What is the cleanest lake near Leech Lake?

Walker Bay Lake in Cass County holds a Grade A water quality score and is 0.9 miles from Leech Lake.

Why is Leech Lake not Grade A?

Leech Lake holds Grade B, with about 12.5 ft of water clarity and 11.5 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 Leech Lake in Minnesota, with strictly higher numeric grade scores and sufficient monitoring data.

Cleaner Lakes Than Leech Lake, Top 5 Within 30 Miles, LakeQuality

Cleaner Lakes Than Leech Lake

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

Leech Lake carries a Grade B (Good) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 5 lakes hold a higher grade. Walker Bay Lake (Cass County, Grade A, 0.9 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.

Walker Bay Lake

Cass County, Minnesota · 0.9 mi from Leech Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++4 ft water clarity

Agency Bay Lake

Cass County, Minnesota · 0.9 mi from Leech Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++2.7 ft water clarity

Jack Lake

Cass County, Minnesota · 5.3 mi from Leech Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++3.2 ft water clarity

Kabekona Bay Lake

Cass County, Minnesota · 5.5 mi from Leech Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++4.7 ft water clarity

Traders Bay Lake

Cass County, Minnesota · 3.4 mi from Leech Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)

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.