Bardon Lake

Bardon Lake earns an A — every scored parameter (clarity and phosphorus) rates among the best monitored waters in Douglas County. The two scored sub-grades — clarity and phosphorus — track close together, so neither one is dragging the average down.

The lake's low TSI puts it in oligotrophic territory — the cleanest of the four trophic classes, but also the most vulnerable to nutrient-driven shifts. At 102 ft of maximum depth, Bardon Lake stratifies reliably through the summer — the hypolimnion stays cooler and clearer than the surface layer suggests. Bardon Lake covers 848 acres alongside partial shoreline records — a mid-sized water that supports a working fishery without being so large that conditions diverge between basins. Within Douglas County's 40 graded waters, Bardon Lake sits at rank 5, near the top of the local distribution.

Bardon Lake carries an invasive watermilfoil record — boat-launch decontamination and shoreline care matter more here than at uninfested lakes. Walleye are documented at Bardon Lake, one of 5 fish species on record for the lake. The grade is based on limited monitoring — fewer than three independent measurement years contribute, so future updates may shift the letter.