What is the best boating lake near Brainerd?

Gilbert Lake in Crow Wing County is the top-ranked boating lake near Brainerd, with a water quality grade of A (1.8 miles away).

How many lakes are near Brainerd for boating?

30 lakes within driving distance of Brainerd match the boating filters used on this page.

Best Lakes for Boating Near Brainerd, MN

30 boating lakes within driving distance of Brainerd, Minnesota, ranked by water quality and boating-specific filters. Filtered for at least 100 acres and public access. The largest lakes with boat-worthy water are listed first.

Brainerd sits in a lake-rich part of the upper Midwest: 30 graded lakes within reach, average grade A. Gilbert Lake (A) leads the cluster.

Filtered for boating, the nearby-lake list narrows further. boating-specific signals — fish species, public access, depth profile, motor-boat congestion — interact with the letter grade in different ways depending on the use case.

#	Lake	County	Grade	Distance	Clarity	Depth
1	Gilbert Lake	Crow Wing	A	1.8 mi	14.6 ft	45 ft
2	White Sand Lake	Crow Wing	A	4.3 mi	13 ft	27 ft
3	Red Sand Lake	Crow Wing	A	4.4 mi	9 ft	23 ft
4	Middle Whipple Lake	Crow Wing	A	5.1 mi	10 ft	28.7 ft
5	North Long Lake	Crow Wing	A	6.7 mi	15.1 ft	97 ft
6	Round Lake	Crow Wing	A	7.8 mi	13.5 ft	51 ft
7	Gladstone Lake	Crow Wing	A	8.3 mi	10.5 ft	36 ft
8	Hubert Lake	Crow Wing	A	9.1 mi	17.1 ft	83 ft
9	Gull Lake	Cass	A	9.2 mi	15 ft	80 ft
10	Sylvan Lake	Cass	A	9.6 mi	19.5 ft	-
11	Clark Lake	Crow Wing	A	11.1 mi	11 ft	31 ft
12	Edward Lake	Crow Wing	A	11.2 mi	15.5 ft	75 ft
13	Nisswa Lake	Crow Wing	A	12.2 mi	11.5 ft	23 ft
14	Ray Lake	Cass	A	12.8 mi	10.3 ft	27 ft
15	Bass Lake	Crow Wing	A	13 mi	13 ft	27 ft
16	Lougee Lake	Crow Wing	A	13.2 mi	16.1 ft	53 ft
17	Pillager Lake	Cass	A	13.2 mi	15.1 ft	39 ft
18	Upper Gull Lake	Cass	A	13.4 mi	9.5 ft	54 ft
19	Lower Cullen Lake	Crow Wing	A	13.4 mi	17.4 ft	39 ft
20	Edna Lake	Crow Wing	A	13.4 mi	18 ft	63 ft
21	Portage Lake	Crow Wing	A	13.5 mi	11.5 ft	37 ft
22	Clearwater Lake	Crow Wing	A	13.8 mi	13 ft	54 ft
23	Little Pelican Lake	Crow Wing	A	13.8 mi	17.2 ft	34 ft
24	Middle Cullen Lake	Crow Wing	A	13.8 mi	13.5 ft	48 ft
25	West Twin Lake	Crow Wing	A	14.3 mi	13.3 ft	42 ft
26	Crooked Lake	Crow Wing	A	14.4 mi	15 ft	54 ft
27	Pelican Lake	Crow Wing	A	14.5 mi	14.3 ft	104 ft
28	Upper Mission Lake	Crow Wing	A	14.5 mi	11 ft	36 ft
29	East Twin Lake	Crow Wing	A	14.5 mi	15 ft	45 ft
30	Upper Cullen Lake	Crow Wing	A	14.5 mi	8.7 ft	40 ft

Other activities near Brainerd

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Where to stay near Brainerd

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Top-rated places to stay near Brainerd

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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.