What is the best kayaking lake near Willmar?

Eagle Lake in Kandiyohi County is the top-ranked kayaking lake near Willmar on measured water quality (5 miles away).

How many lakes are near Willmar for kayaking?

30 lakes within driving distance of Willmar match the kayaking filters used on this page.

Best Lakes for Kayaking Near Willmar, MN

30 kayaking lakes within driving distance of Willmar, Minnesota, ranked by water quality and kayaking-specific filters. Filtered for favourable clarity and algae readings, public access, and ideal paddling size (30-3,000 acres).

Willmar sits in a lake-rich part of the upper Midwest: 30 measured lakes within reach. Eagle Lake carries the lowest nutrient and algae readings of the cluster.

The kayaking-specific ranking layered on top of the readings is what produces the list below: a lake with clean readings that does not also support the kayaking use case is less useful than a decent one that does.

#	Lake	County	Distance	Clarity	Depth
1	Eagle Lake	Kandiyohi	5 mi	6.9 ft	67 ft
2	Elkhorn Lake	Kandiyohi	7.8 mi	14 ft	41 ft
3	Henderson Lake	Kandiyohi	7.9 mi	13.5 ft	57 ft
4	George Lake	Kandiyohi	8.9 mi	15 ft	34 ft
5	Florida Lake	Kandiyohi	9.1 mi	12.3 ft	40 ft
6	Crow R Mill Pond	Kandiyohi	13.4 mi	7 ft	14 ft
7	Long Lake	Kandiyohi	16.6 mi	10.5 ft	46 ft
8	Minnie-Belle Lake	Meeker	25.9 mi	14.4 ft	49 ft
9	Scandinavian Lake	Pope	27.1 mi	8 ft	49 ft
10	Linka Lake	Pope	30 mi	10.2 ft	50 ft
11	Signalness Lake	Pope	37.1 mi	10.7 ft	14 ft
12	Big Fish Lake	Stearns	38.9 mi	20 ft	70 ft
13	Moose Lake	Wright	40 mi	14.4 ft	43 ft
14	School Section Lake	Stearns	40 mi	9.8 ft	14 ft
15	Big Kandiyohi Lake	Kandiyohi	10.2 mi	5.2 ft	18 ft
16	Nest Lake	Kandiyohi	10.3 mi	7 ft	40 ft
17	Carrie Lake	Kandiyohi	12.8 mi	4.5 ft	26 ft
18	Middle Lake	Kandiyohi	13.1 mi	5.4 ft	11 ft
19	Calhoun Lake	Kandiyohi	14.6 mi	6.9 ft	13 ft
20	Games Lake	Kandiyohi	14.8 mi	5.2 ft	42 ft
21	Koronis Lake	Stearns	22.3 mi	6 ft	132 ft
22	Ripley Lake	Meeker	24.8 mi	4.6 ft	18 ft
23	Johanna Lake	Pope	26.1 mi	5.1 ft	10 ft
24	Big Lake	Stearns	31.1 mi	6.9 ft	42 ft
25	Erie Lake	Meeker	31.3 mi	-	34 ft
26	Little Mud Lake	Meeker	31.7 mi	5.9 ft	42 ft
27	Allie Lake	Renville	32.5 mi	3 ft	12 ft
28	Washington Lake	Meeker	32.8 mi	4.5 ft	17 ft
29	Grove Lake	Pope	33.9 mi	5.1 ft	31 ft
30	Long Lake	Meeker	36.3 mi	7.5 ft	28 ft

Other activities near Willmar

Swimming near Willmar →Fishing near Willmar →Boating near Willmar →All lakes near Willmar →

Where to stay near Willmar

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Top-rated places to stay near Willmar

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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.