Cedar Island Lake vs Long Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Cedar Island Lake and Long Lake read the same on nutrients and algae. Both are in Stearns County, Minnesota.
Cedar Island Lake and Long Lake are both in Minnesota — 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. These two sit close on the readings, Cedar Island Lake versus Long Lake. The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
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.
Cedar Island Lake
Murky, only visible to about 3.5 ft.
Long Lake
Very murky, less than 2.5 ft of visibility.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Cedar Island Lake | Long Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 3.5 ft Better | 2.5 ft |
| Phosphorus | 63.5 µg/L | 61 µg/L Better |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 44 µg/L | 41 µg/L Better |
| Maximum Depth | 75 ft Better | 35 ft |
| Surface Area | 986 acres | 487 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 22 | 23 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.
Swap a lake
Compare Cedar Island Lake or Long Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade F. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Cedar Island Lake: 3.5 ft, Long Lake: 2.5 ft) and what you want from the lake. Cedar Island Lake has fewer fish species than Long Lake.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.