Brook Trout Lakes in Minnesota, 16 Lakes

Brook Trout is a cold-water species, so the lakes where it is documented tend to be the deep, well-oxygenated basins that stay cold through the summer. 26 lakes carry a record. Brook Trout is narrowly distributed — only 16 lakes in Minnesota and 10 in Michigan have a documented record. The constraint is usually habitat: cold water, specific depth profile, or river connection.

Trout presence is itself a water-quality signal: a Minnesota lake that supports a Brook Trout population is almost certainly running cold enough and oxygenated enough to also support healthier overall water quality. Trout-supporting lakes almost always carry low nutrient and algae readings, because the cold, deep, well-oxygenated conditions trout need produce clear, low-phosphorus water almost as a side effect.

Minnesota Lakes

Counties

Brook Trout Lakes Map

Every Minnesota lake with documented brook trout.

Loading map…

Best Brook Trout Lakes in Minnesota

Rank	Lake	County	Clarity	Depth
1	Pike Lake	Cook	17.4 ft	45 ft
2	Trout Lake	Cook	18.4 ft	77 ft
3	Poplar Lake	Cook	10.2 ft	30 ft
4	Kabekona Lake	Hubbard	12.1 ft	133 ft
5	Greenwood Lake	Cook	15.1 ft	112 ft
6	Lasalle Lake	Hubbard	6.9 ft	213 ft
7	Dragon Lake	Lake	7.5 ft	15 ft
8	Cramer Lake	Lake	-	4 ft
9	Upper Estuary Lake	St. Louis	1.9 ft	55 ft
10	Lizz Lake	Cook	9 ft	30 ft
11	Found Lake	Lake	10.8 ft	38 ft
12	Skull Lake	Lake	11 ft	38 ft
13	Neglige Lake	Lake	11.3 ft	58 ft
14	Gogebic Lake	Cook	13.8 ft	61 ft
15	Rog Lake	Cook	19.6 ft	40 ft
16	South Lake	Cook	26 ft	140 ft

Frequently Asked Questions

How many Minnesota lakes have brook trout?

Brook Trout are found in 16 lakes in Minnesota.

What are the best brook trout lakes in Minnesota?

The best brook trout lakes in Minnesota by water quality are Pike Lake, Trout Lake, Poplar Lake, Kabekona Lake, Greenwood Lake.

Fish species from state agency survey, stocking, and public fishing-access records; water-quality readings from the EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys.