Bankson Lake
Encyclopedia
Bankson Lake is a 217 acre (0.87816862 km²) all-sports lake located in Van Buren County
, just south of Lawton
, Michigan
. The lake is unique in that it has rather undeveloped shores and is home to two large camps - the Miracle Camp and Retreat Center and the Girl Scouts. Miracle Camp and Retreat Center has existed on the lake since 1965 and provides summer camps, weekend retreats, winter retreats, and other Christian camping for more than 12,000 people each year.
Bankson Lake has a depth of up to 42 feet (12.8 m) and is well stocked with sport fish, including walleye
and Muskies. There is a good population of native purebred Muskies as well. It has been one of Southwest Michigan's premier source lakes for Female musky eggs, which are then crossed with northern pike
milt to produce hybrid Tiger Muskies.
As with other spring-fed lakes in the area, its depth is water-table dependent. It has had historical lows in the late 1940's that left a sandbar toward the eastern end completely dry. Cottages were built around that time, that later flooded as the lake level rose. There is at least one remaining visible foundation at the northern end of this bar that had 3 feet of water over it as of 2009. The water level has been high enough in the 1950s to permit the use of "float-in" boat houses, a few of which remain around the lake though they are now dry.
Bankson Lake is governed by the Bankson Lake Association
Van Buren County, Michigan
-Parks, preserves, natural areas:* Dunes Parkway, an 84 acre preserve of dunes in Covert Township* Jeptha Lake Fen Preserve, a 49 acre preserve in Columbia Township...
, just south of Lawton
Lawton, Michigan
Lawton is a village in Van Buren County of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 1,859.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land.-Demographics:...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. The lake is unique in that it has rather undeveloped shores and is home to two large camps - the Miracle Camp and Retreat Center and the Girl Scouts. Miracle Camp and Retreat Center has existed on the lake since 1965 and provides summer camps, weekend retreats, winter retreats, and other Christian camping for more than 12,000 people each year.
Bankson Lake has a depth of up to 42 feet (12.8 m) and is well stocked with sport fish, including walleye
Walleye
Walleye is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European pikeperch...
and Muskies. There is a good population of native purebred Muskies as well. It has been one of Southwest Michigan's premier source lakes for Female musky eggs, which are then crossed with northern pike
Northern Pike
The northern pike , is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus Esox...
milt to produce hybrid Tiger Muskies.
As with other spring-fed lakes in the area, its depth is water-table dependent. It has had historical lows in the late 1940's that left a sandbar toward the eastern end completely dry. Cottages were built around that time, that later flooded as the lake level rose. There is at least one remaining visible foundation at the northern end of this bar that had 3 feet of water over it as of 2009. The water level has been high enough in the 1950s to permit the use of "float-in" boat houses, a few of which remain around the lake though they are now dry.
Bankson Lake is governed by the Bankson Lake Association
External Links
- Michigan DNR State of Michigan List of Lakes
- Bankson Lake Association Official website
- Michigan Fish Stock Records Searchable database of fish stocking in Bankson Lake
- Miracle Camp and Retreat Center Official Miracle Camp Website