Bad Medicine Lake vs Upper Cormorant Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Bad Medicine Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Upper Cormorant Lake (C, Fair). Both are in Becker County, Minnesota.
Both Bad Medicine Lake and Upper Cormorant 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 meaningfully apart: Bad Medicine Lake grades a A while Upper Cormorant Lake grades a C. That two-letter spread reflects real underlying differences — different watershed inputs, different depth profiles, or different monitoring rigor.
For a recreational visitor, the wider grade gap is decisive — Bad Medicine Lake is the better water-quality choice. For a researcher, the gap is the interesting part: what is different about the two watersheds, and which of those differences is mutable?
Bad Medicine Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 25 ft down.
Upper Cormorant Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 8.7 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Bad Medicine Lake | Upper Cormorant Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | C (Fair) |
| Water Clarity | 25 ft | 8.7 ft |
| Phosphorus | 6 µg/L | 30 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 84 ft | 29 ft |
| Surface Area | 803.03 acres | 974 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 Upper Cormorant Lake's Grade C. Water clarity: 25 ft vs 8.7 ft. For fishing diversity, Bad Medicine Lake also leads with 1 species.