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LakeQuality

Eagle Lake vs Ossawinnamakee Lake

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

Ossawinnamakee Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Eagle Lake (B, Good). Both are in Crow Wing County, Minnesota.

Eagle Lake and Ossawinnamakee Lake are both in Minnesota — 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: Eagle Lake (B) and Ossawinnamakee Lake (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.

B

Eagle Lake

Crow Wing County, Minnesota

Moderate clarity, visible to about 9.5 ft.

A

Ossawinnamakee Lake

Crow Wing County, Minnesota

Crystal clear, you can see 20 ft down.

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.

MetricEagle LakeOssawinnamakee Lake
Overall GradeB (Good)A (Excellent)
Water Clarity9.5 ft20 ft
Phosphorus17.5 µg/L10 µg/L
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)No dataNo data
Maximum Depth--
Surface Area358 acres662 acres
Public AccessUnknownUnknown
Fish Species01
Trophic Statemesotrophicoligotrophic

Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).

Verdict

Ossawinnamakee Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Eagle Lake's Grade B. Water clarity: 20 ft vs 9.5 ft. For fishing diversity, Ossawinnamakee Lake also leads with 1 species.