Grindstone Lake vs Lac Courte Oreilles Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Grindstone Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Lac Courte Oreilles Lake. Both are in Sawyer County, Wisconsin.
Grindstone Lake and Lac Courte Oreilles Lake are both in Wisconsin — 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: Grindstone Lake and Lac Courte Oreilles 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.
Grindstone Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 17.4 ft down.
Lac Courte Oreilles Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 12.2 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Grindstone Lake | Lac Courte Oreilles Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 17.4 ft Better | 12.2 ft |
| Phosphorus | 15 µg/L | 15 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 1.4 µg/L Better | 1.7 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 60 ft | 90 ft Better |
| Surface Area | 3,176 acres | 5,139 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 6 | 6 |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | 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.
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Verdict
Grindstone Lake and Lac Courte Oreilles Lake read the same on nutrients and algae overall. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Grindstone Lake: 17.4 ft, Lac Courte Oreilles Lake: 12.2 ft) and what you want from the lake. Grindstone Lake matches its peer on species count.
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Where to stay near Grindstone Lake and Lac Courte Oreilles Lake
Compare cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals around Grindstone Lake and Lac Courte Oreilles Lake. Both lakes are pinned on the map, so you can see which stays sit nearer the one you pick. Switch to Satellite to see how close each is to the water.
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.