Lake Menomin vs Nugget Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Nugget Lake has a higher water quality grade (B, Good) than Lake Menomin (D, Poor). Both are in Wisconsin.
Lake Menomin and Nugget Lake are both in Wisconsin — 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. Nugget Lake (B) is materially cleaner than Lake Menomin (D). A gap that wide is unlikely to close in a single year of remediation work; it reflects multi-decade differences in the lakes themselves.
For a recreational visitor, the wider grade gap is decisive — Nugget Lake is the better water-quality choice. For a researcher, the gap is the interesting part: what is different about the two watersheds, and which of those differences is mutable?
Lake Menomin
Very murky, less than 3.2 ft of visibility.
Nugget Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 7.5 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Lake Menomin | Nugget Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | D (Poor) | B (Good) |
| Water Clarity | 3.2 ft | 7.5 ft |
| Phosphorus | 89.7 µg/L | 27.4 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | - | - |
| Surface Area | 1.4K acres | 116 acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 0 | 0 |
| Trophic State | eutrophic | mesotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Nugget Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade B versus Lake Menomin's Grade D. Water clarity: 7.5 ft vs 3.2 ft. For fishing diversity, Nugget Lake also leads with 0 species.