Lobster Lake vs Maple Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Maple Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Lobster Lake. Both are in Douglas County, Minnesota.
Both Lobster Lake and Maple Lake sit in Minnesota. A same-state comparison strips out the state-level water-quality regime as a variable: any differences in the readings here are about the lakes themselves, not the agencies sampling them. The readings are close: Lobster Lake and Maple Lake sit within a narrow band of each other on phosphorus, chlorophyll-a and clarity. The per-parameter table below shows where the small differences actually live.
With readings 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.
Lobster Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 13 ft.
Maple Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 14.1 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Lobster Lake | Maple Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 13 ft | 14.1 ft Better |
| Phosphorus | 20.5 µg/L | 15 µg/L Better |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 3.6 µg/L | 3.1 µg/L Better |
| Maximum Depth | 65 ft | 78 ft Better |
| Surface Area | 1,334 acres | 831 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 18 Better | 17 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | mesotrophic |
A green ✓ marks the better value for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better). Surface area and trophic state carry no tick — a bigger lake is not a better lake.
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Verdict
Lobster Lake and Maple Lake read the same on nutrients and algae overall. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Lobster Lake: 13 ft, Maple Lake: 14.1 ft) and what you want from the lake. Lobster Lake supports more documented fish species.
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Where to stay near Lobster Lake and Maple Lake
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.