Little Dixie Lake
Callaway County, MissouriView mapDirections
Missouri DNR publishes the water-quality measurements for Little Dixie Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Hypereutrophic
- Impaired · Algal growth
- 44 ft max depth
- Public access
Ask about Little Dixie Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Little Dixie Lake in Callaway County, Missouri has water-quality measurements published by Missouri DNR, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 1.7 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 67 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 35.9 µg/L.
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Little Dixie Lake is a highly nutrient-loaded hypereutrophic lake in Callaway County, Missouri with an estimated average depth of about 44 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing. Compared to the 1 other monitored lakes in Callaway County, Little Dixie Lake ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Missouri DNR, last sampled 2024-08-02. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
What Little Dixie Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyAlgae risk
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Little Dixie Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for algal growth. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Little Dixie Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Little Dixie Lake
These are the measurements Missouri DNR publishes for Little Dixie 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 1.7 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 67 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 35.9 µg/L. TSI 67.
| Metric | Value | EPA condition class |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 1.7 ft | Measured, not scored |
| Phosphorus | 67 µg/L | Poor |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 35.9 µg/L | Poor |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 67 | Hypereutrophic |
Very high nutrients, dense algae, poor clarity
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~44 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~15 ft est. |
| Public Access | Yes |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Missouri has not published bathymetry for Little Dixie Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Recreation & Access
- Little Dixie Lake Conservation AreaPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Fishing Little Dixie Lake
Water Quality Trend: ↓ Declining
Based on 5 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | ↓ Declining | -0.021 m/yr | 4 |
| Phosphorus | ↓ Declining | +1.69 µg/L/yr | 5 |
| Chlorophyll-a | ↑ Improving | -5.21 µg/L/yr | 5 |
EPA Impairment Status
Little Dixie Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MO_7180.00 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Callaway County
Frequently asked questions about Little Dixie Lake
Where is Little Dixie Lake?
- Little Dixie Lake is a lake in Callaway County, Missouri. Its water-quality measurements are published by Missouri DNR and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Little Dixie Lake?
- Little Dixie Lake in Callaway County, Missouri has water-quality measurements published by Missouri DNR, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 1.7 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 67 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 35.9 µg/L.
Is Little Dixie Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Little Dixie Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for algal growth. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Little Dixie Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Little Dixie Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 44 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate.
Are there boat ramps on Little Dixie Lake?
- Little Dixie Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Little Dixie Lake Conservation Area. Public access is listed as yes.
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Where this data comes from
98 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Univ. of Missouri, Columbia
UMC98 samples · 2020–2024
Analytical methods
- Depth, Secchi disk in meters
- 4500 P E ~ Phosphorus in Water by Colorimetry- Ascorbic Acid Method
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
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
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory