Island Lake

Island Lake sits at the top of the Minnesota PCA grading rubric with an A, a mark reached by the cleanest lakes in Minnesota. Clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate similarly, so there is no obvious single lever to pull on watershed management.

The lake sits in the mesotrophic zone — the band where most well-managed Minnesota lakes fall. Island Lake is unusually deep for Minnesota at 58 ft, which buffers the lake against summer warming and helps the deep water stay oxygenated. Island Lake is small — 44 acres alongside 1.6 miles of shoreline — which makes it sensitive to even modest changes in watershed runoff or recreational pressure. Among the 40 graded lakes in Clearwater County, Island Lake sits at rank 12, above the county median.

Island Lake has no invasive species recorded in Minnesota state databases as of 2024, though prevention practices still apply at all access points. 5 fish species are on record, with panfish making up the recreational core. A documented public access point at Island Lake makes the lake usable for shore fishing, paddle craft, and trailered boats. The grade is based on limited monitoring — fewer than three independent measurement years contribute, so future updates may shift the letter.