Murphy Flowage Lake

The LakeGrade rubric puts Murphy Flowage Lake at a C: clarity readings still being added, 33 µg/L of phosphorus, and a TSI of 55 signal an intermediate trophic state. Clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate similarly, so there is no obvious single lever to pull on watershed management.

At a TSI of 55, Murphy Flowage Lake reads as eutrophic — nutrient-rich enough that summer algal growth and reduced clarity are expected, not unusual. At only 14 ft deep, Murphy Flowage Lake is shallow — wind keeps the water column mixed and sediment resuspension drives phosphorus levels harder to manage. At 169 acres, Murphy Flowage Lake fits the Wisconsin median for monitored lakes, with partial shoreline records. Murphy Flowage Lake ranks 12 of 13 in Rusk County — at the lower end of the locally monitored distribution.

An invasive species record — Banded Mystery Snail — has been logged at Murphy Flowage Lake; Wisconsin DNR maintains the official infested-waters list. Bass fishing is part of the appeal: the species list runs to 4, 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.