How deep is Half Moon Lake?

Half Moon Lake reaches a maximum depth of 82 feet in the Michigan DNR Inland Lake Contours survey. Most of it is far shallower: the survey charts 10 closed depth contours over about 62 acres, and half of that water sits inside the 40 ft line. The 82 ft figure is a single recorded sounding rather than a closed contour, so the deepest line you can actually trace on the map is 80 ft.

Where is the deepest part of Half Moon Lake?

The deepest charted water on Half Moon Lake lies inside the 80 ft contour, toward the western side of the lake. That contour encloses 3.4 acres, 5.4% 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 Half Moon Lake is shallower than 40 feet?

About half. The 40 ft contour encloses 26 acres of the roughly 62 acres inside the outer 5 ft line, so the other half of the water is shallower than 40 feet. The sharpest drop is between 5 and 10 feet, where the mapped water sheds 8 acres.

How accurate is this Half Moon 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

Half Moon Lake depth map

Half Moon Lake in Muskegon County, Michigan reaches a depth of 82 feet. Half Moon Lake is charted here across 10 closed depth contours, from the 5 ft line down to 80 ft, enclosing about 62 acres of water. Half of that water lies inside the 40 ft line, and only 3.4 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

Half Moon Lake depth chart: 10 depth contours from 5 to 80 ft

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

Half Moon Lake depth chart data: water enclosed by each contour
Depth contour	Water inside it	Share of mapped water
5 ft	62 acres	100%
10 ft	54 acres	86%
15 ft	48 acres	77%
20 ft	43 acres	69%
30 ft	37 acres	59%
40 ft	26 acres	41%
50 ft	14 acres	22%
60 ft	8 acres	13%
70 ft	6 acres	9.7%
80 ft	3.4 acres	5.4%

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 5 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 82 ft sounding, marked as a point rather than a closed contour, so it is not charted as a band.

Fishing Half Moon Lake: a stepped drop into deep water

The survey encloses about 62 acres of Half Moon Lake inside its 5 ft contour, and half of that water lies inside the 40 ft line, so the bottom steps down contour by contour into the deep basin rather than shelving flat or plunging all at once. Between 5 and 10 ft the mapped water sheds 8 acres in 5 ft of depth, the sharpest change on the chart, start on that band, because it is where the bottom stops being flat. 3.4 acres, 5.4% of the mapped water, lie inside the deepest 80 ft contour, toward the western side of the lake. At 82 ft this is two-story water: the basin can stay cold below the summer thermocline while warm-water fish stay up on the 5-to-40 ft ground, and the fish that move between the two do it along the 5–10 ft break at first and last light.

Ice fishing on Half Moon Lake

Deep water like Half Moon 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 80 ft hole. That edge is the 5–10 ft band on the chart above, where 8 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 5-to-40 ft flat. Check ice thickness locally before you walk out.

Half Moon Lake depth map FAQs

How deep is Half Moon Lake?: Half Moon Lake reaches a maximum depth of 82 feet in the Michigan DNR Inland Lake Contours survey. Most of it is far shallower: the survey charts 10 closed depth contours over about 62 acres, and half of that water sits inside the 40 ft line. The 82 ft figure is a single recorded sounding rather than a closed contour, so the deepest line you can actually trace on the map is 80 ft.
Where is the deepest part of Half Moon Lake?: The deepest charted water on Half Moon Lake lies inside the 80 ft contour, toward the western side of the lake. That contour encloses 3.4 acres, 5.4% 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 Half Moon Lake is shallower than 40 feet?: About half. The 40 ft contour encloses 26 acres of the roughly 62 acres inside the outer 5 ft line, so the other half of the water is shallower than 40 feet. The sharpest drop is between 5 and 10 feet, where the mapped water sheds 8 acres.
How accurate is this Half Moon 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 Half Moon Lake

Lime Lake depth map · 70+ ft max · 9 mi away
Baptist Lake depth map · 65+ ft max · 13 mi away
Mead Lake depth map · 68 ft max · 13 mi away
Pickerel Lake depth map · 73 ft max · 14 mi away
Sylvan Lake depth map · 63+ ft max · 14 mi away

Mapped fishing venues near Half Moon Lake

Half Moon Lake in the venue directory covers access and fishing details for this water.

Lime Lake · 9 mi away
Baptist Lake · 13 mi away
Mead Lake · 13 mi away

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