Iron Lake

Lenawee County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

63ft Max
depth

80 acres 11 contours

Paddling Index58MixedMedium confidencesheltered geometry

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Depth scale

041020405063

The lake

Survey readout

Iron Lake is mapped to a depth of 63 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 80 acres in Lenawee County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest sounding: 63 ft
Mean depth: 17.2 ft · estimated
Surface area: 80 acres
Estimated volume: 1,369 acre-ft · 446M gal
Shoreline: 1.51 mi · lobed
Aquatic vegetation: 5% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: No public DNR launch identified

Additional depth details11 contours

Contour depths: 0–63 ft
Recorded point soundings: 63 ft, 42 ft

48.4% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 38.1% 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 Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.

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Location

Lenawee County, Michigan · 15 nearest of 22 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: 42.05856, -84.16304
MI DNR lake ID: L8854
Vertical exaggeration: 1.54×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.2 MB

Paddling

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

58 / 100MixedData confidence: Medium

Iron Lake has a partly natural setting, generally sheltered geometry, 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	Good	19.0 of 35	64% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (24% forest, 40% wetland; 27% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Very Good	24.1 of 29	mean fetch 636 m · 10% 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	Mixed	6.0 of 18	nearby higher-volume roads · 40 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 4,837 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 5% 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 — 24% forest and 40% 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 angler catches

3 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

Redear Sunfish

Bluegill

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 3 species found here — 3 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).

CrappieOpen 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.

Redear SunfishOpen 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).

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 registered Master Angler catches. Silhouettes are stylized and scaled to typical adult sizes relative to one another. Presence is not a promise — fishing isn’t a sure thing.

Notable catches

Master Angler program · 2016–2025

Trophy-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.

5Catches recorded

3Species

Crappie3 recorded · to 16″ · latest 2025

Bluegill1 recorded · to 10.2″ · latest 2021

Redear Sunfish1 recorded · to 10.1″ · latest 2019

Biggest on record

Crappie16″ · 2025 · still fishing · live bait

Crappie15.8″ · 2022 · still fishing · live bait

Crappie15″ · 2016 · spincasting · minnow

Bluegill10.2″ · 2021 · still fishing · live bait

Redear Sunfish10.1″ · 2019 · spincasting

Bait: live bait (3) · minnow (1)
Method: still fishing (3) · spincasting (2)

Master Angler entries are fish that met the program’s minimum size and were registered by the angler — they show what this lake has produced, not what a day here will produce. A catch on record is history, not a species listing: “Fish you might catch” lists only species with current evidence. Source: Michigan DNR Master Angler data.

Non-native species records

1 record

Plants & algae

Starry Stonewort

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.

Public fishing access

MI DNR family-friendly fishing

Boat

State-managed · Yes, Rec Passport · No bathrooms restrooms · Dirt parking

Amenities: Boat launch

“This is a small lake with public access. The north side of the lake is weedy. Best fishing along south side shore near road. Cast and troll for bass and pike.”

Source: Michigan DNR Family Friendly Fishing.

At the lake

community-mapped amenities · straight-line distance

⛻ Campground≈1.3 mi · 2 mapped

From OpenStreetMap community mapping — shown only where something is mapped; an amenity missing here may still exist. Distances are straight-line. Verify before you rely on it. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Bait & tackle nearby

licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distance

Brooklyn Convenience LLC≈2.7 mi · (517) 467-246811700 M-50, Brooklyn · Google · Apple

Knutson's Recreational Sales≈5.2 miPO Box 457 - 164 Wamplers Lake, Brooklyn · Google · Apple

Manito Beach Marina≈9.2 mi9517 Devils Lake Hwy, Manitou Beach · 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

Iron Lake — common questions

How deep is Iron Lake?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Iron Lake is 63 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 Iron Lake?

Iron Lake covers about 80 acres in Lenawee County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Iron Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Iron Lake is 17.2 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Iron Lake?

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

Is there public access to Iron Lake?

No public launch for Iron 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 Lenawee County