Gunflint Lake vs Loon Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Loon Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Gunflint Lake. Both are in Cook County, Minnesota.
Both Gunflint Lake and Loon Lake sit in Minnesota. A same-state comparison strips out the state-level water-quality regime as a variable: any differences in the readings here are about the lakes themselves, not the agencies sampling them. The readings are close: Gunflint Lake and Loon 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.
Gunflint Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 16.5 ft down.
Loon Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 17.4 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Gunflint Lake | Loon Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 16.5 ft | 17.4 ft Better |
| Phosphorus | 5.5 µg/L | 5 µg/L Better |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 2.6 µg/L | 1.6 µg/L Better |
| Maximum Depth | 200 ft | 202 ft Better |
| Surface Area | 4,009 acres | 1,095 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 12 Better | 10 |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | oligotrophic |
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
Gunflint Lake and Loon Lake read the same on nutrients and algae overall. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Gunflint Lake: 16.5 ft, Loon Lake: 17.4 ft) and what you want from the lake. Gunflint Lake supports more documented fish species.
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Where to stay near Gunflint Lake and Loon Lake
Compare cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals around Gunflint Lake and Loon 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.