Pelican Lake vs West Battle Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Pelican Lake and West Battle Lake read the same on nutrients and algae. Both are in Otter Tail County, Minnesota.
Both Pelican Lake and West Battle 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. These two sit close on the readings, Pelican Lake versus West Battle Lake. The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
With readings 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.
Pelican Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 16.4 ft down.
West Battle Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 18 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Pelican Lake | West Battle Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 16.4 ft | 18 ft Better |
| Phosphorus | 15 µg/L | 8 µg/L Better |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 3 µg/L | 2.7 µg/L Better |
| Maximum Depth | 55 ft | 108 ft Better |
| Surface Area | 3,962 acres | 5,615 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 20 Better | 17 |
| 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 Pelican Lake or West Battle Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade A. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Pelican Lake: 16.4 ft, West Battle Lake: 18 ft) and what you want from the lake. Pelican Lake supports more documented fish species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.