nearby classified roads · 16 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 1,412 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 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 — 26% forest and 32% wetland cover within 150 m of shore
Compare Michigan lakes by Paddling Index →
Fish you might catch
from angler catches4 species with recent evidence in this lake — sized relative to each other. Illustrations are AI-generated representative adults in everyday colours, not photographs (provenance).
Bowfin
Channel Catfish
Bullhead
WarmouthFishing 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 · 1995–2025Trophy-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.
Biggest on record
Bait: live night crawler (2) · artificial lure (1) · minnow (1)
Method: still fishing (4) · spincasting (1)
Non-native species records
2 recordsMussels & snails
- Zebra Mussel
Fish
- Common Carp
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 distanceGreat Bear Lake — common questions
How deep is Great Bear Lake?
The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Great Bear Lake is 58 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 Great Bear Lake?
Great Bear Lake covers about 169 acres in Van Buren County, Michigan.
What is the average depth of Great Bear Lake?
The estimated mean depth of Great Bear Lake is 28.5 ft, calculated from the survey contours.
What fish are in Great Bear Lake?
Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include channel catfish, bowfin, bullhead, warmouth. The page shows the evidence behind each.
Is there public access to Great Bear Lake?
No public launch for Great Bear 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.
