Crisp Fall Fishing on Lake Champlain - Massive Smallmouth, Hot Topwater, and Trophy Pike Await

Artificial Lure, bringing you the latest from the shores of Lake Champlain on this crisp September morning, Friday the 26th, 2025. First light crept in just after 6:45 AM, casting a soft mist over the lake with calm winds and a cool, high-50s start—perfect fall fishing weather. Expect some clouds with pockets of sun today, highs around 72, and a gentle north breeze at 5–10 mph. You’re in for a top-quality autumn session: water temps are holding warm in the low 70s, and the classic fall transition is underway. With no true tides on a freshwater lake, you can skip the charts and focus on the day’s two best fishing periods: sunrise through mid-morning and again a couple hours before sunset—sunset tonight is just before 6:45 PM. As daylight shortens, the bite is heating up as predator fish feed heavy in anticipation of colder nights ahead. The Bassmaster Elite Qualifier wrapped up on Champlain just last week, and folks are still talking about Emil Wagner’s historic win. He landed a staggering 69 pounds, 2 ounces of smallmouth bass across three days, the heaviest winning weight ever recorded here for a B.A.S.S. derby. Many competitors found smallmouth holding on offshore structure and ledges, but high-pressured areas like the Inland Sea pushed some pros to look for less pressured fish, especially around Malletts Bay and the North Hero Bridge. The record weights show that both smallmouth and largemouth are tuned up and feeding hard right now. Best baits for today? Follow Wagner’s lead—drop shots, shaky heads, paddle-tail swimbaits, and jerkbaits all produced fish, especially when paired with natural shad or perch patterns. Black and blue Texas-rigged beaver baits also picked up kicker largemouth in shallower grass beds, while crankbaits and spinnerbaits are turning fish around rocky points and wind-blown shorelines as baitfish school tight. On calmer pockets, topwaters like walking baits or small poppers can draw explosive strikes during the first light. If you’re targeting panfish or just looking for a mixed bag, yellow perch and bluegill are stacking up off weed edges and inside deeper bays—live worms or small tubes are the ticket, especially if kids are in tow. Reports from local guides confirm steady pike action in the bays, with fish hammering large spinners and flashy spoons. Walleye are a tougher bite during daylight but are being caught at dawn and dusk, especially trolling along breaklines in Missisquoi Bay and near the Sandbar causeway. For hotspots, don’t miss the reef edges off Malletts Bay—solid smallmouth are holding here with occasional largemouth mixed in, especially on the milder wind days. The Inland Sea always gets attention, but the north end from North Hero up to Isle La Motte is less crowded and producing bigger bites for anglers working 15–25 feet of water with finesse baits. If you’re heading south, the mouths of Otter Creek and the mouth of the Lamoille are pumping out nice bass, and the rocky flats around Thompson’s Point This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.