Skip to main content
LakeQuality

Big Portage Lake vs Black Oak Lake

Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.

Big Portage Lake and Black Oak Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of A (Excellent). Both are in Vilas County, Wisconsin.

A

Big Portage Lake

Vilas County, Wisconsin

Crystal clear, you can see 62.3 ft down.

A

Black Oak Lake

Vilas County, Wisconsin

Crystal clear, you can see 88.6 ft down.

Side-by-Side Metrics

MetricBig Portage LakeBlack Oak Lake
Overall GradeA (Excellent)A (Excellent)
Water Clarity62.3 ft88.6 ft
Phosphorus11.7 µg/L10.2 µg/L
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)No dataNo data
Maximum Depth40 ft85 ft
Surface Area586 acres564 acres
Public AccessYesYes
Fish Species46
Trophic Stateoligotrophicoligotrophic

Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).

Verdict

Both lakes earn the same Grade A. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Big Portage Lake: 62.3 ft, Black Oak Lake: 88.6 ft) and what you want from the lake. Big Portage Lake has fewer fish species than Black Oak Lake.