Clarey Lake

On the LakeGrade scale Clarey Lake grades a B, with clarity at 4.3 ft and 19 µg/L of phosphorus placing it above the Wisconsin median. The lake's weakest score is on Secchi depth — the water looks more turbid than its phosphorus number alone would predict.

A TSI in the eutrophic range signals a lake doing what nutrient-loaded waters do — supporting an active algal community at the cost of clear water. The lake bottoms out at 49 ft — a moderate depth that supports a warm-water fishery without the year-round cold refuge a deeper basin provides. Clarey Lake is small — 32 acres alongside partial shoreline records — which makes it sensitive to even modest changes in watershed runoff or recreational pressure. Among the 74 graded lakes in Polk County, Clarey Lake sits at rank 34, above the county median.

Clarey Lake has no invasive species recorded in Wisconsin state databases as of 2020, though prevention practices still apply at all access points. The lake's fish records list 1 species — a varied community without one dominant gamefish. Public access is available — the lake is on the Wisconsin DNR public-access list. The grade is based on limited monitoring — fewer than three independent measurement years contribute, so future updates may shift the letter.