Belleau Lake – Cook County, IL

Belleau Lake Facts

Size: 12 acres
Max Depth: 34 feet
Fish: Largemouth bass, bluegill, carp, trout
Location: Belleau Lake Forest Preserve on Busse Hwy adjacent to Park Ridge, IL and Des Plaines, IL
Hours: Sunrise to Sunset

Jay’s General Comments

Belleau Lake, contructed in 1958, is primarily known as one of the “inland trout” lakes for the State of Illinois’ Inland Trout Program. Every April and October the lake is stocked with 1000-1500 rainbow trout that rance in size from 1/2 lb. to sometimes 2lbs. The lake closes for 5 days during the stocking to allow the fish to acclimate. The days of the “trout opener” and following finds the lake very crowded, especially opening day when it can litteraly be elbow to elbow with fishermen. The inland trout program is designed so that anglers can keep the fish with a daily creel limit of 5 fish. The trout usually last for about 2 weeks, with the majority taken in the first few days. A valid Illinois fishing license with a trout stamp are required and will be checked during the trout seasons.

Belleau Lake has fairly clear water that almost always seems to have a light-blue tint. The lake gets very deep quickly and has little in the way of any workable structure or weeds. The entire shoreline is accessible to the shore fisherman. There are some shoreline weeds and cat-tails, but that’s about it. The north tip of the lake gets shallow and often huge carp can be seen in this area.

No boats are allowed on Belleau Lake.