Lake Gogebic

Ontonagon County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

35ft Max
depth

13,041 acres 7 contours Public access

Paddling Index42Modest

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Depth scale

05101520253035

The lake

Survey readout

Lake Gogebic is mapped to a depth of 35 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 13,041 acres in Ontonagon County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest mapped contour: 35 ft
Mean depth: 19.2 ft · estimated
Surface area: 13,041 acres
Estimated volume: 249,790 acre-ft · 81,394M gal
Shoreline: 34.19 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation: 3% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Boat Launch · Rec Passport

Additional depth details7 contours

Contour depths: 0–35 ft
Recorded point soundings: 35 ft

19.4% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 61.4% is deeper than 20 ft. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.

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Location

Ontonagon County, Michigan · all 13 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: 46.50924, -89.57660
MI DNR lake ID: L38665
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.2 MB

Paddling

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

42 / 100ModestData confidence: High

Lake Gogebic has a partly natural setting, long open-water fetch, 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	16.0 of 30	59% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (44% forest, 14% wetland; 20% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Modest	1.2 of 25	mean fetch 10,634 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	3 sites with DNR boating-facility records · 6 ramp lanes · 56 trailer spaces
Road isolation	Mixed	4.2 of 15	nearby higher-volume roads · 64 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 2,074 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 3% 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 — 44% forest and 14% 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 Boating Access Sites (2026-08), 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 & active stocking

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

Northern Pike

Walleye

White Sucker

Smallmouth Bass

Brook Trout

Cisco

Crappie

Yellow Perch

Bluegill

Rock Bass

Hybrid Sunfish

Pumpkinseed

Historically stocked, no recent evidence: Fathead Minnow (last planted 1996), Emerald Shiner (last planted 1988), Sand Shiner (last planted 1988) — not shown above.

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 12 species found here — 10 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.

Northern PikeSpecial rulesNamed in a fisheries order for this lake — see the rule text below

WalleyeSpecial rulesNamed in a fisheries order for this lake — see the rule text below

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.

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).

Brook TroutOpen to harvestMinimum size: 8" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-254 · unclassified inland lake) Five (5) trout, no more than three (3) trout 15 inches or greater.

CiscoOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 5 in any combination (2026 DNR digest · Cisco/Whitefish (NOTE 7)) 5 in any combination of Cisco, Lake Whitefish and Round Whitefish on inland waters; 10 on the Great Lakes, connecting waters and Type F lakes.

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).

Hybrid 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).

Northern PikeSpecial rulesNamed in a fisheries order for this lake — see the rule text below

PumpkinseedOpen 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).

Rock BassOpen 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).

Smallmouth BassOpen to harvestMinimum size: 14" · Daily limit: 5 (FO-215 · statewide inland) The 5 is in any combination of Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass, not 5 of each (FO-215.23A).

WalleyeSpecial rulesNamed in a fisheries order for this lake — see the rule text below

White SuckerOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no possession limit (2026 DNR digest · all other species)

Yellow PerchOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 25 (FO-215 · statewide inland) On Lake Gogebic the 25-per-day limit may include no more than five Yellow Perch 12 inches or greater.

Official rule text for this lake

“no size limit on Northern Pike and up to five (5) Northern Pike may be retained in the daily possession limit with only one (1) 24-inches or greater.” — FO-206

“protected slot limit on Walleye from 18 – 23 inches; with no more than one (1) greater than 23-inches. This regulation will expire on April 1, 2038.” — 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

Compiled from registered Master Angler catches and 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.

Notable catches

Master Angler program · 1994–2025

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.

198Catches recorded

12Species

Yellow Perch131 recorded · to 15.9″

Crappie16 recorded · to 16.2″

Bluegill14 recorded · to 12″

Rock Bass12 recorded · to 12.2″

Catch details by species12 species

Yellow Perch131 recorded · to 15.9″ · latest 2025

Crappie16 recorded · to 16.2″ · latest 2023

Bluegill14 recorded · to 12″ · latest 2025

Rock Bass12 recorded · to 12.2″ · latest 2024

Pumpkinseed9 recorded · to 10.5″ · latest 2025

Northern Pike4 recorded · to 43″ · latest 2025

Smallmouth Bass3 recorded · to 23.5″ · latest 2017

Walleye3 recorded · to 31.5″ · latest 2024

Cisco2 recorded · to 19.5″ · latest 2021

White Sucker2 recorded · to 22″ · latest 2025

Brook Trout1 recorded · to 19.2″ · latest 1998

Hybrid Sunfish1 recorded · to 10.5″ · latest 2025

Biggest on record

Northern Pike43″ · 2025 · spincasting · live bait

Northern Pike42.5″ · 1999 · ice fishing · minnow

Northern Pike41.5″ · 2009 · trolling · sucker minnow

Northern Pike40″ · 2002 · ice fishing · minnow

Walleye31.5″ · 2024 · ice fishing · live bait

Bait: wiggler (45) · live bait (34) · wigglers (19)
Method: ice fishing (104) · still fishing (65) · spincasting (15) · trolling (7)

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.

DNR stocking

state stocking record · 1980–1996

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

Fathead minnow1,200,000 stocked · 1996

Emerald shiner31,250 stocked · 1988

Sand shiner31,250 stocked · 1988

Walleye922,000 stocked · 1980–1981 · 2 plantings

No stockings recorded since 1996 — shown as history.

Source: Michigan DNR Fish Stocking Database.

Non-native species records

7 records

Mussels & snails

Banded Mysterysnail

Plants & algae

Eurasian Watermilfoil
Forget-me-not
Gingermint
Narrow-leaved Cattail
Purple Loosestrife

Other invertebrates

Spiny Waterflea

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 distance

⛻ Campgroundon the lake

🚿 Restrooms / vault toileton the lake · 6 mapped

🏖 Beach / swim areaon the lake

🎢 Playgroundon the lake · 3 mapped

🥾 Hiking trailheadon the lake

🥪 Picnic areaon the lake

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

Gogebic≈4.5 miN9600 Hwy M-64, Marenisco · Google · Apple

Bear's Nine Pines Resort≈10.8 miN9426 State jwu M-64, Marenisco · 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

Lake Gogebic — common questions

How deep is Lake Gogebic?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Lake Gogebic 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 Lake Gogebic?

Lake Gogebic covers about 13,041 acres in Ontonagon County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Lake Gogebic?

The estimated mean depth of Lake Gogebic is 19.2 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Lake Gogebic?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include brook trout, northern pike, smallmouth bass, walleye, bluegill, crappie. The page lists all 12 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Lake Gogebic?

Yes. The Michigan DNR boat-launch data identifies 3 public access sites on Lake Gogebic, including Lake Gogebic State Park.