Eagle Lake vs Madison Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Madison Lake has a higher water quality grade (D, Poor) than Eagle Lake (F, Very Poor). Both are in Blue Earth County, Minnesota.
Both Eagle Lake and Madison 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: Eagle Lake (F) and Madison 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.
Eagle Lake
Very murky, less than 1 ft of visibility.
Madison Lake
Murky, only visible to about 3.6 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Eagle Lake | Madison Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | F (Very Poor) | D (Poor) |
| Water Clarity | 1 ft | 3.6 ft |
| Phosphorus | No data | 81 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 9 ft | 59 ft |
| Surface Area | 898.23 acres | 1.4K acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 0 | 1 |
| Trophic State | hypereutrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Madison Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade D versus Eagle Lake's Grade F. Water clarity: 3.6 ft vs 1 ft. For fishing diversity, Madison Lake also leads with 1 species.