Birch Lake
Ramsey County, MinnesotaView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Birch Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Mesotrophic
- Eurasian watermilfoil
- 48 ft max depth
Birch Lake in Ramsey County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5.9 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 21 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 3.3 µg/L.
Birch Lake is a mesotrophic lake in Ramsey County, Minnesota with an estimated average depth of about 48 feet. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. No public access — the lake is private or restricted. Compared to the 43 other monitored lakes in Ramsey County, Birch Lake ranks #1 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-09-24. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Birch Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Ice seasonIce-out around Mar 31
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLow algae
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Birch 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 Birch Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Birch 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 5.9 ft. Phosphorus 21 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 3.3 µg/L. TSI 47.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 5.9ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 21µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 3.3µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 47 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Birch Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Water Temperature
Birch Lake typically sits around 68°F at the surface in September. Summer average is about 76°F. Usually warmest in Jul (about 80°F) and coldest in Apr (about 50°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Column height runs from this lake’s coldest month (50°F) to its warmest (80°F).
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 50 field readings (2010–2022) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Birch Lake water temperature breakdown →
Lake Details
Max depth
~48 ft est.
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Minnesota has not published bathymetry for Birch Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
1 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Surface area
96 acres
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
1.6 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
909 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.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Birch Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Birch Lake in Ramsey 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 Birch Lake
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Follow Birch Lake’s readings
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Fishing Birch 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
Worsening2 years
Phosphorus
Improving-0.64 µg/L/yr6 years
Chlorophyll-a
Improving-0.1 µg/L/yr6 years
Ice season
Typical ice-out
Mar 31
Earliest Mar 2, 2024 · Latest Apr 26, 2018
Typical ice-in
Dec 1
Earliest Nov 21, 2022 · Latest Dec 7, 2016
Most recent ice-out
Mar 2
2024
12 observations · Minnesota PCA ice records
Nearby Lakes in Ramsey County
Frequently asked questions about Birch Lake
Where is Birch Lake?
- Birch Lake is a lake in Ramsey County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Birch Lake?
- Birch Lake in Ramsey County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5.9 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 21 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 3.3 µg/L.
Is Birch Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
What is the water temperature of Birch Lake?
- Birch Lake typically sits around 68°F at the surface in September, from 50 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2010–2022). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is Birch Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Birch Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 48 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate.
When does Birch Lake thaw?
- Birch Lake typically has ice-out around Mar 31. Ice typically forms around Dec 1. The open water season is approximately 245 days.
Can I fish at Birch Lake?
- Public access to Birch 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.
Explore Birch Lake across LakeQuality
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Fish species and best lakes in Ramsey County
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
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Where this data comes from
132 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
MNPCA132 samples · 2020–2025
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
- Phosphorus by Two Reagent Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
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
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder
Ice data from Minnesota DNR Climate