Sand Lake vs Wood Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Sand Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Wood Lake (C, Fair). Both are in Burnett County, Wisconsin.
Both Sand Lake and Wood 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: Sand Lake grades a A while Wood 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 — Sand 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?
Sand Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 18.3 ft down.
Wood Lake
Murky, only visible to about 5.5 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Sand Lake | Wood Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | C (Fair) |
| Water Clarity | 18.3 ft | 5.5 ft |
| Phosphorus | 9.9 µg/L | 22.6 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 73 ft | 35 ft |
| Surface Area | 900 acres | 521 acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 0 | 0 |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Sand Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Wood Lake's Grade C. Water clarity: 18.3 ft vs 5.5 ft. For fishing diversity, Sand Lake also leads with 0 species.