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Fishing Lake Champlain: what the data says
271,000-acre lake near Burlington. 120-mile border lake; a top-5 US bass fishery with pike, walleye and lake trout. The lake tops out around 392 ft. The depth chart is built from real state fisheries GPS surveys, so the humps, channels and drop-offs you see are measured, not guessed. Below is the species-by-species picture, pulled from the same data the map uses.
Smallmouth Bass fishing at Lake Champlain
Spring smallmouth bass on Lake Champlain hold shallow, usually 3 to 12 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 10 to 30 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 45 ft. Rock reef is the standout, a rock pile at roughly 7 ft, rated prime for spring smallmouth bass. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. A drop shot (goby/minnow) or a ned rig covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | Ned rig, Tube jig |
| Summer | 10 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Drop shot (goby/minnow), Ned rig |
| Fall | 8 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | Jerkbait, Blade bait |
| Winter | 20 to 45 ft | midday | Blade bait, Hair jig |
Largemouth Bass fishing at Lake Champlain
In spring, largemouth bass run shallow here, mostly 2 to 10 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 8 to 20 ft, and winter fish settle into 15 to 35 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow bay flat: a weed flat around 6 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a texas-rigged 10" worm or a deep-diving crankbait gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | Spinnerbait, Chatterbait |
| Summer | 8 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Texas-rigged 10" worm, Deep-diving crankbait |
| Fall | 4 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Squarebill crankbait (shad), Spinnerbait |
| Winter | 15 to 35 ft | midday | Blade bait, Jigging spoon |
Northern Pike fishing at Lake Champlain
Spring northern pike on Lake Champlain hold shallow, usually 2 to 8 ft. They move out to 8 to 20 ft in summer and finish the year down in 5 to 15 ft. The spot to know is Shallow bay flat, a weed flat in about 6 ft of water that rates prime for northern pike in spring. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. Summer baits: a bucktail or a weedless spoon over cabbage gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 8 ft | midday & dawn | #5 inline spinner, Spoon (red/white) |
| Summer | 8 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Bucktail, Weedless spoon over cabbage |
| Fall | 6 to 18 ft | midday & dawn | Big rubber (Bull Dawg style), Husky-style jerkbait |
| Winter | 5 to 15 ft | midday | Tip-ups, Large jigging spoon |
Walleye fishing at Lake Champlain
Spring walleye on Lake Champlain hold shallow, usually 4 to 15 ft. By summer they slide out to 15 to 35 ft, and by winter most fish are in 20 to 40 ft. La Platte River inflow is the standout, a inflow / creek mouth at roughly 5 ft, rated prime for spring walleye. In summer the feeding windows fall in the evening and early morning. Tie on a crawler harness on bottom bouncer or a deep crankbait (trolled) and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 4 to 15 ft | dusk & dawn | 1/8 oz jig + minnow, Hair jig |
| Summer | 15 to 35 ft | dusk & dawn | Crawler harness on bottom bouncer, Deep crankbait (trolled) |
| Fall | 12 to 40 ft | dusk & night | Jigging rap, Jig + big minnow |
| Winter | 20 to 40 ft | dusk & dawn | Jigging spoon + minnow head, Rattle bait |
Rainbow Trout fishing at Lake Champlain
Start shallow in spring: rainbow trout sit in 5 to 20 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 8 to 30 ft, and winter fish settle into 8 to 40 ft. The spot to know is La Platte River inflow, a inflow / creek mouth in about 5 ft of water that rates prime for rainbow trout in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. A dodger + spoon (deep troll) or a flutter spoon covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Inline spinner (silver), Small spoon |
| Summer | 8 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Dodger + spoon (deep troll), Flutter spoon |
| Fall | 10 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | Casting spoon, Jerkbait over shoals |
| Winter | 8 to 40 ft | dawn | Jigging spoon, Tube jig (white) |
Crappie fishing at Lake Champlain
Start shallow in spring: crappie sit in 2 to 8 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 10 to 25 ft, and winter fish settle into 15 to 35 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow bay flat: a weed flat around 6 ft that scores prime in spring. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a jig trolled/spider-rigged or a small crankbait (trolled) gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 8 ft | midday & dawn | 1/16 oz jig + tube, Curly-tail grub |
| Summer | 10 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Jig trolled/spider-rigged, Small crankbait (trolled) |
| Fall | 8 to 20 ft | dawn | Jig + minnow combo, Small swimbait (1.5-2") |
| Winter | 15 to 35 ft | midday | Tungsten jig + soft plastic, Tiny jigging spoon |
Lake Champlain also holds yellow perch (10 to 30 ft in summer), lake trout (50 to 120 ft in summer), landlocked salmon (25 to 60 ft in summer), steelhead (5 to 45 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
Notable structure
- Deep basin: deep basin, around 279 ft
- Deepest basin: deep basin, around 198 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 198 ft
- Offshore hump: offshore hump, around 188 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 188 ft
- Break off the point: drop-off, around 120 ft
- Ausable River mouth: inflow / creek mouth, around 114 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 101 ft
- Shoreline point: point, around 98 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 88 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 82 ft
- Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 70 ft
- Old creek channel: creek channel, around 59 ft
- Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 59 ft
Common questions
How deep is Lake Champlain?
Lake Champlain is about 392 ft at its deepest point. The depth chart here comes from real state fisheries GPS surveys, so the contours reflect measured depths.
What fish are in Lake Champlain?
Anglers target largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, walleye, northern pike, crappie, rainbow trout, yellow perch, steelhead, lake trout, landlocked salmon on Lake Champlain.
Where is the best fishing spot on Lake Champlain?
Rock reef is the top-rated area: a rock pile in about 7 ft of water that rates prime for smallmouth bass in spring. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.
When is the best time to fish Lake Champlain?
For smallmouth bass, the summer bite is best in early morning and the evening. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Nearby waters
Ausable River (West Branch) · Chazy Lake · Paradox Lake · Lake Champlain - South Lake · Schroon Lake · Brant Lake
See how Lake Champlain stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in New York · best smallmouth bass lakes in New York · best walleye lakes in New York · best northern pike lakes in New York
Browse all New York fishing maps or every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: state fisheries survey programs. How we build these maps. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.