Living on Cross Lake: The Lake at the Heart of Crosslake
What daily life looks like on Cross Lake, from the water and the shoreline to the channels, the dam and the town at your door.
Some lakes feel like a retreat from town. Cross Lake is a little different. The town of Crosslake sits right on it, and the lake carries its name. Living here means you can have coffee on the dock in the morning and be in town for groceries, errands or dinner a few minutes later.
That closeness is the first thing most owners talk about. The second is how much water opens up from the end of the dock.
The lake by the numbers
The DNR lists Cross Lake as Cross Lake Reservoir: 1,815 acres, 84 feet at its deepest point, 21.85 miles of shoreline and water clarity around 16.5 feet. About 47 percent of the lake is 15 feet deep or less. The DNR describes the lake as roughly five miles long from north to south and about a mile wide on average, with the southern third mostly shallow.
The water is mesotrophic and hard, which in plain terms means moderate nutrients and relatively clear water. In the DNR's 2010 plant survey, plants grew as deep as 21 feet.
Curious what your Cross Lake home might be worth? Ask for a private valuation. Shopping instead? Start on the buyer's page.
Shoreline character
The DNR describes Cross Lake's shoals as mostly hard bottom: sand, gravel and rubble. Softer silt and muck settle in the shallow, protected bays. For a homeowner, that difference shows up at the end of the dock. A lot on an exposed point may have firm sand underfoot. A lot in a quiet bay may have softer bottom and more plants, often with calmer water.
The DNR's sensitive lakeshore report calls Cross Lake highly developed, with relatively few beds of emergent or floating-leaf plants. Most of the shoreline is privately owned residential property. Expect neighbors, docks and boat lifts along much of the shore, with a livelier summer rhythm than on the smaller, quieter lakes of the chain.
The dam that made the chain
Cross Lake is where the Whitefish Chain begins its trip downstream. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began the Pine River Dam at the lake's outlet in 1884, and it was operating by 1886. Raising the water connected Cross Lake with the Whitefish lakes and other natural lakes through channels, creating the Pine River Reservoir, about 13,660 acres of water with 119 miles of shoreline.
The dam is still part of daily life. The Corps' Cross Lake Recreation Area sits beside it with a campground, a boat ramp, two beaches and two accessible fishing piers on Cross Lake and the Pine River, according to Recreation.gov. Below the dam, the DNR notes, the Pine River is generally runnable for paddlers throughout the summer.
Boating routes
From Cross Lake you can reach much of the chain by water. Channels lead to Daggett Lake, the gateway to Little Pine, and to Rush-Hen Lake, which in turn connects to Lower Whitefish. A day on the water can mean a slow cruise through channels, a swim stop on a sand flat and dinner by boat.
Channels are narrow and busy on summer weekends, so plan for slower travel through them. And like every lake on the chain, Cross Lake is designated as infested with zebra mussels; the DNR confirmed them here in 2013. That means checking lifts and docks when they come out in fall.
Quiet or busy?
Both, depending on where you sit and when. Open water near town and the main routes sees steady summer traffic. Protected bays tend to be calmer. Weekdays after Labor Day are some of the stillest days of the year. If quiet matters to you, spend time on a lot at different hours and days before you decide.
Questions
How deep and clear is Cross Lake?
Cross Lake reaches 84 feet at its deepest, about 47 percent of it is 15 feet or less, and its water clarity runs around 16.5 feet.
Can you boat from Cross Lake to other lakes?
Yes. Channels connect Cross Lake to Daggett Lake and to Rush-Hen Lake, and from there to Little Pine and the Whitefish lakes.
How far is town from Cross Lake?
Very close. The city of Crosslake sits on the lake, so groceries, dining and services are a short drive or, for some homes, a short boat ride.
Keep exploring
See the buyer's guide for Cross Lake, the Cross Lake fishing guide, the main Cross Lake guide, or all lake guides.
I would be glad to walk shorelines with you and talk through what life on Cross Lake looks like at each spot. I am David Olson, a 4th-generation builder and broker with a family cabin on the Whitefish Chain in Crosslake. Call or text 218.513.2677 or email david@whitefishpropertyfinder.com.
Sources: Minnesota DNR, Aquatic Vegetation of Cross Lake (2010); Minnesota DNR, Sensitive Lakeshore Survey, Whitefish Chain (2012); MNopedia, Mississippi River Reservoir Dam System; Brainerd Dispatch, Pine River Dam history; Recreation.gov, Cross Lake Recreation Area; Minnesota DNR, Pine River State Water Trail; Minnesota DNR news release, July 16, 2013.