Amelia Lake vs Villard Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Amelia Lake and Villard Lake read the same on nutrients and algae. Both are in Pope County, Minnesota.
Amelia Lake and Villard Lake are both in Minnesota — a same-state head-to-head where the comparison comes down to lake-specific differences in depth, watershed, and monitoring history rather than the broader state-level water-quality regime. The readings are close: Amelia Lake and Villard Lake sit within a narrow band of each other on phosphorus, chlorophyll-a and clarity. The per-parameter table below shows where the small differences actually live.
With readings 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.
Amelia Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 9.2 ft.
Villard Lake
Murky, only visible to about 4.6 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Amelia Lake | Villard Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 9.2 ft Better | 4.6 ft |
| Phosphorus | 18 µg/L Better | 31 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 7.7 µg/L Better | 13 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 69 ft Better | 16 ft |
| Surface Area | 934 acres | 544 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 14 | 14 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | eutrophic |
A green ✓ marks the better value for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better). Surface area and trophic state carry no tick — a bigger lake is not a better lake.
Swap a lake
Compare Amelia Lake or Villard Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade C. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Amelia Lake: 9.2 ft, Villard Lake: 4.6 ft) and what you want from the lake. Amelia Lake matches its peer on species count.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.