Clitherall Lake vs Stuart Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Clitherall Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Stuart Lake. Both are in Otter Tail County, Minnesota.
Both Clitherall Lake and Stuart Lake sit in Minnesota. A same-state comparison strips out the state-level water-quality regime as a variable: any differences in the readings here are about the lakes themselves, not the agencies sampling them. The readings are close: Clitherall Lake and Stuart Lake sit within a narrow band of each other on phosphorus, chlorophyll-a and clarity. The per-parameter table below shows where the small differences actually live.
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.
Clitherall Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 14.1 ft.
Stuart Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 17.5 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Clitherall Lake | Stuart Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 14.1 ft | 17.5 ft Better |
| Phosphorus | 9 µg/L Better | 12 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 4 µg/L | 3.7 µg/L Better |
| Maximum Depth | 69 ft Better | 49 ft |
| Surface Area | 2,540 acres | 740 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 16 Better | 14 |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | oligotrophic |
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.
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Verdict
Clitherall Lake and Stuart Lake read the same on nutrients and algae overall. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Clitherall Lake: 14.1 ft, Stuart Lake: 17.5 ft) and what you want from the lake. Clitherall Lake supports more documented fish species.
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Where to stay near Clitherall Lake and Stuart Lake
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.