Tomahawk Lake

Tomahawk Lake sits at the top of the Wisconsin DNR grading rubric with an A, a mark reached by the cleanest lakes in 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 30 puts Tomahawk Lake in the oligotrophic range, where biological productivity stays low and the water column remains clear. The lake bottoms out at 42 ft — a moderate depth that supports a warm-water fishery without the year-round cold refuge a deeper basin provides. At 131 acres, Tomahawk Lake fits the Wisconsin median for monitored lakes, with partial shoreline records. Tomahawk Lake sits at rank 39 of 55 in Bayfield County, in the lower half of the local distribution.

Tomahawk Lake carries an invasive watermilfoil record — boat-launch decontamination and shoreline care matter more here than at uninfested lakes. The fishery includes walleye alongside the lake's other 4 documented species — a notable draw for Wisconsin anglers. A documented public access point at Tomahawk 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.