Ada Lake vs Big Portage (E Bay Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Ada Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Big Portage (E Bay Lake (B, Good). Both are in Cass County, Minnesota.
Both Ada Lake and Big Portage (E Bay Lake sit in Minnesota. A same-state comparison strips out the state-level water-quality regime as a variable: any grade differences here are about the lakes themselves, not the agencies grading them. The grades are close: Ada Lake (A) and Big Portage (E Bay Lake (B) are within one letter of each other on the LakeGrade rubric. The per-parameter sub-grades below will show where the small differences actually live.
With grades this close, the choice between the two lakes turns on non-water-quality factors: depth, fish species, public access, distance from home. The per-lake pages below cover all of those.
Ada Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 14 ft.
Big Portage (E Bay Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 7.9 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Ada Lake | Big Portage (E Bay Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | B (Good) |
| Water Clarity | 14 ft | 7.9 ft |
| Phosphorus | 10 µg/L | 20 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 60 ft | 23 ft |
| Surface Area | 963.31 acres | 902.34 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 1 | 1 |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | mesotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Ada Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Big Portage (E Bay Lake's Grade B. Water clarity: 14 ft vs 7.9 ft. For fishing diversity, Ada Lake also leads with 1 species.