Pine Lake
Cook County, Minnesota2,122 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Pine Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- spiny waterflea
- 113 ft max depth
- Limited data
Pine Lake in Cook County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 16.9 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 113 ft. Surface area: 2122.26 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 11, 2023 caught 9.00 walleye per gill net at Pine Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 7–24 inches. DNR survey details →
Pine Lake is a 2,122-acre lake in Cook County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 113 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. The lake supports 10 documented fish species including burbot, cisco species, and lake trout. No public access — the lake is private or restricted.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-06-24. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Pine Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water16.9 ft of visibility
- Fishing10 species recorded
- Deep water113 ft surveyed max depth
- Big water2,122 acres
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Pine 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 Pine Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Pine Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Crystal clear, you can see 16.9 ft down. TSI 36.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 16.9ft | 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. | 36 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about Pine Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 11, 2023 caught 9.00 walleye per gill net at Pine Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 7–24 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Pine Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 2 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
8 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2025-07-29 (Targeted Survey).
8 surveys on file · most recent 2025-07-29 (Targeted Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walleye | 7.16 | 7–24 in 2023-09-11 | 2.48 lb |
| Smallmouth Bass | 2.16 | 11–18 in 2023-09-11 | 1.48 lb |
| Yellow Perch | 1.10 | 6 in 2023-09-11 | 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.
Length Distributions
Number of fish caught at each inch class in the most recent survey that recorded lengths. Red dashed line marks an approximate trophy threshold for that species.
Walleye
Smallmouth Bass
Yellow Perch
From the 2025-07-29 survey
Temperature and dissolved oxygen measurements were collected from the deepest basin in Pine Lake on July 29th, 2025. This was done to evaluate the quantity and quality of cold, oxygenated water (i.e., oxythermal habitat) available to Lake Trout, the most sensitive coldwater species present in this lake (Lake Whitefish…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Pine Lake. 2 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — PineFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Fish Stocking History — PineFish Stocking History · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
113 ft
Surface area
2,122 acres
Shoreline
18.2 mi
Littoral zone
17%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
47 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,463 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Pine Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Pine Lake in Cook 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 Pine Lake
Prices for Oct 9–11, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
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Follow Pine Lake’s readings
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Pine Lake
Invasive & Introduced Species
Red chips are ecologically harmful invasive species. Gray chips are stocked or introduced fish that aren't a current ecological concern.
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2024–2025). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Worsening2 years
Nearby Lakes in Cook County
Frequently asked questions about Pine Lake
Where is Pine Lake?
- Pine Lake is a lake in Cook County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Pine Lake?
- Pine Lake in Cook County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 16.9 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 113 ft. Surface area: 2122.26 acres.
Is Pine Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Pine Lake?
- Pine Lake has a maximum depth of 113 feet. The lake covers 2122.26 acres.
What fish are in Pine Lake?
- Fish species found in Pine Lake include burbot, cisco species, lake trout, lake whitefish, northern pike, smallmouth bass, tullibee (cisco), walleye, white sucker, yellow perch. Pine Lake is located in Cook County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Pine Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 11, 2023 caught 9.00 walleye per gill net at Pine Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 7–24 inches. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Pine Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 2 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Pine Lake?
- Public access to Pine 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 Pine Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
2 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2024–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA2 samples · 2024–2025
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
Monitoring station identifiers (2)
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