Sugar Camp Lake
Sugar Camp Lake in Oneida County, Wisconsin has a water quality grade of B (Good). Water clarity: 16.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 10.3 µg/L.
- Clarity
- 16.5 ft
- Typical in August
- 74°F
- Max depth
- ~44 ft est.
- Type
- Oligotrophic
- Trend
- → Stable
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Sugar Camp Lake is a cold, clear oligotrophic lake in Oneida County, Wisconsin with an estimated average depth of about 44 feet. Water quality is graded B based on 1 sampling years through 2025. Water clarity is declining over recent sampling years. Compared to the 66 other monitored lakes in Oneida County, Sugar Camp Lake ranks #5 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Wisconsin DNR Surface Water, last sampled 2025-07-03. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
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Swimming Safety
Grade onlyLow algae
Based on clarity and algae grades from past sampling — we do not hold live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Good for swimming, clear water with low algae levels
Water Quality Grade: B (Good)
Crystal clear, you can see 16.5 ft down. Phosphorus level: 10.3 µg/L. Trophic State Index: 37.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 16.5 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | 10.3 µg/L | Good |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No recent samples | |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 37 | Oligotrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water, excellent for swimming
Where to stay near Sugar Camp Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Sugar Camp Lake in Oneida County, Wisconsin — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water.
Top-rated places to stay near Sugar Camp Lake
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Water Temperature
Sugar Camp Lake typically sits around 74°F at the surface in August. Summer average is about 71°F. Usually warmest in Aug (about 74°F) and coldest in Oct (about 58°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 9 field readings (2024–2025) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Sugar Camp Lake water temperature breakdown →
Blue-Green Algae (Cyanobacteria)
There’s no recent EPA CyAN cyanobacteria estimate for Sugar Camp Lake — clouds, ice, or an off-season gap in coverage. The most recent reading was high (751,623 cells/mL) on November 17, 2025.
Blue-green algae can appear and clear within days, so check your state’s current advisory before swimming. EPA CyAN ↗
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~44 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~12 ft est. |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Wisconsin has not published bathymetry for Sugar Camp Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Fishing Sugar Camp Lake
Water Quality Trend: → Stable
Based on 7 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | ↓ Declining | -0.371 m/yr | 6 |
| Phosphorus | ↑ Improving | -0.4 µg/L/yr | 7 |
EPA Impairment Status
Sugar Camp Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit WI10007452 · Official waterbody report
County Ranking
Ranked #5 of 67 lakes in Oneida County
Nearby Lakes in Oneida County
Frequently asked questions about Sugar Camp Lake
Where is Sugar Camp Lake?
- Sugar Camp Lake is a lake in Oneida County, Wisconsin. LakeQuality grades it B for nutrients and algae. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
What is the water quality grade for Sugar Camp Lake?
- Sugar Camp Lake in Oneida County, Wisconsin has a water quality grade of B (Good). Water clarity: 16.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 10.3 µg/L.
Is Sugar Camp Lake safe to swim in?
- Good for swimming, clear water with low algae levels. Sugar Camp Lake has a water quality grade of B (Good). Always check local health department advisories before swimming.
What is the water temperature of Sugar Camp Lake?
- Sugar Camp Lake typically sits around 74°F at the surface in August, from 9 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2024–2025). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is Sugar Camp Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Sugar Camp Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 44 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate.
Does Sugar Camp Lake have blue-green algae?
- There is no recent EPA CyAN cyanobacteria estimate for Sugar Camp Lake (clouds, ice, or an off-season gap). The most recent reading was high (751,623 cells/mL). Blue-green algae can appear and clear within days, so check Wisconsin's current advisory before swimming.
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Where this data comes from
97 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
WIDNR_WQX97 samples · 2020–2025
Analytical methods
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
Monitoring station identifiers (2)
Grade thresholds from the EPA National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See how grades are calculated and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)