Mud Lake
Otter Tail County, MinnesotaView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Mud Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- 36 ft max depth
- Limited data
Mud Lake in Otter Tail County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 1.3 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 87 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 52.8 µg/L.
Mud Lake is a lake in Otter Tail County, Minnesota with an estimated average depth of about 36 feet. 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 2022-07-13. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Mud 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 Mud Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Mud 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 1.3 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 87 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 52.8 µg/L. TSI 70.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 1.3ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 87µg/L | Measured, not scored The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 52.8µg/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. | 70 | Hypereutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Very high nutrients, dense algae, poor clarity
Ask about Mud Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~36 ft est.
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Minnesota has not published bathymetry for Mud Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
0 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Surface area
62 acres
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
1.4 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,217 ft
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.
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Fishing Mud Lake
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
1 EPA-permitted facility operate within about 5 miles of Mud Lake under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits.
- Dalton WwtfDalton · 2.6 mi away · NPDES MN0023141
Facilities permitted to discharge under the Clean Water Act within ~5 miles; proximity does not by itself mean a facility affects this lake. Source: EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES), as of 2026-07.
Nearby Lakes in Otter Tail County
Frequently asked questions about Mud Lake
Where is Mud Lake?
- Mud Lake is a lake in Otter Tail County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Mud Lake?
- Mud Lake in Otter Tail County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 1.3 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 87 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 52.8 µg/L.
Is Mud Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Mud Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Mud Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 36 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate.
Can I fish at Mud Lake?
- Public access to Mud 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.
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Where this data comes from
4 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
MNPCA4 samples · 2022
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
- 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
Regulated discharger data from EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES)
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder