Lower Eau Claire Lake vs Middle Eau Claire Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Lower Eau Claire Lake and Middle Eau Claire Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of B (Good). Both are in Bayfield County, Wisconsin.
Both Lower Eau Claire Lake and Middle Eau Claire Lake sit in Wisconsin. 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 Eau Claire Lake (B) and Middle Eau Claire Lake (B) are within one letter of each other on our A–F scale. 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 Eau Claire Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 14.1 ft.
Middle Eau Claire Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 18.2 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Lower Eau Claire Lake | Middle Eau Claire Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | B (Good) | B (Good) |
| Water Clarity | 14.1 ft | 18.2 ft Better |
| Phosphorus | 13 µg/L | 12.9 µg/L Better |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 41 ft | 66 ft Better |
| Surface Area | 784 acres | 880 acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Yes |
| Fish Species | 6 | 6 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | oligotrophic |
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.
Swap a lake
Compare Lower Eau Claire Lake or Middle Eau Claire Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade B. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Lower Eau Claire Lake: 14.1 ft, Middle Eau Claire Lake: 18.2 ft) and what you want from the lake. Lower Eau Claire Lake matches its peer on species count.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.