Michigan has 6 lakes named Portage Lake of 10 acres or more, in 6 counties. The largest is in Houghton County (10,808 acres); the deepest measured, in Manistee County (60 ft). 4 have been stocked by the DNR and 5 have a public launch.
How they differ: The clearest is in Manistee County, about 13 ft of visibility in the 2023 satellite estimate; the most recently stocked is in Washtenaw County (8 Jul 2026); 5 have a public launch listed; the other 1 have no public access site in the DNR list; 1 has a full page here with a depth map, linked below.
Circles sized by area and shaded by deepest measured point. Michigan DNR lake polygons and depth surveys.
Largest first. The nearest town is the closest place in the Census list to the middle of the lake.
| Lake | Near | Acres | Deepest | Clarity | Stockings | Launches |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portage LakeHoughton County, Houghton | 2 mi east of Houghton | 10,808 | about 30 ft (est.) | 10 ft | 90 times, last 2025 | 5 |
| Portage LakeManistee County, Onekama Township | at Onekama | 2,116 | 60 ft | 13 ft | 149 times, last 2026 | 2 |
| Portage LakeWashtenaw County | 2 mi southeast of Pinckney | 641 | about 85 ft (est.) | 11 ft | 31 times, last 2026 | 1 |
| Portage LakeSt. Joseph County, Mendon Township | 4 mi northwest of Mendon | 400 | about 60 ft (est.) | 6 ft | 1 | |
| Portage LakeJackson County, Waterloo Township | 6 mi north of Grass Lake | 398 | 40 ft | 7 ft | 28 times, last 2025 | 1 |
| Portage LakeKalamazoo County, Charleston Township | 2 mi northwest of Climax | 130 |
Depth: Michigan DNR survey soundings; "about" figures are older Michigan EGLE estimates. Clarity: Michigan EGLE satellite estimate, 2023 average. Stockings: Michigan DNR Fisheries. Launches: Michigan DNR public access sites. Towns: US Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer. How we measure