Horseshoe Lake
Rice County, Minnesota417 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Horseshoe Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
- flowering rush
- 26 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Horseshoe Lake in Rice County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 26 ft. Surface area: 416.62 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on June 24, 2024 caught 2.00 walleye per gill net at Horseshoe Lake. DNR survey details →
Horseshoe Lake is a 417-acre lake in Rice County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 26 feet. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. The lake supports 13 documented fish species including bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, and black crappie. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-09-30. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Horseshoe Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
- Fishing13 species recorded
- Ice seasonIce-out around Apr 6
Swimming conditions
No readingRecreation use not supported
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Horseshoe Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Horseshoe 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 Horseshoe Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Horseshoe Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Very murky, less than 2 ft of visibility. TSI 67.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 2ft | 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. | 67 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Horseshoe Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on June 24, 2024 caught 2.00 walleye per gill net at Horseshoe Lake.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Horseshoe Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
13 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2024-06-24 (Standard Survey).
13 surveys on file · most recent 2024-06-24 (Standard Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black Bullhead | 101.11 | 11–14 in 2024-06-24 | 0.52 lb |
| Black Crappie | 18.35 | 3–12 in 2024-06-24 | 0.25 lb |
| Yellow Perch | 14.96 | 5–11 in 2024-06-24 | 0.22 lb |
| Bluegill | 13.29 | 2–9 in 2024-06-24 | 0.27 lb |
| Largemouth Bass | 7.92 | 3–18 in 2024-06-24 | 1.78 lb |
| Freshwater Drum | 5.33 | 8–26 in 2024-06-24 | 2.01 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.
Black Bullhead
Black Crappie
Yellow Perch
Bluegill
From the 2024-06-24 survey
Horseshoe Lake is a 393-acre lake located in Le Sueur County northeast of the city of Waterville. A DNR owned public access is located on the south side of the lake off County Road 10. Horseshoe Lake has a maximum depth of 26 feet. Horseshoe Lake is primarily managed for Black Crappie, Bluegill, and secondarily for…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Horseshoe Lake. 3 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — HorseshoeFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Fish Stocking History — HorseshoeFish Stocking History · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Public Water Access Sites — HorseshoePublic Water Access Sites · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
26 ft
Surface area
417 acres
Shoreline
5.2 mi
Littoral zone
81%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
Yes
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
9 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,017 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
Recreation & Access
- Horseshoe LakePublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Horseshoe Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Horseshoe Lake in Rice 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 Horseshoe Lake
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Follow Horseshoe Lake’s readings
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Horseshoe Lake
Invasive & Introduced Species
Red chips are ecologically harmful invasive species. Gray chips are stocked or introduced fish that aren't a current ecological concern.
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Improving6 years
Ice season
Typical ice-out
Apr 6
Earliest Mar 2, 2024 · Latest Apr 29, 2018
Typical ice-in
Nov 30
Earliest Nov 13, 2018 · Latest Dec 7, 2021
Most recent ice-out
Mar 2
2024
22 observations · Minnesota PCA ice records
EPA Impairment Status
Horseshoe Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Recreation.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MN40-0001-00 · Official waterbody report
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
1 EPA-permitted facility operate within about 5 miles of Horseshoe Lake under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits.
- Saemrow DairyWaterville · 1 mi away · NPDES MN0070980
Facilities permitted to discharge under the Clean Water Act within ~5 miles; proximity does not by itself mean a facility affects this lake. Source: EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES), as of 2026-07.
Nearby Lakes in Rice County
Frequently asked questions about Horseshoe Lake
Where is Horseshoe Lake?
- Horseshoe Lake is a lake in Rice County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Horseshoe Lake?
- Horseshoe Lake in Rice County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 26 ft. Surface area: 416.62 acres.
Is Horseshoe Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Horseshoe Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Horseshoe Lake?
- Horseshoe Lake has a maximum depth of 26 feet. The lake covers 416.62 acres.
What fish are in Horseshoe Lake?
- Fish species found in Horseshoe Lake include bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), common carp, freshwater drum, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, walleye, yellow bullhead, yellow perch. Horseshoe Lake is located in Rice County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Horseshoe Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on June 24, 2024 caught 2.00 walleye per gill net at Horseshoe Lake. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Horseshoe Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
When does Horseshoe Lake thaw?
- Horseshoe Lake typically has ice-out around Apr 6. Ice typically forms around Nov 30. The open water season is approximately 238 days.
Are there boat ramps on Horseshoe Lake?
- Horseshoe Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Horseshoe Lake. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Horseshoe Lake?
- Horseshoe Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. 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 Horseshoe Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
21 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA21 samples · 2020–2025
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
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
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Regulated discharger data from EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES)
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory
Ice data from Minnesota DNR Climate