Erskine Lake
Itasca County, Minnesota40 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Erskine Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Oligotrophic
- 56 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Erskine Lake in Itasca County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 18 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 11 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 2.3 µg/L. Maximum depth: 56 ft. Surface area: 39.76 acres.
Erskine Lake is a 40-acre cold, clear oligotrophic lake in Itasca County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 56 feet. The lake supports 3 documented fish species including rainbow trout, splake, and white sucker. Public access is available. Compared to the 71 other monitored lakes in Itasca County, Erskine Lake ranks #46 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-09-29. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Erskine Lake covers about 40 acres in Itasca County. For a place on the water, look through cabin and lake-house rentals near Erskine Lake on Vrbo. For a hotel or motel room, Booking.com and Expedia both search around the lake.
What Erskine Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water18 ft of visibility
- Fishing3 species recorded
- Deep water56 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLimited data
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 Erskine 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 Erskine Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Erskine Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Crystal clear, you can see 18 ft down. Phosphorus 11 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 2.3 µg/L. TSI 38.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 18ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 11µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 2.3µg/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. | 38 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about Erskine Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
56 ft
Surface area
40 acres
Shoreline
1.4 mi
Littoral zone
40%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
Yes
Listed by Minnesota PCA
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Fish Species
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Fishing Erskine Lake
Nearby Lakes in Itasca County
Frequently asked questions about Erskine Lake
Where is Erskine Lake?
- Erskine Lake is a lake in Itasca County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Erskine Lake?
- Erskine Lake in Itasca County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 18 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 11 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 2.3 µg/L. Maximum depth: 56 ft. Surface area: 39.76 acres.
Is Erskine Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Erskine Lake?
- Erskine Lake has a maximum depth of 56 feet. The lake covers 39.76 acres.
What fish are in Erskine Lake?
- Fish species found in Erskine Lake include rainbow trout, splake, white sucker. Erskine Lake is located in Itasca County, Minnesota.
Can I fish at Erskine Lake?
- Public access to Erskine Lake is listed as yes on the lake record. 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.
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Where this data comes from
15 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA15 samples · 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 details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder