Rice Lake
Itasca County, Minnesota863 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Rice Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- 68 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Rice Lake in Itasca County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 15 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 68 ft. Surface area: 863.38 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on July 31, 2023 caught 0.08 walleye per gill net at Rice Lake. DNR survey details →
Free interactive depth-contour map of Rice Lake, reaching a maximum surveyed depth of 60 ft. Toggle Depth contours to overlay the bathymetric survey lines. Contour data from Minnesota DNR.
Rice Lake is a 863-acre lake in Itasca County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 68 feet. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. The lake supports 14 documented fish species including black crappie, bluegill, and bowfin (dogfish). Public access is available.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-09-16. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Rice Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water15 ft of visibility
- Fishing14 species recorded
- Ice seasonIce-out around Apr 22
- Deep water68 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Rice Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Rice 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 Rice Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Rice 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 15 ft down. TSI 38.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 15ft | 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. | 38 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about Rice Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Blue-Green Algae (Cyanobacteria)
There’s no recent EPA CyAN cyanobacteria estimate for Rice Lake — clouds, ice, or an off-season gap in coverage. The most recent reading was high (270,396 cells/mL) on October 5, 2024.
Blue-green algae can appear and clear within days, so check your state’s current advisory before swimming. EPA CyAN ↗
Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on July 31, 2023 caught 0.08 walleye per gill net at Rice Lake.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Rice Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 5 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
12 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2024-06-06 (Targeted Survey).
12 surveys on file · most recent 2024-06-06 (Targeted Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bluntnose Minnow | 17.65 | ||
| Spottail Shiner | 10.81 | ||
| Bluegill | 9.82 | 2–8 in 2023-07-31 | 0.18 lb |
| Golden Shiner | 7.17 | 6 in 1996-07-27 | 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.
Bluegill
Golden Shiner
From the 2024-06-06 survey
Minnesota DNR Fisheries IBI program staff conducted an assessment of lakeshore habitat on Rice Lake on June 6, 2024, following the Score the Shore survey protocols. The assessment consisted of 101 survey sites evenly spaced 200 meters around the lake. Assessments were made in three habitat zones: the shoreline zone…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Rice Lake. 3 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — RiceFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Aquatic Plant Report — Rice (0600)Aquatic Plant Report · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Public Water Access Sites — RicePublic Water Access Sites · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
68 ft
Surface area
863 acres
Shoreline
12.5 mi
Littoral zone
27%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
Yes
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
1 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,270 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Rice Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Rice Lake in Itasca 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 Rice Lake
Prices for Oct 9–11, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
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Follow Rice Lake’s readings
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Rice Lake
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Improving5 years
Ice season
Typical ice-out
Apr 22
Earliest Apr 8, 2017 · Latest May 6, 2022
Typical ice-in
Nov 25
Earliest Nov 10, 2017 · Latest Dec 2, 2024
Most recent ice-out
Apr 19
2025
21 observations · Minnesota PCA ice records
EPA Impairment Status
Rice Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Fish consumption.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MN31-0717-00 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Itasca County
Frequently asked questions about Rice Lake
Where is Rice Lake?
- Rice Lake is a lake in Itasca County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Rice Lake?
- Rice Lake in Itasca County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 15 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 68 ft. Surface area: 863.38 acres.
Is Rice Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Rice Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Rice Lake?
- Rice Lake has a maximum depth of 68 feet. The lake covers 863.38 acres.
What fish are in Rice Lake?
- Fish species found in Rice Lake include black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, tullibee (cisco), walleye, white sucker, yellow bullhead, yellow perch. Rice Lake is located in Itasca County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Rice Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on July 31, 2023 caught 0.08 walleye per gill net at Rice Lake. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Rice Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 5 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
When does Rice Lake thaw?
- Rice Lake typically has ice-out around Apr 22. Ice typically forms around Nov 25. The open water season is approximately 217 days.
Does Rice Lake have blue-green algae?
- There is no recent EPA CyAN cyanobacteria estimate for Rice Lake (clouds, ice, or an off-season gap). The most recent reading was high (270,396 cells/mL). Blue-green algae can appear and clear within days, so check Minnesota's current advisory before swimming.
Can I fish at Rice Lake?
- Public access to Rice Lake is listed as yes on the lake record. 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
26 measurements from 3 monitoring stations, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA26 samples · 2020–2025
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
Monitoring station identifiers (3)
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
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder
Ice data from Minnesota DNR Climate