Hanson Lake
Lake County, Minnesota289 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Hanson Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- 100 ft max depth
- Limited data
Hanson Lake in Lake County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 18 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 100 ft. Surface area: 289.43 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 18, 2018 caught 1.50 smallmouth bass per gill net at Hanson Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 14–18 inches. DNR survey details →
Hanson Lake is a 289-acre lake in Lake County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 100 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. The lake supports 6 documented fish species including burbot, cisco species, and lake trout. No public access — the lake is private or restricted.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-07-12. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Hanson Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water18 ft of visibility
- Fishing6 species recorded
- Deep water100 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Hanson Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Hanson 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 Hanson Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Hanson 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. TSI 35.
| 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 | 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. | 35 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about Hanson Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 18, 2018 caught 1.50 smallmouth bass per gill net at Hanson Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 14–18 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Hanson Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 5 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
4 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2025-08-01 (Targeted Survey).
4 surveys on file · most recent 2025-08-01 (Targeted Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Trout | 2.21 | 14–22 in 2018-09-18 | 2.4 lb |
| White Sucker | 1.50 | 18–19 in 2018-09-18 | 2.93 lb |
| Smallmouth Bass | 1.45 | 14–18 in 2018-09-18 | 2.09 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.
Lake Trout
White Sucker
Smallmouth Bass
From the 2025-08-01 survey
Temperature and dissolved oxygen measurements were collected from the deepest basin in Hanson Lake on August 1st, 2025. This was done to evaluate the quantity and quality of cold, oxygenated water (i.e., oxythermal habitat) available to Lake Trout, the most sensitive coldwater species present in this lake (Lake…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Hanson Lake. 1 report on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — HansonFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
100 ft
Surface area
289 acres
Shoreline
5.6 mi
Littoral zone
15%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
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Stays near Hanson Lake
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Hanson Lake
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Worsening5 years
EPA Impairment Status
Hanson Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Fish consumption.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MN38-0206-00 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Lake County
Frequently asked questions about Hanson Lake
Where is Hanson Lake?
- Hanson 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 Hanson Lake?
- Hanson Lake in Lake County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 18 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 100 ft. Surface area: 289.43 acres.
Is Hanson Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Hanson Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Hanson Lake?
- Hanson Lake has a maximum depth of 100 feet. The lake covers 289.43 acres.
What fish are in Hanson Lake?
- Fish species found in Hanson Lake include burbot, cisco species, lake trout, lake whitefish, smallmouth bass, white sucker. Hanson Lake is located in Lake County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Hanson Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 18, 2018 caught 1.50 smallmouth bass per gill net at Hanson Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 14–18 inches. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Hanson Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 5 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Hanson Lake?
- Public access to Hanson 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 Hanson Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
26 measurements from 9 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
MNPCA26 samples · 2020–2025
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
Monitoring station identifiers (9)
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
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder