In October, 1968, 35 property owners on Island Lake formed the Island Lake Property Owners Association (ILPOA). This organization has continued to play a major role in the improvement of the environment in and around Island Lake since its inception.

Island Lake is spring fed and encompasses approximately 65 acres. The lake is situated on the northern Ogemaw and southern Oscoda county lines. The principle feature of the lake is Silver Island, named for Dorothy Silver, a former lake resident. She was instrumental in the purchasing of the island. The island was purchased in 1971 by the association for $10,000 with the intention of preserving its natural ecology.

The first cottages were built on the lake in the 1930's, and from that time gasoline motors have been prohibited from the lake in order to avoid noise and water pollution.

The water quality of our lake is very good. The water is tested every year by a member of our association, Mike Mouradian, who is a chemistry/biology teacher. Water samples are taken at various sites, and are tested for fecal coliforms. The accepted level for human recreation is 200 parts of fecal coliform per 100 milliliters of water. In tests over the past 38 years, Island Lake has shown less than 10 parts per 100 milliliters on virtually every test site, making it one of the cleanest lakes in Michigan.

Although the bottom of the lake is obscured by silt over much of the lake, we can approximate the depth at 5 to 30 feet. The deepest point is in an area north-northwest of the island and west of the public beach.

Fishing in Island Lake is average to good throughout the year. Large mouth bass, perch and bluegill are the most common fish caught. Several pike have been caught in recent years and we would like to see them all removed. Snapping turtles are also found, and some are known to be quite large.

Some of the many projects the association as undertaken on Island Lake are:

Purchasing the island
Planting fish
Testing the water quality
Getting a street light at M-33 and Dyer Road
Getting Dyer Road paved
Erecting signs on Silver Island
Addressing dog control issues
Building docks on easements
Improving easements
Building fish shelters
Lobbying for gypsy moth spray
Purchasing aeration systems
Overseeing lake clean-up for fishing line and plastics
Identifying local birds
Erecting bulletin boards

Trumpeter swans have become a source of pride for the residents of Island Lake. Since 1994 trumpeter swans have made Island Lake their home. Except for 2009, a pair of swans have nested each year on Silver Island and raised anywhere from 3 to 6 signets. This means that over 10% of the trumpeter swans in Michigan have been born and raised on our lake. We expect our present swans to mature and hopefully match their predecessor's reproduction level.

In the fall of 2007, a group of boy scouts from West Branch spent an entire day removing fishing line from around the island and along the shores in heavily fished areas. The line had been left by fishermen, and was becoming a threat to the young swans that were getting it wrapped around their bills and necks. Mike Connelly, one of the scouts, was working for his Eagle Award, and accepted this project as his community service project. As a result of their efforts, they removed several trash bags of fishing line, many pounds of plastic, metal and rubber trash.

A report on Island Lake would not be complete without mentioning our Annual Boat Parade, held each year near July 4. It is the brain child of Island Lake resident, Clare Hulett. She held the first parade in 1994. Each year it continues to entertain the participants and the viewers alike. It is a source of pride and reinforces our small lake's sense of community.