Bad Medicine Lake vs Tamarac Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Bad Medicine Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Tamarac Lake (B, Good). Both are in Becker County, Minnesota.
Bad Medicine Lake and Tamarac 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. These two are within a letter of each other on the rubric — Bad Medicine Lake (A) versus Tamarac Lake (B). The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
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.
Bad Medicine Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 25 ft down.
Tamarac Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 6.9 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Bad Medicine Lake | Tamarac Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | B (Good) |
| Water Clarity | 25 ft | 6.9 ft |
| Phosphorus | 6 µg/L | 20 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 84 ft | 34 ft |
| Surface Area | 803.03 acres | 1.2K 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
Bad Medicine Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Tamarac Lake's Grade B. Water clarity: 25 ft vs 6.9 ft. For fishing diversity, Bad Medicine Lake also leads with 1 species.