Bear Head Lake vs Eagles Nest Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Bear Head Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Eagles Nest Lake (B, Good). Both are in St. Louis County, Minnesota.
Bear Head Lake and Eagles Nest 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 — Bear Head Lake (A) versus Eagles Nest 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.
Bear Head Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 11 ft.
Eagles Nest Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 15.5 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Bear Head Lake | Eagles Nest Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | B (Good) |
| Water Clarity | 11 ft | 15.5 ft |
| Phosphorus | 19.5 µg/L | 7 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 3.6 µg/L | 1.1 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 46 ft | 49 ft |
| Surface Area | 662 acres | 1,028 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 9 | 9 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | oligotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Bear Head Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Eagles Nest Lake's Grade B. Water clarity: 11 ft vs 15.5 ft. For fishing diversity, Bear Head Lake also leads with 9 species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.