Lake Galilee

Lake Galilee earns an A — water clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate among the best monitored waters in Ashland County. 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 bottoms out at 23 ft — a moderate depth that supports a warm-water fishery without the year-round cold refuge a deeper basin provides. At 212 acres, Lake Galilee fits the Wisconsin median for monitored lakes, with partial shoreline records. Among the 10 graded lakes in Ashland County, Lake Galilee ranks 1 — in the top quartile locally.

Lake Galilee has at least one documented invasive species (Banded Mystery Snail), so boaters and anglers should observe clean-drain-dry steps when leaving the lake. The fishery includes walleye alongside the lake's other 6 documented species — a notable draw for Wisconsin anglers. 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.