Swan Lake vs Ten Mile Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Swan Lake and Ten Mile Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of A (Excellent). Both are in Otter Tail County, Minnesota.
Swan Lake and Ten Mile 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 — Swan Lake (A) versus Ten Mile 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.
Swan Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 12.1 ft.
Ten Mile Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 13.6 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Swan Lake | Ten Mile Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | A (Excellent) | A (Excellent) |
| Water Clarity | 12.1 ft | 13.6 ft |
| Phosphorus | 18 µg/L | 24 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 4 µg/L | 5.2 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 44 ft | 51 ft |
| Surface Area | 749 acres | 1,428 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 16 | 19 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | mesotrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade A. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Swan Lake: 12.1 ft, Ten Mile Lake: 13.6 ft) and what you want from the lake. Swan Lake has fewer fish species than Ten Mile Lake.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.