Clear Lake vs Ripple Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Clear Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Ripple Lake (C, Fair). Both are in Aitkin County, Minnesota.
Clear Lake and Ripple 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. The grades are meaningfully apart: Clear Lake grades a A while Ripple Lake grades a C. 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 — Clear 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?
Clear Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 15 ft down.
Ripple Lake
Murky, only visible to about 4.5 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Clear Lake | Ripple Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | C (Fair) |
| Water Clarity | 15 ft | 4.5 ft |
| Phosphorus | 15 µg/L | 21 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 24 ft | 39 ft |
| Surface Area | 573.5 acres | 630.45 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 14 | 17 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Clear Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Ripple Lake's Grade C. Water clarity: 15 ft vs 4.5 ft. For more fish-species variety, Ripple Lake edges ahead with 17 documented species.