Shoepack Lake
St. Louis County, Minnesota299 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Shoepack Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · Mercury
- 24 ft max depth
Shoepack Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 19.8 µg/L. Maximum depth: 24 ft. Surface area: 298.85 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on July 22, 2025 caught 0.30 muskellunge per fyke net at Shoepack Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 22–28 inches. DNR survey details →
Shoepack Lake is a 299-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 24 feet. Water clarity is improving over recent sampling years. The lake supports 3 documented fish species including muskellunge, white sucker, and yellow perch. No public access — the lake is private or restricted. Compared to the 67 other monitored lakes in St. Louis County, Shoepack Lake ranks #38 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2024-08-20. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Shoepack Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Fishing3 species recorded
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLow algae
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Shoepack Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Shoepack 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 Shoepack Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Shoepack Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Murky, only visible to about 4.6 ft. Phosphorus 19.8 µg/L. TSI 51.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 4.6ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 19.8µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| 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. | 51 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Shoepack Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Water Temperature
Shoepack Lake typically sits around 68°F at the surface in August. Summer average is about 67°F. Usually warmest in Jul (about 68°F) and coldest in Jun (about 64°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Column height runs from this lake’s coldest month (64°F) to its warmest (68°F).
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 347 field readings (2010–2024) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Shoepack Lake water temperature breakdown →
Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on July 22, 2025 caught 0.30 muskellunge per fyke net at Shoepack Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 22–28 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Shoepack Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 5 years of monitoring is stable. 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: 2025-07-22 (Targeted Survey).
2 surveys on file · most recent 2025-07-22 (Targeted Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow Perch | 25.94 | 3–10 in 2025-07-22 | 0.08 lb |
| Golden Shiner | 18.21 | 3–5 in 2025-07-22 | 0.01 lb |
| Muskellunge | 2.36 | 22–28 in 2025-07-22 | 3.94 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.
Yellow Perch
Golden Shiner
Muskellunge
From the 2025-07-22 survey
A targeted survey of nearshore fish species in Shoepack Lake, which is located within Voyageurs National Park, was conducted on July 22 - July 24, 2025, by Lake Biological Monitoring and Assessment (LBMA) Program staff. Sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake, and each was sampled by backpack electrofishing,…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Shoepack Lake. 1 report on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — ShoepackFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
24 ft
Surface area
299 acres
Shoreline
7.2 mi
Littoral zone
84%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
8 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,191 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
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Stays near Shoepack Lake
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Top-rated places to stay near Shoepack Lake
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Shoepack Lake
Water Quality Trend: Stable
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2020–2024).
Water clarity
Improving5 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+3.55 µg/L/yr4 years
EPA Impairment Status
Shoepack 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.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MN69-0870-00 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in St. Louis County
Frequently asked questions about Shoepack Lake
Where is Shoepack Lake?
- Shoepack Lake is a lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Shoepack Lake?
- Shoepack Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 19.8 µg/L. Maximum depth: 24 ft. Surface area: 298.85 acres.
Is Shoepack Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Shoepack Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
What is the water temperature of Shoepack Lake?
- Shoepack Lake typically sits around 68°F at the surface in August, from 347 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2010–2024). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is Shoepack Lake?
- Shoepack Lake has a maximum depth of 24 feet. The lake covers 298.85 acres.
What fish are in Shoepack Lake?
- Fish species found in Shoepack Lake include muskellunge, white sucker, yellow perch. Shoepack Lake is located in St. Louis County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Shoepack Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on July 22, 2025 caught 0.30 muskellunge per fyke net at Shoepack Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 22–28 inches. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Shoepack Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 5 years of monitoring is stable. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Shoepack Lake?
- Public access to Shoepack 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.
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Where this data comes from
24 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- National Park Service Water Resources Division
11NPSWRD_WQX24 samples · 2020–2024
Analytical methods
- Secchi Disk
- Alkaline Persulfate Digestion for Total N and P in Water
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
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder