Iola Lake vs Pope Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Pope Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Iola Lake (A, Excellent). Both are in Waupaca County, Wisconsin.
Both Iola Lake and Pope 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: Iola Lake (A) and Pope Lake (A) 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.
Iola Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 10 ft.
Pope Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 16 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Iola Lake | Pope Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | A (Excellent) |
| Water Clarity | 10 ft | 16 ft |
| Phosphorus | 16.4 µg/L | 15.6 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | - | - |
| Surface Area | 206 acres | 22 acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 0 | 0 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | mesotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Pope Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Iola Lake's Grade A. Water clarity: 16 ft vs 10 ft. For fishing diversity, Pope Lake also leads with 0 species.