Edna Lake

Edna Lake sits at the top of the Minnesota PCA grading rubric with an A, a mark reached by the cleanest lakes in Minnesota. 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.

Trophically, Edna Lake reads as oligotrophic — nutrient-poor, clear, and ecologically more sensitive to disturbance than richer lakes. The lake's 63 ft maximum depth is in the upper tier for Minnesota — deep enough for cold-water fish to find refuge in summer. At 156 acres, Edna Lake fits the Minnesota median for monitored lakes, with 3.3 miles of shoreline. Edna Lake ranks 41 of 120 in Crow Wing County — solidly in the upper half of the local distribution.

No invasive species are currently listed at Edna Lake — the lake remains off the Minnesota infested-waters roster. Walleye are documented at Edna Lake, one of 10 fish species on record for the lake. Public access is available — the lake is on the Minnesota PCA public-access list. Ice-out has been logged at Edna Lake more than two dozen times, putting the median around Apr 16 — a useful baseline for tracking climate trends. The grade is based on limited monitoring — fewer than three independent measurement years contribute, so future updates may shift the letter.