Michigan Lake Depths All Michigan lakes
NESW

Perry Lake (South and Middle)

Oscoda County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey
48ft Max
depth
49 acres 10 contours
Paddling Index73GoodMedium confidenceaway from major roads · sheltered geometry
Get directions

Depth scale

The lake

Survey readout

Perry Lake (South and Middle) is mapped to a depth of 48 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 49 acres in Oscoda County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest sounding
48 ft
Mean depth
10 ft · estimated
Surface area
49 acres
Estimated volume
488 acre-ft · 159M gal
Shoreline
2.57 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation
13% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access
No public DNR launch identified
Additional depth details10 contours
Contour depths
0–48 ft
Recorded point soundings
48 ft

65.8% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 15.9% is deeper than 20 ft. Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.

Compare with another 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

Spot an error? Send a correction

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
44.74838, -84.08845
MI DNR lake ID
L7000
Vertical exaggeration
2.05×
Basemap
USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size
2.5 MB

Paddling

Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-08-21
73 / 100GoodData confidence: Medium

Perry Lake (South and Middle) has a partly natural 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

ComponentRatingPoints of weightMeasurement
Natural settingGood20.1 of 3565% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (46% forest, 18% wetland; 23% developed)
Geometric wind exposureExcellent29.1 of 29mean fetch 476 m · 63% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
Watercraft controlsNone identified8.8 of 18No special watercraft restriction identified in the current DNR source. Motors permitted, subject to general law.
Public accessNot listedNo 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 isolationExcellent14.5 of 18relatively isolated from major roads · 9 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 33 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 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 — 46% forest and 18% wetland cover within 150 m of shore
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

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

Bullhead
Crappie
Bluegill
Pumpkinseed

Fishing 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.

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

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 · 2000–2025

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.

11Catches recorded
4Species
Bluegill6 recorded · to 10.8″ · latest 2024
Pumpkinseed3 recorded · to 9.5″ · latest 2025
Bullhead1 recorded · to 14.2″ · latest 2000
Crappie1 recorded · to 14″ · latest 2019

Biggest on record

Bullhead14.2″ · 2000 · still fishing · waxworm
Crappie14″ · 2019 · spincasting
Bluegill10.8″ · 2023 · ice fishing · artificial lure
Bluegill10.2″ · 2024 · still fishing · live bait
Bluegill10.2″ · 2024 · spincasting · live bait

Bait: live bait (6) · artificial lure (2) · worm (1)
Method: still fishing (6) · spincasting (3) · ice fishing (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.

Bait & tackle nearby

licensed retail bait dealers · straight-line distance
Pioneer General Store≈4.3 mi · (989) 826-3580432 N Mount Tom Rd, Mio · Google · Apple
Tom's Mug & Jug≈5 mi · (989) 826-57312 North MT Tom Rd, Mio · Google · Apple
Luzeme Hardware≈12.8 mi · (989) 826-80502244 Deeter Rd, Luzeme · 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

Perry Lake (South and Middle) — common questions

How deep is Perry Lake (South and Middle)?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Perry Lake (South and Middle) is 48 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 Perry Lake (South and Middle)?

Perry Lake (South and Middle) covers about 49 acres in Oscoda County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Perry Lake (South and Middle)?

The estimated mean depth of Perry Lake (South and Middle) is 10 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Perry Lake (South and Middle)?

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

Is there public access to Perry Lake (South and Middle)?

No public launch for Perry Lake (South and Middle) 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.