Grace Lake vs Midge Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Midge Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Grace Lake (C, Fair). Both are in Minnesota.
Both Grace Lake and Midge Lake sit in Minnesota. A same-state comparison strips out the state-level water-quality regime as a variable: any grade differences here are about the lakes themselves, not the agencies grading them. Midge Lake (A) is materially cleaner than Grace 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 — Midge 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?
Grace Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 15 ft down.
Midge Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 18 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Grace Lake | Midge Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | C (Fair) | A (Excellent) |
| Water Clarity | 15 ft | 18 ft |
| Phosphorus | 21.5 µg/L | 16 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 9.3 µg/L | 2.5 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 42 ft | 24 ft |
| Surface Area | 860 acres | 546 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 13 | 11 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | oligotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Midge Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Grace Lake's Grade C. Water clarity: 18 ft vs 15 ft. For more fish-species variety, Grace Lake edges ahead with 13 documented species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.