Walleye Lakes in Michigan, 38 Lakes

Walleye is a primary Michigan sport-fishing target. 1,884 lakes have an official record of the species — the actual population almost certainly extends further, since not every lake gets a full DNR fishery survey every year. With 1,201 lakes in Minnesota, 645 in Wisconsin, and 38 in Michigan carrying a documented record, Walleye is one of the more accessible targets in the dataset.

Game-fish presence on a Michigan lake also signals enough water-quality stability to support the prey species the game fish depend on — perch, alewife, ciscoes — which themselves require reasonably oxygenated, clear water. The Walleye lakes with the lowest nutrient and algae readings tend to be the ones where the species does best, since the same water-clarity and nutrient conditions support both.

Michigan Lakes

Counties

Walleye Lakes Map

Every Michigan lake with documented walleye.

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Best Walleye Lakes in Michigan

Rank	Lake	County	Clarity	Depth
1	Emerald Lake	Kent	11.5 ft	-
2	Sylvan Lake	Oakland	10.3 ft	-
3	Otter Lake	Benzie	12 ft	-
4	Houghton Lake	Roscommon	5 ft	21 ft
5	Crooked Lake	Emmet	-	50 ft
6	Bass Lake	Leelanau	11.2 ft	-
7	Lower Herring Lake	Benzie	13 ft	50 ft
8	Lake Bellaire	Antrim	12.5 ft	95 ft
9	Crooked Lake	Barry	12 ft	-
10	Island Lake	Grand Traverse	17 ft	-
11	Long Lake	Gogebic	12 ft	60 ft
12	Emerald Lake	Newaygo	13.5 ft	49 ft
13	Eagle Lake	Cass	7 ft	35 ft
14	Wall Lake	Barry	10 ft	36 ft
15	Lake Mary	Iron	19 ft	48 ft
16	Lake Margrethe	Crawford	16 ft	65 ft
17	Pickerel Lake	Kalkaska	20 ft	72 ft
18	Stager Lake	Iron	13 ft	55 ft
19	Eagle Lake	Allegan	15 ft	-
20	Upper Herring Lake	Benzie	8 ft	25 ft
21	Norway Lake	Dickinson	13 ft	25 ft
22	Sylvan Lake	Newaygo	16 ft	63 ft
23	Bass Lake	Montcalm	10.8 ft	28 ft
24	Langford Lake	Gogebic	5.5 ft	15 ft
25	Otter Lake	Oakland	10.3 ft	70 ft
26	Portage Lake	Jackson	8.8 ft	40 ft
27	Crooked Lake	Oakland	11.5 ft	60 ft
28	Long Lake	Grand Traverse	24.3 ft	88 ft
29	Long Lake	Benzie	9 ft	-
30	Diamond Lake	Newaygo	12.3 ft	25 ft
31	Lake James	Roscommon	6.8 ft	-
32	Diamond Lake	Osceola	16 ft	60 ft
33	Monocle Lake	Chippewa	16 ft	55 ft
34	Burt Lake	Cheboygan	15.5 ft	73 ft
35	Long Lake	Cheboygan	18 ft	61 ft
36	Pickerel Lake	Emmet	9.5 ft	74 ft
37	Island Lake	Marquette	12 ft	28 ft
38	Lake Whittlesey	Keweenaw	11.6 ft	-

Frequently Asked Questions

How many Michigan lakes have walleye?

Walleye are found in 38 lakes in Michigan.

What are the best walleye lakes in Michigan?

The best walleye lakes in Michigan by water quality are Emerald Lake, Sylvan Lake, Otter Lake, Houghton Lake, Crooked Lake.

Fish species from state agency survey, stocking, and public fishing-access records; water-quality readings from the EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys.