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LakeQuality

Hemlock Lake vs Silver Lake

Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.

Hemlock Lake has a higher water quality grade (B, Good) than Silver Lake (C, Fair). Both are in Wisconsin.

Hemlock Lake and Silver Lake are both in New York — 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 grades are close: Hemlock Lake (B) and Silver Lake (C) 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.

B

Hemlock Lake

Livingston County, Wisconsin

Good clarity, visible to about 12.5 ft.

C

Silver Lake

Wyoming County, Wisconsin

Moderate clarity, visible to about 8.5 ft.

Side-by-Side Metrics

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

MetricHemlock LakeSilver Lake
Overall GradeB (Good)C (Fair)
Water Clarity12.5 ft8.5 ft
PhosphorusNo dataNo data
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)No dataNo data
Maximum Depth--
Surface Area2.1K acres761 acres
Public AccessUnknownUnknown
Fish Species00
Trophic Statemesotrophicmesotrophic

Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).

Verdict

Hemlock Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade B versus Silver Lake's Grade C. Water clarity: 12.5 ft vs 8.5 ft. For fishing diversity, Hemlock Lake also leads with 0 species.