Best Lakes for Kayaking Near St. Cloud
Minnesota
30 kayaking lakes within driving distance of St. Cloud, Minnesota, 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).
Within reasonable driving distance of St. Cloud 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.
The kayaking-specific ranking layered on top of the letter grade 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 | Crooked Lake | Stearns | A | 12.1 mi | 15.5 ft | 35 ft |
| 2 | Nixon Lake | Wright | A | 14.9 mi | 13.1 ft | 67 ft |
| 3 | Big Spunk Lake | Stearns | A | 15 mi | 10 ft | 38 ft |
| 4 | Big Fish Lake | Stearns | A | 15 mi | 20 ft | 70 ft |
| 5 | Bass Lake | Wright | A | 16.8 mi | 13.5 ft | 34 ft |
| 6 | School Section Lake | Stearns | A | 16.9 mi | 9.8 ft | 14 ft |
| 7 | Sugar Lake | Wright | A | 17.9 mi | 16.5 ft | 69 ft |
| 8 | Pleasant Lake | Wright | A | 19.8 mi | 11.5 ft | 74 ft |
| 9 | Cedar Lake | Wright | A | 20.5 mi | 14.3 ft | 108 ft |
| 10 | Ida Lake | Wright | A | 21.9 mi | 13.1 ft | 60 ft |
| 11 | West Sylvia Lake | Wright | A | 22 mi | 22 ft | 97 ft |
| 12 | Birch Lake | Wright | A | 22.9 mi | 15 ft | 52 ft |
| 13 | Moose Lake | Wright | A | 23.7 mi | 14.4 ft | 43 ft |
| 14 | Upper Maple Lake | Wright | A | 24.7 mi | 17.2 ft | 76 ft |
| 15 | Ann Lake | Sherburne | A | 24.9 mi | 11.5 ft | 26 ft |
| 16 | Big Lake | Sherburne | A | 25 mi | 13.6 ft | 48 ft |
| 17 | Pierz Lake | Morrison | A | 27.8 mi | 9.5 ft | 34 ft |
| 18 | Cedar Lake | Morrison | A | 28.6 mi | 16.2 ft | 88 ft |
| 19 | Pine Lake | Morrison | A | 29.2 mi | 15.1 ft | 59 ft |
| 20 | Sandy Lake | Sherburne | A | 31.6 mi | 14 ft | 41 ft |
| 21 | West Hunter Lake | Sherburne | A | 32.4 mi | 10.2 ft | 6 ft |
| 22 | Little Birch Lake | Todd | A | 34.1 mi | 13 ft | 89 ft |
| 23 | Charlotte Lake | Wright | A | 34.9 mi | 17.1 ft | 46 ft |
| 24 | East Twin Lake | Anoka | A | 35.7 mi | 10.7 ft | 68 ft |
| 25 | Spectacle Lake | Isanti | A | 36.7 mi | 13.8 ft | 51.5 ft |
| 26 | Long Lake | Kandiyohi | A | 37.7 mi | 10.5 ft | 46 ft |
| 27 | John Lake | Wright | B | 20.6 mi | 8 ft | 28 ft |
| 28 | Warner Lake | Stearns | C | 10.8 mi | 6 ft | 38 ft |
| 29 | Grand Lake | Stearns | C | 12.1 mi | 8 ft | 34 ft |
| 30 | Pearl Lake | Stearns | C | 13.2 mi | 3.9 ft | 17 ft |
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.