Best Lakes for Boating Near Fargo
North Dakota
30 boating lakes within driving distance of Fargo, North Dakota, 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.
Within reasonable driving distance of Fargo sit 30 graded lakes — a lake-dense area that gives residents real choice on any given weekend. The average grade across the nearby set is A.
Filtered for boating, the nearby-lake list narrows further. boating-specific signals — fish species, public access, depth profile, motor-boat congestion — interact with the LakeGrade rubric in different ways depending on the use case.
| # | Lake | County | Grade | Distance | Clarity | Depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Turtle Lake | Becker | A | 29.9 mi | 23 ft | 73 ft |
| 2 | Middle Cormorant Lake | Becker | A | 33.1 mi | 15.1 ft | 40 ft |
| 3 | Ida Lake | Becker | A | 34.4 mi | 12.1 ft | 20 ft |
| 4 | Big Cormorant Lake | Becker | A | 35.7 mi | 24.8 ft | 75 ft |
| 5 | Pelican Lake | Otter Tail | A | 38.3 mi | 16.4 ft | 55 ft |
| 6 | Maud Lake | Becker | A | 39.1 mi | 17 ft | 32 ft |
| 7 | Lizzie Lake | Otter Tail | A | 39.9 mi | 16.4 ft | 66 ft |
| 8 | Eunice Lake | Becker | A | 40.1 mi | 13.5 ft | 30 ft |
| 9 | Pearl Lake | Becker | A | 40.8 mi | 10 ft | 54 ft |
| 10 | Little Pelican Lake | Otter Tail | A | 41.2 mi | 11.5 ft | 25 ft |
| 11 | Franklin Lake | Otter Tail | A | 41.5 mi | 13.1 ft | 48 ft |
| 12 | Long Lake | Becker | A | 42.7 mi | 19.5 ft | 61 ft |
| 13 | Sallie Lake | Becker | A | 43.1 mi | 13 ft | 50 ft |
| 14 | Mill Lake | Becker | A | 43.2 mi | 8.5 ft | 10 ft |
| 15 | Melissa Lake | Becker | A | 43.3 mi | 13.1 ft | 37 ft |
| 16 | Tamarac Lake | Becker | A | 43.3 mi | 6.9 ft | 34 ft |
| 17 | Mud Lake | Becker | A | 43.9 mi | 12.5 ft | 34 ft |
| 18 | Floyd Lake | Becker | A | 44.5 mi | 13.1 ft | 34 ft |
| 19 | Lida Lake | Otter Tail | A | 44.6 mi | 14 ft | 58 ft |
| 20 | Glawe Lake | Becker | A | 44.8 mi | 10.8 ft | 24 ft |
| 21 | Little Floyd Lake | Becker | A | 45.2 mi | 11 ft | 34 ft |
| 22 | Detroit Lake | Becker | A | 45.3 mi | 14 ft | 89 ft |
| 23 | Trowbridge Lake | Otter Tail | A | 46.4 mi | 13.5 ft | 76 ft |
| 24 | Long Lake | Otter Tail | A | 46.6 mi | 11.6 ft | 73 ft |
| 25 | Jewett Lake | Otter Tail | A | 47.7 mi | 17.7 ft | 75 ft |
| 26 | West Silent Lake | Otter Tail | A | 48.6 mi | 18 ft | 58 ft |
| 27 | East Loon Lake | Otter Tail | A | 48.8 mi | 13.5 ft | 105 ft |
| 28 | Big Sugar Bush Lake | Becker | A | 49.2 mi | 16.5 ft | 42 ft |
| 29 | Six Lake | Otter Tail | A | 49.2 mi | 21 ft | 140 ft |
| 30 | Scalp Lake | Otter Tail | A | 49.6 mi | 20 ft | 90 ft |
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.