Beaver Lake vs Clear Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Beaver Lake has a higher water quality grade (B, Good) than Clear Lake (F, Very Poor). Both are in Minnesota.
Both Beaver Lake and Clear 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: Beaver Lake grades a B while Clear Lake grades a F. 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 — Beaver 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?
Beaver Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 9.5 ft.
Clear Lake
Very murky, less than 2.5 ft of visibility.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Beaver Lake | Clear Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | B (Good) | F (Very Poor) |
| Water Clarity | 9.5 ft | 2.5 ft |
| Phosphorus | 27 µg/L | 151 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | - | - |
| Surface Area | 91 acres | 611 acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 1 | 1 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | hypereutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Beaver Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade B versus Clear Lake's Grade F. Water clarity: 9.5 ft vs 2.5 ft. For fishing diversity, Beaver Lake also leads with 1 species.