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.

A TSI near 43 places Variety Lake in the mesotrophic band — moderate productivity, with seasonal swings between clearer spring water and richer late-summer conditions. A maximum depth of 29 ft puts Variety Lake in the middle of Minnesota's depth distribution. Variety Lake covers 160 acres alongside 2.7 miles of shoreline — a mid-sized water that supports a working fishery without being so large that conditions diverge between basins. Within Cass County's 132 graded lakes, Variety Lake ranks 95 — below the local median, though not at the bottom.

Variety Lake has no invasive species recorded in Minnesota state databases as of 2024, though prevention practices still apply at all access points. 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. No formal public access is documented at Variety 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.