Best Lakes for Kayaking Near Minocqua
Wisconsin
30 kayaking lakes within driving distance of Minocqua, Wisconsin, ranked by water quality and kayaking-specific filters. Filtered for grade A, B, or C water quality, public access, and ideal paddling size (30-3,000 acres).
Minocqua sits in a lake-rich part of the upper Midwest: 30 graded lakes within reach, average grade A. Bolger Lake (A) leads the cluster.
The kayaking-specific ranking layered on top of the LakeGrade rubric is what produces the list below: a grade-good lake that does not also support the kayaking use case is less useful than a grade-decent lake that does.
| # | Lake | County | Grade | Distance | Clarity | Depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bolger Lake | Oneida | A | 2 mi | 14.9 ft | 45 ft |
| 2 | Hemlock Lake | Oneida | A | 3 mi | 15 ft | 25 ft |
| 3 | Blue Lake | Oneida | A | 3 mi | 23 ft | 49 ft |
| 4 | Clear Lake | Oneida | A | 4.7 mi | - | 95 ft |
| 5 | Mercer Lake | Oneida | A | 4.7 mi | - | 23 ft |
| 6 | Bird Lake | Oneida | A | 5.6 mi | 17 ft | 40 ft |
| 7 | Upper Kaubashine Lake | Oneida | A | 5.7 mi | 19 ft | 56 ft |
| 8 | Lee Lake | Oneida | A | 5.9 mi | 22.5 ft | 44 ft |
| 9 | Little Spider Lake | Vilas | A | 6.9 mi | 16 ft | 23 ft |
| 10 | Hasbrook Lake | Oneida | A | 6.9 mi | 21 ft | 50 ft |
| 11 | Buffalo Lake | Oneida | A | 7 mi | 15 ft | 27 ft |
| 12 | Franklin Lake | Oneida | A | 7.1 mi | 16.2 ft | 25 ft |
| 13 | Dorothy Lake | Oneida | A | 7.1 mi | 17 ft | 35 ft |
| 14 | Plummer Lake | Vilas | A | 7.4 mi | 18 ft | 85 ft |
| 15 | Roach Lake | Vilas | A | 7.6 mi | 24 ft | 48 ft |
| 16 | Hodstradt Lake | Oneida | A | 8.4 mi | 17.8 ft | 36 ft |
| 17 | Wind Pudding Lake | Oneida | A | 8.7 mi | 19.5 ft | 35 ft |
| 18 | Big Crawling Stone Deep Lake | Vilas | A | 9.7 mi | 17 ft | 87 ft |
| 19 | Crawling Stone Lake | Vilas | A | 9.7 mi | 16 ft | 87 ft |
| 20 | Little Crawling Stone Lake | Vilas | A | 9.7 mi | 15 ft | 44 ft |
| 21 | White Sand Lake Deep | Vilas | A | 10.3 mi | 18 ft | 63 ft |
| 22 | Moss Lake East | Vilas | A | 10.3 mi | - | 29 ft |
| 23 | Mosslake_deep | Vilas | A | 10.8 mi | - | 29 ft |
| 24 | Long Interlaken Lake Deep | Vilas | A | 11 mi | 15 ft | 65 ft |
| 25 | White Sand Lake | Vilas | A | 11.5 mi | 16 ft | 63 ft |
| 26 | Pokegama Lake | Vilas | A | 12 mi | - | 65 ft |
| 27 | Flambeau Lake | Vilas | A | 12.1 mi | - | 78 ft |
| 28 | Alva Lake | Oneida | A | 12.5 mi | 19.5 ft | 43 ft |
| 29 | Day Lake | Vilas | A | 13.3 mi | - | 57 ft |
| 30 | Upper Sugarbush Lake Deep | Vilas | A | 13.6 mi | 15 ft | 29 ft |
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.