Locator Lake

On the LakeGrade scale Locator Lake grades a B, with clarity at 8.5 ft and 17 µg/L of phosphorus placing it above the Minnesota median. Clarity is the limiting factor — phosphorus is reasonable but suspended particles or algal cells keep water transparency below Minnesota norms.

A TSI near 46 places Locator Lake in the mesotrophic band — moderate productivity, with seasonal swings between clearer spring water and richer late-summer conditions. The lake's 52 ft maximum depth is in the upper tier for Minnesota — deep enough for cold-water fish to find refuge in summer. The lake's 133 acres and 3.9 miles of shoreline put it in the mid-range bucket — large enough for varied use, small enough that watershed inputs reach the whole basin. Among the 187 graded lakes in St. Louis County, Locator Lake sits at rank 63, above the county median.

No invasive species are currently listed at Locator Lake — the lake remains off the Minnesota infested-waters roster. Bass fishing is part of the appeal: the species list runs to 6, anchored by largemouth and/or smallmouth bass. The lake lacks a documented public access point, so visitor use is limited. 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.