Grindstone Lake vs Windigo Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Grindstone Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Windigo Lake (B, Good). Both are in Sawyer County, Wisconsin.
Both Grindstone Lake and Windigo Lake sit in Wisconsin. 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. The grades are close: Grindstone Lake (A) and Windigo Lake (B) are within one letter of each other on the LakeGrade rubric. The per-parameter sub-grades below will show where the small differences actually live.
With grades 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.
Windigo Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 11 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Grindstone Lake | Windigo Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | B (Good) |
| Water Clarity | 17.4 ft | 11 ft |
| Phosphorus | 15 µg/L | 15.6 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 1.4 µg/L | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 60 ft | 51 ft |
| Surface Area | 3,176 acres | 503 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 6 | 5 |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | mesotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Grindstone Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Windigo Lake's Grade B. Water clarity: 17.4 ft vs 11 ft. For fishing diversity, Grindstone Lake also leads with 6 species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.