Nebish Lake

On the LakeGrade rubric, Nebish Lake pulls an A: clarity at 53.5 ft and 11 µg/L of phosphorus put it in the top bracket for Wisconsin. The three sub-grades — clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a — track close together, so no single parameter is dragging the average.

A TSI value of 29 puts Nebish Lake in the oligotrophic range, where biological productivity stays low and the water column remains clear. At 52 ft of maximum depth, Nebish Lake stratifies reliably through the summer — the hypolimnion stays cooler and clearer than the surface layer suggests. The lake is compact at 93 acres, with partial shoreline records and little volume to buffer nutrient inputs. Nebish Lake sits at rank 133 of 202 in Vilas County, in the lower half of the local distribution.

No invasive species are currently listed at Nebish Lake — the lake remains off the Wisconsin infested-waters roster. Bass fishing is part of the appeal: the species list runs to 2, anchored by largemouth and/or smallmouth bass. A documented public access point at Nebish Lake makes the lake usable for shore fishing, paddle craft, and trailered boats. 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.