Green Lake (Allegan County)

This afternoon/evening we went over to Green Lake for a couple of hours. The weather was iffy all day until about 4pm. So we decided to go someplace close for a little "dinner" cruise. Even though dinner was only PB&Js, it was still nice.

I had only been on Green Lake one other time many years ago on a borrowed waverunner. At that time I didn't really bother to look around a see what a nice little lake it actually is.

A little over 10 years ago we almost bought a tiny little house up on a hill overlooking the lake. The house had deeded access to the lake and it was only $75k. Long story short, the house would have been too much work and there was no garage and very little room to build one. However, there is a little part of me that still thinks it would have been fun.



Green Lake is a small lake in Allegan County. It covers a little over 300 acres. It is a popular water skiing lake and fishing is quite popular also. There are sort of two sections of the lake separated by a relatively shallow narrows. The lake in general is very deep with abrupt drop offs. When you are out from shore 100' it is common to be in 30'+ of water. However, there are a couple of sandbars in areas that can take you by surprise. It is a good idea to have a depth finder so you can at least be aware of where a few of the shallow areas are.

It was pretty cool this evening and the lake was pretty quite. I assume that on hotter days a few of the sand bar areas are popular places to hang out and just be in the water. There is not public beach on the lake. Our kids were a little disappointed that they couldn't play in the sand.

There is a very nice public boat ramp on the lake. It is operated by the DNR. The ramp, dock and parking are all basically brand new. The ramp is a single lane concrete ramp with a single dock along the Port side. There is plenty of parking, however, on a warm summer weekend I'm sure it fills up quickly. I didn't see any signs regarding a fee to use the ramp. However, there was a small shed on site that could be used as a collection station on busy weekends. Since it is a state owned and operated facility, I would guess a State Park pass ($6 daily, $24 annual) would be required.

The Northern shore of the lake is mostly undeveloped and it would appear to be a good place to find some fish. Most of the rest of the lake is lined with cottages and year round homes. There are some new homes and a few vacant building sites at the end of the Northern bay.

All in all it is a nice little lake to visit if you are in the area. If you are looking to fish or ski and only need a couple of hours on the water it may work great for you. There is a slalom course set up on the main bay and it seemed that just about every boat on a lift in front of a house was a MasterCraft.

I don't know that there is much of a reason for us to go back any time soon. However, as it turns out, it is probably the closest boatable body of water to our home.

Google Maps: Green Lake