Pike Lake

On the LakeGrade scale Pike Lake grades a B, with clarity at 24.9 ft and 25 µg/L of phosphorus placing it above the Wisconsin median. Clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate similarly, so there is no obvious single lever to pull on watershed management.

Mesotrophic conditions dominate at Pike Lake: enough nutrients for a healthy fishery, not so much that algal blooms become a chronic problem. The lake bottoms out at 17 ft — a moderate depth that supports a warm-water fishery without the year-round cold refuge a deeper basin provides. At 42 acres, Pike Lake sits below the Wisconsin median: a small water where shoreline activity has an outsized effect on water quality. Within the 52 graded lakes of Sawyer County, Pike Lake sits at rank 40, near the bottom of the county list.

Pike Lake has no invasive species recorded in Wisconsin state databases as of 2024, though prevention practices still apply at all access points. The fishery includes walleye alongside the lake's other 3 documented species — a notable draw for Wisconsin anglers. The grade is supported by multiple sampling years from the Wisconsin DNR Citizen Lake Monitoring Network, giving the letter a reasonably stable foundation.