Star Lake

Star Lake earns an A — water clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate among the best monitored waters in Crow Wing County. The three sub-grades — clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a — track close together, so no single parameter is dragging the average.

The lake's low TSI puts it in oligotrophic territory — the cleanest of the four trophic classes, but also the most vulnerable to nutrient-driven shifts. Star Lake is unusually deep for Minnesota at 83 ft, which buffers the lake against summer warming and helps the deep water stay oxygenated. The lake's 127 acres and 3.4 miles of shoreline put it in the mid-range bucket — large enough for varied use, small enough that watershed inputs reach the whole basin. Star Lake ranks 9 of 120 in Crow Wing County, putting it in the upper tier of locally monitored lakes.

Star Lake has no invasive species recorded in Minnesota state databases as of 2024, though prevention practices still apply at all access points. Walleye are documented at Star Lake, one of 12 fish species on record for the lake. No formal public access is documented at Star Lake — most use is by shoreline residents and their guests. The grade is based on limited monitoring — fewer than three independent measurement years contribute, so future updates may shift the letter.