Fourth Crow Wing Lake vs Third Crow Wing Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Fourth Crow Wing Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Third Crow Wing Lake. Both are in Hubbard County, Minnesota.
Fourth Crow Wing Lake and Third Crow Wing 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 readings are close: Fourth Crow Wing Lake and Third Crow Wing 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.
Fourth Crow Wing Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 8 ft.
Third Crow Wing Lake
Very murky, less than 2.5 ft of visibility.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Fourth Crow Wing Lake | Third Crow Wing Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 8 ft Better | 2.5 ft |
| Phosphorus | 19.5 µg/L Better | 21 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 2.2 µg/L Better | 7.4 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 10 ft | 35 ft Better |
| Surface Area | 434 acres | 643 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 16 | 18 Better |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | 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 Fourth Crow Wing Lake or Third Crow Wing Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Fourth Crow Wing Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Third Crow Wing Lake. Water clarity: 8 ft vs 2.5 ft. For more fish-species variety, Third Crow Wing Lake edges ahead with 18 documented species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.