Forest Lake is the largest lake in Washington County with a surface area of 2,220 acres and a maximum depth of 37 feet. Over 8,160 acres of land and water drain into Forest Lake including Clear Lake, Twin Lake, Elwell Lake and Cranberry Lake. Due to its shape, Forest Lake can be identified as having three basins: west (Lake 1), center (Lake 2) and east (Lake 3). It is highly used for recreation and has three sites for public access. Forest Lake accepts stormwater discharge through a large number of storm sewer outfalls around the lake. The lake is on the State’s Impaired Waters List with impairments to consumption as a result of mercury and PCBs in fish tissue. The water quality of Forest Lake is fair with lake grades ranging from B- to C+ depending on the basin. In recent studies, Forest Lake was identified as having the healthiest fish community of all lakes in the District with relatively low abundance of rough fish and a healthy presence of top predator and panfish groups. The lake has a diverse plant community with desirable plant species common despite the presence of invasive species such as curly leaf pondweed, Eurasian watermilfoil, and flowering rush.

The Comfort Lake-Forest Lake Watershed District (CLFLWD) has been awarded two Clean Water Fund grants totaling $625,500 in fiscal year 2022 for projects to improve water quality in Forest Lake and Moody Lake. Learn More

 

Forest Lake studies and reports can be found here.