Pine Lake

Pine Lake earns an A — water clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate among the best monitored waters in Waukesha County. Sub-grades cluster within a single letter of each other, which usually means the lake is in stable trophic balance rather than fighting one specific stressor.

Trophically, Pine Lake reads as oligotrophic — nutrient-poor, clear, and ecologically more sensitive to disturbance than richer lakes. Pine Lake is unusually deep for Wisconsin at 85 ft, which buffers the lake against summer warming and helps the deep water stay oxygenated. The lake's 711 acres and partial shoreline records put it in the mid-range bucket — large enough for varied use, small enough that watershed inputs reach the whole basin. Pine Lake ranks 2 of 45 in Waukesha County, putting it in the upper tier of locally monitored lakes.

Zebra mussels have been documented at Pine Lake, which alters the filter-feeding balance and can paradoxically increase water clarity while disrupting the food web. Walleye are documented at Pine Lake, one of 5 fish species on record for the lake. Public access is available — the lake is on the Wisconsin DNR public-access list. The grade is based on limited monitoring — fewer than three independent measurement years contribute, so future updates may shift the letter.