Portage Lake
Jackson County, Michigan400 acresView mapDirections
EGLE publishes the water-quality measurements for Portage Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- 40 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Portage Lake in Jackson County, Michigan has water-quality measurements published by EGLE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 8.8 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 40 ft. Surface area: 400 acres.
Portage Lake is a 400-acre lake in Jackson County, Michigan with a maximum depth of 40 feet. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. The lake supports 34 documented fish species including Blackstripe topminnow, Bluegill, and Bluntnose minnow. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, EGLE, last sampled 2019-09-20. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Portage Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
- Fishing34 species recorded
- Deep water40 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Portage Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Portage 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 Portage Lake
These are the measurements EGLE publishes for Portage Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Moderate clarity, visible to about 8.8 ft. TSI 46.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 8.8ft | 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. | 46 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Portage Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
40 ft
Surface area
400 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by EGLE
Recreation & Access
- Portage LakePublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
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Stays near Portage Lake
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Follow Portage Lake’s readings
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Portage Lake
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2018–2019). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Improving2 years
Phosphorus
Improving-4 µg/L/yr2 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Portage Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Portage Lake Dam (completed 1957), built primarily for recreation on the Tributary to Portage River; earth-type dam, 8 ft tall and 3,200 ft long.
- Surface area
- 400 ac
- Normal storage
- 5,000 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 6,500 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 4.73 sq mi
- Hazard class
- Low
- Owner
- MDNR Parks & Recreation
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID MI00733 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Portage 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 MI040500040204-03 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Jackson County
Frequently asked questions about Portage Lake
Where is Portage Lake?
- Portage Lake is a lake in Jackson County, Michigan. Its water-quality measurements are published by EGLE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Portage Lake?
- Portage Lake in Jackson County, Michigan has water-quality measurements published by EGLE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 8.8 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 40 ft. Surface area: 400 acres.
Is Portage Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Portage Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Portage Lake?
- Portage Lake has a maximum depth of 40 feet. The lake covers 400 acres.
What fish are in Portage Lake?
- Fish species found in Portage Lake include Blackstripe topminnow, Bluegill, Bluntnose minnow, Bowfin, Brindled madtom, Brook silverside, Brown bullhead, Chestnut lamprey, Common carp, Common shiner, Grass pickerel, Green sunfish, Johnny darter, Lake herring, Lake sturgeon, Lake whitefish, Largemouth bass, Longnose gar, Northern logperch, Northern pike, Pumpkinseed, Rainbow darter, Rock bass, Round whitefish, Sauger, Shorthead redhorse, Silver lamprey, Striped shiner, Walleye, Warmouth, Western banded killifish, White sucker, Yellow bullhead, Yellow perch. Portage Lake is located in Jackson County, Michigan.
Are there boat ramps on Portage Lake?
- Portage Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Portage Lake. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Portage Lake?
- Portage Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. 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
27 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2018–2019. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-26.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS27 samples · 2018–2019
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
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory