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Best smallmouth bass lakes in Vermont

19 Vermont waters hold smallmouth bass, 18 mapped with real state-agency depth surveys. Ranked below by size and depth-data quality — open any water to see exactly where to fish it: depth contours, scored spots with plain-English reasons, seasonal windows and bait picks. Current- and rock-loving fighter. Lives around gravel, boulders and hard-bottom structure.

1. Lake Champlain — 392 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike
2. Lake Champlain — Inland Sea and Malletts Bay — 143 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike
3. Lake Champlain — South Lake — 29 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Northern Pike, Crappie
4. Lake Carmi — 33 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike
5. Lake Dunmore — 106 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Northern Pike, Crappie
6. Crystal Lake — 106 ft max · survey depth data · Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, Lake Trout
7. Otter Creek — 8 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Northern Pike, Common Carp
8. Great Averill Pond — 102 ft max · survey depth data · Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Lake Trout
9. Lake Hortonia — 58 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike
10. Lake Fairlee — 48 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Bluegill, Rainbow Trout
11. Maidstone Lake — 117 ft max · survey depth data · Smallmouth Bass, Yellow Perch, Lake Trout, Brook Trout
12. Lake Groton — 36 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Yellow Perch
13. Chittenden Reservoir — 37 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Rainbow Trout
14. Joe's Pond — 90 ft max · survey depth data · Smallmouth Bass, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch
15. Lake Morey — 42 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Northern Pike, Bluegill
16. Fairfield Pond — 48 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout
17. Lake Salem — 67 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Rainbow Trout
18. Island Pond — 59 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Rainbow Trout
19. Lake Iroquois — 37 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Bluegill, Yellow Perch

When to fish smallmouth bass in Vermont

• Spring 3–12 ft — Gravel and rock flats near deep water; spawning happens on hard bottom.
• Summer 10–30 ft — Offshore rock humps and deep points; smallmouth suspend near bait.
• Fall 8–25 ft — Feeding hard for winter — long tapering points and rocky drops.
• Winter 20–45 ft — Deep, vertical presentations near rocky wintering holes.

Also in Vermont: best largemouth bass lakes · best walleye lakes · best northern pike lakes · best crappie lakes · best rainbow trout lakes · best yellow perch lakes · best lake trout lakes

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