Bowman-Haley Dam Lake vs Canyon Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Canyon Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Bowman-Haley Dam Lake (C, Fair).
This comparison crosses state lines: Bowman-Haley Dam Lake in North Dakota versus Canyon Lake in South Dakota. The LakeGrade rubric is uniform across both, but the underlying monitoring programs differ in subtle ways worth noting. The grades are meaningfully apart: Canyon Lake grades a A while Bowman-Haley Dam 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 — Canyon 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?
Bowman-Haley Dam Lake
Murky, only visible to about 3.9 ft.
Canyon Lake
No clarity data.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Bowman-Haley Dam Lake | Canyon Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | C (Fair) | A (Excellent) |
| Water Clarity | 3.9 ft | No data |
| Phosphorus | No data | No data |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 13.4 µg/L | 1.3 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | - | - |
| Surface Area | 1.8K acres | 29 acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 0 | 0 |
| Trophic State | eutrophic | oligotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Canyon Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Bowman-Haley Dam Lake's Grade C. For fishing diversity, Canyon Lake also leads with 0 species.