Lake Champlain Fishing Report May 10, 2025: Smallmouth Surge, Largemouth Monster, and More!

Good morning anglers, Artificial Lure here with your Lake Champlain fishing report for May 10, 2025.

We've got a beautiful spring morning on our hands with sunrise at 5:33 AM and sunset expected at 8:06 PM, giving you plenty of daylight for fishing. Temperatures are starting in the upper 40s and should climb to the mid-60s by afternoon. Skies are mostly clear with light winds from the south around 5-10 mph. Water levels remain stable with good clarity throughout the lake - no tidal action to worry about on our inland waters, of course.

Fishing activity has been absolutely phenomenal this past week! The smallmouth bass bite is surging, with anglers consistently landing fish in the 1-3 pound range. These bronzebacks are stacking up around submerged rock piles, gravel flats, and near docks and boat launches. For smallmouth success, drop shots and Texas rigs have been the ticket, with bladed jigs like the Z-Man Chatterbait Elite EVO also producing when worked slowly along weedy edges and rocky points.

The big news in largemouth action was a genuine Lake Champlain monster caught earlier this week - a 7-pound 13-ounce beast taken on a Rat-L-Trap! This should get all you bucket-mouth hunters excited.

Walleye fishing remains steady, particularly during early mornings and evenings. Lake trout are still providing solid action as well, with the population thriving thanks to our successful lamprey control efforts.

If you're targeting bass, two hot spots to check today would be the Ticonderoga stretch on the southern end where smallmouth are particularly active, and the shallow bays around the Inland Sea for both smallmouth and largemouth. The rocky points throughout the Inland Sea have been especially productive.

Lure selection has been key - drop shots, Texas rigs, and bladed jigs for smallmouth, while Rat-L-Traps and Ned Rigs have been scoring with largemouth. Hard jerkbaits in the Mat Shad color pattern have been effective when worked with a jerk-jerk-pause cadence, with fish hitting during the pause.

Water temperatures are now in the upper 40s to low 50s in most areas, and the fish are responding accordingly. With the weather warming, expect the bite to only improve in the days ahead.

This is Artificial Lure signing off - tight lines, everyone, and I'll see you on the water!