Lower Bottle Lake vs Midge Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Lower Bottle Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Midge Lake (A, Excellent). Both are in Hubbard County, Minnesota.
Both Lower Bottle Lake and Midge 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. The grades are close: Lower Bottle Lake (A) and Midge Lake (A) are within one letter of each other on the LakeGrade rubric. The per-parameter sub-grades below will show where the small differences actually live.
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.
Lower Bottle Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 15 ft down.
Midge Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 18 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Lower Bottle Lake | Midge Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | A (Excellent) |
| Water Clarity | 15 ft | 18 ft |
| Phosphorus | 10 µg/L | 20 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 110 ft | 24 ft |
| Surface Area | 641.17 acres | 545.74 acres |
| Public Access | No | Yes |
| Fish Species | 1 | 1 |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | mesotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Lower Bottle Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Midge Lake's Grade A. Water clarity: 15 ft vs 18 ft. For fishing diversity, Lower Bottle Lake also leads with 1 species.