Disappointment Lake
Lake County, Minnesota894 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Disappointment Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- 54 ft max depth
- Limited data
Disappointment Lake in Lake County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 13.5 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 54 ft. Surface area: 894.21 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 17, 2024 caught 8.50 walleye per gill net at Disappointment Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 9–26 inches. DNR survey details →
Disappointment Lake is a 894-acre lake in Lake County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 54 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. The lake supports 6 documented fish species including northern pike, rock bass, and smallmouth bass. No public access — the lake is private or restricted.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-08-30. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Disappointment Lake covers about 890 acres in Lake County. If you are planning to stay, you can search lake houses and cabins around Disappointment Lake on Vrbo, or look for a hotel room near the lake on Booking.com or Expedia.
What Disappointment Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water13.5 ft of visibility
- Fishing6 species recorded
- Deep water54 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Disappointment 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 Disappointment Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Disappointment Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Good clarity, visible to about 13.5 ft. TSI 40.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 13.5ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading The green pigment in algae — a direct measure of how much algae is in the water. | |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 40 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about Disappointment Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 17, 2024 caught 8.50 walleye per gill net at Disappointment Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 9–26 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Disappointment Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
9 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2025-07-30 (Targeted Survey).
9 surveys on file · most recent 2025-07-30 (Targeted Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tullibee (Cisco) | 8.81 | 9–17 in 2024-09-17 | 0.91 lb |
| Walleye | 4.29 | 9–26 in 2024-09-17 | 2.11 lb |
| White Sucker | 2.54 | 11–20 in 2024-09-17 | 2.2 lb |
| Northern Pike | 1.84 | 22–37 in 2024-09-17 | 4.13 lb |
| Smallmouth Bass | 1.39 | 5–18 in 2024-09-17 | 0.84 lb |
| Rock Bass | 1.20 | 4–7 in 2024-09-17 | 0.24 lb |
CPUE = catch per unit effort, fish caught per net per set in a standardised survey. It measures abundance, not size, and is not a weekly bite report.
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.
Tullibee (Cisco)
Walleye
White Sucker
Northern Pike
From the 2025-07-30 survey
Temperature and dissolved oxygen (DO) measurements were collected from the deepest basin in Disappointment Lake on July 30th, 2025, to evaluate the quantity and quality of cold, oxygenated water (i.e., oxythermal habitat) available to Cisco, also known as Tullibee, the most sensitive coldwater species present in this…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Disappointment Lake. 1 report on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — DisappointmentFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
54 ft
Surface area
894 acres
Shoreline
20.4 mi
Littoral zone
40%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
8 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,476 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Disappointment Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Disappointment Lake in Lake 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 Disappointment Lake
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Planning a whole trip? See where to stay at Minnesota’s top lakes →
Follow Disappointment Lake’s readings
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Disappointment Lake
- → Disappointment Lake fishing: DNR survey catch rates, species & stocking
- → Disappointment Lake fishing forecast & best times (species outlook + 14-day solunar calendar)
- → Disappointment Lake fishing regulations (limits, seasons, special rules)
- → Is it safe to eat fish from Disappointment Lake? (mercury & PFAS guide)
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Worsening6 years
Nearby Lakes in Lake County
Frequently asked questions about Disappointment Lake
Where is Disappointment Lake?
- Disappointment Lake is a lake in Lake County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Disappointment Lake?
- Disappointment Lake in Lake County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 13.5 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 54 ft. Surface area: 894.21 acres.
Is Disappointment Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Disappointment Lake?
- Disappointment Lake has a maximum depth of 54 feet. The lake covers 894.21 acres.
What fish are in Disappointment Lake?
- Fish species found in Disappointment Lake include northern pike, rock bass, smallmouth bass, tullibee (cisco), walleye, white sucker. Disappointment Lake is located in Lake County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Disappointment Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 17, 2024 caught 8.50 walleye per gill net at Disappointment Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 9–26 inches. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Disappointment Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Disappointment Lake?
- Public access to Disappointment 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 Disappointment Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
10 measurements from 7 monitoring stations, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA10 samples · 2020–2025
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
Monitoring station identifiers (7)
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