Carlos Lake vs Ida Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Carlos Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Ida Lake. Both are in Douglas County, Minnesota.
Both Carlos Lake and Ida 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: Carlos Lake and Ida 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.
Carlos Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 18 ft down.
Ida Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 16.4 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Carlos Lake | Ida Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 18 ft Better | 16.4 ft |
| Phosphorus | 13.5 µg/L Better | 14 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 2.1 µg/L Better | 3 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 163 ft Better | 106 ft |
| Surface Area | 2,605 acres | 4,445 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 21 Better | 19 |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | mesotrophic |
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
Carlos Lake and Ida Lake read the same on nutrients and algae overall. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Carlos Lake: 18 ft, Ida Lake: 16.4 ft) and what you want from the lake. Carlos Lake supports more documented fish species.
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Where to stay near Carlos Lake and Ida Lake
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.