Boat launches · Lake Michigan · Michigan

Boat Launches Near Leland

11 public launches within 20 miles of downtown Leland, Michigan, 11 of them trailer ramps. The nearest is Leland Township Marina, 0.1 miles NW.

Within 20 mi

Trailer ramps

Closest

0.1 mi

Closest first

Public launches around Leland

Straight-line distance and direction from downtown, not a driving or boating route. Every figure is what the agency publishes; a blank means the agency is silent.

0.1 mi NW
Leland Township Marina
Trailer rampDirections
6.3 mi SE
Suttons Bay Marina
Trailer rampDirections
10 mi SE
West Arm
Trailer ramp · 2 lanes, 33 trailer spacesDirections
10 mi NE
Northport Marina
Trailer rampDirections
15 mi SE
Bowers Harbor
Trailer ramp · 2 lanes, 39 trailer spacesDirections
17 mi S
Elmwood Township Marina
Trailer rampDirections
18 mi SE
East Arm
Trailer ramp · 2 lanes, 32 trailer spacesDirections
19 mi SE
Elk Rapids Dock
Trailer rampDirections
19 mi S
Clinch Memorial
Trailer rampDirections
19 mi S
Boardman RiverBoardman River
Trailer ramp · 1 lane, 5 trailer spacesDirections
20 mi SE
Sayler Park
Trailer ramp · 1 laneDirections

Once you're off the trailer

What to fish out of Leland

Our Lake Michigan fishing guides name water reached from these launches for 3 species:

Northern Pike · May and June, September through November, and January through February on Green Bay iceNorthern Pike Fishing on Lake MichiganGrand Traverse Bay's east arm and Elk Rapids: Weed flats in the shallow bays and the connected Elk Rapids chain. Clear water, so natural-colored baits and longer casts.Smallmouth Bass · Mid-June through early October, with September the peak for sizeSmallmouth Bass Fishing on Lake MichiganGrand Traverse Bay, east and west arms: Deep, gin-clear water with rock and gravel shelves off Old Mission Peninsula and Elk Rapids. Fish shallow in June and drop to 30-plus feet by August.Lake Whitefish · December through March through the ice; October through April from a boat in Grand Traverse BayLake Whitefish Fishing on Lake MichiganGrand Traverse Bay — East and West Arms: Deep, protected and holding whitefish nearly year-round. The West Arm exceeds 600 feet, but the fish use the 60 to 120 foot flats and the drop-offs off Elk Rapids and the Old Mission Peninsula.

Brown Trout on Michigan Chinook Salmon on Michigan Coho Salmon on Michigan Lake Trout on Michigan Muskellunge on Michigan Steelhead on Michigan Walleye on Michigan Yellow Perch on Michigan

Before you launch

Lake Michigan is big water

The pier-head channel is the dangerous part of the trip. An onshore wind stacks waves where the channel meets the lake, and the run home can be far worse than the run out. Check the wind direction against the harbor mouth before you leave the ramp.

Longshore currents and structural rip currents at the piers. Lake Michigan produces more drowning fatalities than any other Great Lake, and most of them happen to swimmers near breakwalls and piers, not to anglers offshore.
Sudden north-to-northwest wind shifts. The lake runs 300 miles north to south, so a northerly builds enormous fetch and turns a flat morning into a five-foot afternoon on the south end.
Seiche events. Wind and pressure can push water to one end of the basin and let it slosh back, producing fast, unexpected water-level swings — one on the Chicago shoreline in 1954 killed several people on a pier.

Read how to read a Great Lakes marine forecast and trailering and launching on big water. Pack the big-water safety kit.

Camp or picnic

State parks

Leelanau State Park14 mi

For the crew ashore

Beaches

Landmarks from the water

Lighthouses

Questions

Where is the closest public boat launch to Leland?

Leland Township Marina, about 0.1 miles NW of downtown in a straight line.

How many public boat launches are near Leland?

State agency data lists 11 public launches within 20 miles: 11 trailer ramps and 0 unimproved or carry-in sites, on Lake Michigan and the bays and rivers that run into it.

What is the biggest boat ramp near Leland?

By the lane and trailer-parking counts the agencies publish, Bowers Harbor (2 lanes, 39 trailer spaces). Not every agency publishes those counts, so 6 of the 11 sites here could not be ranked.

Do boat launches near Leland charge a fee?

None of these 11 sites publishes fee information, which does not mean they are free; city and park launches often sell a daily or season pass. Confirm with the manager before you tow.

Who sets the fishing rules on Lake Michigan near Leland?

Michigan DNR. Seasons, limits and license rules change, so read the current regulations before you go.

Up and down the shore

Launches near other Michigan towns

Traverse City, MI · 19 mi Petoskey, MI · 46 mi Manistee, MI · 61 mi Washington Island, WI · 62 mi Sister Bay, WI · 67 mi Manistique, MI · 69 mi

Source

Launch facts are from Michigan DNR, State Sponsored Developed Boating Access Sites, retrieved 2026-10-27. Ramps close for repairs, fees change and water levels move; confirm with the manager before you tow. Fishing rules are set by Michigan DNR.

Downtown positions are approximate. Chart shoreline generalized from Natural Earth (public domain); not for navigation. Something wrong or missing? Write to contact@greatamericanlakes.com.

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