Island Lake

On the scoring rubric Island Lake grades a D: clarity at 6.5 ft and phosphorus readings still being added keep it in the lower bracket for Itasca County. 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.

A TSI in the eutrophic range signals a lake doing what nutrient-loaded waters do — supporting an active algal community at the cost of clear water. A maximum depth of 31 ft puts Island Lake in the middle of Minnesota's depth distribution. Island Lake covers 285 acres alongside 5.3 miles of shoreline — a mid-sized water that supports a working fishery without being so large that conditions diverge between basins. Island Lake ranks 136 of 146 in Itasca County — at the lower end of the locally monitored distribution.

No invasive species are currently listed at Island Lake — the lake remains off the Minnesota infested-waters roster. The fishery includes walleye alongside the lake's other 13 documented species — a notable draw for Minnesota anglers. Public access is available — the lake is on the Minnesota PCA public-access list. Monitoring depth is thin here: the LakeGrade rubric is applied to a small number of sample years, and the grade will be revised as more data accumulates.