Oldham Lake vs Willow Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Oldham Lake and Willow Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of C (Fair). Both are in Wisconsin.
Both Oldham Lake and Willow Lake sit in Iowa. 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. These two are within a letter of each other on the rubric — Oldham Lake (C) versus Willow Lake (C). The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
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.
Oldham Lake
Murky, only visible to about 5.1 ft.
Willow Lake
Murky, only visible to about 4.8 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Oldham Lake | Willow Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | C (Fair) | C (Fair) |
| Water Clarity | 5.1 ft | 4.8 ft |
| Phosphorus | No data | No data |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 8.5 µg/L | 9.5 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | - | - |
| Surface Area | 16.1 acres | 19 acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 0 | 0 |
| Trophic State | eutrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade C. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Oldham Lake: 5.1 ft, Willow Lake: 4.8 ft) and what you want from the lake. Oldham Lake matches its peer on species count.