Lily Lake
Itasca County, Minnesota109 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Lily Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- 45 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Lily Lake in Itasca County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.3 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 16 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 6.7 µg/L. Maximum depth: 45 ft. Surface area: 109.11 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on July 25, 2022 caught 0.78 northern pike per trap net at Lily Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 13–25 inches. DNR survey details →
Lily Lake is a 109-acre lake in Itasca County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 45 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. The lake supports 8 documented fish species including black crappie, bluegill, and largemouth bass. Public access is available.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2022-09-27. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Lily Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Fishing8 species recorded
- Deep water45 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Lily 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 Lily Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Lily 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 3.3 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 16 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 6.7 µg/L. TSI 51.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 3.3ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 16µg/L | Measured, not scored The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 6.7µg/L | Measured, not scored 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. | 51 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Lily Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on July 25, 2022 caught 0.78 northern pike per trap net at Lily Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 13–25 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Lily Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 3 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
9 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2022-07-25 (Targeted Survey).
9 surveys on file · most recent 2022-07-25 (Targeted Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | 34.80 | 3–9 in 2022-07-25 | 0.14 lb |
| Yellow Perch | 18.01 | 6–8 in 2022-07-25 | 0.15 lb |
| Largemouth Bass | 8.54 | 5–17 in 2022-07-25 | 0.65 lb |
| Golden Shiner | 7.98 | 5 in 2017-06-12 | 0.07 lb |
| Northern Pike | 5.72 | 13–25 in 2022-07-25 | 2.24 lb |
| Rock Bass | 5.69 | 3–10 in 2022-07-25 | 0.29 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.
Bluegill
Yellow Perch
Largemouth Bass
Golden Shiner
From the 2022-07-25 survey
A targeted survey of nearshore fish species in Mirror Lake was conducted on July 25th, 2022 by Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) Program Staff. Sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake and each was sampled by backpack electrofishing and seining with a 50-foot or 15-foot seine, where possible. Backpack…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Lily Lake. 3 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — MirrorFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Aquatic Plant Report — Mirror (0641)Aquatic Plant Report · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Public Water Access Sites — MirrorPublic Water Access Sites · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
45 ft
Surface area
109 acres
Shoreline
1.9 mi
Littoral zone
44%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
Yes
Listed by Minnesota PCA
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Stays near Lily Lake
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Follow Lily Lake’s readings
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Lily Lake
Water quality readings over time
3 seasons of samples on record (2020–2023). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Stable3 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+1.07 µg/L/yr3 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+0.26 µg/L/yr3 years
Nearby Lakes in Itasca County
Frequently asked questions about Lily Lake
Where is Lily Lake?
- Lily Lake is a lake in Itasca County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Lily Lake?
- Lily Lake in Itasca County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.3 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 16 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 6.7 µg/L. Maximum depth: 45 ft. Surface area: 109.11 acres.
Is Lily Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Lily Lake?
- Lily Lake has a maximum depth of 45 feet. The lake covers 109.11 acres.
What fish are in Lily Lake?
- Fish species found in Lily Lake include black crappie, bluegill, largemouth bass, northern pike, rock bass, smallmouth bass, walleye, yellow perch. Lily Lake is located in Itasca County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Lily Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on July 25, 2022 caught 0.78 northern pike per trap net at Lily Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 13–25 inches. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Lily Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 3 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Lily Lake?
- Public access to Lily Lake is listed as yes on the lake record. 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.
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Where this data comes from
5 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2022. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA5 samples · 2022
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
- 2130 B ~ Nephelometric Method
- 2120 B ~ Color in Water by Visual Comparison
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
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder