Cedar Lake

On the LakeGrade rubric Cedar Lake fails the cutoffs — a TSI of 61 and persistent algal pressure put it in the bottom tier. 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.

Eutrophic conditions are the baseline here: clarity drops noticeably in late summer, and dissolved oxygen near the bottom can become a concern. Cedar Lake is a shallow lake at 13 ft maximum depth, which means it warms quickly, mixes constantly, and amplifies nutrient inputs. Cedar Lake covers 793 acres alongside 7.1 miles of shoreline — a mid-sized water that supports a working fishery without being so large that conditions diverge between basins. Cedar Lake ranks 13 of 17 in Scott County — at the lower end of the locally monitored distribution.

Zebra mussels have been documented at Cedar Lake, which alters the filter-feeding balance and can paradoxically increase water clarity while disrupting the food web. The fishery includes walleye alongside the lake's other 10 documented species — a notable draw for Minnesota anglers. A documented public access point at Cedar Lake makes the lake usable for shore fishing, paddle craft, and trailered boats. Ice-out has been recorded 17 times at Cedar Lake, with a median around Mar 31. 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.