The twin-lobed lake receives half of its water from submerged springs, six percent from incoming streams, and the remainder from direct rainfall and runoff.

The north park is located on what was once the world's largest seedling nursery, a part of the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930s and early 1940s.

Centuries before European settlers came to North America, the Chippewa people called the lake Majinabeesh, which means 'sparkling water'.

[3] Citizens and local government believe the lake suffers harm from increased loads of nutrients, including phosphorus and nitrogen, from septic systems, fertilizers, and runoff from roads.

Zebra mussels, which have no known predators in U.S. waters, threaten the existence of native clams[4] and result in more vegetation growing on the bottom of the lake.