Red Cedar Lake vs Rice Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Red Cedar Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Rice Lake (C, Fair). Both are in Barron County, Wisconsin.
Both Red Cedar Lake and Rice 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 meaningfully apart: Red Cedar Lake grades a A while Rice Lake grades a C. That two-letter spread reflects real underlying differences — different watershed inputs, different depth profiles, or different monitoring rigor.
For a recreational visitor, the wider grade gap is decisive — Red Cedar Lake is the better water-quality choice. For a researcher, the gap is the interesting part: what is different about the two watersheds, and which of those differences is mutable?
Red Cedar Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 10.1 ft.
Rice Lake
Murky, only visible to about 4.1 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Red Cedar Lake | Rice Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | C (Fair) |
| Water Clarity | 10.1 ft | 4.1 ft |
| Phosphorus | 17.4 µg/L | 31.5 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 53 ft | 19 ft |
| Surface Area | 1.9K acres | 859 acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 0 | 0 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Red Cedar Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Rice Lake's Grade C. Water clarity: 10.1 ft vs 4.1 ft. For fishing diversity, Red Cedar Lake also leads with 0 species.