Hanson Lake

Hanson Lake earns an A — water clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate among the best monitored waters in Oneida County. Sub-grades cluster within a single letter of each other, which usually means the lake is in stable trophic balance rather than fighting one specific stressor.

Trophically, Hanson Lake reads as oligotrophic — nutrient-poor, clear, and ecologically more sensitive to disturbance than richer lakes. The lake bottoms out at 23 ft — a moderate depth that supports a warm-water fishery without the year-round cold refuge a deeper basin provides. Hanson Lake is small — 35 acres alongside partial shoreline records — which makes it sensitive to even modest changes in watershed runoff or recreational pressure. Hanson Lake ranks 64 of 140 in Oneida County — solidly in the upper half of the local distribution.

No invasive species are currently listed at Hanson Lake — the lake remains off the Wisconsin infested-waters roster. The fishery is bass-led, with 3 documented species across the lake's records. 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.