Buchanan Lake vs Rush Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Buchanan Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Rush Lake. Both are in Otter Tail County, Minnesota.
Both Buchanan Lake and Rush Lake sit in Minnesota. 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. The readings are close: Buchanan Lake and Rush Lake sit within a narrow band of each other on phosphorus, chlorophyll-a and clarity. The per-parameter table below shows where the small differences actually live.
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.
Buchanan Lake
Murky, only visible to about 5.5 ft.
Rush Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 7.5 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Buchanan Lake | Rush Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 5.5 ft | 7.5 ft Better |
| Phosphorus | 22 µg/L Better | 27 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 12.3 µg/L | 9.8 µg/L Better |
| Maximum Depth | 42 ft | 68 ft Better |
| Surface Area | 964 acres | 5,276 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 8 | 19 Better |
| Trophic State | eutrophic | eutrophic |
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.
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Verdict
Buchanan Lake and Rush Lake read the same on nutrients and algae overall. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Buchanan Lake: 5.5 ft, Rush Lake: 7.5 ft) and what you want from the lake. Buchanan Lake has fewer fish species than Rush Lake.
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Where to stay near Buchanan Lake and Rush Lake
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.