Foot Lake vs Long Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Foot Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Long Lake. Both are in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota.
Foot Lake and Long 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. These two sit close on the readings, Foot Lake versus Long Lake. The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
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.
Foot Lake
Very murky, less than 2.3 ft of visibility.
Long Lake
Murky, only visible to about 5 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Foot Lake | Long Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 2.3 ft | 5 ft Better |
| Phosphorus | 54.5 µg/L Better | 92 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 20.5 µg/L Better | 42.3 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 24 ft Better | 16 ft |
| Surface Area | 503 acres | 1,573 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 15 | 16 Better |
| Trophic State | eutrophic | eutrophic |
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 Foot Lake or Long Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Foot Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Long Lake. Water clarity: 2.3 ft vs 5 ft. For more fish-species variety, Long Lake edges ahead with 16 documented species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.