1
Arrowhead Lake
Sac County, Iowa · 20.9 mi from Swan Lake Max Depth
- ++4.2 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (26 vs 433 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Swan Lake Max Depth
3 lakes with lower nutrient and algae readings within 30 miles, ranked by the size of the improvement and by proximity.
Swan Lake Max Depth carries nutrient and algae readings on record. Within 30 miles, 3 lakes read lower. Arrowhead Lake (Sac County, 20.9 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
Reviewed by LakeQuality Editorial Team · Updated
2
Yellow Smoke Lake
Crawford County, Iowa · 24.9 mi from Swan Lake Max Depth
- ++1.6 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (56.5 vs 433 µg/L)
3
Springbrook Lake
Guthrie County, Iowa · 26.4 mi from Swan Lake Max Depth
- ++1.6 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (59 vs 433 µg/L)
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Where to stay near Swan Lake Max Depth
Compare cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals around Swan Lake Max Depth in Iowa. The 3 lakes above sit within 30 miles, so one base reaches them all. Switch the map to Satellite to see how close each stay is to the water.
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Reading the cohort
Only 3 lakes within a 30-mile radius read cleaner than Swan Lake Max Depth on nutrients and algae. The narrow set of options reflects either a fairly clean lake to begin with or a region without a wide range of cleaner alternatives, so the trip-planning decision is more constrained than the headline "cleaner lakes nearby" suggests.
The nearest cleaner alternative — Arrowhead Lake in Sac County — sits 20.9 miles from Swan Lake Max Depth, putting it firmly in "destination trip" rather than "neighborhood swap" range. The water-quality gap has to be the deciding factor; for a casual outing, Swan Lake Max Depth is the practical choice and the cleaner options are reserved for purpose-specific visits.
Each lake's nutrient and algae readings — total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity — are shown beside the EPA National Lakes Assessment 2022 condition class for that lake's own ecoregion, so a reading is compared against the lakes it would naturally resemble. LakeQuality publishes no letter grade. Lower readings mean measurably less nutrient and algae in the water, not better scenery or access: the lake with the clearest, lowest-nutrient water can have worse boat-launch facilities or shoreline access than a neighbor, so the comparison is one input alongside the rest of trip planning. How the readings are classified is on our methodology page.
How this list is built
Sampled lakes on LakeQuality carry readings from EPA Water Quality Portal samples — nutrients and algae measured against EPA National Lakes Assessment ecoregion classes. Secchi is shown, not scored. To suggest cleaner alternatives, we filter lakes within 30 miles to those with strictly lower nutrient and algae readings, then rank by the size of the improvement with a small proximity tiebreak. Cross-state and limited-data lakes are excluded so the list stays locally relevant.