What is the cleanest lake near Mitchell Lake?

Balsam Lake in Central Ontario County holds a Grade A water quality score and is 5.8 miles from Mitchell Lake.

Why is Mitchell Lake not Grade A?

Mitchell Lake holds Grade B, with about 7.1 ft of water clarity and 21.9 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 Mitchell Lake in Ontario, with strictly higher numeric grade scores and sufficient monitoring data.

Cleaner Lakes Than Mitchell Lake, Top 5 Within 30 Miles

Cleaner Lakes Than Mitchell Lake

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

Mitchell Lake carries a Grade B (Good) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 5 lakes hold a higher grade. Balsam Lake (Central Ontario County, Grade A, 5.8 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.

Balsam Lake

Central Ontario County, Ontario · 5.8 mi from Mitchell Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++7 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (11.3 vs 21.9 µg/L)

Cameron Lake

Central Ontario County, Ontario · 9.5 mi from Mitchell Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++4.7 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (10.1 vs 21.9 µg/L)

Rush Lake

Central Ontario County, Ontario · 10 mi from Mitchell Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++4.1 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (8.9 vs 21.9 µg/L)

Silver Lake

Central Ontario County, Ontario · 11 mi from Mitchell Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++5.2 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (7.5 vs 21.9 µg/L)

Shadow Lake

Central Ontario County, Ontario · 12.3 mi from Mitchell Lake

+Higher grade (B → A)
++6.7 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (6.3 vs 21.9 µg/L)

Reading the cohort

5 cleaner lakes sit within 30 miles of Mitchell Lake in the EPA water-quality dataset. With that many higher-grade neighbors close by, Mitchell Lake's Grade B reflects something specific to the lake itself — not a regional water-quality ceiling. The neighbor list below isn't a small set of marginal upgrades; it's a real cohort of meaningfully cleaner choices for the same Ontario weekend.

Balsam Lake (Central Ontario County, Grade A) is the closest cleaner option at 5.8 miles from Mitchell Lake — close enough to be a genuine substitute for most users, far enough that it isn't the same neighborhood lake. Worth the trip if water quality is the primary driver; less obvious if Mitchell Lake is on the way to other plans.

The EPA water-quality grading combines clarity (Secchi depth), phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a measurements from state environmental sampling. A higher letter grade reflects measurably cleaner water on those indicators, not subjective beauty or access quality — a Grade A lake might have worse boat-launch facilities or shoreline access than a Grade C neighbor, so the ranking is one input alongside the rest of trip planning. See the methodology page for the full grading formula.

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.