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LakeQuality

Clear Lake

Jackson County, Michigan130 acresView mapDirections

EGLE publishes the water-quality measurements for Clear Lake. Here is what has been measured.

Clarity
10.5 ft
Typical for Michigan
Secchi · sampled 2023
Phosphorus
9 µg/L
Typical for Michigan
Measured by EGLE
Chlorophyll-a
3.6 µg/L
Typical for Michigan
Measured by EGLE
Max depth
34 ft
Bathymetric survey
Area
130 acres
Surface area
Type
Mesotrophic
Trophic class
  • Mesotrophic
  • 34 ft max depth
  • Limited data

Clear Lake in Jackson County, Michigan has water-quality measurements published by EGLE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 10.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 9 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 3.6 µg/L. Maximum depth: 34 ft. Surface area: 129.5 acres.

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Clear Lake is a 130-acre mesotrophic lake in Jackson County, Michigan with a maximum depth of 34 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. The lake supports 17 documented fish species including Black crappie, Blackchin shiner, and Blacknose shiner. Compared to the 3 other monitored lakes in Jackson County, Clear Lake ranks #3 for water quality.

Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, EGLE, last sampled 2023-09-24. Methodology: how these readings are compared.

Clear Lake covers about 130 acres in Jackson County. Vrbo is where to look for cabins and lake homes around Clear Lake, and Booking.com and Expedia search hotels near the lake for your dates.

What Clear Lake is good for

From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.

  • Clear water10.5 ft of visibility
  • Fishing17 species recorded
  • Deep water34 ft surveyed max depth

Swimming conditions

Readings only

Limited data

Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.

Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.

Whether Clear Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.

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Water quality measurements for Clear Lake

These are the measurements EGLE publishes for Clear Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.

Good clarity, visible to about 10.5 ft. Phosphorus 9 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 3.6 µg/L. TSI 41.

Water quality readings
MeasureReadingWhere it sits
Water clarity (Secchi depth)10.5ftMeasured, not scored

How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer.

Total phosphorus9µg/LGood
GoodFairPoor
Chlorophyll-a (algae)3.6µg/LGood
GoodFairPoor
Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a.41Mesotrophic
OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic

Moderate nutrients, good water quality

Ask about Clear Lake

Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.

Lake Details

Max depth

34 ft

Surface area

130 acres

Stays via Stay22

Stays near Clear Lake

Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Clear Lake in Jackson County, Michigan — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water.

Top-rated places to stay near Clear Lake

Prices for Oct 30–Nov 1, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.

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Fish Species

Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.

Fishing Clear Lake

Based on 7 years of monitoring (2016–2023).

  • Water clarity

    Improving

    7 years

  • Phosphorus

    Worsening

    +0.36 µg/L/yr6 years

  • Chlorophyll-a

    Worsening

    +1.8 µg/L/yr2 years

See year-by-year chart →

Nearby Lakes in Jackson County

Frequently asked questions about Clear Lake

Where is Clear Lake?

Clear Lake is a lake in Jackson County, Michigan. Its water-quality measurements are published by EGLE and shown on this page as reported.

What is the water quality of Clear Lake?

Clear Lake in Jackson County, Michigan has water-quality measurements published by EGLE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 10.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 9 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 3.6 µg/L. Maximum depth: 34 ft. Surface area: 129.5 acres.

Measurements on this page ↑

Is Clear Lake safe to swim in?

Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.

Swimming on this page ↑

How deep is Clear Lake?

Clear Lake has a maximum depth of 34 feet. The lake covers 129.5 acres.

What fish are in Clear Lake?

Fish species found in Clear Lake include Black crappie, Blackchin shiner, Blacknose shiner, Bluegill, Bluntnose minnow, Bowfin, Brown bullhead, Grass pickerel, Green sunfish, Iowa darter, Northern pike, Pumpkinseed, Redear sunfish, Rock bass, Spottail shiner, Western banded killifish, Yellow bullhead. Clear Lake is located in Jackson County, Michigan.

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Mesotrophic Lakes in Michigan

Where this data comes from

108 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2016–2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-26.

Collected and reported by

  • Michigan EGLE - MiCorps21MICH_MICORPS108 samples · 2016–2023

Analytical methods

  • Phosphorus by Colorimetry
  • 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
Monitoring station identifiers (1)

EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.