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LakeQuality

Florida Lake vs Nest Lake

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

Florida Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Nest Lake (C, Fair). Both are in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota.

Reviewed by LakeQuality Editorial Team · Updated

Florida Lake and Nest 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. Florida Lake (A) is materially cleaner than Nest Lake (C). A gap that wide is unlikely to close in a single year of remediation work; it reflects multi-decade differences in the lakes themselves.

For a recreational visitor, the wider grade gap is decisive — Florida 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

Florida Lake

Kandiyohi County, Minnesota

Good clarity, visible to about 12.3 ft.

C

Nest Lake

Kandiyohi County, Minnesota

Moderate clarity, visible to about 7 ft.

Side-by-Side Metrics

MetricFlorida LakeNest Lake
Overall GradeA (Excellent)C (Fair)
Water Clarity12.3 ft7 ft
Phosphorus20 µg/L30 µg/L
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)3.8 µg/L8.5 µg/L
Maximum Depth40 ft40 ft
Surface Area705 acres969 acres
Public AccessYesYes
Fish Species1819
Trophic Statemesotrophiceutrophic

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

Verdict

Florida Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Nest Lake's Grade C. Water clarity: 12.3 ft vs 7 ft. For more fish-species variety, Nest Lake edges ahead with 19 documented species.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.