Upper Tad Lake
Kandiyohi County, Minnesota39 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Upper Tad Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Hypereutrophic
- 8 ft max depth
Upper Tad Lake in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 539.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 84.1 µg/L. Maximum depth: 8 ft. Surface area: 39.05 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on April 22, 2025 caught 0.50 walleye per trap net at Upper Tad Lake. DNR survey details →
Upper Tad Lake is a 39-acre highly nutrient-loaded hypereutrophic lake in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 8 feet. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. The lake supports 10 documented fish species including black bullhead, black crappie, and bluegill. No public access — the lake is private or restricted. Compared to the 24 other monitored lakes in Kandiyohi County, Upper Tad Lake ranks #24 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-09-24. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Upper Tad Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Fishing10 species recorded
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyAlgae risk
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. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Upper Tad 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 Upper Tad Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Upper Tad Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Very murky, less than 2.5 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 539.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 84.1 µg/L. TSI 78.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 2.5ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 540µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 84.1µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 78 | Hypereutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Very high nutrients, dense algae, poor clarity
Ask about Upper Tad Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Water Temperature
Upper Tad Lake typically sits around 72°F at the surface in September. Summer average is about 76°F. Usually warmest in Jul (about 79°F) and coldest in May (about 65°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Column height runs from this lake’s coldest month (65°F) to its warmest (79°F).
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 10 field readings (2024–2025) via the EPA Water Quality Portal.
Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on April 22, 2025 caught 0.50 walleye per trap net at Upper Tad Lake.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Upper Tad Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 2 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
9 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2025-04-22 (Targeted Survey).
9 surveys on file · most recent 2025-04-22 (Targeted Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Largemouth Bass | 67.55 | 2–13 in 2006-07-05 | 0.43 lb |
| Black Crappie | 61.72 | 2–11 in 2025-04-22 | 0.28 lb |
| Black Bullhead | 58.62 | 4–11 in 2025-04-22 | 0.22 lb |
| Bluegill | 18.68 | 2–7 in 2025-04-22 | 0.17 lb |
| Common Carp | 12.52 | 5–6 in 2014-09-09 | 2.97 lb |
| Yellow Perch | 11.99 | 4–9 in 2025-04-22 | 0.25 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.
Largemouth Bass
Black Crappie
Black Bullhead
Bluegill
From the 2025-04-22 survey
A targeted survey of Tadd & Upper was conducted with standard survey trapnets during late-April and single frame 1/2-inch mesh trapnets in mid-September of 2025. A targeted survey is generally used for sampling a specific kind of fish or time of year (i.e., spawning season, fall season, etc.) unlike a standard survey…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Upper Tad Lake. 2 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — UnnamedFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Fish Stocking History — UnnamedFish Stocking History · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
8 ft
Surface area
39 acres
Shoreline
1.7 mi
Littoral zone
100%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Upper Tad Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Upper Tad Lake in Kandiyohi 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. The water-quality readings cover nutrients and algae, not lodging. Cabins and rentals around Upper Tad Lake are listed below.
Top-rated places to stay near Upper Tad Lake
Prices for Oct 9–11, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Upper Tad Lake
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2024–2025). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Improving2 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+159 µg/L/yr2 years
Chlorophyll-a
Improving-29.3 µg/L/yr2 years
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
1 EPA-permitted facility operate within about 5 miles of Upper Tad Lake under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits.
- Bushmills EthanolAtwater · 0.8 mi away · NPDES MN0067211
Facilities permitted to discharge under the Clean Water Act within ~5 miles; proximity does not by itself mean a facility affects this lake. Source: EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES), as of 2026-07.
Nearby Lakes in Kandiyohi County
Frequently asked questions about Upper Tad Lake
Where is Upper Tad Lake?
- Upper Tad Lake is a lake in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Upper Tad Lake?
- Upper Tad Lake in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 539.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 84.1 µg/L. Maximum depth: 8 ft. Surface area: 39.05 acres.
Is Upper Tad Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
What is the water temperature of Upper Tad Lake?
- Upper Tad Lake typically sits around 72°F at the surface in September, from 10 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2024–2025). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is Upper Tad Lake?
- Upper Tad Lake has a maximum depth of 8 feet. The lake covers 39.05 acres.
What fish are in Upper Tad Lake?
- Fish species found in Upper Tad Lake include black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, northern pike, pumpkinseed, walleye, yellow perch. Upper Tad Lake is located in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Upper Tad Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Targeted Survey on April 22, 2025 caught 0.50 walleye per trap net at Upper Tad Lake. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Upper Tad Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 2 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Upper Tad Lake?
- Public access to Upper Tad 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 Upper Tad Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
29 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2024–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA29 samples · 2024–2025
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
- Phosphorus by Two Reagent Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
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
Regulated discharger data from EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES)
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder