What is the cleanest lake near Lower Mission Lake?

Lougee Lake in Crow Wing County holds a Grade A water quality score and is 2.7 miles from Lower Mission Lake.

Why is Lower Mission Lake not Grade A?

Lower Mission Lake holds Grade C, with about 6.9 ft of water clarity and 36 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 Lower Mission Lake in Minnesota, with strictly higher numeric grade scores and sufficient monitoring data.

Cleaner Lakes Than Lower Mission Lake, Top 5 Within 30 Miles, LakeQuality

Cleaner Lakes Than Lower Mission Lake

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

Lower Mission Lake carries a Grade C (Fair) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 5 lakes hold a higher grade. Lougee Lake (Crow Wing County, Grade A, 2.7 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.

Lougee Lake

Crow Wing County, Minnesota · 2.7 mi from Lower Mission Lake

+Two grade letters higher (C → A)
++9.1 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (18 vs 36 µg/L)

Bass Lake

Crow Wing County, Minnesota · 1.2 mi from Lower Mission Lake

+Two grade letters higher (C → A)
++6.1 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (19.5 vs 36 µg/L)

Young Lake

Crow Wing County, Minnesota · 3 mi from Lower Mission Lake

+Two grade letters higher (C → A)
++3.6 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (12.5 vs 36 µg/L)

Upper Mission Lake

Crow Wing County, Minnesota · 1 mi from Lower Mission Lake

+Higher grade (C → B)
++3.1 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (21 vs 36 µg/L)

Perch Lake

Crow Wing County, Minnesota · 2.4 mi from Lower Mission Lake

+Higher grade (C → B)
+Lower phosphorus (16.5 vs 36 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.