Barrett Lake
Grant County, Minnesota530 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Barrett Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- zebra mussel
- 28 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Barrett Lake in Grant County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 28 ft. Surface area: 529.63 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on July 31, 2023 caught 24.50 walleye per gill net at Barrett Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 9–28 inches. DNR survey details →
Barrett Lake is a 530-acre lake in Grant County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 28 feet (9-foot average). Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. The lake supports 23 documented fish species including bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, and black crappie. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-09-13. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Barrett Lake covers about 530 acres in Grant County. It has one public boat landing. If you are planning to stay, you can search lake houses and cabins around Barrett Lake on Vrbo, or look for a hotel room near the lake on Booking.com or Expedia.
What Barrett Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
- Fishing23 species recorded
Swimming conditions
No readingRecreation use not supported
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Barrett Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Barrett 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 Barrett Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Barrett 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 4 ft. TSI 57.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 4ft | 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. | 57 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Barrett Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Water Temperature
Barrett Lake typically sits around 62°F at the surface in September. Summer average is about 71°F. Usually warmest in Jul (about 75°F) and coldest in Sep (about 62°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Column height runs from this lake’s coldest month (62°F) to its warmest (75°F).
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 9 field readings (2011–2017) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Barrett Lake water temperature breakdown →
Blue-Green Algae (Cyanobacteria)
There’s no recent EPA CyAN cyanobacteria estimate for Barrett Lake — clouds, ice, or an off-season gap in coverage. The most recent reading was moderate (82,414 cells/mL) on November 22, 2025.
Blue-green algae can appear and clear within days, so check your state’s current advisory before swimming. EPA CyAN ↗
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on July 31, 2023 caught 24.50 walleye per gill net at Barrett Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 9–28 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Barrett Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
12 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2023-07-31 (Standard Survey).
12 surveys on file · most recent 2023-07-31 (Standard Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow Perch | 24.26 | 5–8 in 2023-07-31 | 0.13 lb |
| Black Bullhead | 14.08 | 10–11 in 2023-07-31 | 0.59 lb |
| Green Sunfish | 12.78 | ||
| Walleye | 8.70 | 9–28 in 2023-07-31 | 1.7 lb |
| Spottail Shiner | 6.30 |
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
Black Bullhead
Walleye
From the 2023-07-31 survey
Barrett Lake is a 530-acre impoundment of the Pomme de Terre River. The earliest available records of dam construction date back to 1936. The City of Barrett developed along the west and south shorelines. Maximum depth of the lake is 28.0 feet. Average depth is estimated at 8.5 feet. Water quality measurements…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Barrett Lake. 3 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — BarrettFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Fish Stocking History — BarrettFish Stocking History · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Public Water Access Sites — BarrettPublic Water Access Sites · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
28 ft
Average depth
8.5 ft
Surface area
530 acres
Shoreline
6.1 mi
Littoral zone
80%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
Yes
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
291 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,135 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
Recreation & Access
- Barrett LakePublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Barrett Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Barrett Lake in Grant 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 Barrett 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 Barrett Lake
Invasive & Introduced Species
Red chips are ecologically harmful invasive species. Gray chips are stocked or introduced fish that aren't a current ecological concern.
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Improving6 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Barrett Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Barrett Lake (completed 1937), built primarily for recreation on the Pomme de Terre River; gravity-type dam, 12 ft tall and 56 ft long.
- Surface area
- 532 ac
- Normal storage
- 4,048 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 5,064 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 332 sq mi
- Hazard class
- Significant
- Owner
- City of Barrett
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID MN00028 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Barrett 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, Recreation.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MN26-0095-00 · Official waterbody report
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
1 EPA-permitted facility operate within about 5 miles of Barrett Lake under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits. 1 facility has a reported Clean Water Act violation in the past three years.
- Barrett WwtpBarrett · 1.4 mi away · NPDES MN0022713Recent violation
Facilities permitted to discharge under the Clean Water Act within ~5 miles; proximity does not by itself mean a facility affects this lake. Source: EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES), as of 2026-07.
Nearby Lakes in Grant County
Frequently asked questions about Barrett Lake
Where is Barrett Lake?
- Barrett Lake is a lake in Grant County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Barrett Lake?
- Barrett Lake in Grant County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 28 ft. Surface area: 529.63 acres.
Is Barrett Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Barrett Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.
What is the water temperature of Barrett Lake?
- Barrett Lake typically sits around 62°F at the surface in September, from 9 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2011–2017). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is Barrett Lake?
- Barrett Lake has a maximum depth of 28 feet and an average depth of 8.5 feet. The lake covers 529.63 acres.
What fish are in Barrett Lake?
- Fish species found in Barrett Lake include bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, common carp, freshwater drum, green sunfish, hybrid crappie, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, longnose gar, northern pike, orangespotted sunfish, pumpkinseed, rock bass, shorthead redhorse, walleye, white crappie, white sucker, yellow bullhead, yellow perch. Barrett Lake is located in Grant County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Barrett Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on July 31, 2023 caught 24.50 walleye per gill net at Barrett Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 9–28 inches. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Barrett Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Does Barrett Lake have blue-green algae?
- There is no recent EPA CyAN cyanobacteria estimate for Barrett Lake (clouds, ice, or an off-season gap). The most recent reading was moderate (82,414 cells/mL). Blue-green algae can appear and clear within days, so check Minnesota's current advisory before swimming.
Are there boat ramps on Barrett Lake?
- Barrett Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Barrett Lake. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Barrett Lake?
- Barrett Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. 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.
Explore Barrett Lake across LakeQuality
Depth, room, public access, and the state wake-sport rules
Fish species and the cleanest lakes across Minnesota
Fish species and best lakes in Grant County
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
Where to stay at Minnesota's top lakes, each with its readings
Minnesota's cleanest lakes, ranked on agency measurements
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State Parks Near Barrett Lake
Other Lakes in Minnesota
Eutrophic Lakes in Minnesota
Where this data comes from
108 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
MNPCA108 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
Regulated discharger data from EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES)
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory