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LakeQuality

Beaver Lake

Logan County, North Dakota953 acresView mapDirections

C
Fair

Nutrients and algae sit mid-range for this region.

Water temp
No reading
No gauge
Clarity
1.4 ft
Secchi · sampled 2024
Max depth
~26 ft est.
GLOBathy model
Level
No reading
No gauge
Trend
No reading
Not enough history
  • Eutrophic
  • Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
  • #1 of 1 in the county
  • 26 ft max depth
  • Public access
  • Limited data

Beaver Lake in Logan County, North Dakota has a water quality grade of C (Fair). Water clarity: 1.4 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 112.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 4.8 µg/L. Surface area: 953.1 acres.

Clarity
1.4 ft
Max depth
~26 ft est.
Area
953 acres
Type
Eutrophic
Phosphorus
112.5 µg/L
Chlorophyll-a
4.8 µg/L
Public access
Yes
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Beaver Lake is a 953-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Logan County, North Dakota with an estimated average depth of about 26 feet. Water quality is graded C based on 1 sampling years through 2024. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.

Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, NDDEQ, last sampled 2024-10-01. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.

What Beaver Lake is good for

From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.

  • Boat launch1 documented ramp

Swimming Safety

Grade only

Limited data

Based on clarity and algae grades from past sampling — we do not hold live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.

The C is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Beaver Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO), sediment / turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.

Compare the safest swimming lakes near Bismarck

Get alerts for Beaver Lake

Water Quality Grade: C (Fair)

Very murky, less than 1.4 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 112.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 4.8 µg/L. TSI 63. The letter is not a swimming clearance.

MetricValueGrade
Water Clarity (Secchi Depth)1.4 ftNot graded
Phosphorus112.5 µg/LNot graded
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)4.8 µg/LNot graded
Trophic State Index (TSI)63Eutrophic

High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity

Lake Details

CharacteristicValue
Maximum Depth~26 ft est.
Average Depth~17 ft est.
Surface Area953 acres
Public AccessYes

Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. North Dakota has not published bathymetry for Beaver Lake.

Lake Size & Watershed

Watershed (drainage) area
219 sq mi
Shoreline
7 mi
Elevation
1,952 ft

Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.

Recreation & Access

1
Boat Landings
Yes
Public Access
  • Beaver LakePublic

Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps

Fishing Beaver Lake

Reservoir Info (USACE NID)

Beaver Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Beaver Lake Dam (completed 1934), built primarily for recreation on the Beaver Creek; earth-type dam, 10 ft tall and 562 ft long.

Surface area
953.1 ac
Normal storage
5,319 ac-ft
Max storage
5,319 ac-ft
Drainage area
179 sq mi
Hazard class
Low
Owner
Logan County WRB

Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID ND00368 · Operator website

EPA Impairment Status

Beaver Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).

Causes of impairment

Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)Oxygen depletion (low DO)Sediment / turbidity

Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit ND-10130104-001-L_00 · Official waterbody report

County Ranking

Ranked #1 of 1 lakes in Logan County

Nearby Lakes in Logan County

Frequently asked questions about Beaver Lake

Where is Beaver Lake?

Beaver Lake is a lake in Logan County, North Dakota. LakeQuality grades it C for nutrients and algae. The letter is not a swimming clearance.

What is the water quality grade for Beaver Lake?

Beaver Lake in Logan County, North Dakota has a water quality grade of C (Fair). Water clarity: 1.4 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 112.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 4.8 µg/L. Surface area: 953.1 acres.

Is Beaver Lake safe to swim in?

The C is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Beaver Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO), sediment / turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.

How deep is Beaver Lake?

No published bathymetric survey covers Beaver Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 26 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate. The lake covers 953.1 acres.

Are there boat ramps on Beaver Lake?

Beaver Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Beaver Lake. Public access is listed as yes.

Where this data comes from

20 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.

Collected and reported by

  • North Dakota Department Of Environmental Quality21NDHDWQ_WQX20 samples · 2024

Analytical methods

  • Phosphorus by Colorimetry
  • 447.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll a and b in phytoplankton by HPLC/UV
  • 4500 NO3 E ~ Nitrate in Water- Cadmium Reduction
Monitoring station identifiers (1)

Grade thresholds from the EPA National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See how grades are calculated and data sources.

Other records on this page

Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database

Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)

Depth, fish, and access data from North Dakota Game & Fish

Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory