Lake Champlain Fishing Report - Oct 23, 2025: Smallmouth Bonanza, Trout Staging, Walleye & Perch Biting

Artificial Lure here, coming to you with your Lake Champlain fishing report for Thursday, October 23, 2025, at just about sunrise. The air’s got that sharp October chill—temperatures around 50°F this morning, little wind after yesterday’s blow, and clear skies expected. Sunrise hit at 7:18 AM, with sunset coming at 5:52 PM, so you’ve got narrower windows for those golden hour bites. Water levels are the talk of every dock; Mountain Times notes Lake Champlain is at historic lows, so expect dry banks and exposed rock—make sure your launch site is good to go. No tides to speak of this far inland, but note: Calamity Point water-level reports confirm the lake’s down, making shallow-water fishing your bread and butter. According to Spreaker’s Champlain Daily Fishing Report, smallmouth bass are running strong and close to structure—think rocky points or the mouths of creek inlets. They’re hitting aggressive; folks are boating “bonanza” numbers, with solid four-pounders coming in on crayfish-pattern plastics, tubes, and jerkbaits. If you’re fly fishing, dark streamers and crawfish imitations are putting up fish in the shallows. Autumn’s also firing up the trout bite. Patrick Bartlett’s Outdoor Adventures just logged a hot brook trout outing in Vermont waters yesterday. He and his buddy had an hour of non-stop action casting Panther Martin spinners—black with yellow dots was the ticket, especially along windward shorelines. For bait, Berkley Gulp craws trailing a Silver Lake clear wobbler drew hungry trout right to the net, most running a foot long or better. Reports from Mainely Fly Fishing and the Mountain Times say that, due to drought and low water, salmon and trout are staging at inflow points and sunken river channels nearby. If you hit the right school, expect double-digit hookups in a hurry. Best approach: troll slowly in six to ten feet or switch to casting spinners shallow. Trout and landlocked salmon aren’t deep right now—they’re cruising edges for flies, minnows, and spinners. Don’t be greedy, though—catch a half-dozen and move on so these fish get their run. If perch and walleye are on your list, Champlain’s north bays and sheltered coves are prime. Walleye are biting early, especially around rocky ledges near North Hero and near the Missisquoi. For bait, go with minnows or chartreuse jigs. Perch are schooling tight; try drop-shot rigs tipped with worms along weed beds. If you’re after something rarer, Lake Whitefish are in season—YouTube tipsters are catching them off sandy shoals on tip-run jigs and blood knot rigs. They’re not targeted much but can make for fast action when you locate a pod. Top hot spots this week: - **Sand Bar State Park launch:** Hot for smallmouth, bass anglers scoring with tubes and spinnerbaits. - **Missisquoi Bay inlets:** Prime for both walleye and migrating trout, especially at dawn. - **Applets and Shoreham points:** Given the low lake, these rocky ledges are stacked with bass and perch. - **Windward bays e This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.