Rush Lake
Pine County, Minnesota78 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Rush Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- 37 ft max depth
- Limited data
Rush Lake in Pine County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12.8 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 37 ft. Surface area: 78.4 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on July 1, 1996 caught 6.75 northern pike per gill net at Rush Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 4–33 inches. DNR survey details →
Rush Lake is a 78-acre lake in Pine County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 37 feet. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. The lake supports 10 documented fish species including black crappie, bluegill, and brown bullhead. No public access — the lake is private or restricted.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2023-10-15. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Rush Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water12.8 ft of visibility
- Fishing10 species recorded
- Deep water37 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Rush 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 Rush Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Rush 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 12.8 ft. TSI 40.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 12.8ft | 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. | 40 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Rush Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on July 1, 1996 caught 6.75 northern pike per gill net at Rush Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 4–33 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Rush Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
2 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 1996-07-01 (Standard Survey).
2 surveys on file · most recent 1996-07-01 (Standard Survey)
30 years old| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | 21.21 | 1–7 in 1996-07-01 | 0.16 lb |
| Largemouth Bass | 14.72 | 1–16 in 1996-07-01 | 0.44 lb |
| Northern Pike | 5.31 | 4–33 in 1996-07-01 | 1.25 lb |
| Black Crappie | 2.77 | 4–10 in 1996-07-01 | 0.24 lb |
| Yellow Bullhead | 2.50 | 0.47 lb | |
| Pumpkinseed | 0.94 | 3–7 in 1996-07-01 | 0.22 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
Largemouth Bass
Northern Pike
Black Crappie
From the 1996-07-01 survey
Rush Lake is a small (71.8 acre), clear, moderately soft water lake, with a maximum depth of 37 feet. It has had three surveys previous to this 1996 survey, 1949, 1967, and 1986. Survey catch rates of game fish species have been fairly typical for lakes of its type, except that yellow perch populations have…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Rush Lake. 2 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — RushFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Aquatic Plant Report — Rush (0363)Aquatic Plant Report · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
37 ft
Surface area
78 acres
Shoreline
1.7 mi
Littoral zone
56%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
0 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,056 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Rush Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Rush Lake in Pine 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 Rush Lake
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Planning a whole trip? See where to stay at Minnesota’s top lakes →
Follow Rush Lake’s readings
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Rush Lake
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Improving6 years
Nearby Lakes in Pine County
Frequently asked questions about Rush Lake
Where is Rush Lake?
- Rush Lake is a lake in Pine County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Rush Lake?
- Rush Lake in Pine County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12.8 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 37 ft. Surface area: 78.4 acres.
Is Rush Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Rush Lake?
- Rush Lake has a maximum depth of 37 feet. The lake covers 78.4 acres.
What fish are in Rush Lake?
- Fish species found in Rush Lake include black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, white sucker, yellow perch. Rush Lake is located in Pine County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Rush Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on July 1, 1996 caught 6.75 northern pike per gill net at Rush Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 4–33 inches. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Rush Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Rush Lake?
- Public access to Rush 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 Rush Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
9 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020–2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA9 samples · 2020–2023
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