Hughes Lake

Oscoda County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

18ft Max
depth

6.1 acres 4 contours

Paddling Index81Very GoodMedium confidenceaway from major roads · sheltered geometry · wooded shoreline

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Depth scale

05101518

The lake

Survey readout

Hughes Lake is mapped to a depth of 18 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 6.1 acres in Oscoda County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest mapped contour: 18 ft
Mean depth: 6.5 ft · estimated
Surface area: 6.1 acres
Estimated volume: 39 acre-ft · 13M gal
Shoreline: 0.56 mi · lobed
Aquatic vegetation: 13% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: No public DNR launch identified

Additional depth details4 contours

Contour depths: 0–18 ft
Recorded point soundings: 18 ft

73.1% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.

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Location

Oscoda County, Michigan · 15 nearest of 29 lakes · tap a dot for that lake

Chart data

Provenance

Sources: MI DNR inland lake contours, USGS 3DEP, USDA NAIP (public domain), OpenStreetMap (ODbL), MI DNR Boat Launches.

⚠ Not for navigation

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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: 44.52045, -84.21980
MI DNR lake ID: L13114
Vertical exaggeration: 3.0×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 0.5 MB

Paddling

Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-08-21

81 / 100Very GoodData confidence: Medium

Hughes Lake has a mostly natural, lightly developed setting, well sheltered geometry, little 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	27.6 of 35	83% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (56% forest, 1% wetland; 12% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Excellent	29.4 of 29	mean fetch 196 m · 100% 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	Excellent	15.5 of 18	relatively isolated from major roads · 5 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 768 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: High — narrow throughout — passing wakes would reach most of the water
Aquatic vegetation: Low — approximately 13% 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 — 56% forest and 1% wetland cover within 150 m of shore

Compare Michigan lakes by Paddling Index →

How this index is calculated. The Paddling Index is a relative composite derived from lake geometry and public environmental, access, roadway and watercraft-control data. It is not a user review, a safety rating, or a prediction of an individual outing. Differences of a few points should not be treated as meaningful — an 84 and an 82 are broadly comparable. Components and weights: natural setting 30%, geometric wind exposure 25%, watercraft controls 15%, public access 15%, road isolation 15%; observed motorboat activity is weighted 0% because no defensible lake-level measurement exists. Where a component has no data the remaining weights are renormalized and the confidence rating is lowered; below Medium confidence no number is shown. Sources: MI DNR Watercraft Control Areas (2026-08), USGS/MRLC NLCD Land Cover (2021), MDOT Annual Average Daily Traffic (2025) and MI DNR bathymetric survey outline (0 ft isobath). Conditions change quickly — check current weather and local conditions before going out.

Fish you might catch

from active stocking

1 species with recent evidence in this lake — sized relative to each other. Illustrations are AI-generated representative adults in everyday colours, not photographs (provenance).

Bluegillstocked

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 1 species found here — 1 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.

BluegillOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 25 (FO-215 · statewide inland) The 25 is in any combination of the sunfishes — Bluegill, Pumpkinseed, Black and White Crappie, Rock Bass, Green, Longear and Redear Sunfish, Warmouth and hybrids — not 25 of each (FO-215.23A).

Beta. This panel is newly published. Every value is parsed from the Michigan DNR fisheries orders and hand-checked against the printed digest, but the coverage and wording are still under review. If anything here disagrees with the Michigan DNR's Fisheries Orders or its printed digest, the DNR is right — the signed Fisheries Order is the legal text; the digest summarises it.

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

Compiled from Michigan DNR stockings within the last 10 years. Silhouettes are stylized and scaled to typical adult sizes relative to one another. Presence is not a promise — fishing isn’t a sure thing.

DNR stocking

state stocking record · 1980–1980

Fish the Michigan DNR has planted in this lake — what was added, distinct from what a survey netted above.

Bluegill50 stocked · 1980

No stockings recorded since 1980 — shown as history.

Source: Michigan DNR Fish Stocking Database.

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.

Bait & tackle nearby

licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distance

Luzeme Hardware≈7.1 mi · (989) 826-80502244 Deeter Rd, Luzeme · Google · Apple

Tom's Mug & Jug≈12 mi · (989) 826-57312 North MT Tom Rd, Mio · Google · Apple

Pioneer General Store≈12.8 mi · (989) 826-3580432 N Mount Tom Rd, Mio · Google · Apple

Dealers licensed by the Michigan DNR to sell live bait; listing is not an endorsement. Distances are straight-line, not driving — and call ahead: hours and stock change. Source: Michigan DNR retail bait dealer data.

Quick answers

Hughes Lake — common questions

How deep is Hughes Lake?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Hughes Lake is 18 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 Hughes Lake?

Hughes Lake covers about 6.1 acres in Oscoda County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Hughes Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Hughes Lake is 6.5 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Hughes Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include bluegill. The page shows the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Hughes Lake?

No public launch for Hughes 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.

More lakes in Oscoda County