Bone Lake vs Half Moon Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Bone Lake and Half Moon Lake read the same on nutrients and algae. Both are in Polk County, Wisconsin.
Both Bone Lake and Half Moon Lake sit in Wisconsin. A same-state comparison strips out the state-level water-quality regime as a variable: any differences in the readings here are about the lakes themselves, not the agencies sampling them. These two sit close on the readings, Bone Lake versus Half Moon Lake. The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
With readings 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.
Bone Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 8 ft.
Half Moon Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 15.3 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Bone Lake | Half Moon Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 8 ft | 15.3 ft Better |
| Phosphorus | 19.8 µg/L | 13.9 µg/L Better |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 43 ft | 60 ft Better |
| Surface Area | 1,667 acres | 550 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 4 | 4 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | oligotrophic |
A green ✓ marks the better value for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better). Surface area and trophic state carry no tick — a bigger lake is not a better lake.
Swap a lake
Compare Bone Lake or Half Moon Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade B. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Bone Lake: 8 ft, Half Moon Lake: 15.3 ft) and what you want from the lake. Bone Lake matches its peer on species count.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.