Smith Lake vs Sturgeon Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Smith Lake has a higher water quality grade (A, Excellent) than Sturgeon Lake (A, Excellent). Both are in St. Louis County, Minnesota.
Smith Lake and Sturgeon Lake are both in Minnesota — a same-state head-to-head where the comparison comes down to lake-specific differences in depth, watershed, and monitoring history rather than the broader state-level water-quality regime. These two are within a letter of each other on the rubric — Smith Lake (A) versus Sturgeon Lake (A). 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.
Smith Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 15 ft down.
Sturgeon Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 13.8 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Smith Lake | Sturgeon Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | A (Excellent) |
| Water Clarity | 15 ft | 13.8 ft |
| Phosphorus | No data | 12.5 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | - | - |
| Surface Area | 220 acres | 2.0K acres |
| Public Access | Unknown | Unknown |
| Fish Species | 1 | 1 |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | oligotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Smith Lake wins on overall water quality with a Grade A versus Sturgeon Lake's Grade A. Water clarity: 15 ft vs 13.8 ft. For fishing diversity, Smith Lake also leads with 1 species.