Little Emily Lake
Crow Wing County, Minnesota99 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Little Emily Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- 26 ft max depth
- Limited data
Little Emily Lake in Crow Wing County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12.5 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 26 ft. Surface area: 98.9 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on August 5, 1987 caught 3.50 northern pike per gill net at Little Emily Lake. DNR survey details →
Little Emily Lake is a 99-acre lake in Crow Wing County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 26 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. No public access — the lake is private or restricted.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2020-10-15. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Little Emily Lake covers about 99 acres in Crow Wing County. For a place on the water, look through cabin and lake-house rentals near Little Emily Lake on Vrbo. For a hotel or motel room, Booking.com and Expedia both search around the lake.
What Little Emily Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water12.5 ft of visibility
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Little Emily 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 Little Emily Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Little Emily Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Good clarity, visible to about 12.5 ft. TSI 41.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 12.5ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading 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. | 41 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Little Emily Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on August 5, 1987 caught 3.50 northern pike per gill net at Little Emily Lake.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Little Emily Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
2 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 1987-08-05 (Standard Survey).
2 surveys on file · most recent 1987-08-05 (Standard Survey)
39 years old| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black Crappie | 43.67 | 0.18 lb | |
| Bluegill | 31.89 | 0.14 lb | |
| Yellow Bullhead | 24.06 | 0.35 lb | |
| Yellow Perch | 10.61 | 0.24 lb | |
| Northern Pike | 7.25 | 3.46 lb | |
| Pumpkinseed | 4.00 | 0.1 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.
From the 1987-08-05 survey
Largemouth bass and black crappie net catches indicate above average populations. Net catches were above the third quartile of the Brainerd area lakes that are smaller than 230 acres and have a total alkalinity of less than 47.6 ppm. Northern pike, pumpkinseed, bluegill and yellow perch net catches indicate a normal…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Little Emily Lake. 2 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — Little EmilyFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Aquatic Plant Report — Little Emily (0232)Aquatic Plant Report · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
26 ft
Surface area
99 acres
Shoreline
1.8 mi
Littoral zone
90%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
1 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,280 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Little Emily Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Little Emily Lake in Crow Wing County, Minnesota — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water.
Top-rated places to stay near Little Emily Lake
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Follow Little Emily Lake’s readings
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Fishing Little Emily Lake
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Worsening6 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+0.3 µg/L/yr6 years
Chlorophyll-a
Improving-0.21 µg/L/yr6 years
Nearby Lakes in Crow Wing County
Frequently asked questions about Little Emily Lake
Where is Little Emily Lake?
- Little Emily Lake is a lake in Crow Wing County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Little Emily Lake?
- Little Emily Lake in Crow Wing County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12.5 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 26 ft. Surface area: 98.9 acres.
Is Little Emily Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Little Emily Lake?
- Little Emily Lake has a maximum depth of 26 feet. The lake covers 98.9 acres.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Little Emily Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on August 5, 1987 caught 3.50 northern pike per gill net at Little Emily Lake. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Little Emily Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Little Emily Lake?
- Public access to Little Emily Lake is listed as no on the lake record, so confirm before you make the trip. 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.
Explore Little Emily Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
5 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA5 samples · 2020
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
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 size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder