Pigeon Lake Boat Launch

This ramp has a noticeable grade to it. If you're running a roller trailer, your boat can slide off faster than you expect — get your lines and bow strap sorted before you back down. Not dangerous, just demands a little awareness.

Mid-to-late summer the ramp lanes get coated in algae and river debris. It'll slime up your hull and trailer something fierce, and there's no rinse station on-site. Bring a brush or plan on a washdown at home.

The big draw here is how fast you're on the big lake — it's a short run through the channel instead of a long no-wake crawl. Summer no-wake hours on Pigeon Lake run 7:30 PM to 11:00 AM, so mornings are calm and you've got open water ahead of you quickly.

Pigeon Lake itself is dangerously shallow once you stray from the dredged channel. The channel runs about 22 feet deep, but venture outside it and you'll be trimming your motor halfway up just to creep along. Stick to the marked path until you're in Lake Michigan.

Six lanes sounds generous until a July Saturday rolls around. The design splits three launch and three retrieval spots, but when it's busy people ignore the system and it turns into a free-for-all. Ninety trailer spots usually hold, but prime weekends by mid-morning you'll be circling. Weekday mornings are a completely different — and much better — experience.