Long Lake (Grand Traverse County, Michigan)

Long Lake is the largest lake in Grand Traverse County, Michigan.[2] It is located about 15 minutes west of Traverse City. It is locally known for being a great fishing and recreation lake, especially boating its 4.6 square miles. The Carter-Strong Bird Sanctuary is a protection area at the southwestern end of the lake.[3] Long Lake is the 36th largest lake in Michigan by surface area.

Long Lake
Dusk view of Long Lake from the north shore
Long Lake
LocationGrand Traverse County, Michigan (Long Lake Township & Green Lake Township)
Coordinates44.7°N 85.7°W / 44.7; -85.7
TypeLake
Primary inflowsMickey Lake, Ruth Lake, Fern Lake, Page Lake
Primary outflowsPlatte River [1]
Max. length3.96 mi (6.37 km)
Max. width1.86 mi (2.9 km)
Surface area2,860 acres (12 km2)[1]
Average depth26 ft (8 m)
Max. depth88 ft (27 m)[1]
Shore length116.71 mi (26.9 km)
Surface elevation846 feet (258 m)[2]
IslandsPicnic Island, Long Island, Fox Island, South Island, Brush Island
SettlementsNeal (ghost town), Long Lake Peninsula
1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Long Lake is the namesake of Long Lake Township.

Geography

Long Lake is located in Northern Michigan, in northwestern Grand Traverse County. It is mainly situated within Long Lake Township, of which it has lent its name, although a small portion of the southern end of the lake lies within Green Lake Township.

Long Lake is primary headwaters of the Platte River, which flows westward from the lake, warming as it flows to Lake Michigan in neighboring Benzie County.[4]

Recreation

Long Lake is well-known in the area for being a popular recreation lake.

There are three public parks on the shores of the lake:[5]

  • Taylor Park
  • Gilbert Park
  • Crescent Shores Park & Boat Launch

Many homeowners on the lake also own boats. Boaters on the lake choose to swim, water ski, and fish. Many varieties of fish live in the lake, but fishers tend to find bluegill, largemouth bass, muskellunge, northern pike, rock bass, smallmouth bass, sunfish, walleye and yellow perch.[6]

Islands

Below is a list of the islands in Long Lake:

  • Picnic Island (formerly Covell Island[7])
  • Long Island
  • Fox Island
  • South Island
  • Brush Island

Fox and South Islands are the site of local Boy Scouts camps. These islands are also owned by the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy.[8]

See also

References
  1. Miller, J.B., and Thompson, T., 1970. Compilation of data for Michigan lakes: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File-Report, 368 p.
  2. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Long Lake (Grand Traverse County, Michigan)
  3. "Carter Strong Bird Sanctuary - Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy". Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy. Retrieved 2017-11-24.
  4. "Platte River Watershed Implementation Project" (PDF). Benzie Conservation District. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  5. "Long Lake Twp. Parks Map" (PDF).
  6. "Long Lake". Lake-Link. Retrieved 2017-11-24.
  7. LLC, Historic Map Works. "Long Lake Township, Atlas: Grand Traverse County 1908, Michigan Historical Map". www.historicmapworks.com. Retrieved 2020-05-18.
  8. "Long Lake Facts | Long Lake Association | Traverse City, Michigan". Long Lake Association. Retrieved 2017-11-24.
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