Lake Number Ten

A Lake Named by the Surveyor's Grid

In the early surveying of Michigan's townships, land was divided into numbered sections of roughly one square mile. Lake Number Ten earned its name simply by sitting near the center of Section 10 in what became Bowne Township. The 1870 Dillenback and Leavitt county history already lists it by that number, calling it "a small lake near the center of section 10, known as Number Ten Lake." It is a rare place that wears its origin on its label with complete transparency.↗

The lake lies at an elevation of about 794 feet on the Freeport USGS topographic quadrangle, nestled in a gently rolling landscape of farmland and woodland typical of southeastern Kent County. The Coldwater River—also called the Little Thornapple by 19th-century settlers—flows nearby through the township, and Lake Number Ten falls within the broader Thornapple River watershed.↗↗↗

What You'll Find at the Shore

At about ten surface acres and roughly 0.6 miles of shoreline, Lake Number Ten is one of the smallest named lakes in Kent County—ranking 119th out of 183 catalogued lakes by area. That modest size works in its favor: the whole lake feels intimate, and you can walk the perimeter in well under an hour. Maximum depth has been reported at around 36 feet, though a published DNR survey is absent, and satellite-derived water clarity averages around 3 feet, marking it as a productive, somewhat turbid little lake.↗↗↗

There is no state-managed boat ramp or public access site at Lake Number Ten, which means the shoreline is largely private and quiet. Anglers and paddlers who know the area rely on natural shore access, a small boat carried in by hand, or a canoe or kayak slipped in from a public right-of-way. This absence of infrastructure keeps crowds away and preserves the lake's low-key rural character.↗↗

Fishing and Paddling

Largemouth bass are the headline catch at Lake Number Ten, with recent angler reports of bass landed from its weedy margins. County-wide biodiversity records also list bluegill, rock bass, and johnny darter from the area, so a panfish-and-bass mix is the likely reward for an afternoon's casting. The lake is not on the Michigan DNR stocking schedule—its fish community is self-sustaining—which suits anglers who prefer native populations over hatchery-managed waters.↗↗↗

Because the lake is compact and shallow near shore, small craft like canoes, kayaks, and jon boats work well here. Summer water temperatures hover around 71°F in July, and the open-water season runs from roughly late March through mid-December. Ice fishing fills the winter gap from January through early March, making this a year-round destination for patient anglers.↗↗

Getting There and the Surrounding Area

Lake Number Ten sits in a sparsely settled part of Kent County, near the unincorporated hamlet of Alto and about 1.7 miles northeast of Bowne Center. The closest real town is Freeport, a village of around 540 people five miles to the southeast in neighboring Barry County. From Grand Rapids the drive takes about twenty-five minutes heading south on M-14 and local roads.↗↗

If you want a lake with a formal ramp and facilities, nearby Campbell Lake (47 acres, about a mile away) has a DNR public access site with a launch and vault toilet, and Erickson Lake sits just 1.3 miles from Lake Number Ten. The Coldwater River and its tributaries offer moving-water fishing within a short drive for anglers wanting a change of pace.↗↗↗

A Quiet Slice of Michigan Lakeland

Lake Number Ten will not dazzle you with panoramic vistas or resort amenities. What it offers instead is the particular charm of a small, unnamed-to-outsiders Michigan lake: a still green mirror ringed by cattails and maples, a handful of bluegill nibbling at the edge, and the undisturbed sound of wind through the timber. For the nearby resident it has been a fishing hole for over 150 years. For a visitor willing to scout access carefully and respect private property, it remains a genuine, uncommercialized bit of the Lower Peninsula's lake country.↗↗