Shallow Pond

Shallow Pond sits at a C on the grading scale — not impaired, not pristine, with summer measurements that vary year to year. The three sub-grades — clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a — track close together, so no single parameter is dragging the average.

Eutrophic conditions are the baseline here: clarity drops noticeably in late summer, and dissolved oxygen near the bottom can become a concern. At only 14 ft deep, Shallow Pond is shallow — wind keeps the water column mixed and sediment resuspension drives phosphorus levels harder to manage. At 225 acres, Shallow Pond fits the Minnesota median for monitored lakes, with 3.9 miles of shoreline. Within the 141 graded lakes of Itasca County, Shallow Pond sits at rank 120, near the bottom of the county list.

No invasive species are currently listed at Shallow Pond — the lake remains off the Minnesota infested-waters roster. Walleye are documented at Shallow Pond, one of 12 fish species on record for the lake. A documented public access point at Shallow Pond makes the lake usable for shore fishing, paddle craft, and trailered boats. 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.