Lake Fisher
Davis County, Iowa87 acresView mapDirections
Iowa DNR publishes the water-quality measurements for Lake Fisher. Here is what has been measured.
- Hypereutrophic
- 28 ft max depth
Lake Fisher in Davis County, Iowa has water-quality measurements published by Iowa DNR, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 85 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 30.2 µg/L. Surface area: 87 acres.
Free interactive depth-contour map of Lake Fisher, reaching a maximum surveyed depth of 21 ft. Toggle Depth contours to overlay the bathymetric survey lines. Contour data from Iowa DNR.
Lake Fisher is a 87-acre highly nutrient-loaded hypereutrophic lake in Davis County, Iowa with an estimated average depth of about 28 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Compared to the 1 other monitored lakes in Davis County, Lake Fisher ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Iowa DNR, last sampled 2024-09-09. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyAlgae risk
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 Lake Fisher is safe to swim in today is a call for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Lake Fisher
These are the measurements Iowa DNR publishes for Lake Fisher, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Very murky, less than 2 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 85 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 30.2 µg/L. TSI 67.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 2ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 85µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 30.2µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 67 | Hypereutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Very high nutrients, dense algae, poor clarity
Ask about Lake Fisher
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~28 ft est.
Surface area
87 acres
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Iowa has not published bathymetry for Lake Fisher.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
3 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
2.6 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
820 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Lake Fisher
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Lake Fisher in Davis County, Iowa — 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. The water-quality readings cover nutrients and algae, not lodging. Cabins and rentals around Lake Fisher are listed below.
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Fishing Lake Fisher
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2023–2024). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Worsening2 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+51 µg/L/yr2 years
Chlorophyll-a
Stable-0.2 µg/L/yr2 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Lake Fisher is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Lake Fisher Dam (completed 1937), built primarily for water supply on the TR-FOX RIVER; earth-type dam, 43 ft tall and 820 ft long.
- Surface area
- 87 ac
- Normal storage
- 1,128 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 2,166 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 2.25 sq mi
- Hazard class
- Significant
- Owner
- City of Bloomfield
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID IA01339 · Operator website
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
2 EPA-permitted facilities operate within about 5 miles of Lake Fisher under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits, including 1 classified by the EPA as major discharger. 2 facilities have a reported Clean Water Act violation in the past three years.
- Bloomfield City Of Stp (Main)Bloomfield · 2.1 mi away · NPDES IA0047929MajorRecent violation
- Drakesville, City Of (Rathbun Regional Water Assoc.)Drakesville · 2.5 mi away · NPDES IA0075612Recent violation
Facilities permitted to discharge under the Clean Water Act within ~5 miles; proximity does not by itself mean a facility affects this lake. Source: EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES), as of 2026-07.
Nearby Lakes in Davis County
Frequently asked questions about Lake Fisher
Where is Lake Fisher?
- Lake Fisher is a lake in Davis County, Iowa. Its water-quality measurements are published by Iowa DNR and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Lake Fisher?
- Lake Fisher in Davis County, Iowa has water-quality measurements published by Iowa DNR, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 85 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 30.2 µg/L. Surface area: 87 acres.
Is Lake Fisher safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Lake Fisher?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Lake Fisher, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 28 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate. The lake covers 87 acres.
Explore Lake Fisher across LakeQuality
More lakes in Iowa
Other Lakes in Iowa
Hypereutrophic Lakes in Iowa
Where this data comes from
35 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2023–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Iowa DNR Surface Water Monitoring Data
21IOWA_WQX35 samples · 2023–2024
Analytical methods
- Unknown
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- In-Vitro Determination of Chlorophyll
- ISU modification of APHA 2130-B
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.
Other records on this page
Regulated discharger data from EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES)
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)