Variety Lake

On the LakeGrade scale Variety Lake grades a B, with clarity at 10.5 ft and phosphorus readings still being added placing it above the Minnesota median. The three sub-grades — clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a — track close together, so no single parameter is dragging the average.

The lake sits in the mesotrophic zone — the band where most well-managed Minnesota lakes fall. Variety Lake reaches 29 ft at its deepest point — typical for Minnesota mid-sized lakes, with seasonal stratification but limited cold-water refuge. At 160 acres, Variety Lake fits the Minnesota median for monitored lakes, with 2.7 miles of shoreline. Within Cass County's 133 graded lakes, Variety Lake ranks 97 — below the local median, though not at the bottom.

No invasive species are currently listed at Variety Lake — the lake remains off the Minnesota infested-waters roster. The state fisheries records do not list documented species for Variety Lake, which usually reflects a lack of formal fisheries survey work rather than an empty lake. The lake lacks a documented public access point, so visitor use is limited. 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.