2022 Lake Vermilion Fishing Reports

[JerkinLips]

Finally made it out fishing on Vermilion for a few hours this week when I went up to open our place in Soudan for the summer.  Fishing was slow Wednesday evening and Thursday but finally found some eyes mid-day Friday before the weekend rush.  Used small leeches (biggest available) on a plain hook in 16 FOW drifting slowly.  Biggest fish was only 19½", but enough quality size fish for a meal.  One boat trolling right next to my Stuntz Bay boathouse landed a nice walleye in only 6 FOW.  Saw another boat pull in a real nice eye in 9 FOW in Stuntz Bay.  With the high water levels, you may find the eyes in spots you normally don't see them.

 

Good luck fishing, enjoy the lake, and be courteous to others.

[Muskyhunter73]

Fishing for my dad and I has been

pretty good. We got up Thursday night. Went out for the night bite and caught 13 walleyes. Caught 2 walleyes Friday morning and 14 walleyes Friday night. Went Muskie fishing this morning in some of the weedy bays…nothing to show for it. This evening we caught 24 walleyes.  Most of our fish have been in 10-12 feet of water. Jig and minnow or bobber and minnow have worked best. 

Edited June 5, 2022 by Muskyhunter73

[Shulsebus]

Fishing has been great this week. Most fish we caught we got in daisy bay. Thankfully we are staying in the bay. 20-30 feet with minnows has been best. Leeches have worked as well but two to one ratio of minnows catching more. Lindy rig. Wind blown shore lines with bobber has worked as well. Also got a few good ones trolling cranks next to rocky shore. Good luck to all, unfortunately have to leave on Saturday. Just wish this wasn’t an 8 hour drive away. Absolutely love it here. 

[herm]

Fished June 4-8. Three of us did OK but not what I'd expect for this time of year and seeing other reports here. (Maybe it's us?) Smallies and walleyes were not great in numbers but good-to-great in sizes. Fished one day for muskies and saw 2. Our walleye fishing was in west basin on structure/places you'd expect. Leeches and lindy rigs did best. Lots of small perch, especially when using minnows. We fished smallies mostly around Oak Narrows and islands. Fishing plastics slowly did the best. Seemed like A LOT of boat traffic, but this was only our second time on the lake. The property owners have my sympathies for the high water....hope it drops soon for you! Good luck!

 

[delcecchi]

Oak Narrows is the only passage between the halves of the lake so it does get a pretty fair amount of traffic, expecially considering that walleye fishing is believed to be better in the east, although west is coming back.

[Shulsebus]

Just got back from out trip. What a fantastic week and great weather! Early bite was better and late in day was better. Caught 90 percent of the walleye on Lindy with minnow. Got some on leeches. Nothing on worms but water is to cold for that. Still worth a shot if you aren’t catching. For half of the trip we had 8 guys. After Wednesday we had three. Had two fish meals. Brought some back as well. Don’t worry we didn’t keep to many just enough to have a couple of nice meals. I’m the week we caught at least 200 walleye. Again we did have a lot of people. Caught a lot of dinks. Biggest was 22. Only talking about walleye at this point. Most fish were caught in the 20-30 foot rigging. Got some either early morning or at dusk off of slip bobbers and jig. My buddy had the hot seat and caught a lot more than me. Happy for him though. Got some walleye and northern trolling cranks. Smaller cranks. The early bite was the best. Hope this helps and good luck out there. We do hire a guide every year to help us find fish. The y store had plenty of minnows and bait. Chubs vs rainbows made no difference. Three to five foot leader foot on the rig. Wouldn’t go much longer than that. Get out early for the fish then take a nap, eat and go Back out. Already miss the lake but happy to be home. We got lucky this week but since it was our 11th year in a row we now a lot of spots. Fished mostly daisy bay but got fish pretty much every where we went

[BrianF]

I ran up to do some chores at the cabin and got out solo each of the last two evenings. The fish were definitely nibbling. I caught 42 fish in those two outings mostly in the slot, with three overs and a handful of unders.  All were released.  I found fish anywhere from onshore to 18 feet of water.  The most productive depth for me was 10 to 13 feet, casting a variety of lures - including a chatterbait. I don’t know about others, but the bite this season has been exceptionally good and at times spectacular.  Hope it continues! 

[TrueNorth]

We are coming up next weekend. June 25th through July 2nd. Hope the hot weather this week doesn't F things up. Any mayflies yet?  Guessing soon with the warm weather. 

 

Plan is to fish Walleye, Pike, Smallies and LMB.  Anyone getting action on mid lake reefs yet?  Sounds like search and explore with high water levels.  

[Rivergroup]

We'll be on the west end for a week starting this Saturday.  We'll spend most of our time on the west end but I'm sure we'll head east for at least one day.  Any walleye tips would be great, otherwise happy fishing everyone, can't wait!

Edited June 15, 2022 by Rivergroup

[Jetsky]

We were fishing Monday and Tuesday early evening till sundown.  We fished shallow wind blow bays using slip bobbers with leeches and jigs with leeches.  Both trips we caught about 20 and kept 4 eaters.   Most were at 13 - 15" range.  They would be in 6 - 10' of water.   They were attacking the leeches.  Didn't have much time to keep my cigar lit. 

[JerkinLips]

Fished a few hours Tuesday and Wednesday in between "cabin" work.  Caught only 1 dink Tuesday am, skunked Tuesday pm, and finally found fish Wednesday mid-day.  Biggest was only 16", but was able to get a meal to bring home to the wife (required for my ticket home).  Crawler bite seemed a little better than leeches.  Didn't have minnows.  Think the bite is improving toward the weekend.  Lots of anglers on the lake.  Good luck, be courteous, and enjoy the Big V.

[LBerquist]

Been a while... caught 21 today, majority on a leech. 22 to 15 fow. 7 year old daughter caught the biggest, 21". For the guy that we helped evict the snake.... my daughter nicknamed you "Woody" because there is a snake in your boat... We finally found that thing when we got home, it's now safe in our garden.... just wanted to let you know since you seemed so concerned about his well being

[MikeG3Boat]

Heading up for about a week starting Friday June 24th. Any reports from the east side?  Looking for Walleye and SMB and maybe some Sunfish. Any hints on starting spots for sunfish would be appreciated. My first year on the Lake. 

[FSRslug]

Anyone else struggling for walleyes? Trying to have dinner for a group of 15 and we're just getting 1 or 2 eaters a day since Sunday. I'm doing something wrong as I can't even mark many fish. 

[Wakemupwalleye]

1 hour ago, FSRslug said:

Anyone else struggling for walleyes? Trying to have dinner for a group of 15 and we're just getting 1 or 2 eaters a day since Sunday. I'm doing something wrong as I can't even mark many fish. 

Weather changes have played havoc. I’ve been everywhere and struggling to mark as well. You’re not alone. I did see a guy land a 30 incher on Sunday night and he didn’t even take a picture…lol!!

[Jetsky]

I had an old timer tell me they head for the rocks like frightened puppy dogs when there is a lot of thunder.  You have to wait a couple of days.  Don't know if it is true.  Too much wind in Frazier to get out the last couple of days.  Water temp was 67 degrees yesterday.

[Shulsebus]

A couple of things to try would be if you have three different people on the boat and are rigging use three different baits and or color hooks and see if that makes a difference. Also if you have more than one boat try different depths and places on lakes.  You could also try slip bobber. Around dusk into night always has worked for us.  Rocky shoreline or shallow rock up that comes up shallow.  Maybe even two foot on top but try a little deeper.  Hopefully that helps.  

[TrueNorth]

We have a group of 4 w/ 2 boats coming this weekend through next week.  Some will be pulling crank baits and others will jig or lindy rig or pull spinners with bottom bouncers.  Early evening, will probably target the mud flats since bug hatches are coming soon.  Low light times I plan to fish shallow rocky areas and out to 26' around reefs or points.   Will try crawlers, leeches and some minnows depending on water temps.  I'll try to update as the week goes on.  Staying on the far west end.  Cheers. 

Edited June 22, 2022 by TrueNorth

[Rivergroup]

On the lake now.  It's been a tough week with the sweltering weather and wind.  Things that worked before haven't been working this time.  Today looks to be beautiful and hopefully be able to change our luck a bit.

[SkunkedAgain]

Most of us (myself included) like to use what worked the last time out, or last year, etc. The fish change constantly. Sometimes the old standby's work but as everyone said above, don't be afraid to keep changing things up if whatever you are doing isn't working. Yes there are times that the fish aren't as excited, but I've got monsters during mayfly hatches, on bright sunny days with no wind, and in the most unexpected places. The key to fishing is having the patience and time to figure out what excites them that day.

 

On Sunday morning, I went out and patrolled my favorite stretch of lake pitching for bass/northerns. Three times I scared a fish out of the water but never got one to bite. I was in the right spots, but not the right bait. Keep trying.

[MarkB]

I just returned home today from 4 wonderful days of fishing my favorite lake. We arrived late Saturday and was able to fish a bit that evening. Our group was comprised of my cousin, one of our very close friends and myself. On Saturday evening we managed to catch 16 walleyes on crawlers, leeches, and minnows. In spite of less than perfect weather conditions(95 degree heat and high to near hurricane force winds) we ended up with 103 walleyes boated and perhaps that many missed and lost during retrieval through Wednesday early afternoon. Minnows worked best one day, leeches worked great one day, and crawlers were the ticket Wednesday with our biggest fish of the trip coming that day. The bites ranged from very light to jerk the rod out of your hand. Our terminal gear consisted of jig/minnow, Lindy rig, to my old standby 4 ft leader, 1oz bouncer, 2 red beads, and a Gamakatsu size 8 orange hook. The bouncer rig outfished the rest by a wide margin. Speed was a huge factor and .4-.6mph was the speed that worked best. The high winds made boat control/speed a real challenge. We caught all of our fish from 8ft to 24ft with the optimun depth ~14ft give or take. When we got to the lake the water temp was 64.5 degrees and yesterday afternnon when we quit, it was 68.5 degrees. We did not see any significant amounts of mayflies except in the water columns in a few areas of the lake. The fish we cleaned went from stuffed with mayflies, full of crawdads, to full of perch minnows. We found the fish in the rocks and on mud flats. I looked for the fish with sonar and only fished where I found fish. I found our fish in the east end of Big Bay, Daisy Bay, Armstrong Bay, Portage Bay, and Bystrom Bay. We caught fish at every place we stopped. Wind dictated where we fished on any given day. On Monday, I had to cross the east end of Fraser Bay and in over 60 years, I have never seen it that rough. 

We found the cheapest gas at Shamrock Marina($6.29/gal) and the best bait at the Y store. We have eaten pizza at the Vermilion Club for more years than I can count and, to put it bluntly, we were very disappointed this year. To us, it was definitely not the same quality of pizza we have become accustomed to. Suffice it to say, we will be ordering something different from the menu in the future. All in all, Lake Vermilion provided us with another lasting memory. Great fishing on the greatest lake in Minnesota. We will return in mid-September and we are already anxious.

Pictured below is my cousin with two nice walleyes caught 10 minutes apart. They were caught on crawlers.

 

Good Fishing

MarkB

 

 

[muskie-mike]

My wife agrees about the pizza...was the best...

 

[SkunkedAgain]

Maybe the bamboozler will end up being like every fish story, some old timers holding their hands out as wide as possible to demonstrate to a youngster just how big it was....

[redlabguy]

Glad you keep coming back, Mark. And glad you still know the way to catch a slew of walleyes. I wish i could’ve learned more while you were here. But I appreciate all the information you provide on what worked for you. 
Strange year. We just got part of our dock in and our boat. I fished a couple hours this morning for the first time on a Frazer hump you know and caught ten under 12” and one keeper which I released… a nice 26+“. I’m hoping more to come soon.

I hope all is well with you,

Dick

[delcecchi]

Any other info about VC?   Got kid and and fam coming up.  Been a couple years but really liked it.  

Reviews on line still good.   Did Mark just hit on a bad night or has it gone down?

 

Being on west not a place we go often.

Edited June 28, 2022 by delcecchi

[Rivergroup]

Stopped at VC last week as well.  Didn't have pizza, but the sandwiches and appetizers we had were good.  The service was very good.  However, that's the first and only time we had been there.

[Pat McGraw]

Almost every time I go to the VC I comment on how well they do. Consistently good food and good service. 

[MarkB]

Del, I want to clarify my post regarding the Vermilion Club pizza. First of all, the latest online review for the Vermilion Club was July 4th, 2021. I ate there twice after that review. Both times our group ate pizza and both times the pizza was excellent. I've eaten Poor Gary's pizza for a very long time both when we visited for many years, when we lived on Birch Point, and every time we're there since we left. I could tell a Vermilion Club pizza with a blindfold on. It has a very distinct taste and smell. We absolutely love it. BUT, this time it was different. I even asked our waitress if Poor Gary's pizza had been replaced by new owners. None of our group thought the pizza was even close to what it had been. Now, I'm not knocken the Vermilion Club. I ate there way back in the late 50's when George and Dorothy Tuma owned it. They have always served great food and I have no reason to doubt that their appetizers, sandwiches, etc. are still great. Just understand that pizza and other food is made in 2 different kitchens. I don't know what changed with the pizza kitchen since last September when we were there before this latest trip but something did. I wouldn't hesitate to go back and eat there again. But next time, it'll be on wings night.

[Patricialatina]

0 caught June 28, 2022

[MikeG3Boat]

I am with you. Can’t seem to find any walleye