1
AMirror Lake
Itasca County, Minnesota · 0.7 mi from Lily Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++14.7 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (10 vs 16.5 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Lily Lake
5 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.
Lily Lake carries a Grade C (Fair) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 5 lakes hold a higher grade. Mirror Lake (Itasca County, Grade A, 0.7 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
2
ABass Lake
Itasca County, Minnesota · 6.6 mi from Lily Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++14.9 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (8 vs 16.5 µg/L)
3
ALarson Lake
Itasca County, Minnesota · 7.6 mi from Lily Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++17.7 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (4 vs 16.5 µg/L)
4
AFive Island Lake
Itasca County, Minnesota · 2.7 mi from Lily Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++9.7 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (11 vs 16.5 µg/L)
5
AMead Lake
Itasca County, Minnesota · 3.9 mi from Lily Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++7.4 ft water clarity
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.