Borden Lake vs Ml-Garrison Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Borden Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Ml-Garrison Lake (C, Fair). Both are in Minnesota.
Borden Lake and Ml-Garrison 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. The grades are meaningfully apart: Borden Lake grades a A while Ml-Garrison Lake grades a C. 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 — Borden 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?
Borden Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 10.5 ft.
Ml-Garrison Lake
Murky, only visible to about 6.2 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Borden Lake | Ml-Garrison Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | C (Fair) |
| Water Clarity | 10.5 ft | 6.2 ft |
| Phosphorus | 23 µg/L | 26 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 4.8 µg/L | 4.7 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 84 ft | 42 ft |
| Surface Area | 1,011 acres | 128,250 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 16 | 21 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | mesotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Borden Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Ml-Garrison Lake's Grade C. Water clarity: 10.5 ft vs 6.2 ft. For more fish-species variety, Ml-Garrison Lake edges ahead with 21 documented species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.