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LakeQuality

North Lake

St. Louis County, MinnesotaView mapDirections

Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for North Lake. Here is what has been measured.

Clarity
12 ft
Typical for Minnesota
Secchi · sampled 2023
Max depth
~78 ft est.
GLOBathy model
  • 78 ft max depth
  • Limited data

North Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12 ft visibility.

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North Lake is a lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota with an estimated average depth of about 78 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 2023-07-02. Methodology: how these readings are compared.

What North Lake is good for

From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.

  • Clear water12 ft of visibility

Swimming conditions

No reading

Limited data

Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.

Whether North 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.

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Water quality measurements for North Lake

These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for North 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 ft. TSI 41.

Water quality readings
MeasureReadingWhere it sits
Water clarity (Secchi depth)12ftMeasured, not scored

How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer.

Total phosphorusNo 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.41Mesotrophic
OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic

Moderate nutrients, good water quality

Ask about North Lake

Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.

Lake Details

Max depth

~78 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 North Lake.

Lake Size & Watershed

Watershed (drainage) area

2 sq mi

HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS

Surface area

138 acres

HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS

Shoreline

2.9 mi

HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS

Elevation

1,181 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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Stays near North Lake

Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near North Lake in St. Louis 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 North Lake

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Fishing North Lake

Nearby Lakes in St. Louis County

Frequently asked questions about North Lake

Where is North Lake?

North Lake is a lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.

What is the water quality of North Lake?

North Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12 ft visibility.

Measurements on this page ↑

Is North Lake safe to swim in?

Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.

Swimming on this page ↑

How deep is North Lake?

No published bathymetric survey covers North Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 78 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 North Lake?

Public access to North 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.

Where this data comes from

1 measurement from 1 monitoring station, 2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.

Collected and reported by

  • Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface WaterMNPCA1 sample · 2023

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