What is the best boating lake near Ely?

White Iron Lake in Lake County is the top-ranked boating lake near Ely on measured water quality (4.1 miles away).

How many lakes are near Ely for boating?

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

Best Lakes for Boating Near Ely, MN

30 boating lakes within driving distance of Ely, 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.

Ely sits in a lake-rich part of the upper Midwest: 30 measured lakes within reach. White Iron Lake carries the lowest nutrient and algae readings of 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 water-quality readings in different ways depending on the use case.

#	Lake	County	Distance	Clarity	Depth
1	White Iron Lake	Lake	4.1 mi	4.5 ft	47 ft
2	Garden Lake	Lake	6 mi	5 ft	55 ft
3	Burntside Lake	St. Louis	6 mi	16 ft	126 ft
4	Farm Lake	Lake	6.5 mi	5.5 ft	56 ft
5	Fenske Lake	St. Louis	6.5 mi	11.5 ft	43 ft
6	Fall Lake	Lake	6.7 mi	5.5 ft	32 ft
7	Bear Island Lake	St. Louis	10.2 mi	7 ft	62 ft
8	Bear Head Lake	St. Louis	12.9 mi	11 ft	46 ft
9	Big Lake	St. Louis	13.7 mi	8.2 ft	22 ft
10	August Lake	Lake	15.5 mi	4.7 ft	19 ft
11	Slate Lake	Lake	18.2 mi	4.4 ft	7 ft
12	Middle Mcdougal Lake	Lake	24.1 mi	3.6 ft	7 ft
13	Isabella Lake	Lake	27.5 mi	4.4 ft	19 ft
14	Colby Lake	St. Louis	29 mi	3 ft	30 ft
15	Sabin Lake	St. Louis	30.2 mi	2.1 ft	52 ft
16	Whitewater Lake	St. Louis	30.5 mi	14 ft	73 ft
17	Pine Lake	St. Louis	30.8 mi	7.5 ft	14 ft
18	Wynne Lake	St. Louis	30.9 mi	7.3 ft	52 ft
19	Dumbbell Lake	Lake	34.2 mi	14.8 ft	40 ft
20	Silver Island Lake	Lake	35.7 mi	4.4 ft	16 ft
21	Cadotte Lake	St. Louis	36.2 mi	10.2 ft	18 ft
22	Windy Lake	Lake	38.7 mi	5.5 ft	39 ft
23	Wilson Lake	Lake	40 mi	10.7 ft	53 ft
24	Ninemile Lake	Lake	42.9 mi	6.6 ft	40 ft
25	Ely Lake	St. Louis	43 mi	17.1 ft	70 ft
26	Pleasant Lake	St. Louis	45.2 mi	10 ft	33 ft
27	Sea Gull Lake	Cook	47.5 mi	14.3 ft	40 ft
28	Round Lake	Cook	49.1 mi	16.5 ft	45 ft
29	Stewart Lake	Lake	49.8 mi	10 ft	20 ft
30	Eagles Nest Lake	St. Louis	12 mi	15.5 ft	49 ft

Other activities near Ely

Swimming near Ely →Fishing near Ely →Kayaking near Ely →All lakes near Ely →

Where to stay near Ely

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

Top-rated places to stay near Ely

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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.