Vera Lake
Lake County, Minnesota250 acresView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Vera Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- 55 ft max depth
- Limited data
Vera Lake in Lake County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 18 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 55 ft. Surface area: 250.39 acres.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on June 8, 2015 caught 5.50 walleye per gill net at Vera Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 9–24 inches. DNR survey details →
Vera Lake is a 250-acre lake in Lake County, Minnesota with a maximum depth of 55 feet. Limited fish-species data available. No public access — the lake is private or restricted.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-08-25. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Vera Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water18 ft of visibility
- Deep water55 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Vera Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Vera 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 Vera Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Vera Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Crystal clear, you can see 18 ft down. TSI 35.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 18ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading The green pigment in algae — a direct measure of how much algae is in the water. | |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 35 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about Vera Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on June 8, 2015 caught 5.50 walleye per gill net at Vera Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 9–24 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Vera Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is stable. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
7 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2025-08-19 (Targeted Survey).
7 surveys on file · most recent 2025-08-19 (Targeted Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tullibee (Cisco) | 15.79 | 7 in 1995-06-26 | 0.18 lb |
| Yellow Perch | 15.01 | 6–11 in 1995-06-26 | 0.17 lb |
| White Sucker | 12.43 | 7–22 in 2015-06-08 | 2.1 lb |
| Walleye | 8.45 | 9–24 in 2015-06-08 | 1.29 lb |
| Largemouth Bass | 2.42 | 0.77 lb | |
| Green Sunfish | 0.65 | 0.1 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.
Tullibee (Cisco)
Yellow Perch
White Sucker
Walleye
From the 2025-08-19 survey
Temperature and dissolved oxygen (DO) measurements were collected from the deepest basin in Vera Lake on August 19th, 2025, to evaluate the quantity and quality of cold, oxygenated water (i.e., oxythermal habitat) available to Cisco, also known as Tullibee, the most sensitive coldwater species present in this lake.…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Vera Lake. 1 report on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — VeraFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
Lake Details
Max depth
55 ft
Surface area
250 acres
Shoreline
6.2 mi
Littoral zone
34%
Share shallower than 15 ft
Public access
No
Listed by Minnesota PCA
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
1 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,391 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Vera Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Vera Lake in Lake 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.
Top-rated places to stay near Vera Lake
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Follow Vera Lake’s readings
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Fishing Vera Lake
Water Quality Trend: Stable
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Stable6 years
EPA Impairment Status
Vera Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Fish consumption.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MN38-0491-00 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Lake County
Frequently asked questions about Vera Lake
Where is Vera Lake?
- Vera Lake is a lake in Lake County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Vera Lake?
- Vera Lake in Lake County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 18 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 55 ft. Surface area: 250.39 acres.
Is Vera Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Vera Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Vera Lake?
- Vera Lake has a maximum depth of 55 feet. The lake covers 250.39 acres.
What did the DNR fisheries survey find at Vera Lake?
- Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on June 8, 2015 caught 5.50 walleye per gill net at Vera Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 9–24 inches. A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Vera Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is stable. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Can I fish at Vera Lake?
- Public access to Vera 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 Vera Lake across LakeQuality
Depth, room, public access, and the state wake-sport rules
Fish species and the cleanest lakes across Minnesota
Fish species and best lakes in Lake County
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
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Lakes in the Lake Superior Basin (MN+WI), ranked by water quality
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Where this data comes from
20 measurements from 10 monitoring stations, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA20 samples · 2020–2025
Analytical methods
- Field measurement/observation, generic method
Monitoring station identifiers (10)
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
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Lake details from Minnesota DNR LakeFinder