How far north do you have to get in Minnesota to find crystal clear water in the lakes? (Brainerd: live, cabins)

[Old retired folks]

I visited friends last week who lived in Central Minnesota on a lake. I was discouraged when I looked at the lake and found the water brown and ugly. I was always told the lakes in Minnesota were crystal clear and clean and you could see the bottom of the lake in 20 feet of water.

Maybe I did not go far enough north. Do I have to go near the Canadian border in Minnesota to see lakes that are crystal clear?

[Ghengis]

which lake?


Green Lake at Spicer (100 miles West of the TC) has/had a sign that said it was the 2nd "Purest" Lake in the world...so there's that.

[Glenfield]

Northern lakes are generally clearer. Minnesota Lake Clarity

[StilltheSame]

I heard Rainy lake is amazing. Cold as ice - but really clear.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainy_Lake

[Destiny74]

I think your definition of crystal clear may be the problem. You could not see the bottom of any lake 20 feet down, no matter how clear.. the there is no light that deep. And sorry, there are fish and there 'biproducts' floating around too..

[slamont61]

Not that there'd be any Iron content in any of the water...


Coloration and quality of the lake water is directly related to the source.

[Atalanta]

Lakes with more of a sandy bottom tend to be clear.

Mucky mud bottoms not clear.

I have seen clear and not clear lakes all over the state.

If you go to tbe Minnesota DNR site and seatch a specific lake or area they usually have good detail

[tlarnla]

My dad used to have a cabin on a lake near Brainerd that was "crystal clear". But there were only 4 cabins on the lake, and motorboats were rarely used.

Some lakes have restrictions on motorboats. They tend to have cleaner water. There are some lakes with motorboat bans all over the state, including in the southern part of the state. Motorboats dirty the water with their oil residue.

Dad said birds dirty the water too, so lakes that attract a lot of waterfowl are gonna have cloudier water from their feces.

[Lodestar]

Yes, I have seen a number of clear lakes near Brainerd. And I live about sixty-five miles from the southern border and swim every summer in a sand-bottomed, spring-fed lake. So going north isn't necessarily the issue.

[NatStu59]

Originally Posted by Old retired folks

I visited friends last week who lived in Central Minnesota on a lake. I was discouraged when I looked at the lake and found the water brown and ugly. I was always told the lakes in Minnesota were crystal clear and clean and you could see the bottom of the lake in 20 feet of water.

Maybe I did not go far enough north. Do I have to go near the Canadian border in Minnesota to see lakes that are crystal clear?

where were you? what Lake?