Long Lake vs Portage Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Long Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Portage Lake. Both are in Hubbard County, Minnesota.
Long Lake and Portage Lake are both in Minnesota — 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. The readings are meaningfully apart: Long Lake carries clearly lower phosphorus and chlorophyll-a readings than Portage Lake. A spread that wide reflects real underlying differences, in watershed inputs, depth profiles, or monitoring rigor.
For a recreational visitor, the wider gap in the readings is decisive: Long Lake has the lower nutrient and algae numbers. For a researcher, the gap is the interesting part: what is different about the two watersheds, and which of those differences is mutable?
Long Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 11.2 ft.
Portage Lake
Murky, only visible to about 5.5 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Long Lake | Portage Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 11.2 ft Better | 5.5 ft |
| Phosphorus | 10 µg/L Better | 30.5 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 4.5 µg/L Better | 11.2 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 135 ft Better | 17 ft |
| Surface Area | 1,926 acres | 429 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 14 Better | 12 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | eutrophic |
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
Long Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Portage Lake. Water clarity: 11.2 ft vs 5.5 ft. For fishing diversity, Long Lake also leads with 14 species.
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.