Ottawa Lake fishing: Rainbow Trout, Walleye, Brook Trout

Target species: Rainbow Trout, Walleye, Brook Trout, Yellow Perch, Lake Trout
Boat: 1 ramp or launch on file for this water.
Start here: Launch at Lake Ottawa Boat Landing.

The lake

Ottawa Lake covers 530 acres in Michigan, across Iron County. It is a lake: 90.3% of it is 70 feet deep or less; the deepest point measured is at least 80 feet (24.4 m). Our records hold 5 species for this water.

Depth and bottom

Deepest measured point: at least 80 ft (24.4 m). That is the deepest contour line: the bottom goes deeper. 90.3% of the water is 70 feet or shallower. We hold 28 depth contour lines for this water.

  • 0–5 ft: 6.9% of the water
  • 5–10 ft: 6.5% of the water
  • 10–15 ft: 6.3% of the water
  • 15–20 ft: 6.1% of the water
  • 20–25 ft: 6.6% of the water
  • 25–30 ft: 6.3% of the water
  • 30–35 ft: 6.6% of the water
  • 35–40 ft: 8.2% of the water
  • 40–45 ft: 9.8% of the water
  • 45–50 ft: 9.8% of the water
  • 50–55 ft: 6.1% of the water
  • 55–60 ft: 3.9% of the water
  • 60–65 ft: 3.6% of the water
  • 65–70 ft: 3.6% of the water
  • 70–75 ft: 3.5% of the water
  • 75–80 ft: 6.1% of the water

5 target fish, led by Rainbow Trout

  • Rainbow Trout — Feeding water: 50–65°F.
  • Walleye — Feeding water: 50–75°F.
  • Brook Trout — Feeding water: 50–65°F.
  • Yellow Perch — Feeding water: 45–75°F.
  • Lake Trout — Feeding water: 50–65°F.

Stocking: 1,242,268 fish, 1987–2025

Michigan DNR records list 1,242,268 fish released into this water from 1987 to 2025.

  • Lake Trout: 768,468 in 1989–2024
  • Walleye: 392,131 in 1985–2025
  • Brook Trout: 29,965 in 2003–2008
  • Rainbow Trout: 14,988 in 2011
  • Yellow Perch: 6,660 in 1989

3 more species on the stocking list.

1 ramp or launch on this water

On this water we hold 1 boat ramp.

  • Lake Ottawa Boat Landing — open 6am–10pm, restrooms. Camp Host LLC. website fs.usda.gov/recarea/ottawa/recarea/?recid=12305

The place listed has no fee or opening hours on file: a blank means we hold no such field, not that it is free or always open, and this list may not be complete.

Water and conditions

Water clarity runs 14–23.5 feet on our readings, averaging 18.6 feet, from 63 readings. These readings span 2017–2023.

What is hard here

Only 1 public ramp is on file, so the launch decides where you fish.

Where this data comes from

  • Michigan EGLE — Michigan EGLE: depth contours: class A, a survey of the bottom.
  • EPA NLA — EPA National Lakes Assessment: class B, a depth figure measured and published by an agency, without a bottom map.
  • Webster, K.E., McCullough, I.M., Soranno, P.A. LAGOS-US DEPTH v1.0, EDI, doi:10.6073/pasta/64ddc4d04661d9aef4bd702dc5d8984f (CC BY 4.0); Cheruvelil et al. LAGOS-US LOCUS v1.0 (EDI) — LAGOS-US DEPTH v1.0: Lake depth for 17,675 lakes in the conterminous U.S.: class B, a depth figure measured and published by an agency, without a bottom map.