Champlain's Hotspots: Smallies, Lakers & More - Lake Champlain Fishing Report for June 21, 2025

Artificial Lure here, bringing you the Lake Champlain fishing report for Saturday, June 21st, 2025, covering both the Vermont and New York sides of this legendary fishery.

Sunrise hit at 5:13 AM and we’ll see sunset tonight around 8:26 PM, giving us a nice long stretch of daylight. It’s shaping up to be a classic early summer day out there—temperatures are climbing from the upper 50s into the high 60s and low 70s by midday, with partly cloudy skies and a mild northwest breeze clocking in at about 8 mph. Water clarity is pretty good except for a few protected bays that are still stained from last week’s rain, according to recent reports. Lake Champlain is a non-tidal lake, so anglers just need to keep an eye on wind and light conditions—not the tides.

Fish activity is hot right now. Central lake crews have been stacking up smallmouth bass, with several reports—like one from June 18th—of 15 to 20 smallmouth caught in a session along with a couple of surprise northern pike. The best smallmouth action is tight to the shallows, especially around rocky points and gravel flats from Valcour Island to Willsboro Bay, and up around the Inland Sea. These fish are mostly post-spawn, though a few are still guarding beds in cooler inlets. The bite is best early and late, but with stable weather, they’re feeding well throughout the day.

Top-producing lures this week include PXR Mavrik 110 jerkbaits in Metallic Yellow Perch, 5-inch Senko worms in green pumpkin (Texas-rigged), and tube jigs. Once the wind lays down, don’t be afraid to throw a topwater frog or walking bait around shallower flats and weed edges—several anglers reported exciting topwater takes as the sun got higher. For largemouth, the best bet is weedy bays and backwaters, especially early morning. The topwater bite is improving daily.

If you’re after lake trout, your best hunting grounds are still from Westport up to Cumberland Head. Lakers have dropped deep, cruising 80 to 100 feet and chasing rainbow smelt. Downriggers or lead-core lines paired with long, narrow spoons are the ticket; slow trolling is the preferred method.

For multispecies action, you’ll also find pike and the occasional walleye in the shallower grass beds and along submerged structure. Live bait like minnows or soft plastics that mimic smelt and perch will cover a lot of bases. If you’re in for panfish, bluegill and perch are active around docks and weedy shorelines right now.

A couple of local hotspots to try: Valcour Island’s western side remains one of the most consistent smallmouth producers, and the backs of Missisquoi Bay are finally clearing up and heating up with both bass and panfish.

Thanks for tuning in to your Champlain fishing update! Be sure to subscribe for more local tips and, as always, tight lines. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.