Local guide · MarquetteSpearfishing in Marquette: spots, seasons and rules
Updated 2026-09-04 · By Oleksandr, spearfisher
Marquette Underwater Preserve comes in two units — 38 km of Marquette shoreline out to 60 m depth, and the granite Huron Islands with the clearest water on this coast. The Kershaw and the D. Leuty are buoyed in season by the town dive shop, and there is a NOAA water-level station right in the harbour. Under the 2026 rules this is inside the Lake Superior underwater-spear water: the game fish are open, minus Stannard Rock, Big Reef, Isle Royale and Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Freedive only, daylight only, and a free underwater spearfishing licence on top of the fishing licence, with no monthly reporting since the 2026 season.
TL;DR
- Marquette Underwater Preserve comes in two units — 38 km of Marquette shoreline out to 60 m depth, and the granite Huron Islands with the clearest water on this coast.
- The 2026 regulations opened Michigan's Lake Superior water — the MI/WI border east to the St. Marys River — so lake trout, northern pike and walleye are open here, with Stannard Rock, Big Reef and the 4.5-mile ring round Isle Royale cut out of it.
- Two licences: the All Species fishing licence plus a free but mandatory underwater spearfishing licence with no monthly reporting since the 2026 season. Freedive only, daylight only, spear fired submerged on a line of 20 ft or less.
- Marks worth the trip: Presque Isle Point, Charles J. Kershaw, D. Leuty, with depths from a snorkel to 4–46 m. Bays and harbours freeze from January to March.
Where are the dive and hunting spots near Marquette?
Depths below are the published site depths, not a promise about conditions. Outside the buoyed preserve sites you find the mark yourself.
| Spot | Type | Depth | Level | Access | Notes |
|---|
| Presque Isle Point | Rock shelf, shore dive | 2–12 m | Beginner to intermediate | Shore, park at the point | The preserve's best shore dive: granite and sandstone shelves off Presque Isle Park dropping to about 12 m, with old docks and cribs to work along. Visibility is often over 10 m in late summer. |
| Charles J. Kershaw | Wreck | 8 m | Beginner to intermediate | Boat, buoyed in season | Wooden steamer lost in an 1895 gale, broken and scattered over rock south of the harbour. The big boiler is the landmark; cold, clear water, and best from July to September. |
| D. Leuty | Wreck | 12 m | Intermediate | Boat, ramp 400 m away | Lumber steamer wrecked in 1911 about 250 m off Lighthouse Point. Three hull sections and the big rudder remain, with tools and piping shallower. Buoyed in season. |
| "Gold Mine" Pinnacle | Rock pinnacle | 4–46 m | Advanced | Boat, off Presque Isle | A rock pinnacle just off Presque Isle that rises from beyond recreational limits to about 4 m of the surface. Depth swings from 4 to 45 m in a few metres of horizontal travel; whitefish and cisco hold on the wall. |
Is spearfishing allowed in Marquette?
Yes, within limits. Michigan's 2026 underwater-spear waters are named lake by lake: Lake Michigan from the MI/IN border to the 45th parallel, a 2-mile strip in Green Bay to the Ford River mouth, a 5-mile strip from Point Detour to the Brevort River, Lake Huron from the Thunder Bay River pier at Alpena south to Fort Gratiot Light, Lake Erie to the Celeron Island line, and Lake Superior to the St. Marys River — with Grand Traverse Bay, Stannard Rock, Big Reef and the 4.5-mile ring round Isle Royale cut out of them. The 2026 regulations opened Michigan's Lake Superior water — the MI/WI border east to the St. Marys River — so lake trout, northern pike and walleye are open here, with Stannard Rock, Big Reef and the 4.5-mile ring round Isle Royale cut out of it. What stays open is the year-round list, which runs in all Michigan waters except designated trout lakes and streams and the Michigan-Wisconsin boundary waters. The instrument is the Bow & Spear Fishing Regulations table of the Michigan Fishing Guide, a Fisheries Order under NREPA Part 487.
Which fish can you spear at Marquette?
The year-round Michigan list is the backbone: bowfin, bullheads, burbot, common carp, catfish, cisco, freshwater drum, gizzard shad, goldfish, grass carp, longnose gar, rainbow smelt, suckers and lake whitefish. On these lakes whitefish, cisco and burbot are real targets on it, not a consolation prize. Lake sturgeon is off the table: spearing it is prohibited except in a special Black Lake winter season, and on every water here it is closed or release-only. Michigan's table is an enumerating one: trout and salmon other than lake trout, bass, sunfishes and crappie are not named, so they are not open.
What licence and gear does Michigan require?
Two licences, not one. You need the Michigan All Species fishing licence — 26 USD resident, 76 USD non-resident, 10 USD a day, from age 17 — plus a free annual underwater spearfishing licence, which is mandatory — though its monthly effort-and-harvest report was abolished for the 2026 season. The gear rules are just as concrete. A rubber- or spring-propelled spear may be fired only while you are fully submerged, and it must be tethered to a line no longer than 20 ft. Scuba and rebreathers are prohibited while underwater spearfishing, so this is a freedive discipline. Daylight only, bands unloaded whenever you move between areas, and 150 ft off swimming areas, docks, boat access sites and power intakes — which effectively closes harbour mouths.
What do the preserve and sanctuary rules mean for you?
Marquette Underwater Preserve is a bottomland preserve created under NREPA Part 761 (MCL 324.76101 et seq.). What it protects is abandoned property and artifacts on Great Lakes bottomlands — no fishing or spearing prohibition was located in it. The practical rule is the one every local charter states anyway: take nothing off a wreck, and dive the buoys where they exist.
When is the season and what is the water like at Marquette?
Bays and harbours freeze from January to March. The dive season runs from late May to October and peaks in August and September; the surface rarely passes 13-15 °C and below 15 m the water sits at 4-7 °C all year round. Plan for a thick suit with hood, gloves and boots, or a drysuit: the thermocline shapes every dive here, and what feels workable at the surface is a different lake ten metres down. There is no tide on the Great Lakes — the level moves with wind and pressure.
What are the safety risks at Marquette?
Cold is the first risk and it is not seasonal: below the thermocline the water stays a few degrees above freezing all summer, and the freedive-only rule leaves you no gas reserve to buy time with. The second is exposure. Most of these sites sit in open lake with no shelter and, outside the buoyed preserves, no mooring at all, so weather windows are short and a shot line is your own responsibility. Finally, ice: the water freezes for months, and frazil and shore ice make the shoulder seasons a different sport.
FAQ
Can you spear walleye or pike at Marquette?
Yes. Under the 2026 rules this is inside the Lake Superior underwater-spear water: the game fish are open, minus Stannard Rock, Big Reef, Isle Royale and Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. The year-round list stays open on top of them.
Can you use scuba for spearfishing in Michigan?
No. Scuba, rebreathers and similar devices are prohibited while underwater spearfishing: Michigan is freedive-only.
What licence do you need?
The Michigan All Species fishing licence plus a free annual underwater spearfishing licence, whose mandatory monthly effort-and-harvest report was abolished for the 2026 season.
Can you spear at night?
No. It is prohibited from 30 minutes after sunset to 30 minutes before sunrise, and you must stay 150 ft off swimming areas, docks, ramps and power intakes.
Are the wrecks buoyed?
It depends. Where charters or the preserve organisation buoy sites, they do it for the season only; elsewhere there is no mooring and you bring your own shot line.
When is the best time to dive Marquette?
Bays and harbours freeze from January to March.
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