Clear Lake vs Little Spirit Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Little Spirit Lake has a higher water quality grade (D, Poor) than Clear Lake (F, Very Poor). Both are in Jackson County, Minnesota.
Both Clear Lake and Little Spirit 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 close: Clear Lake (F) and Little Spirit Lake (D) 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.
Clear Lake
Very murky, less than 1.5 ft of visibility.
Little Spirit Lake
Very murky, less than 3.3 ft of visibility.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Clear Lake | Little Spirit Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | F (Very Poor) | D (Poor) |
| Water Clarity | 1.5 ft | 3.3 ft |
| Phosphorus | 90.5 µg/L | 236 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 44 µg/L | 19.3 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 9 ft | 8 ft |
| Surface Area | 434 acres | 624 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 15 | 23 |
| Trophic State | eutrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Little Spirit Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade D versus Clear Lake's Grade F. Water clarity: 3.3 ft vs 1.5 ft. For fishing diversity, Little Spirit Lake also leads with 23 species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.