1
ALower Pine Lake
Polk County, Wisconsin · 4.5 mi from Apple Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++61.5 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (9.2 vs 84.9 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Apple Lake
5 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.
Apple Lake carries a Grade C (Fair) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 5 lakes hold a higher grade. Lower Pine Lake (Polk County, Grade A, 4.5 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
2
APine Lake
Polk County, Wisconsin · 5.2 mi from Apple Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++35.3 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (13.5 vs 84.9 µg/L)
3
APaulsen Lake
Polk County, Wisconsin · 6.5 mi from Apple Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++32 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (12.7 vs 84.9 µg/L)
4
AChurch Pine Lake
Polk County, Wisconsin · 7.4 mi from Apple Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++35.3 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (13.5 vs 84.9 µg/L)
5
ABass Lake
St. Croix County, Wisconsin · 7.9 mi from Apple Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++23.8 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (14 vs 84.9 µg/L)
How this list is built
Every lake on LakeQuality has a calculated grade from EPA Water Quality Portal samples — secchi depth, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a measured against Metropolitan Council thresholds. To suggest cleaner alternatives, we filter lakes within 30 miles to those with a strictly higher numeric score, then rank by grade improvement with a small proximity tiebreak. Cross-state and limited-data lakes are excluded so the list stays locally relevant.