Mud Lake

Mud Lake earns a C — middle-of-the-pack water quality, with one or two parameters dragging the average down from a stronger grade. The three sub-grades — clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a — track close together, so no single parameter is dragging the average.

A TSI in the eutrophic range signals a lake doing what nutrient-loaded waters do — supporting an active algal community at the cost of clear water. A maximum depth of 22 ft puts Mud Lake in the middle of Wisconsin's depth distribution. At 84 acres, Mud Lake sits below the Wisconsin median: a small water where shoreline activity has an outsized effect on water quality. Mud Lake ranks 7 of 8 in Jefferson County — at the lower end of the locally monitored distribution.

Mud Lake has at least one documented invasive species (Curly-Leaf Pondweed), so boaters and anglers should observe clean-drain-dry steps when leaving the lake. The lake's fish records list 2 species — a varied community without one dominant gamefish. 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.