Spatial and temporal variations in the physical, chemical and biological composition of Lake Ōkaro were measured over 16 months. Lake Ōkaro is a small (0.32 km2) hypertrophic, monomictic lake located in the Central Volcanic Zone of the North Island, New Zealand. Vertical profiles of temperature, chlorophyll fluorescence, dissolved oxygen concentration (DO), pH, specific conductance, photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) and nutrient species, including ammonium-nitrogen (NH4-N), nitrite-nitrogen (NO2-N), nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) and phosphate-phosphorus (PO4-P), were collected at up to nine stations at weekly to monthly frequencies. High-frequency variability was assessed during two separate 24-hour monitoring periods, coinciding with an Anabaena spiroides-dominated surface bloom, and a Ceratium hirundinella-dominated deep chlorophyll maximum. Additional data for wind direction and velocity, incident solar irradiance and rainfall was sourced from a meteorological weather station and a lake monitoring buoy at Rotorua, 20 km north of the lake. Spatial variability was more pronounced during summer. Observed vertical gradients in chlorophyll fluorescence, DO, specific conductance and nutrient species were closely linked to thermal stability of the water column. There were large variations in chlorophyll fluorescence amongst stations in summer, which related to displacement of the metalimnion and associated changes in chlorophyll fluorescence. Winter mixing was characterised by relative homogeneity of the water column. Nutrient concentrations were elevated at all depths whereas high concentrations had previously been confined to lower depth strata (the hypolimnion). Temperature profiles in summer displayed clear vertical gradients with a well-defined metalimnion that increased in depth until winter mixing generated isothermal conditions. Chlorophyll fluorescence profiles were characterised by the formation of a DCM that was recurrent over both summer periods, and was strongly statistically related to the depth of the thermocline for the duration of stratification. Dissolved oxygen, specific conductance and pH were relatively uniform horizontally, though pH was consistently lower at a well-sheltered near-shore station. All variables showed strong variations with depth during the stratified period. Dissolved oxygen was negligible or zero below the thermocline for much of the stratified period while specific conductance was lowest above or at the thermocline. There were also strong vertical gradients in nutrient concentrations in summer, with concentrations below the thermocline often an order of magnitude higher than those above. The representativeness of fluorescence at a central station to a whole-lake scale was assessed using a vertical integrated value and the standard error derived from up to eight other stations. Values at the single station frequently deviated from the mean fluorescence of the wider lake, particularly at the DCM which suggests that extrapolating single-station measurements to a whole lake could provide highly exaggerated values of lake fluorescence. High-frequency sampling during the A. spiroides-dominated surface bloom showed diel temperature variations attributed mostly to solar irradiance. There was high light attenuation from the high phytoplankton biomass and consistently elevated pH and DO. Fluorescence profiles suggested that the phytoplankton population was strongly buoyant and did not undergo diel vertical migration. High-frequency sampling during a period when there was a dinoflagellate-dominated DCM showed two coinciding fluorescence peaks had formed at 6-7 and 7-8 m depth and contained morphologically and physiologically distinct taxa. The 6-7 m DCM was predominantly Ceratium hirundinella, while the 7-8 m DCM was composed of C. hirundinella and unidentified colonial picoplankton. Fluorescence profiles suggested diel vertical migration was not taking place, and strong gradients in light, nutrient availability and the relative biomass of the dominants suggested that the 6-7 and 7-8 m DCM populations potentially differed in their modes of nutrition, light history and susceptibility to grazing. This research illustrates the degree of spatial variability that can exist in a small, monomictic hypertrophic lake at a given time, and highlights some of the potential limitations of using single-site monitoring stations to represent the physical, chemical and biological conditions of a whole lake. This information may be used to critically evaluate the reliability of phytoplankton biomass estimates that have been derived from spatially-limited sampling methods. This study further illustrates the role that thermal stratification plays in creating vertical gradients in a number of biological and chemical variables, and demonstrates that parallels exist with regard to DCM formation in oligotrophic and hypertrophic lakes, relating to the interplay between light, chlorophyll fluorescence and thermal stratification. Evidence is also provided showing that diel-scale variations in phytoplankton biomass can differ markedly between a cyanobacteria-dominated surface bloom and a dinoflagellate-dominated DCM, which further highlights the value of high-frequency sampling when seeking to estimate phytoplankton biomass using in situ methods.