Beaver Lake

Beaver Lake earns a C — middle-of-the-pack water quality, with one or two parameters dragging the average down from a stronger grade. Sub-grades cluster within a single letter of each other, which usually means the lake is in stable trophic balance rather than fighting one specific stressor.

At a TSI of 53, Beaver Lake reads as eutrophic — nutrient-rich enough that summer algal growth and reduced clarity are expected, not unusual. A maximum depth of just 11 ft means sediment-bound phosphorus releases back into the water column whenever wind stirs the bottom — a classic shallow-lake dynamic. At 86 acres, Beaver Lake sits below the Minnesota median: a small water where shoreline activity has an outsized effect on water quality. Among the 49 graded lakes in Ramsey County, Beaver Lake sits at rank 16, above the county median.

Eurasian watermilfoil is established at Beaver Lake, which can dampen recreational access and pressure the native plant community. 7 fish species are on record, with panfish making up the recreational core. The lake lacks a documented public access point, so visitor use is limited. Ice-out has been recorded 13 times at Beaver Lake, with a median around Mar 29. 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.