Minnesota fishing guide Bill Rosner of Wild Country Guide Service gives his us his latest Lake Vermilion fishing report on June 26th, 2024
Lake Vermilion Fishing Report: 6-26-24
Lake Vermilion walleyes, bass, and northern pike have all been fishing well. A lot of fish are still in shallow and feeding heavily. With some awesome multi-species action right now is a great time to come and fish up on Lake Vermilion.
Walleye: Lake Vermillion Fishing Report
Walleyes have transitioned out of the shallow bays and can be found on rock reefs and other main lake structure. Depths are kind of all over the place depending on what part of the lake you’re fishing. Some places have been seeing good success in 12 to 16 feet of water while on other areas of the lake the fish are in twenty feet of water or more. The mayfly hatch is almost over and that should improve the overall walleye bite.
Jigging Raps: Don’t forget this awesome tactic as summer rolls around. The aggressive reaction strike this tactic produces only gets better as we progress into summer. Fish jigging raps along the edges of hard to soft bottom transitions. Do your best to avoid the reefs because they will get snagged.
Nightcrawlers: Lindy rigs and spinners are still very effective on those transition areas and the slopes of humps. Most of the fish being caught on gold or orange colored spinners.
Slip Bobbers: A slip bobber tipped with a leech or piece of nightcrawler is a classic summer pattern that always produce fish on Lake Vermilion. Utilize this on rock reefs and rock humps. Stay on the move until you find a reef with active fish. Lake Vermilion has tons of spot and plenty of hungry walleyes.
Smallmouth Bass: Lake Vermilion Fishing Report
The bass bite has been hot with lots and lots of fish being caught. Anglers are finding fish shallow in three to six feet of water on most days. Look for boulders and rock piles to hold bass. The rock piles have been especially good in the morning and evenings for topwater.
Topwater: Throwing topwater baits like the Rapala Skitter Pop has been deadly and a fun way to catch these aggressive summer smallmouth bass. Morning and evenings is the best time for this bite. Fish topwater on the tops of reefs and near shore. Prop baits are also good at triggering these explosive strikes.
Swim baits: The storm 360 search baits has been producing a number of smallmouth bass and walleye. Natural colors such as clear or white have been the most effective.
Spinners: Smaller inline spinners such as Mepps or Blue Fox in size 2 or 3 has been deadly for smallmouth as water temps rise and fish are willing to chase more. Gold and copper are always solid colors on Lake Vermilion.
Lake Vermilion Fishing Report: Northern Pike
The pike fishing has remained excellent and anglers have been catching plenty of nice fish in the two to three feet of water. As the water warms up anglers can expect some fish to move into those six to eight foot weed beds. A larger Mepps in the 3, 4 , or 5 size in copper or gold is always a good bait to throw. Smaller muskie topwater choppers and wake baits will also produce some explosive strikes.
