Best Cabin Lakes in Minnesota, Clean + Deep + Great Fishing

Best-for-cabin rankings weight a different bundle: clarity matters, but so does the lake's likelihood to support a good fishery, public access, and the kind of all-season water-quality stability that makes a cabin a meaningful investment. Little Mcdonald Lake (A) leads the Minnesota list.

Cabin rankings also factor in the practical reality of cabin ownership: distance to a population center, shoreline development pressure, and the trajectory of the lake's grade over multiple sample years. A stable B is often a better cabin investment than a volatile A.

Rank	Lake	County	State	Grade	Clarity	Area	Depth
1	Little Mcdonald Lake	Otter Tail	MN	A	26.5 ft	1,316 acres	109 ft
2	Bad Medicine Lake	Becker	MN	A	25 ft	803 acres	84 ft
3	Serpent Lake	Crow Wing	MN	A	25 ft	1,116 acres	65 ft
4	Big Cormorant Lake	Becker	MN	A	24.8 ft	3,657 acres	75 ft
5	Big Sand Lake	Hubbard	MN	A	23 ft	1,639 acres	135 ft
6	Stony Lake	Cass	MN	A	23 ft	563 acres	50 ft
7	Turtle Lake	Becker	MN	A	23 ft	196 acres	73 ft
8	Belle Taine Lake	Hubbard	MN	A	22.8 ft	1,497 acres	56 ft
9	Eagle Lake	Otter Tail	MN	A	22.6 ft	907 acres	46 ft
10	West Sylvia Lake	Wright	MN	A	22 ft	904 acres	97 ft
11	Long Lost Lake	Clearwater	MN	A	22 ft	539 acres	63 ft
12	Big Ole Lake	Itasca	MN	A	21.8 ft	217 acres	65 ft
13	Little Jay Gould Lake	Itasca	MN	A	21.5 ft	150 acres	56 ft
14	Long Lake	Cass	MN	A	21.5 ft	1,007 acres	115 ft
15	Six Lake	Otter Tail	MN	A	21 ft	197 acres	140 ft
16	East Sylvia Lake	Wright	MN	A	21 ft	669 acres	78 ft
17	Moon Lake	Douglas	MN	A	21 ft	139 acres	38 ft
18	Bearskin Lake	Cook	MN	A	21 ft	509 acres	78 ft
19	Swenson Lake	Beltrami	MN	A	20.7 ft	412 acres	76 ft
20	Mayhew Lake	Cook	MN	A	20.6 ft	221 acres	84 ft
21	Long Lake	Clearwater	MN	A	20.5 ft	159 acres	80 ft
22	North Union Lake	Douglas	MN	A	20.3 ft	118 acres	42 ft
23	Little Sand Lake	Hubbard	MN	A	20 ft	410 acres	80 ft
24	Ossawinnamakee Lake	Crow Wing	MN	A	20 ft	711 acres	63 ft
25	Scalp Lake	Otter Tail	MN	A	20 ft	254 acres	90 ft
26	Long Lake	Beltrami	MN	A	20 ft	412 acres	87 ft
27	Sybil Lake	Otter Tail	MN	A	20 ft	683 acres	74 ft
28	Big Fish Lake	Stearns	MN	A	20 ft	557 acres	70 ft
29	Little Carnelian Lake	Washington	MN	A	20 ft	137 acres	68 ft
30	Boot Lake	Becker	MN	A	19.5 ft	385 acres	109 ft
31	Long Lake	Becker	MN	A	19.5 ft	415 acres	61 ft
32	Big Deep Lake	Cass	MN	A	19.4 ft	536 acres	107 ft
33	Big Bass Lake	Hubbard	MN	A	19.4 ft	133 acres	60 ft
34	East Silent Lake	Otter Tail	MN	A	19.2 ft	324 acres	48 ft
35	North Star Lake	Itasca	MN	A	19 ft	832 acres	90 ft
36	Latoka Lake	Douglas	MN	A	19 ft	767 acres	108 ft
37	Ponto Lake	Cass	MN	A	19 ft	388 acres	60 ft
38	Siseebakwet Lake	Itasca	MN	A	19 ft	1,210 acres	105 ft
39	Star Lake	Crow Wing	MN	A	19 ft	127 acres	83 ft
40	Ozawindib Lake	Clearwater	MN	A	19 ft	159 acres	80 ft
41	Bluewater Lake	Itasca	MN	A	18.5 ft	364 acres	120 ft
42	Lower Hay Lake	Crow Wing	MN	A	18.5 ft	700 acres	100 ft
43	Bay Lake	Crow Wing	MN	A	18.5 ft	2,330 acres	74 ft
44	Kimball Lake	Crow Wing	MN	A	18.4 ft	190 acres	77 ft
45	Trout Lake	Cook	MN	A	18.4 ft	259 acres	77 ft
46	Bass Lake	Itasca	MN	A	18.2 ft	122 acres	65 ft
47	Flour Lake	Cook	MN	A	18.2 ft	330 acres	75 ft
48	Carlos Lake	Douglas	MN	A	18 ft	2,605 acres	163 ft
49	Wabana Lake	Itasca	MN	A	18 ft	2,221 acres	115 ft
50	Rush Lake	Crow Wing	MN	A	18 ft	858 acres	105 ft

Ways to pick a Minnesota cabin lake

Grade A water

Little Mcdonald Lake — Otter Tail County
Bad Medicine Lake — Becker County
Serpent Lake — Crow Wing County
Big Cormorant Lake — Becker County

Deepest lakes

Carlos Lake — 163 ft
Six Lake — 140 ft
Big Sand Lake — 135 ft
Bluewater Lake — 120 ft

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New grades can move a lake on or off this list. Unsubscribe anytime.

Combined list →Wisconsin version →All Minnesota lakes →

Cabins & lakeside stays in Minnesota

Compare lakeside cabins, resorts, and vacation rentals across Minnesota — live availability and prices for your lake getaway.

Top-rated places to stay near Minnesota lake country

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Frequently Asked Questions

These lists keep Grade A or B water, 100 to 5,000 acres, at least 20 feet of depth, and documented game fish. That mix is what a weekend cabin trip actually uses — swim water, a fishable basin, and a shoreline that can hold a dock.

Cabins, resorts, and vacation rentals for the ranked lakes are on the map on this page. Pick a lake from the table, then book from the town the map is centered on.

Lakes are ranked by water clarity within grade. Depth and fish-survey coverage currently support Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan lists. Other states appear as lake and region pages until those fields exist.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.