Skip to main content
LakeQuality

Catclaw Lake vs Nell Lake

Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.

Catclaw Lake and Nell Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of F (Very Poor). Both are in Jackson County, Wisconsin.

Both Catclaw Lake and Nell Lake sit in Missouri. A same-state comparison strips out the state-level water-quality regime as a variable: any grade differences here are about the lakes themselves, not the agencies grading them. The grades are close: Catclaw Lake (F) and Nell Lake (F) are within one letter of each other on the LakeGrade rubric. 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.

F

Catclaw Lake

Jackson County, Wisconsin

No clarity data.

F

Nell Lake

Jackson County, Wisconsin

Very murky, less than 1.3 ft of visibility.

Side-by-Side Metrics

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

MetricCatclaw LakeNell Lake
Overall GradeF (Very Poor)F (Very Poor)
Water ClarityNo data1.3 ft
Phosphorus164 µg/L132.5 µg/L
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)No data67 µg/L
Maximum Depth--
Surface Area43 acres30 acres
Public AccessUnknownUnknown
Fish Species00
Trophic Statehypereutrophichypereutrophic

Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).

Verdict

Both lakes earn the same Grade F. The tiebreakers come down to what you want from the lake. Catclaw Lake matches its peer on species count.