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LakeQuality

Clear Lake vs Planting Ground Lake

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

Clear Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Planting Ground Lake (D, Poor). Both are in Oneida County, Wisconsin.

Both Clear Lake and Planting Ground Lake sit in Wisconsin. 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: Clear Lake grades a A while Planting Ground 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 — 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?

A

Clear Lake

Oneida County, Wisconsin

No clarity data.

D

Planting Ground Lake

Oneida County, Wisconsin

Murky, only visible to about 5.1 ft.

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.

MetricClear LakePlanting Ground Lake
Overall GradeA (Excellent)D (Poor)
Water ClarityNo data5.1 ft
Phosphorus10.8 µg/LNo data
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)No dataNo data
Maximum Depth95 ft37 ft
Surface Area873 acres1.0K acres
Public AccessUnknownUnknown
Fish Species00
Trophic Stateoligotrophiceutrophic

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 Planting Ground Lake's Grade D. For fishing diversity, Clear Lake also leads with 0 species.