Lake St. Croix vs Spring Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Lake St. Croix has a higher water quality grade (B, Good) than Spring Lake (F, Very Poor). Both are in Minnesota.
Both Lake St. Croix and Spring Lake sit in Minnesota. 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. Lake St. Croix (B) is materially cleaner than Spring Lake (F). 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 — Lake St. Croix 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 St. Croix
Murky, only visible to about 5.2 ft.
Spring Lake
Very murky, less than 2.1 ft of visibility.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Lake St. Croix | Spring Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | B (Good) | F (Very Poor) |
| Water Clarity | 5.2 ft | 2.1 ft |
| Phosphorus | 18 µg/L | No data |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 78 ft | 17 ft |
| Surface Area | 8.4K acres | 1.5K acres |
| Public Access | No | Yes |
| Fish Species | 1 | 1 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Lake St. Croix wins on overall water quality with a Grade B versus Spring Lake's Grade F. Water clarity: 5.2 ft vs 2.1 ft. For fishing diversity, Lake St. Croix also leads with 1 species.