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Movil Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Campbell Lake. Both are in Beltrami County, Minnesota.

Reviewed by LakeQuality Editorial Team · Updated

Both Campbell Lake and Movil 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 meaningfully apart: Movil Lake carries clearly lower phosphorus and chlorophyll-a readings than Campbell Lake. A spread that wide reflects real underlying differences, in watershed inputs, depth profiles, or monitoring rigor.

For a recreational visitor, the wider gap in the readings is decisive: Movil Lake has the lower nutrient and algae numbers. For a researcher, the gap is the interesting part: what is different about the two watersheds, and which of those differences is mutable?

Campbell Lake

Beltrami County, Minnesota

Moderate clarity, visible to about 6.7 ft.

Movil Lake

Beltrami County, Minnesota

Good clarity, visible to about 14 ft.

Side-by-Side Metrics

MetricCampbell LakeMovil Lake
Water Clarity6.7 ft14 ft Better
Phosphorus21.5 µg/L12 µg/L Better
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)8.4 µg/L5.3 µg/L Better
Maximum Depth25 ft50 ft Better
Surface Area463 acres855 acres
Public AccessYesYes
Fish Species1420 Better
Trophic Statemesotrophicmesotrophic

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.

Verdict

Movil Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Campbell Lake. Water clarity: 14 ft vs 6.7 ft. For fishing diversity, Movil Lake also leads with 20 species.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.