Minnesota is the land of all the lakes so it isn't surprising that one of them just landed on a list of the cleanest in the country. The odds were pretty much in our favor here but we still won't complain. The only surprising part here is that it probably isn't what lake you think it is!

A-Z Animals named the top ten cleanest lakes in the United States and a Minnesota lake made the cut, coming in at number ten. However, Lake Superior it is not. Instead, Deer Lake made the list, which is less than two hours from the Twin Ports.

This may seem a bit random and you may not have even heard about Deer Lake. It is just a few miles from the town of Grand Rapids, surrounded by Bass Lake and Moose Lake. What separates Deer Lake from the rest? According to this study, it is fed water by springs under the ground and by rainwater, making it extremely clean.

Another awesome thing about Deer Lake is that its water turns a bright shade of blue and green during the summer, especially when it is really hot outside. This is why its nickname is the Lake Of Changing Colors, with minerals that help it turn a different shade come summertime.

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Deer Lake is about four-thousand acres, with five miles of shoreline to soak in the changing water. It is about a mile-and-a-half wide. While it isn't the biggest lake in Minnesota, it definitely has some amazing features that set it apart. The fact that it is one of the cleanest lakes in the country and the cleanest in Minnesota is just one of those features.

As for the cleanest lake in the country, that can be found in New York. Lake George has earned the title of the cleanest lake in the U.S., followed by Crater Lake in Oregon and our neighbors surrounding Lake Michigan.

Other clean lakes can be found in the following states:

  • Idaho
  • Nevada
  • Washington
  • Colorado
  • Montana
  • New Hampshire

I am surprised only one Minnesota lake made the cut. I guess with a lake as large as Lake Superior, it can be hard to be named one of the cleanest because there is so much ground to cover. All I know is that I am adding Deer Lake to my summer bucket list.

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