Floyd Lake vs Tamarac Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Floyd Lake and Tamarac Lake read the same on nutrients and algae. Both are in Becker County, Minnesota.
Both Floyd Lake and Tamarac 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: Floyd Lake and Tamarac 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.
Floyd Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 13.1 ft.
Tamarac Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 6.9 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Floyd Lake | Tamarac Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 13.1 ft Better | 6.9 ft |
| Phosphorus | 12 µg/L Better | 20 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 3.6 µg/L Better | 6.2 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 34 ft | 34 ft |
| Surface Area | 1,178 acres | 1,178 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 16 | 16 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | mesotrophic |
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.
Swap a lake
Compare Floyd Lake or Tamarac Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade A. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Floyd Lake: 13.1 ft, Tamarac Lake: 6.9 ft) and what you want from the lake. Floyd Lake matches its peer on species count.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.