Lake Kegonsa vs Lake Mendota
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Lake Kegonsa and Lake Mendota both received the same overall water quality grade of C (Fair). Both are in Dane County, Wisconsin.
Both Lake Kegonsa and Lake Mendota 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. These two are within a letter of each other on the rubric — Lake Kegonsa (C) versus Lake Mendota (C). 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.
Lake Kegonsa
Murky, only visible to about 3.7 ft.
Lake Mendota
Murky, only visible to about 5 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Lake Kegonsa | Lake Mendota |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | C (Fair) | C (Fair) |
| Water Clarity | 3.7 ft | 5 ft |
| Phosphorus | 59.5 µg/L | 50.2 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 32 ft | 83 ft |
| Surface Area | 3.2K acres | 9.8K acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 0 | 0 |
| Trophic State | eutrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade C. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Lake Kegonsa: 3.7 ft, Lake Mendota: 5 ft) and what you want from the lake. Lake Kegonsa matches its peer on species count.