Chippewa Lake
Mecosta County, Michigan785 acresView mapDirections
EGLE publishes the water-quality measurements for Chippewa Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- 40 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Chippewa Lake in Mecosta County, Michigan has water-quality measurements published by EGLE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 11 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 40 ft. Surface area: 784.8 acres.
Free interactive depth-contour map of Chippewa Lake, reaching a maximum surveyed depth of 40 ft. Toggle Depth contours to overlay the bathymetric survey lines. Contour data from Michigan DNR.
Chippewa Lake is a 785-acre lake in Mecosta County, Michigan with a maximum depth of 40 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. The lake supports 21 documented fish species including Black crappie, Blackchin shiner, and Blacknose shiner. Public access is available.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, EGLE, last sampled 2022-09-03. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Chippewa Lake covers about 780 acres in Mecosta County. If you are planning to stay, you can search lake houses and cabins around Chippewa Lake on Vrbo, or look for a hotel room near the lake on Booking.com or Expedia.
What Chippewa Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water11 ft of visibility
- Fishing21 species recorded
- Deep water40 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Chippewa Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Chippewa Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Chippewa Lake
These are the measurements EGLE publishes for Chippewa Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Good clarity, visible to about 11 ft. TSI 43.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 11ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading The green pigment in algae — a direct measure of how much algae is in the water. | |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 43 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Chippewa Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
40 ft
Surface area
785 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by EGLE
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Chippewa Lake
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Top-rated places to stay near Chippewa Lake
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Chippewa Lake
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 8 years of monitoring (2016–2023).
Water clarity
Improving7 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+0.5 µg/L/yr7 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+0.16 µg/L/yr7 years
EPA Impairment Status
Chippewa Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Fish consumption.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MI040802020104-03 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Mecosta County
Frequently asked questions about Chippewa Lake
Where is Chippewa Lake?
- Chippewa Lake is a lake in Mecosta County, Michigan. Its water-quality measurements are published by EGLE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Chippewa Lake?
- Chippewa Lake in Mecosta County, Michigan has water-quality measurements published by EGLE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 11 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 40 ft. Surface area: 784.8 acres.
Is Chippewa Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Chippewa Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Chippewa Lake?
- Chippewa Lake has a maximum depth of 40 feet. The lake covers 784.8 acres.
What fish are in Chippewa Lake?
- Fish species found in Chippewa Lake include Black crappie, Blackchin shiner, Blacknose shiner, Bluegill, Bluntnose minnow, Brown bullhead, Golden shiner, Grass pickerel, Iowa darter, Johnny darter, Largemouth bass, Longnose gar, Northern logperch, Northern longear sunfish, Pugnose shiner, Pumpkinseed, Rock bass, Smallmouth bass, White sucker, Yellow bullhead, Yellow perch. Chippewa Lake is located in Mecosta County, Michigan.
Can I fish at Chippewa Lake?
- Public access to Chippewa Lake is listed as yes on the lake record. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Michigan's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
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Where this data comes from
88 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2016–2022. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-26.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS88 samples · 2016–2022
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database