1
ASignalness Lake
Pope County, Minnesota · 3.9 mi from Nelson Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++4.2 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (17 vs 23.5 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Nelson Lake
4 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.
Nelson Lake carries a Grade C (Fair) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 4 lakes hold a higher grade. Signalness Lake (Pope County, Grade A, 3.9 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
2
ALinka Lake
Pope County, Minnesota · 4.4 mi from Nelson Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++3.7 ft water clarity
3
BScandinavian Lake
Pope County, Minnesota · 6.8 mi from Nelson Lake
- +Higher grade (C → B)
- ++1.2 ft water clarity
4
BMinnewaska Lake
Pope County, Minnesota · 7 mi from Nelson Lake
- +Higher grade (C → B)
- ++4.7 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.