Lake Doster
Living
Recreation • History • Schools • Associations
The Lake Doster community was designed to appeal to active residents. The neighborhood includes a 129 acre lake, with private boat launch and beach, tennis courts, miles of public and private roads perfect for jogging, biking or walking, and a championship golf course with a great clubhouse, banquet center and bar/restuarant.
Recreation
Golf
The Lake Doster Golf Club is located within the Lake Doster development, just 5 miles east of downtown Plainwell. It's convenient to Grand Rapids, Battle Creek, South Haven and all of southwest Michigan. This championship golf course is rated as one of the top 25 public courses in the state. You will play great holes such as "Bogey Gulch," "Old Grandad," and it's signature hole, "The Little Monster"--a 110-yard par 3 with an elevated tee that overlooks a treacherous green below that's surrounded by water and sand traps!
The course has a yardage of 6,117, a rating of 69.8 and the slope is 128, all from the middle tees. Lake Doster Golf Club is truly a player's golf course. I have included a link to the Golf Club's website on this page.
The Club has banquet facilities, a full service restaurant, bar and lounge. It offers dining accomodations for up to 250 people, flexible menu, full food and beverage service. The Club is taking reservations for your wedding reception, rehearsal dinner, retirement party or golf outing. The staff will work with you to set up the right menu and make sure all the details are done right.
While the club is public, it does have a large membership and both a men's and women's association and league. Many Lake Doster residents are members of the club, and many of them tool from home to the course and back on their personal golf carts!
Make a point to stop in to Lake Doster Golf Club this season and enjoy all the amenities their facilities have to offer. Whether it is accomodations for a special event, a round or two of golf or a pleasant dining experience, the Lake Doster Golf Club is a gem within the Lake Doster community.
Fishing
Lake Doster is spring-fed lake with depths up to 20 feet. The water is clean and clear and supports a very healthy fishery. Fishing pressure is very light compared to similarly sized public lakes in the area. The lake has not been stocked with fish in decades.
Lake Doster is known throughout the region for it's terrific pan fishing. Giant blue gills are most often associated with the lake. Whether it is during the Spring, Summer or through the ice, it is not unusual to catch blue gills in excess of 10 inches. While not as numerous, the lake also holds slab-sized white crappies. These fish are often 12 to 13 inches. The lake also supports a population of yellow perch.
Largemouth bass and northern pike are the dominant predators in Lake Doster. Bass can be caught in both deep water and all along the shorelines. Small to medium-sized largemouths, up to 15 inches are numerous, relatively easy to catch, and perfect for kids. Of course, they come much larger, up to 7 pounds, and are a great trophy fish. There is one resident at Lake Doster that has two 8 pound bass mounted on their family room wall, and they were caught on the same day!
Northern Pike are also very numerous at Lake Doster. It is not at all unusual to catch them (or have them bite off your line!) while bass fishing. There are very big pike in the lake (I have personally caught and released a 16 pound, 39 inch pike), and many large northerns are caught through the ice. Smaller pike 18-24" are much more common, however. No matter what you are fishing for, it is always a good idea to have a pair of needle-nosed pliers on the boat in case someone catches one of these toothy fish.
Water Skiing
The main body of water at Lake Doster is shaped like an elongated kidney. From the far southwest corner to the northeast side of the lake, it is nearly a mile in length. This extended run makes Lake Doster a great water skiing and tubing lake. Amongst the residents there are many water skiing enthusiasts and each summer they erect a slalom course out of buoys. Power boating of any kind is allowed between the hours of 8:30AM and 8:30PM. The speed limit on the lake is 35 MPH.
In addition, the water skiiers and tubers find Lake Doster ideal because it is simply not a busy lake. The lake is generally clear of power boaters throughout the work week and, surprisingly, in the mornings and evenings on the best weekends of the summer. Jet skis, wave runners and all other 'personal watercraft' are not allowed on Lake Doster. This also creates a safer environment for skiiers and tubers.
Pontooning
The pontoon boat is the workhorse on Lake Doster! Just about everyone has one and they are used as fishing boats, tubing boats, swimming platforms, floating diners and party barges! It is therapeutic to take a loop around the lake as the sun is setting on a beautiful summer evening.
Tennis
Many years ago, the original developers of the Lake Doster community gifted to the Lake Doster Homeowners Association (LDHA) a prime piece of land. It came with the caveat that the LDHA build a tennis court for their residents on that spot. Today these courts are right across the street from the Lake Doster Golf Club and are home to the Lake Doster Tennis Association.
All residents are welcome to join the Tennis Association. Due to on-going maintenance costs for the courts, and property taxes, there is a separate fee to join.