I was just up there in July and can comment on a few of those listed.
Portage lake: Good anchorage, excellent
depth, but do not go to the east end of the lake, it gets, and stays shallow for quite a while. We anchored just inside the lake along the Northwest shoreline. We anchored right off of Portage Point Inn, an old resort that is coming back to life. We called the manager and he let us row up and tie off our
dinghy at their docks. It is a rather all inclusive resort, onsite ice cream shop, and a restaurant that was slated to open soon(licensing)..we were there right after the 4 of July. Depths around 20-30 near shore, it gets really deep...
South Manitou island has a fantastic bay on the Southeast side, with good anchorage very close to shore in a few spots, also gets VERY deep, and fast.
Pentwater was really nice, no designated anchorage, if I
recall, but plenty of boats moored, downtown is right there inside the bay. Pentwater Municipal
Marine is right downtown, call them for a dinghy
dock access. We didn't go ashore, but have walked downtown when driving, very nice.
Charlevoix has a special anchorage on the NE corner of the lake, which is located right off of downtown, lots of shops and dining. I believe there is a yacht club adjacent to downtown, I do not
recall the name exactly, but we rowed in and they let us tie off and walk around. Going from memory, so I hope I got this one right.
Manistee didn't have an anchorage, but a good Municipal marina, right along the boardwalk downtown, not many places to eat downtown, we walked a bit and there are some shops. Basically it is a river with a boardwalk.
The others: consult the
charts, I hope this helps....