Highest elevation lakes & reservoirs in Michigan by altitude
While lake levels can flucuate frequently based on several circumstances, the altitude/elevation of a lake is based on its normal water level, measured by the lake’s surface distance above sea level. For a reservoir, this water level is also known as “full pond” or “full pool”.Low lake levels can occur due to deliberate seasonal draw downs for irrigation or impending snow melt, reduced water inflows, drought and evaporation, residential or commercial water demands, and hydropower generation. Some lakes’ minimum and maximum elevations are virtually the same. Lakes that generate hydropower may vary by several feet – according to power demand. Lakes whose primary purpose is to prevent flooding can seasonally vary by 100 feet or more. When some lakes reach their minimum elevation, their boat ramps may not be long enough to permit boat access – and boats docked on shallow parts of the lake may end up on dry ground. In those cases, kayakers and shore-based anglers may be among the few happy recreational users of the lake.
A lake’s highest water level, measured by the lake’s surface distance above sea level, that can occur during flooding. A lake’s highest possible maximum elevation is usually the top of the lake’s dam or spillway. At lakes that include residential development, government regulations usually forbid the construction of homes below a lake’s maximum elevation.
You can find many of the world’s highest-elevated lakes on LakeLubbers. Lakes with the lowest elevations (known by LakeLubbers) are shown on the final page of that list. Note: For some lakes, "Altitude/Elevation" data is unknown, so this table may display fewer lakes than the total 90 articles we have published for Michigan lakes.
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Below are lakes within USA > US Midwest Region > Michigan > Compared by highest altitude/elevation in feet. This list does not represent all lakes in Michigan, only the 90 Michigan lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name  |
Elevation in feet |
Lake description |
|---|---|---|
| Lac Vieux Desert, MI/WI (Lake Superior Northwoods Region, WI, Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA, Upper Peninsula Region, MI, Wisconsin) |
1,685 ft | Also known as Lac Vieux Lake Lac Vieux Desert is the French name for this 4,260-acre lake of Michigan and Wisconsin. The name was given by French fur trappers who were among the f … |
| Lake Gogebic, MI (Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA, Upper Peninsula Region, MI) |
1,295 ft | Lake Gogebic, located at the western tip of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (UP) is a hidden gem, far undervalued in the outdoor sports world. Lake Gogebic … |
| Lake Saint Helen, MI (Michigan, Northeast Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA) |
1,155 ft | Also known as Lake St. Helen Lake Saint Helen is located in Roscommon County of northern Michigan near Interstate 75 and right next to the town of St. Helen – Charlton Heston’s ch … |
| Silver Lake, MI (Michigan, Northwest Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA) |
862 ft | Pushing her kayak out into the water of Silver Lake, she glides through the early morning mist rising off the surface of the water. With steady, stron … |
| Magician Lake, MI (Michigan, Southwest Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA) |
763 ft | Also known as Silver lake Magician Lake. . .the name holds an air of mystery. One envisions foggy evenings and a haunted island. But in truth, the only mystery about Magician L … |
| Gun Lake, MI (Michigan, Southwest Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA) |
745 ft | Beautiful Gun Lake, located off US 131 north of Kalamazoo, Michigan, has been a vacation and boating destination for well over a hundred years. Origin … |
| Fletcher Pond, MI (Michigan, Northeast Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA) |
731 ft | Also known as Fletcher Flooding Fletcher Pond, also known as the Fletcher Flooding, is an impoundment first created in 1935 when the Alpena Power Company dammed the Upper South Branc … |
| Intermediate Lake, MI (Michigan, Northwest Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA) |
607 ft | Also known as Central Lake, Elk River Chain of Lakes Intermediate Lake, in Antrim County is one of the main lakes in the Elk River Chain of Lakes which include Beals, Scotts, Six Mile, St. Clair, Ellswor … |
| Lake Bellaire (Michigan, Northwest Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA) |
591 ft | Also known as Grass Lake Michigan has a bounty of beautiful lakes, and those found in Antrim County are no exception. Lake Bellaire is situated to the east of Lake Michigan; t … |
| Pentwater Lake (Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA, West Central Michigan) |
582 ft | Also known as Pent Water Lake Oceana County, Michigan, is home to Pentwater Lake, a 483-acre natural freshwater lake with a very irregular shape. Pentwater Lake’s shoreline is 8.6 … |