1
DWayne City Lake
Wayne County, Wisconsin · 12.5 mi from Sam Dale Lake
- +Higher grade (F → D)
- +Lower phosphorus (34.5 vs 137 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Sam Dale Lake
4 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.
Sam Dale Lake carries a Grade F (Very Poor) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 4 lakes hold a higher grade. Wayne City Lake (Wayne County, Grade D, 12.5 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
2
DKinmundy New Lake
Marion County, Wisconsin · 22.2 mi from Sam Dale Lake
- +Higher grade (F → D)
- ++1.7 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (36.5 vs 137 µg/L)
3
DForbes Lake
Marion County, Wisconsin · 16 mi from Sam Dale Lake
- +Higher grade (F → D)
- +Lower phosphorus (74 vs 137 µg/L)
4
DCentralia Lake
Marion County, Wisconsin · 22.4 mi from Sam Dale Lake
- +Higher grade (F → D)
- +Lower phosphorus (86.5 vs 137 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.