Alden Lake
St. Louis County, Minnesota190 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Alden Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- 29 ft max depth
- Limited data
Alden Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 29 ft. Surface area: 189.7 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on July 30, 2001 caught 3.50 walleye per gill net at Alden Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 7–23 inches. DNR survey details →
Alden Lake is a 190-acre lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 29 feet (6-foot average). The lake supports 11 documented fish species including black crappie, bluegill, and largemouth bass. No public access — the lake is private or restricted.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-09-22. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Alden Lake covers about 190 acres in St. Louis County. For a place on the water, look through cabin and lake-house rentals near Alden Lake on Vrbo. For a hotel or motel room, Booking.com and Expedia both search around the lake.
What Alden Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Fishing11 species recorded
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Alden Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Alden 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 Alden Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Alden 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 ft. TSI 54.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 5ft | 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. | 54 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Alden Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Water Temperature
Alden Lake typically sits around 63°F at the surface in September. Summer average is about 70°F. Usually warmest in Jul (about 72°F) and coldest in May (about 60°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Column height runs from this lake’s coldest month (60°F) to its warmest (72°F).
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 36 field readings (2022–2025) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Alden Lake water temperature breakdown →
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on July 30, 2001 caught 3.50 walleye per gill net at Alden Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 7–23 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Alden Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is stable. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
3 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2001-07-30 (Standard Survey).
3 surveys on file · most recent 2001-07-30 (Standard Survey)
25 years old| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow Perch | 5.18 | 1–9 in 2001-07-30 | 0.15 lb |
| White Sucker | 4.40 | 9–19 in 2001-07-30 | 2.48 lb |
| Smallmouth Bass | 2.31 | 2–14 in 2001-07-30 | 1.17 lb |
| Walleye | 1.77 | 7–23 in 2001-07-30 | 1.97 lb |
| Bluegill | 1.60 | 1–9 in 2001-07-30 | 0.25 lb |
| Shorthead Redhorse | 1.38 | 14–19 in 2001-07-30 | 1.92 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
White Sucker
Smallmouth Bass
Walleye
From the 2001-07-30 survey
Big Alden is a 180 acre lake with 159 (88%) acres of littoral area and a maximum depth of 29 feet . Big Alden Lake is located 14 miles northeast of Duluth off St. Louis County Highway #44. Big Alden does not have a developed public access along the shoreline but can be accessed by canoe through the Cloquet River. The…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Alden Lake. 2 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — AldenFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Aquatic Plant Report — Alden (0536)Aquatic Plant Report · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
29 ft
Average depth
6 ft
Surface area
190 acres
Shoreline
4.1 mi
Littoral zone
84%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
406 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,391 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Alden Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Alden 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 Alden Lake
Prices for Oct 9–11, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
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Fish Species
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Fishing Alden Lake
Water Quality Trend: Stable
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Stable6 years
EPA Impairment Status
Alden 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 MN69-0131-00 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in St. Louis County
Frequently asked questions about Alden Lake
Where is Alden Lake?
- Alden 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 Alden Lake?
- Alden Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 29 ft. Surface area: 189.7 acres.
Is Alden Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Alden Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
What is the water temperature of Alden Lake?
- Alden Lake typically sits around 63°F at the surface in September, from 36 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2022–2025). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is Alden Lake?
- Alden Lake has a maximum depth of 29 feet and an average depth of 6 feet. The lake covers 189.7 acres.
What fish are in Alden Lake?
- Fish species found in Alden Lake include black crappie, bluegill, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, shorthead redhorse, smallmouth bass, walleye, white sucker, yellow perch. Alden Lake is located in St. Louis County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Alden Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on July 30, 2001 caught 3.50 walleye per gill net at Alden Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 7–23 inches. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Alden Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is stable. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Alden Lake?
- Public access to Alden 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
62 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA62 samples · 2020–2025
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
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 size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder