Agnes Lake
St. Louis County, Minnesota29 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Agnes Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- 18 ft max depth
- Limited data
Agnes Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5.2 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 18 ft. Surface area: 28.99 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on June 8, 2024 caught 5.00 northern pike per gill net at Agnes Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 14–26 inches. DNR survey details →
Agnes Lake is a 29-acre lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 18 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. The lake supports 4 documented fish species including black bullhead, bluegill, and northern pike. No public access — the lake is private or restricted.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2023-09-05. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Agnes Lake covers about 29 acres in St. Louis County. If you are planning to stay, you can search lake houses and cabins around Agnes Lake on Vrbo, or look for a hotel room near the lake on Booking.com or Expedia.
What Agnes Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Fishing4 species recorded
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Agnes Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Agnes Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the Minnesota DNR and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Agnes Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Agnes Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Murky, only visible to about 5.2 ft. TSI 53.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 5.2ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading The green pigment in algae — a direct measure of how much algae is in the water. | |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 53 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Agnes Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on June 8, 2024 caught 5.00 northern pike per gill net at Agnes Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 14–26 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Agnes Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 5 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
2 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2024-06-08 (Standard Survey).
2 surveys on file · most recent 2024-06-08 (Standard Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow Perch | 9.50 | 5–11 in 2024-06-08 | 0.24 lb |
| Northern Pike | 5.25 | 14–26 in 2024-06-08 | 1.69 lb |
| Black Bullhead | 2.29 | 4–6 in 2024-06-08 | 0.14 lb |
| Bluegill | 0.67 | 5–8 in 2024-06-08 | 0.33 lb |
CPUE = catch per unit effort, fish caught per net per set in a standardised survey. It measures abundance, not size, and is not a weekly bite report.
Length Distributions
Number of fish caught at each inch class in the most recent survey that recorded lengths. Red dashed line marks an approximate trophy threshold for that species.
Yellow Perch
Northern Pike
Black Bullhead
Bluegill
From the 2024-06-08 survey
Agnes Lake is a shallow 2-acre lake, nestled in a remote area off the Kabetogama Peninsula in Voyageur's National Park (VNP). It is located 18 miles east of Ray, Minnesota and is only accessible by portage. It is known for its challenging hiking trail, rocky cliffs, and a quiet, single camp site. Its dark brown water…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Agnes Lake. 1 report on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — AgnesFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
18 ft
Surface area
29 acres
Shoreline
1.7 mi
Littoral zone
93%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Agnes Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Agnes Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water.
Top-rated places to stay near Agnes Lake
Prices for Oct 9–11, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
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Planning a whole trip? See where to stay at Minnesota’s top lakes →
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Agnes Lake
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2020–2024).
Water clarity
Stable5 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+2.46 µg/L/yr5 years
EPA Impairment Status
Agnes Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Fish consumption.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MN69-0830-00 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in St. Louis County
Frequently asked questions about Agnes Lake
Where is Agnes Lake?
- Agnes Lake is a lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Agnes Lake?
- Agnes Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5.2 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 18 ft. Surface area: 28.99 acres.
Is Agnes Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Agnes Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Agnes Lake?
- Agnes Lake has a maximum depth of 18 feet. The lake covers 28.99 acres.
What fish are in Agnes Lake?
- Fish species found in Agnes Lake include black bullhead, bluegill, northern pike, yellow perch. Agnes Lake is located in St. Louis County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Agnes Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on June 8, 2024 caught 5.00 northern pike per gill net at Agnes Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 14–26 inches. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Agnes Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 5 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Agnes Lake?
- Public access to Agnes Lake is listed as no on the lake record, so confirm before you make the trip. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Minnesota's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
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Where this data comes from
1 measurement from 1 monitoring station, 2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- USGS Minnesota Water Science Center
USGS-MN1 sample · 2023
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder