Carlyle Lake vs Governor Bond Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Carlyle Lake and Governor Bond Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of F (Algae-prone). Both are in Illinois.
Carlyle Lake and Governor Bond Lake are both in Illinois — 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 close: Carlyle Lake (F) and Governor Bond Lake (F) are within one letter of each other on our A–F scale. The per-parameter sub-grades below will show where the small differences actually live.
With grades 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.
Carlyle Lake
Very murky, less than 1.8 ft of visibility.
Governor Bond Lake
Very murky, less than 1.2 ft of visibility.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Carlyle Lake | Governor Bond Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | F (Algae-prone) | F (Algae-prone) |
| Water Clarity | 1.8 ft Better | 1.2 ft |
| Phosphorus | 238.5 µg/L | 175 µg/L Better |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 38.8 µg/L Better | 91 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | - | - |
| Surface Area | 24,580 acres | 900 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 0 | 0 |
| Trophic State | hypereutrophic | hypereutrophic |
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.
Swap a lake
Compare Carlyle Lake or Governor Bond Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade F. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Carlyle Lake: 1.8 ft, Governor Bond Lake: 1.2 ft) and what you want from the lake. Carlyle Lake matches its peer on species count.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.