Bass Lake

Bass Lake earns a D — measurements through 2024 show persistent nutrient pressure that limits clarity through the summer. Clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate similarly, so there is no obvious single lever to pull on watershed management.

A TSI in the eutrophic range signals a lake doing what nutrient-loaded waters do — supporting an active algal community at the cost of clear water. At 58 ft of maximum depth, Bass Lake stratifies reliably through the summer — the hypolimnion stays cooler and clearer than the surface layer suggests. At 57 acres, Bass Lake sits below the Minnesota median: a small water where shoreline activity has an outsized effect on water quality. Within Aitkin County's 53 graded lakes, Bass Lake ranks 37 — below the local median, though not at the bottom.

No invasive species are currently listed at Bass Lake — the lake remains off the Minnesota infested-waters roster. The state fisheries records do not list documented species for Bass Lake, which usually reflects a lack of formal fisheries survey work rather than an empty lake. No formal public access is documented at Bass Lake — most use is by shoreline residents and their guests. Monitoring depth is thin here: the LakeGrade rubric is applied to a small number of sample years, and the grade will be revised as more data accumulates.