Boone County Lake Quality
Missouri, 12 lakes, average grade D (Poor)
Boone County has 12 graded lakes — a thin enough sample that one or two stressed lakes can move the county average noticeably. Use the per-lake pages below for what actually matters. On average, Boone County lakes grade D, with phosphorus loading and reduced clarity showing up across most of the dataset.
Most of the county's monitored lakes are shallow — under 50 feet — which means wind keeps the water column mixed all summer and sediment-bound phosphorus releases back into the surface layer whenever the bottom is disturbed. Finger Lakes (B) is the cleanest in the county.
Quick Answers for Boone County
Planning a trip? Check special fishing regulations for Finger Lakes — or check the official Missouri fishing regulations.
All Lakes in Boone County
| Rank | Lake | Grade | Clarity | Phosphorus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Finger Lakes | B | 7.9 ft | 16.5 µg/L |
| 2 | Lake of the Woods | B | 7 ft | 20 µg/L |
| 3 | Quarry Heights Lake | C | 6.4 ft | 53 µg/L |
| 4 | Phillips Lake | C | 2.8 ft | 35.5 µg/L |
| 5 | Bethel Lake | C | 2.2 ft | 32.7 µg/L |
| 6 | Mckee Pond | C | 3.3 ft | 56 µg/L |
| 7 | Stephens Lake | D | 2.6 ft | 39.7 µg/L |
| 8 | Tri City Lake | D | - | 76 µg/L |
| 9 | Rocky Fork Lake | F | 2.3 ft | 73.8 µg/L |
| 10 | Ashland Lake | F | 1.9 ft | 90.2 µg/L |
| 11 | Cedar Lake | F | 2.1 ft | 98 µg/L |
Other Counties in Missouri
See how Boone County stacks up in the national county water-quality rankings, or browse the full directory of graded lakes across all 15 states.
Where to stay near Boone County
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.