Birch Island Lake vs Sand Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Birch Island Lake and Sand Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of B (Good). Both are in Burnett County, Wisconsin.
Birch Island Lake and Sand Lake are both in Wisconsin — 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 — Birch Island Lake (B) versus Sand 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.
Birch Island Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 8 ft.
Sand Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 18 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Birch Island Lake | Sand Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | B (Good) | B (Good) |
| Water Clarity | 8 ft | 18 ft |
| Phosphorus | 13.7 µg/L | 10.4 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 13 ft | 73 ft |
| Surface Area | 768 acres | 900 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 3 | 4 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | oligotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade B. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Birch Island Lake: 8 ft, Sand Lake: 18 ft) and what you want from the lake. Birch Island Lake has fewer fish species than Sand Lake.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.