Little St Germain Lake vs Lost Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Little St Germain Lake and Lost Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of C (Fair). Both are in Vilas County, Wisconsin.
Little St Germain Lake and Lost 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. These two are within a letter of each other on the rubric — Little St Germain Lake (C) versus Lost Lake (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.
Little St Germain Lake
Murky, only visible to about 3.5 ft.
Lost Lake
Murky, only visible to about 4.5 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Little St Germain Lake | Lost Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | C (Fair) | C (Fair) |
| Water Clarity | 3.5 ft | 4.5 ft |
| Phosphorus | 45.4 µg/L | 35.3 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 53 ft | 20 ft |
| Surface Area | 972 acres | 539 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 (Little St Germain Lake: 3.5 ft, Lost Lake: 4.5 ft) and what you want from the lake. Little St Germain Lake matches its peer on species count.