1
AMl-Thains Lake
Mille Lacs County, Minnesota · 14.3 mi from Knife Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (F → A)
- ++13.8 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (26 vs 161.5 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Knife Lake
2 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.
Knife Lake carries a Grade F (Very Poor) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 2 lakes hold a higher grade. Ml-Thains Lake (Mille Lacs County, Grade A, 14.3 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
2
DAnn Lake
Kanabec County, Minnesota · 6.9 mi from Knife Lake
- +Higher grade (F → D)
- +Lower phosphorus (78.5 vs 161.5 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.