Cole Lake vs Timberline Lakes
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Timberline Lakes has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Cole Lake (B, Good). Both are in Wisconsin.
Cole Lake and Timberline Lakes are both in Missouri — 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 close: Cole Lake (B) and Timberline Lakes (A) 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.
Cole Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 18.5 ft down.
Timberline Lakes
Good clarity, visible to about 14.3 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Cole Lake | Timberline Lakes |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | B (Good) | A (Excellent) |
| Water Clarity | 18.5 ft | 14.3 ft |
| Phosphorus | 17 µg/L | 5.5 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 16.5 µg/L | 1.6 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | - | - |
| Surface Area | 42 acres | 42 acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 0 | 0 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | oligotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Timberline Lakes wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Cole Lake's Grade B. Water clarity: 14.3 ft vs 18.5 ft. For fishing diversity, Timberline Lakes also leads with 0 species.