What is the cleanest lake near Helen Lake?

Black Hawk Lake in Iowa County holds a Grade A water quality score and is 16 miles from Helen Lake.

Why is Helen Lake not Grade A?

Helen Lake holds Grade B, with about 11.3 ft of water clarity and 54.7 µg/L of phosphorus. The grade reflects measured water quality against Metropolitan Council thresholds. Cleaner alternatives nearby score higher on clarity, phosphorus, or chlorophyll-a.

Are these recommendations based on real data?

Yes. Every grade is calculated from EPA Water Quality Portal samples for the lake. Recommendations are limited to lakes within 30 miles of Helen Lake in Wisconsin, with strictly higher numeric grade scores and sufficient monitoring data.

Cleaner Lakes Than Helen Lake, Top 4 Within 30 Miles, LakeQuality

Cleaner Lakes Than Helen Lake

4 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.

Helen Lake carries a Grade B (Good) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 4 lakes hold a higher grade. Black Hawk Lake (Iowa County, Grade A, 16 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.

Black Hawk Lake

Iowa County, Wisconsin · 16 mi from Helen Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++5.9 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (19.9 vs 54.7 µg/L)

Cruson Slough Lake

Richland County, Wisconsin · 10.9 mi from Helen Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++13.8 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (28.9 vs 54.7 µg/L)

White Mound Lake

Sauk County, Wisconsin · 13.9 mi from Helen Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++5.1 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (28.4 vs 54.7 µg/L)

Long Lake

Sauk County, Wisconsin · 7.6 mi from Helen Lake

+Higher overall water quality score
++2.2 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (27.9 vs 54.7 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.