Grand Traverse & Inland Lakes · Small town
Interlochen
For music lovers who also want a beach: lakeside summer concerts at the Interlochen Center for the Arts, with a state park and old pines next door.
About 2 miles away (straight line)
Lake · Grand Traverse & Inland Lakes
Duck Lake
The state park lake at Interlochen: all-sports water up to 98 feet deep, with a beach, launches, summer paddleboard rentals, lake trout and ice fishing.
Duck Lake is the easy choice for a state park day at Interlochen, and it is an all-sports lake: about 1,930 acres and up to 98 feet deep, with no local limits, so you can ski, tube and cruise. Interlochen State Park sits on its shore, so you get a beach, a boat launch, a kayak launch and, in summer, listed kayak and paddleboard rentals in one place, plus campgrounds in the same park.
The park’s Duck Lake Modern Campground is named for the lake. The park also lists a camper cabin and rent-a-tents. Look up as you walk around: some of the large old-growth red and white pines the park was first protected for still grow throughout it.
Duck Lake sits just east of Green Lake at Interlochen in Grand Traverse County, and the two lakes frame the park. It was Michigan’s first state park, established in 1919 on land the state acquired two years earlier. The Interlochen Center for the Arts is just north of the park.
Anglers come for lake trout, northern pike, smallmouth bass, rock bass and yellow perch, all on the DNR’s list of better fishing waters for Duck Lake. In winter, smelt and pike are the usual targets through the ice.
On the water
Motorboats and rules
No special local limits are listed for the lake, so standard Michigan boating law applies.
Swimming
Swim from the Interlochen State Park day-use area on Duck Lake, where the park lists an accessible beach house with restrooms. A Recreation Passport is required for vehicle entry.
Public access
Interlochen State Park lies between Duck and Green lakes. You can boat, paddle, fish and swim there, and the park lists a boat launch, a beach house, picnic areas and seasonal paddlesport rentals. The park's campgrounds include the Duck Lake Modern Campground. A Recreation Passport is required for vehicle entry.
Paddling
The park lists an accessible kayak launch near the picnic area in the state park day-use area on Duck Lake; confirm before you go if you need it.
Fishing
Duck Lake is on the Michigan DNR's list of better fishing waters for lake trout, northern pike, rock bass, smallmouth bass and yellow perch. Check current Michigan DNR rules before fishing.
Fish species
Species include lake trout, northern pike, rock bass, smallmouth bass, and yellow perch.
Public boat launches
Interlochen State Park day-use launch
Listed as an accessible boating access site, with a separate accessible kayak launch near the picnic area. A Recreation Passport is required for vehicle entry.
Boat, kayak and paddleboard rentals
- Simple Adventures
Kayak and stand-up paddleboard rentals from the Duck Lake beach house, Memorial Day through Labor Day, as listed by the state park.
Listed because their own sites say they rent on this water. Not an endorsement, and we have no ties to them. Check with them for what is available.
Fishing, launching at a state site or parking at a state park? See licenses and passes for what you need before you go.
Anything not listed here is unverified. Do not assume public access across private shoreline. Check the Michigan DNR boating access listings and the current fishing regulations.
Location
Map of Duck Lake
2 places on an OpenStreetMap map
Places to stay near Duck Lake
Lakefront cottages and homes are listed by the local rental managers and booking sites below.
Hotels and inns
Budget
Interlochen MotelListed by Traverse City Tourism · Listed by Pure Michigan
Search all hotels in Interlochen: Booking.com · Expedia · Hotels.com · Google Hotels
We don’t take bookings or earn anything from these links. Rates, availability and any booking problems are handled by the booking site.
Nearby towns
Nearby attractions
Straight-line distances from the map point.
State park
Interlochen State Park
Michigan's first state park, between Duck and Green lakes, with old-growth pines, two campgrounds and the Interlochen arts campus next door.
Under a mile away (straight line)
Attraction
Interlochen Center for the Arts
The arts camp and boarding school founded in 1928 between two lakes south of Traverse City, with student and guest-artist concerts open to the public.
About 2 miles away (straight line)
Ski area
Hickory Hills
Traverse City's own ski hill since 1952, with 16 runs, Nordic trails including a lighted loop and an FIS-certified course, and disc golf in summer.
About 10 miles away (straight line)
More lakes and rivers nearby
Lake · Grand Traverse & Inland Lakes
Green Lake
An all-sports Interlochen lake, 2,000 acres and 102 feet deep: lake trout, room to paddle, a rustic state park campsite and night smelt fishing on the ice.
- All-sports
- Public launch
Lake · Grand Traverse & Inland Lakes
Long Lake
An all-sports island lake near Traverse City: ski and tube, swim at two township beaches, picnic on four day-use islands, ice fish for walleye and pike.
- All-sports
- Swim beach
- Public launch
Lake · Grand Traverse & Inland Lakes
Boardman Lake
Traverse City's in-town lake, open to all boating but built for a kayak, a cast or a walk around the 4-mile Boardman Lake Loop just south of downtown.
- All-sports
- Public launch