Rose Lake

On the LakeGrade rubric, Rose Lake pulls an A: clarity readings still being added and 18 µg/L of phosphorus put it in the top bracket for Minnesota. Sub-grades cluster within a single letter of each other, which usually means the lake is in stable trophic balance rather than fighting one specific stressor.

The lake sits in the mesotrophic zone — the band where most well-managed Minnesota lakes fall. Rose Lake reaches 31 ft at its deepest point — typical for Minnesota mid-sized lakes, with seasonal stratification but limited cold-water refuge. The lake is compact at 59 acres, with 1.3 miles of shoreline and little volume to buffer nutrient inputs. Among the 187 graded lakes in St. Louis County, Rose Lake ranks 11 — in the top quartile locally.

No invasive species are currently listed at Rose Lake — the lake remains off the Minnesota infested-waters roster. The state fisheries records do not list documented species for Rose Lake, which usually reflects a lack of formal fisheries survey work rather than an empty lake. The lake lacks a documented public access point, so visitor use is limited. Monitoring depth is thin here: the LakeGrade rubric is applied to a small number of sample years, and the grade will be revised as more data accumulates.