Spooner Lake

Spooner Lake earns a C — middle-of-the-pack water quality, with one or two parameters dragging the average down from a stronger grade. Secchi readings are the weakest of the three parameters, suggesting suspended sediment or algal biomass dominates the optical signal.

A TSI near 50 places Spooner Lake in the mesotrophic band — moderate productivity, with seasonal swings between clearer spring water and richer late-summer conditions. 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. With 1,132 acres of surface and partial shoreline records, Spooner Lake is a large water by Wisconsin standards — recreational pressure is spread across a long shoreline. Spooner Lake ranks 42 of 47 in Washburn County — at the lower end of the locally monitored distribution.

Spooner Lake has at least one documented invasive species (Banded Mystery Snail), so boaters and anglers should observe clean-drain-dry steps when leaving the lake. The fishery includes walleye alongside the lake's other 4 documented species — a notable draw for Wisconsin anglers. A documented public access point at Spooner 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.