Vermont fishing reports
135 reports for Vermont — what's biting, water temps, and where to focus.
Smallmouth Bass Turn On as Champlain Tournament Anglers Score Big
Water in the Winooski River watershed feeding Lake Champlain read 73°F this morning per USGS gauge 04294500, firmly in peak summer smallmouth range. The clearest signal on the lake itself comes from The Fisherman — New England Freshwater, which reports a Bass Federation tournament ran on Lake Champlain over the August 8-9 weekend, with a fifty-two-year club member landing a non-boater-division haul of 30-plus pounds, a strong showing that points to smallmouth still schooled up and feeding hard on the rocky structure the lake is known for. No fresh intel on landlocked salmon specifically; they typically slide deep as surface water climbs into the low-70s this time of year. We're seeing this as a solid stretch for bronzeback fans working main-lake points and drop-offs, while salmon anglers should plan on downrigging or leadcore rather than surface tactics until temperatures ease.
Champlain Bass Keep Rolling Into Mid-August
A Bass Federation tournament fished out of Lake Champlain over the weekend of August 8-9 produced a five-fish bag topping 30 pounds, good enough for non-boater division honors, according to Sauder's Boat Livery (via The Fisherman — New England Freshwater). That's a strong showing for mid-August largemouth and smallmouth on Champlain. On the Connecticut River side, our USGS gauge 01135300 is reading a notably low 6.75 cfs this morning, in line with typical late-summer low-water conditions that push river bass and panfish tight to shade, current breaks and any deeper holes. A direct water-temperature reading wasn't available at this gauge, so plan around air temp and time of day rather than a hard number. Walleye and pike reports specific to this stretch are thin right now, so anglers chasing them should lean on standard August deep-structure and weedline approaches until fresher local intel comes in. Bass remain the headline story heading into the weekend.
Champlain Smallmouth Settle Into Deep Summer Structure
No Vermont-specific reports came through this cycle, so we're leaning on regional New England signal and typical mid-August patterning for Lake Champlain's smallmouth and landlocked salmon fishery. Elsewhere in the region, per The Fisherman — New England Freshwater, smallmouth are running strong on spinnerbaits along the Merrimack River in Massachusetts, a useful proxy for how bronzebacks are likely behaving lake-wide right now, holding tight to rock piles, humps, and drop-offs rather than shallow cover. For Champlain itself, this is peak deep-structure season: smallmouth typically stack on main-lake points and ledges in 15-25 feet, while landlocked salmon and lake trout get pushed below the thermocline and require downrigger or leadcore trolling to reach. No buoy or gauge telemetry was available for the lake this cycle, so treat water temp and flow as unknowns until you check a local source. We're calling species status off seasonal norms rather than fresh intel this week.
Smallmouth bass patterns build on Vermont waters as summer peaks
Direct buoy and gauge readings for the Connecticut River and Lake Champlain weren't available this cycle, but the seasonal signal from nearby New England freshwater fisheries points to a pattern Vermont anglers should be seeing too. The Fisherman — New England Freshwater reports bronzeback smallmouth running steady on spinnerbaits along the Merrimack River, with fish from 10 inches to 2 pounds stacked up in numbers, and largemouth to 5-plus pounds coming on shiners from shore at ponds in the Southwick/Bourne corridor. Vermont's Connecticut River and Champlain smallmouth and largemouth typically track this same mid-to-late-August window, holding tight to baitfish schools and deep drop-edges before the fall shakeup begins. Walleye and northern pike remain standard late-summer targets on Champlain, though no direct regional intel on either came through this cycle. Treat this as a seasonal-pattern read rather than a live VT report, and check with local shops for on-the-water confirmation before planning a trip.
Champlain smallmouth hold deep as summer heat settles in
No NOAA buoy or USGS gauge readings came through for Lake Champlain this cycle, and this week's angler-intel sweep turned up nothing Vermont-specific on smallmouth bass or landlocked salmon — the available blog and forum feeds skewed toward bass-gear reviews, Northeast saltwater stories, and Midwest walleye columns, with no direct testimony tied to Champlain water. Absent fresh reports, what follows leans on general seasonal knowledge rather than confirmed bites. Mid-August on Champlain typically has smallmouth bass holding tight to main-lake rock piles, humps, and steep drop-offs, with deep drop-shot and tube presentations usually outproducing moving baits once surface temperatures climb. Landlocked salmon typically push deeper and feed more sluggishly through peak summer heat, with anglers usually switching to downrigger trolling near the thermocline to stay in the strike zone. We're not able to verify either pattern against this week's feeds, so treat this as a seasonal baseline rather than an active-bite report until better intel comes through.
Champlain and CT River Settle Into Classic August Bass Pattern
No fresh buoy or gauge readings came through for the Connecticut River or Lake Champlain this cycle, so we're leaning on the seasonal pattern rather than a live number. Early August on these waters typically means largemouth and smallmouth bass sliding into a dawn/dusk rhythm, with the hottest window right around first light — per Wired 2 Fish, summer gamefish push baitfish to the surface in short, explosive windows at sunrise and sunset, a pattern that tracks well for Champlain bass right now. Walleye anglers are increasingly leaning on Forward-Facing Sonar to find suspended fish off traditional structure, a shift Fishing the Midwest has been documenting as more anglers move away from bottom-only presentations. Pike tend to sulk in the warmest part of the day this time of year. New moon phase this week can mean stronger low-light bites — worth planning around if you're picking a window to fish.
Champlain smallmouth tuck into rock as landlocked salmon retreat to cool depths
No fresh buoy or gauge readings came in for Lake Champlain this cycle, and none of this week's angler intel filed directly from the lake — so this update leans on typical August patterns for VT's flagship smallmouth and landlocked salmon fishery. Expect smallmouth to be holding tight to deep rock piles, boulder fields, and drop-offs as surface water pushes into the upper 70s, the classic post-spawn deep-summer setup for the species. Elsewhere in New England freshwater this week, per The Fisherman — New England Freshwater, anglers working smallmouth on the Merrimack River found steady action on Senko-style soft plastics and Yamamoto Cut Tail Worms fished slow around structure — a technique worth carrying onto Champlain's rock. Landlocked salmon, meanwhile, are typically pushed below the thermocline by now and call for deep trolling or downrigging rather than surface presentations. Check state regs before harvesting, and confirm any seasonal closures locally.
VT Bass Slide Deep as August Heat Grips Champlain, CT River
Bass fishing has turned tough on nearby New England waters as August heat sets in — Saunders Boat Livery in Southwick reports largemouth sliding onto deep drop-edges, lily pads, and deep-water docks, still biting Ned Rigs, jigs, and Senkos, while Merrimack River smallmouth are keying on Senko-style plastics and Yamamoto Cut Tail Worms fished on Aziz rigs (per The Fisherman — New England Freshwater). No VT buoy or gauge data came through this cycle and no direct Champlain or Connecticut River reports landed, so we're reading the regional trend: expect Vermont bass to follow the same pattern, sliding deeper and going quieter through midday. Walleye should still respond to structure changes worth probing with forward-facing sonar, a technique shift Fishing the Midwest has tracked closely, and morning and evening windows remain the reliable bet as recreational boat traffic picks up on popular water.
Champlain smallmouth stage draws pro tournament trail in August
The Lake Champlain smallmouth fishery got a national spotlight this week when the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit's Stop 6 ran on Vermont water, per Wired 2 Fish, though the story's real hook was a Day 1 disqualification after pro Chad Mrazek fished without a valid Vermont license, a reminder that VT and NY both require their own paperwork on a lake that straddles the border. We don't have fresh buoy or gauge readings for Champlain this cycle, so treat conditions as a seasonal read rather than a real-time one. Early August typically has Champlain smallmouth locked onto deeper rock piles, humps and current-swept points as surface temperatures peak, while landlocked salmon slide down into cooler, oxygenated water and get harder to reach without electronics or downriggers. No shop or charter intel came in on this stretch of the lake this cycle, so species status below leans on typical seasonal behavior rather than a fresh bite report.
Lake Champlain draws pro bass anglers as VT rivers run low and clear
A Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit stop landed on Lake Champlain earlier this month, per Wired 2 Fish, a reminder that the lake still draws national bass tournaments even in peak summer heat — the same report flagged a competitor disqualified for fishing without a valid Vermont license, worth noting before you launch. On the Connecticut River side, our reading from USGS gauge 01135300 has flow sitting near 39.3 cfs, consistent with the low, clear water typical of a dry Vermont August. No direct Vermont bite reports came through this cycle's angler intel, so species status below leans on seasonal patterns: smallmouth and largemouth bass pushing to deeper structure and shade through midday heat, with walleye and pike staying most catchable around dawn and dusk low light.
Champlain smallmouth push deep as peak-summer heat sets in
No NOAA buoy or USGS gauge data came through for Lake Champlain this cycle, and none of this week's angler-intel feeds filed a direct report from the lake, so this update leans on regional patterns rather than on-the-water testimony from Champlain itself. Wired 2 Fish's August lure roundup notes bass nationwide are solidly post-spawn and pushing to the deepest water they'll hold all year, a pattern that tracks for Champlain smallmouth as surface temps peak in early August. Elsewhere in New England, The Fisherman — New England Freshwater reports smallmouth keying on Senko-style stick worms and Ned rigs worked along deep drop-edges, reservoir docks, and lily-pad edges, a technique set worth testing on Champlain's rocky points and ledges. Landlocked salmon have no direct reports either way this week; expect them holding deep near the thermocline, which is typical for this stretch of summer. Check Vermont state regs before harvesting.
Bass and Walleye Dial In as Summer Heat Grips Vermont Waters
Smallmouth bass are getting finicky as water temperatures bounce around in the late-summer heat, per this week's dispatch from The Fisherman — New England Freshwater, where anglers at Congamond Lakes found the bite 'much slower than it was a week ago' despite working deep drop-edges, lily pads and deep-water docks with Ned Rigs, jigs and Senkos. No VT-specific buoy or gauge readings came back for this cycle, and no dedicated Connecticut River or Lake Champlain dispatch landed in this week's intel sweep, but the same pattern typically holds across Vermont's freshwater fisheries in early August: post-spawn bass pushed deep, walleye leaning on structure and forward-facing sonar per Fishing the Midwest, and pike ambushing weed edges. We'd focus early mornings and dusk, working the thermocline break rather than the skinny water, until a cold front resets the pattern.