10.35 ft
RisingHaze · 13.8 mph SSW
Good
Best window: 4:55 AM–5:55 AM
Level 1 hour ago · Weather 1 hour ago · Aitkin Municipal Airport - Steve Kurtz Field
Mille Lacs Lake is a natural lake with management context from Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (fishery); tribal co-management. Lake Insights displays its latest available elevation from NOAA / National Weather Service — Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service.
We do not have a usable elevation versus the published reference for this lake right now.
Mille Lacs County, MN · U.S. Drought Monitor county statistics at the lake location (not a lake-specific designation)
Moderate Drought
The largest share of Mille Lacs County, MN is in Moderate Drought (D1), an official USDM drought category. These figures describe the surrounding county from the lake location, not the lake itself.
Severity
Weekly trend
Improving
Compared with last week
Official drought (D1–D4)
Yes
100% of the surrounding county is in official drought categories (D1–D4). Dominant category remains Moderate Drought.
Typical county impacts (USDM guidance)
U.S. Drought Monitor · map date Nov 3, 2026. Updated weekly. Official drought means U.S. Drought Monitor categories D1–D4 (Moderate through Exceptional). Abnormally Dry (D0) is not counted as official drought. droughtmonitor.unl.eduView drought map for Mille Lacs County, MN
Waterbody / project type
General factors for natural lakes like this
These are common influences for this type of lake. They do not identify the cause of a specific current change unless an operator update confirms it.
Rainfall & runoff
Rain on the lake and watershed runoff can raise natural lake levels over time.
Inflows & outflows
Tributaries, connecting waterways, and outlets move water into and out of the lake.
Managing authority: Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (fishery); tribal co-management
Observation source used by Lake Insights: NOAA / National Weather Service — Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service
Who manages the lake and who publishes the reading Lake Insights displays can differ. Lake Insights does not invent a source label from the managing authority alone.
Shared background — not lake-specific facts
Lake Insights aggregates water level information from authoritative public sources such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, NOAA, TVA, Bureau of Reclamation, power utilities, and other official lake operators. We preserve historical observations, calculate trends, and present lake conditions in a consistent format. For NOAA / National Weather Service — Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service, we link to the official source whenever it is available. Lake Insights does not predict future lake levels unless an official forecast has been published by the managing authority.
Current-level source
Evaporation & seasonal weather
Warm, dry, and windy periods can increase evaporation and contribute to seasonal level change.
Ice, wind & seiches
On larger natural lakes, wind setup, seiches, and ice conditions can temporarily change local water-surface elevation.