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Cedar Lake

Wright County, MinnesotaMesotrophic

Cedar Lake earns an A — every scored parameter (clarity and phosphorus) rates among the best monitored waters in Wright County. The two scored sub-grades — clarity and phosphorus — track close together, so neither one is dragging the average down.

The lake sits in the mesotrophic zone — the band where most well-managed Minnesota lakes fall. Cedar Lake is unusually deep for Minnesota at 108 ft, which buffers the lake against summer warming and helps the deep water stay oxygenated. The lake's 790 acres and 7.2 miles of shoreline put it in the mid-range bucket — large enough for varied use, small enough that watershed inputs reach the whole basin. Within Wright County's 64 graded waters, Cedar Lake sits at rank 11, near the top of the local distribution.

Cedar Lake is on the Minnesota infested-waters list for zebra mussels — boaters should follow clean-drain-dry protocols when moving gear to or from the lake. The fishery includes walleye among the lake's 16 documented species — a notable draw for Minnesota anglers. Public access is available — the lake is on the Minnesota PCA public-access list. The lake has a long ice-out record — 70 observations on file, with a median ice-out around Apr 12. The grade is based on limited monitoring — fewer than three independent measurement years contribute, so future updates may shift the letter.

Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2024-09-23. Grade methodology: LakeGrade methodology.

Reviewed by LakeQuality Editorial Team · Updated

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Swimming Safety

Excellent for swimming, crystal clear water with minimal algae

Water Quality Grade: A, Excellent

Crystal clear, you can see 15 ft down. Phosphorus level: 23.5 µg/L. Trophic State Index: 44.

MetricValueGrade
Water Clarity (Secchi Depth)15 ftA
Phosphorus23.5 µg/LB
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)No data
Trophic State Index (TSI)44Mesotrophic

Moderate nutrients, good water quality

Lake Details

CharacteristicValue
Maximum Depth108 ft
Average Depth29.5 ft
Surface Area790.3 acres
Shoreline Length7.2 mi
Littoral Zone40%
Public AccessYes

Fish Species

black bullhead,black crappie,bluegill,bowfin (dogfish),brown bullhead,common carp,green sunfish,hybrid sunfish,largemouth bass,northern pike,pumpkinseed,rock bass,walleye,white sucker,yellow bullhead,yellow perch

Click a species to see all Minnesota and Wisconsin lakes where it is found.

→ Best fishing times for Cedar Lake (14-day solunar calendar)

→ Is it safe to eat fish from Cedar Lake? (mercury & PFAS guide)

Cedar Lake fishing regulations (limits, seasons, special rules)

Invasive & Introduced Species

Red chips are ecologically harmful invasive species. Gray chips are stocked or introduced fish that aren't a current ecological concern.

Eurasian watermilfoilzebra mussel

Water Quality Trend: Stable

Based on 5 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).

MetricTrendChange/YearYears
Water Clarity Improving+0.295 m/yr5
Phosphorus Declining+1.6 µg/L/yr5
See year-by-year chart →

Ice Season

Historical ice data from Minnesota DNR (79 observations).

Typical Ice-Out
Apr 12
Typical Ice-In
Dec 13

Estimated open water season: 245 days

EarliestLatest
Ice-Out1988-03-14 (1988)2018-05-04 (2018)
Ice-In2018-11-28 (2018)2024-01-11 (2024)

Most recent ice-out: 2023-04-25

Location

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County Ranking

Ranked #11 of 64 lakes in Wright County

Nearby Lakes in Wright County

State Parks Near Cedar Lake

DNR Fisheries Survey Summary

11 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2024-07-08 (Standard Survey).

Top Species by Catch Rate

SpeciesAvg CPUEAvg Weight
Bluegill29.570.14 lb
Largemouth Bass20.861.06 lb
BKF14.12
Yellow Bass12.740.78 lb
Green Sunfish12.280.08 lb
JND9.68

CPUE = catch per unit effort, averaged across surveys (excludes juvenile shoreline seining). Higher CPUE = more abundant in standardized sampling.

Length Distributions

Number of fish caught at each inch class in the most recent survey that recorded lengths. Red dashed line marks an approximate trophy threshold for that species.

Bluegill

503 fish · 28 in · 2024-07-08
1266302345678

Largemouth Bass

182 fish · 620 in · 2024-07-08
22110trophy 2068101214161820

Yellow Bass

701 fish · 514 in · 2024-07-08
191960567891011121314

Green Sunfish

7 fish · 35 in · 2024-07-08
530345

From the 2024-07-08 survey

Cedar Lake is an 837-acre lake located two miles east of Annandale in Wright County. Cedar Lake has a maximum depth of 108 feet and a small watershed dominated by agriculture, open water and forest. Two public accesses are located on the north end of the lake: a DNR ramp on the northwest corner with limited parking…

Source: MN DNR LakeFinder Fisheries Lake Survey

DNR Reports & Resources

Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Cedar Lake. 4 reports on file.

Reservoir Info (USACE NID)

Cedar Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Cedar Lake (completed 1963), built primarily for recreation on the Clearwater River-TR; gravity-type dam, 9 ft tall and 30 ft long.

Surface area
774 ac
Normal storage
18,150 ac-ft
Max storage
20,328 ac-ft
Drainage area
14.6 sq mi
Hazard class
Low
Owner
MNDNR-Trails

Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID MN00530 · Operator website

EPA Impairment Status

Cedar Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).

Causes of impairment

Mercury

A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.

Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MN86-0227-00 · Official waterbody report

Data Sources

Water quality data from the EPA Water Quality Portal

Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database

Grading methodology based on Metropolitan Council standards

Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder

Ice data from Minnesota DNR Climate

Most recent sample: 2024-09-23

Monitoring stations: 1