Pickerel Lake

Pickerel Lake earns an A — water clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate among the best monitored waters in Hubbard County. Clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate similarly, so there is no obvious single lever to pull on watershed management.

The lake sits in the mesotrophic zone — the band where most well-managed Minnesota lakes fall. The lake bottoms out at 26 ft — a moderate depth that supports a warm-water fishery without the year-round cold refuge a deeper basin provides. The lake's 310 acres and 6.1 miles of shoreline put it in the mid-range bucket — large enough for varied use, small enough that watershed inputs reach the whole basin. Pickerel Lake ranks 37 of 77 in Hubbard County — solidly in the upper half of the local distribution.

No invasive species are currently listed at Pickerel Lake — the lake remains off the Minnesota infested-waters roster. Walleye are documented at Pickerel Lake, one of 11 fish species on record for the lake. A documented public access point at Pickerel Lake makes the lake usable for shore fishing, paddle craft, and trailered boats. The lake has a partial ice record — 14 observed ice-outs, centered near Apr 18. The grade is based on limited monitoring — fewer than three independent measurement years contribute, so future updates may shift the letter.