Ballard Lake (Vilas County)

Waterbody ID (WBIC): 2340700 — permanent page /lakes/2340700/.

Ballard Lake is in Vilas County; records show 503 acres and 1 DNR access-site record.

Size

503 acres

Lake type

DRAINAGE

Max depth

25 ft

• 1 documented public access site record (DNR access inventory)
• Fish stocking documented through 2023 (DNR stocking records)
• Summer Secchi clarity median 14 ft (field measurements)
• Official DNR depth map available (PDF)

Back to results Show on map Choose access / Directions Depth map (PDF) Check current DNR regulations

Plan your visit

• Lake directory: public landing — Yes
• Lake directory: public beach — No
• Lake directory: public park — Yes
• DNR public-access inventory: 1 documented access site record
• DNR public-access inventory: documented developed boat ramp
• 1 site qualify for per-site Directions through the reviewed lake association (load the site details below)

Each statement is bounded to its named source; absence of a record is never evidence of no access. The DNR access database may lag reality; posted signs at the landing are authoritative.

Verify at the DNR public boat access program page.

Fishing

No fish species/abundance table is published for this lake. Missing records mean unpublished, never zero fish.

Stocking records: 33 documented events through 2023, 1,672,563 fish total. Species: Muskellunge And Hybrids (Frequent), Walleye (Historic), Largemouth Bass (Historic), Bluegill (Historic). Events in 2015 or later count as recent.

Fisheries survey population estimates are published for this lake; survey estimates are historical point-in-time studies and are never compared or ranked here.

• Musky reproductive status (DNR mapped): Natural reproduction plus stocking (Cat. 2)

Fishing limits — 2026-2027 season: 19 normalized rows across 19 species entries. Normalized from the DNR ruleset retrieved 2026-08-04. Source text remains authoritative.

2026-2027 retained fishing rules: 19 published rows for 19 species; effective through 2027-03-07. Check current DNR rules.

Water and setting

• Field-measured summer Secchi clarity: median 14 ft from 36 samples, latest sample 2025-08-18
• Satellite clarity estimate: 11.49 ft (2017) — a remote-sensing estimate, kept separate from field measurements
• Lake directory clarity class: Moderate

Official DNR depth map (PDF) — Historical lake map; not for navigation. Link checked 2026-07-16.

Not published in the lake directory: official mean depth.

• AIS record: Banded mystery snail — Verified, latest documented 2010-06-17

Occurrence records come from a non-exhaustive DNR inventory; a record documents presence at observation time and a missing record is never evidence of absence.

• Public-land proximity (GIS proxy, not access evidence): mapped public land within 1,000 ft; nearest: Northern Highland State Forest (Wisconsin DNR); ≈56.9% of shoreline buffer
• Shoreline development (landcover proxy, 2025 source): ≈5.4% developed land within 300 m, ≈0.7% impervious
• Road proximity (TIGER proxy, 2025 source): nearest local road or city street ≈15 m; ≈2 km of road per km² within 1 km

• Priority Navigable Waterway — basis: musky area

Designations are legally defined DNR records shown as their sources state them; no composite rating is implied.

Data & sources

Published data families

• Fish stocking history
• Fishing regulations (normalized snapshot)
• Directory access facts (landing, beach, park)
• Public access site inventory
• Satellite water clarity estimate
• Field-measured Secchi clarity
• Fisheries survey population estimates
• Aquatic invasive species occurrences

Original records: Wisconsin DNR lake page.

Missing values are unpublished, never zero; each fact above is bounded to its named source and date. Full sourcing detail: Data & methods.