How deep is Big Chub Lake?

Big Chub Lake is at least 74 feet deep. That figure is the deepest surveyed sounding in the Michigan DNR Inland Lake Contours survey, a point measurement rather than a closed contour, so the deepest line you can actually trace on the map is the 70 ft contour, and the water may run deeper still.

Where is the deepest part of Big Chub Lake?

The deepest charted water on Big Chub Lake lies inside the 70 ft contour, toward the southwestern corner of the lake. That contour encloses 4.4 acres, 7.1% of the mapped water, so it is a small target on a small water, the depth chart above gives the contour to line up on.

How much of Big Chub Lake is shallower than 50 feet?

About half. The 50 ft contour encloses 30 acres of the roughly 62 acres inside the outer 10 ft line, so the other half of the water is shallower than 50 feet. The sharpest drop is between 60 and 70 feet, where the mapped water sheds 16 acres.

How accurate is this Big Chub Lake depth map?

The contours come from the Michigan DNR Inland Lake Contours survey, retrieved August 2026 and last rebuilt on August 19, 2026. Depths change over time with water levels and sediment, so treat this map as a planning guide for fishing, and never use it for navigation. Acreages are computed from the published contour geometry, not from a separate area survey, so read them as close approximations.

Michigan lake depth maps

Big Chub Lake depth map

Big Chub Lake in Otsego County, Michigan reaches a depth of more than 74 feet at its deepest surveyed sounding. Big Chub Lake is charted here across 7 closed depth contours, from the 10 ft line down to 70 ft, enclosing about 62 acres of water. Half of that water lies inside the 50 ft line, and only 4.4 acres lie inside the deepest one. Every contour is on the interactive map below, free and without an account.

Data: Michigan DNR Inland Lake Contours (public record). Contours closed, checked and area-computed by Jordan Carter, founder of GilledIt · page updated August 19, 2026

Big Chub Lake depth chart: 7 depth contours from 10 to 70 ft

Data: Michigan DNR Inland Lake Contours (public record), retrieved August 2026 · depths change over time · not for navigation

Big Chub Lake depth chart data: water enclosed by each contour
Depth contour	Water inside it	Share of mapped water
10 ft	62 acres	100%
20 ft	57 acres	93%
30 ft	49 acres	80%
40 ft	39 acres	64%
50 ft	30 acres	48%
60 ft	20 acres	32%
70 ft	4.4 acres	7.1%

Acreages are computed from the closed Michigan DNR Inland Lake Contours contour rings, with islands subtracted. Shares are of the 62 acres inside the outermost charted contour (the 10 ft line), which is the outer edge of the mapped water, several state files carry no 0 ft shoreline line, so this is not the same as a share of the lake's published surface area. The survey also records a 74 ft sounding, marked as a point rather than a closed contour, so it is not charted as a band.

Fishing Big Chub Lake: steep walls and a big basin

About 62 acres of Big Chub Lake sit inside the survey's 10 ft contour, and half of that water is already gone by the 50 ft line: the bottom holds its depth well out from the bank rather than tapering off a long shallow margin. The steepest break on the chart runs from 60 down to 70 ft: 16 acres of bottom fall away across 10 ft there, which makes that band the first contour to work. 4.4 acres, 7.1% of the mapped water, lie inside the deepest 70 ft contour, toward the southwestern corner of the lake. At 74 ft this is two-story water: the basin can stay cold below the summer thermocline while warm-water fish stay up on the 10-to-50 ft ground, and the fish that move between the two do it along the 60–70 ft break at first and last light.

Ice fishing on Big Chub Lake

Deep water like Big Chub Lake freezes later and less evenly than the shallow lakes around it, and the winter bite sets up on the first real break, not out over the 70 ft hole. That edge is the 60–70 ft band on the chart above, where 16 acres of bottom tilt away, and panfish and walleye work up and down it through the day. By late ice the fish push back onto the 10-to-50 ft flat. Check ice thickness locally before you walk out.

Big Chub Lake depth map FAQs

How deep is Big Chub Lake?: Big Chub Lake is at least 74 feet deep. That figure is the deepest surveyed sounding in the Michigan DNR Inland Lake Contours survey, a point measurement rather than a closed contour, so the deepest line you can actually trace on the map is the 70 ft contour, and the water may run deeper still.
Where is the deepest part of Big Chub Lake?: The deepest charted water on Big Chub Lake lies inside the 70 ft contour, toward the southwestern corner of the lake. That contour encloses 4.4 acres, 7.1% of the mapped water, so it is a small target on a small water, the depth chart above gives the contour to line up on.
How much of Big Chub Lake is shallower than 50 feet?: About half. The 50 ft contour encloses 30 acres of the roughly 62 acres inside the outer 10 ft line, so the other half of the water is shallower than 50 feet. The sharpest drop is between 60 and 70 feet, where the mapped water sheds 16 acres.
How accurate is this Big Chub Lake depth map?: The contours come from the Michigan DNR Inland Lake Contours survey, retrieved August 2026 and last rebuilt on August 19, 2026. Depths change over time with water levels and sediment, so treat this map as a planning guide for fishing, and never use it for navigation. Acreages are computed from the published contour geometry, not from a separate area survey, so read them as close approximations.

Depth maps for lakes near Big Chub Lake

Bridge Lake depth map · 87 ft max · 1 mi away
Heart Lake depth map · 123 ft max · 3 mi away
Big Bradford Lake depth map · 102 ft max · 4 mi away
Big Lake depth map · 81 ft max · 8 mi away
Shupac Lake depth map · 97 ft max · 9 mi away

Mapped fishing venues near Big Chub Lake

Big Chub Lake in the venue directory covers access and fishing details for this water.

Bridge Lake · 1 mi away
Heart Lake · 3 mi away
Big Bradford Lake · 4 mi away

Fishing in Michigan needs a state license: Michigan fishing license guide · all Michigan venues