South Mcdougal Lake

South Mcdougal Lake sits at a C on the grading scale — not impaired, not pristine, with summer measurements that vary year to year. Clarity is the limiting factor — phosphorus is reasonable but suspended particles or algal cells keep water transparency below Minnesota norms.

At a TSI of 60, South Mcdougal Lake reads as eutrophic — nutrient-rich enough that summer algal growth and reduced clarity are expected, not unusual. A maximum depth of just 7 ft means sediment-bound phosphorus releases back into the water column whenever wind stirs the bottom — a classic shallow-lake dynamic. South Mcdougal Lake covers 287 acres alongside 5.8 miles of shoreline — a mid-sized water that supports a working fishery without being so large that conditions diverge between basins. South Mcdougal Lake ranks 135 of 159 in Lake County — at the lower end of the locally monitored distribution.

No invasive species are currently listed at South Mcdougal Lake — the lake remains off the Minnesota infested-waters roster. Walleye are documented at South Mcdougal Lake, one of 6 fish species on record for the lake. No formal public access is documented at South Mcdougal Lake — most use is by shoreline residents and their guests. 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.