Gates Lake

On the LakeGrade rubric, Gates Lake pulls an A: clarity at 26.2 ft and phosphorus readings still being added put it in the top bracket for Wisconsin. The three sub-grades — clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a — track close together, so no single parameter is dragging the average.

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. The lake's maximum depth is not yet documented in state morphometric records — context for its physical structure remains limited. At 87 acres, Gates Lake sits below the Wisconsin median: a small water where shoreline activity has an outsized effect on water quality. Gates Lake ranks 6 of 26 in Price County, putting it in the upper tier of locally monitored lakes.

No invasive species are currently listed at Gates Lake — the lake remains off the Wisconsin infested-waters roster. Bass fishing is part of the appeal: the species list runs to 2, anchored by largemouth and/or smallmouth bass. Public access is available — the lake is on the Wisconsin DNR public-access list. Monitoring depth is thin here: the LakeGrade rubric is applied to a small number of sample years, and the grade will be revised as more data accumulates.