Pickerel Lake

Dickinson County, Michigan · MI DNR bathymetric survey

66ft Max
depth

70 acres 12 contours Public access

Paddling Index83Very Goodsheltered geometry · wooded shoreline · away from major roads

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Depth scale

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The lake

Survey readout

Pickerel Lake is mapped to a depth of 66 ft on the Michigan DNR survey and covers about 70 acres in Dickinson County, Michigan.

Measured from the Michigan DNR inland-lake contour survey.

Deepest sounding: 66 ft
Mean depth: 19.4 ft · estimated
Surface area: 70 acres
Estimated volume: 1,353 acre-ft · 441M gal
Shoreline: 1.75 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation: 2% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Boat Launch

Additional depth details12 contours

Contour depths: 0–66 ft
Recorded point soundings: 66 ft, 61 ft, 28 ft

43.3% of the surface sits over water shallower than 10 ft; 43% 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 Depth, area and volume are estimated from the interpolated survey surface — historical reference, not measurement.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

Dickinson County, Michigan · all 15 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.

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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: 46.08047, -87.81134
MI DNR lake ID: L45785
Vertical exaggeration: 1.43×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.3 MB

Paddling

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

83 / 100Very GoodData confidence: High

Pickerel Lake has a heavily wooded and largely undeveloped setting, well sheltered geometry, limited 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	Excellent	30.0 of 30	96% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (2% forest, 93% wetland; 3% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Excellent	21.4 of 25	mean fetch 591 m · 18% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
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	1 site with DNR boating-facility records · 1 ramp lane · 1 trailer space
Road isolation	Very Good	11.7 of 15	limited nearby major-road exposure · 5 MDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 351 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 2% 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: High — 2% forest and 93% 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

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).

Smallmouth Bass

Bluegill

Rock Bass

Historically stocked, no recent evidence: Splake (last planted 2001), Walleye (last planted 1996), Brook Trout (last planted 1986) — not shown above.

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).

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).

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.

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).

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 · 2001–2010

Master Angler catches recorded on this lake — too few to show a pattern, so they are listed individually.

Smallmouth Bass20.5″ · 2007 · still fishing

Rock Bass11″ · 2010 · spincasting · worm

Bluegill11″ · 2001 · still fishing · worm

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 · 1984–2001

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

Splake19,270 stocked · 1997–2001 · 5 plantings

Walleye9,812 stocked · 1990–1996 · 4 plantings

Brook trout37,428 stocked · 1984–1986 · 5 plantings

No stockings recorded since 2001 — 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

R Cabins≈12.9 miN12178 State Hwy M95, Channing · 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

Pickerel Lake — common questions

How deep is Pickerel Lake?

The deepest contour on the Michigan DNR bathymetric survey of Pickerel Lake is 66 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 Pickerel Lake?

Pickerel Lake covers about 70 acres in Dickinson County, Michigan.

What is the average depth of Pickerel Lake?

The estimated mean depth of Pickerel Lake is 19.4 ft, calculated from the survey contours.

What fish are in Pickerel Lake?

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

Is there public access to Pickerel Lake?

Yes. The Michigan DNR boat-launch data identifies 1 public access site on Pickerel Lake, including Pickerel Lake.