Lake Vermilion
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Lake Vermilion Fishing Reports
Stay up to date with the latest fishing reports from Lake Vermilion. Reports are submitted by local anglers, fishing guides, and our team of fishing experts.
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Smallmouth BassTechniqueTubesSeasonSpring (Spawn)StructureBouldersSmall tubes and neds around areas with sandy gravel areas with rock, boulder, log mix, finding smallies preparing to spawn near these objects.
- SpeciesSmallmouth BassTechniqueMedium Diving Crankbaits (7'-12')SeasonSpring (Post-Spawn)StructureRock Pile
Fishing was slow. Was hot, muggy, sunny, and flat calm. The few smallies were decent sized though. Hot pink Mepps muskie killer produced most fish, including a 40 inch muskie.
- SpeciesSmallmouth BassTechniqueFinesse Hair JigsSeasonSummerStructureBoulders
Spent a week up on vermilion chasing after walleye and bass. Seems like the smallmouth bass up there love leeches and after going through a lot of live bait and catching a ton of smallies on slip bobbers I switched to a hair jig. The black Maribou hair jigs were killer out over the sunken islands and boulder patches. It helps to have a long rod on the lighter action side to really throw the little jigs out there. All I would do is cruise the outer edges of these sunken islands and make long casts to the tops and slowly reel the jig back in trying to let it sink as close to the tops of the rock piles as possible. No need for popping or jigging action just simply reeling in the bait slowly seemed to trigger the fish the best. These islands can be somewhat challenging to fish using other methods without loosing a lot of lures but these little maribou jigs imitate leeches really well and the smallies seemed to love them!
- SpeciesSmallmouth BassTechniqueHard Topwater (Prop)SeasonSummerStructureBoulders
We got into a good numbers bite on Vermilion with a few fish between 3-3.5# mixed in while throwing Whopper Ploppers on the shaded shorelines and small Hair Jigs on the shorelines with sun. Topwater bites all seemed to come 1-3ft right off of the shoreline, undeveloped shorelines produced better than docks. We kept the trolling motor in the water and our lines wet on this day.
SpeciesSmallmouth BassTechniqueHard Topwater (Prop)SeasonSummerStructureBouldersSpent 4 days fishing Lake Vermilion for the first time this past week (mid-july). What an unbelievable fishery! I was fishing mainly mornings and evenings. I ended up dialing in a very simple pattern. Topwater early morning and dusk, and hair jigs the rest of the time. I was working shorelines with large boulders/laydowns next to deeper water with the whopper plopper. Mid/day and early evenings the hair jig bite was awesome. I had noticed my fish spitting up bright orange crayfish, so I went with the brown/orange color. The lake is full of 12-15" fish, bigger fish seemed to be in very specific areas. Extended spines of rock off points or deeper edges of mid lake rock piles. When I really wanted to slow down I would throw the Juvy Craw around those boulders, and there was typically more than one. If you ever get a chance to visit Vermilion take it!
- SpeciesSmallmouth BassTechniqueHard Topwater (Popping)SeasonSummerStructureBoulders
The mid summer popper bite is in full swing, fishing 45 degree bank adjacent to deep water has been key, boulders, laydowns and docks are great pieces of structure that hold multiple fish! Follow up with the ned rig if they are missing the popper! 20-30 fish days are average, hot bite in the morning 6-8am and evening 7-9pm! Take advantage of one of the best bites of the year!
SnflgusBronze AmbassadorSpecies
Northern PikeTechniqueHard Topwater (Prop)SeasonSummerStructureDocks- SpeciesSmallmouth BassTechniqueTubesSeasonSummerStructureDocks
