Kabetogama Lake

Kabetogama Lake pulls a D on the LakeGrade rubric — phosphorus loading and limited clarity hold it below the Minnesota average. The three sub-grades — clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a — track close together, so no single parameter is dragging the average.

At a TSI of 55, Kabetogama Lake reads as eutrophic — nutrient-rich enough that summer algal growth and reduced clarity are expected, not unusual. At 80 ft of maximum depth, Kabetogama Lake stratifies reliably through the summer — the hypolimnion stays cooler and clearer than the surface layer suggests. At 24,034 acres, Kabetogama Lake is one of the larger lakes in St. Louis County, with 190.5 miles of shoreline supporting multiple distinct use patterns. Within St. Louis County's 215 graded lakes, Kabetogama Lake ranks 160 — below the local median, though not at the bottom.

Zebra mussel presence at Kabetogama Lake means the lake's clarity numbers carry an asterisk — filtered water is not the same as nutrient-poor water. The fishery includes walleye alongside the lake's other 16 documented species — a notable draw for Minnesota anglers. Public access is available — the lake is on the Minnesota PCA public-access list. The lake has a long ice-out record — 84 observations on file, with a median ice-out around Apr 29. The grade is based on limited monitoring — fewer than three independent measurement years contribute, so future updates may shift the letter.