Long Lake vs White Bear Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
White Bear Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Long Lake. Both are in Washington County, Minnesota.
Both Long Lake and White Bear 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 meaningfully apart: White Bear Lake carries clearly lower phosphorus and chlorophyll-a readings than Long 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: White Bear 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
Very murky, less than 2.8 ft of visibility.
White Bear Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 14.4 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Long Lake | White Bear Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 2.8 ft | 14.4 ft Better |
| Phosphorus | 47.5 µg/L | 15 µg/L Better |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 25.3 µg/L | 2.7 µg/L Better |
| Maximum Depth | 60 ft | 83 ft Better |
| Surface Area | 1,799 acres | 2,428 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 12 | 18 Better |
| Trophic State | eutrophic | 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
White Bear Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Long Lake. Water clarity: 14.4 ft vs 2.8 ft. For fishing diversity, White Bear Lake also leads with 18 species.
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.