Ima Lake vs Thomas Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Ima Lake and Thomas Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of B (Good). Both are in Lake County, Minnesota.
Ima Lake and Thomas Lake are both in Minnesota — 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. These two are within a letter of each other on the rubric — Ima Lake (B) versus Thomas Lake (B). The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
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.
Ima Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 11 ft.
Thomas Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 14 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Ima Lake | Thomas Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | B (Good) | B (Good) |
| Water Clarity | 11 ft | 14 ft |
| Phosphorus | No data | No data |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 116 ft | 110 ft |
| Surface Area | 741.91 acres | 1.5K acres |
| Public Access | No | No |
| Fish Species | 0 | 0 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | oligotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade B. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Ima Lake: 11 ft, Thomas Lake: 14 ft) and what you want from the lake. Ima Lake matches its peer on species count.