Cedar Lake vs Swartout Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Cedar Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Swartout Lake (D, Poor). Both are in Wright County, Minnesota.
Both Cedar Lake and Swartout Lake sit in Minnesota. 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 meaningfully apart: Cedar Lake grades a A while Swartout Lake grades a D. That two-letter spread reflects real underlying differences — different watershed inputs, different depth profiles, or different monitoring rigor.
For a recreational visitor, the wider grade gap is decisive — Cedar Lake is the better water-quality choice. For a researcher, the gap is the interesting part: what is different about the two watersheds, and which of those differences is mutable?
Cedar Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 15 ft down.
Swartout Lake
Murky, only visible to about 5.2 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Cedar Lake | Swartout Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | D (Poor) |
| Water Clarity | 15 ft | 5.2 ft |
| Phosphorus | 23.5 µg/L | 570 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | - | - |
| Surface Area | 774 acres | 171 acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 1 | 1 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | hypereutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Cedar Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Swartout Lake's Grade D. Water clarity: 15 ft vs 5.2 ft. For fishing diversity, Cedar Lake also leads with 1 species.