What is the best kayaking lake near Alexandria?

Cowdry Lake in Douglas County is the top-ranked kayaking lake near Alexandria on measured water quality (2.2 miles away).

How many lakes are near Alexandria for kayaking?

30 lakes within driving distance of Alexandria match the kayaking filters used on this page.

Best Lakes for Kayaking Near Alexandria, MN

30 kayaking lakes within driving distance of Alexandria, Minnesota, ranked by water quality and kayaking-specific filters. Filtered for favourable clarity and algae readings, public access, and ideal paddling size (30-3,000 acres).

Within reasonable driving distance of Alexandria sit 30 measured lakes, a lake-dense area that gives residents real choice on any given weekend.

The kayaking-specific ranking layered on top of the readings is what produces the list below: a lake with clean readings that does not also support the kayaking use case is less useful than a decent one that does.

#	Lake	County	Distance	Clarity	Depth
1	Cowdry Lake	Douglas	2.2 mi	17.1 ft	52 ft
2	Geneva Lake	Douglas	2.6 mi	14.1 ft	63 ft
3	Lottie Lake	Douglas	2.6 mi	16.1 ft	31 ft
4	Latoka Lake	Douglas	2.9 mi	19 ft	108 ft
5	Burgen Lake	Douglas	3.3 mi	12 ft	43 ft
6	Brophy Lake	Douglas	3.5 mi	15.4 ft	44 ft
7	Louise Lake	Douglas	3.5 mi	14.5 ft	33 ft
8	Le Homme Dieu Lake	Douglas	3.6 mi	13.1 ft	85 ft
9	Andrew Lake	Douglas	4.8 mi	13.9 ft	83 ft
10	Carlos Lake	Douglas	5.3 mi	18 ft	163 ft
11	Lobster Lake	Douglas	7.1 mi	13 ft	65 ft
12	Mary Lake	Douglas	7.1 mi	10.5 ft	40 ft
13	Maple Lake	Douglas	7.5 mi	14.1 ft	78 ft
14	Crooked Lake	Douglas	8.9 mi	14 ft	35 ft
15	Blackwell Lake	Douglas	9.4 mi	11.5 ft	42 ft
16	Rachel Lake	Douglas	10.1 mi	7.9 ft	65 ft
17	Chippewa Lake	Douglas	10.8 mi	14.8 ft	95 ft
18	Moon Lake	Douglas	11.2 mi	21 ft	38 ft
19	Vermont Lake	Douglas	13.8 mi	14.1 ft	59 ft
20	Eagle Lake	Otter Tail	24.8 mi	22.6 ft	46 ft
21	Signalness Lake	Pope	24.8 mi	10.7 ft	14 ft
22	Crane Lake	Otter Tail	26.5 mi	9 ft	43 ft
23	Linka Lake	Pope	27.2 mi	10.2 ft	50 ft
24	Little Birch Lake	Todd	28.9 mi	13 ft	89 ft
25	Stuart Lake	Otter Tail	28.9 mi	17.5 ft	49 ft
26	Long Lake	Otter Tail	29.1 mi	12.1 ft	88 ft
27	Clitherall Lake	Otter Tail	29.3 mi	14.1 ft	69 ft
28	East Battle Lake	Otter Tail	29.7 mi	13.1 ft	87 ft
29	Scandinavian Lake	Pope	30.1 mi	8 ft	49 ft
30	Elbow Lake	Otter Tail	33.3 mi	18 ft	46 ft

Other activities near Alexandria

Swimming near Alexandria →Fishing near Alexandria →Boating near Alexandria →All lakes near Alexandria →

Where to stay near Alexandria

Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Alexandria — book a place close to the best-rated lakes in the area.

Top-rated places to stay near Alexandria

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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.