Vermillion Lake Stats
- Acres: 39272.41
- Max Depth: 76 feet
- Mean Depth: 25 feet
- Shore length: 341.49 miles
- Water Color: Light Stain
- Water Clarity: 12 feet (2004)
Fish Species on Lake Vermilion
- Muskie
- Northern Pike
- Walleye
- Largemouth Bass
- Smallmouth Bass
- Brown Bullhead
- Lake Whitefish
- Burbot
- Black Crappie
- Yellow Perch
- Bluegill
- Green Sunfish
- Hybrid Sunfish
- Rock Bass
- White Sucker
Watch us fish Lake Vermilion in the Spring
Boat Landings on Lake Vermilion
Lake Vermilion is HUGE, and therefore has many landing you can use. The landing you use will depend on which part of the lake you want to fish. The above photo is HooDoo landing in the town of Tower. This is the one I use the most. It puts you in Pikes Bay.
The HooDoo point landing has a huge parking lot, and a nice concrete boat launch with two stalls. The boat on the right is the MN DNR. They were going out to count cormorants. They have been trying to control their populations.
Moving further up the lake to the northwest, you will find the Timbuk tu Marina. I have also used this landing in the past. This is another nice landing, but the parking lot is about 500 feet up the road, so you will have to walk a ways to your vehicle. The parking lot is a large gravel area where they cleared out the trees.
Above is the landing at Moccasin Point. This landing is slightly smaller than the other two. Basically, Moccasin Point Rd dead ends at the lake, and turns into the boat launch. You can park in the area just to the right of the landing.
There are many more places to launch your boat. These are just a couple that I have used and happen to have photos of. It is wise to use the landing closest to where you plan to fish. This lake is bigger than you think, and it can take a long time to drive your boat from one end to the other.
Commentary on Lake Vermilion
There are many lakes with the name “Vermilon,” but this is the the lake most people think of when you say that name. This lake is a whopping 39,272 acres! It has been named one the 10 most scenic lakes in the country. Just look at a map of this lake and you will notice its not your typical “round” lake. It has multitudes of weeded bays and is dotted with hundreds of rocky Canadian Shield islands. 365 islands to be exact… you can visit one every day of the year.
Just to the north of Vermilion is the BWCA (Boundary Waters Canoe Area) and the Superior National Forest. The scenery up there is breathtaking, especially in the fall when the leaves change color.
Vermilion is known for is great fishing, but it also has plenty of recreational activity. It attracts vacationers from all over the country. Many locals have built there summer cabins and year round homes on this lake.
With the amount of people visiting this lake, you would think it would be extremely crowed, but that’s not the case. Vermilion is 76 square miles and is divided into a number of bays which keeps traffic separated from each other. Even with a couple hundred recreational boats, you shouldn’t be bothered while fishing.
Vermilion built is reputation on walleyes, and for good reason. In addition to natural reproduction, several million walleye fry are stocked here every year. But walleye are not the only species to go after. If you like BIG musky, this is the lake for you!
I wish I had a photo of one for you, but try as I might, I have yet to catch the big one. Now if I had a photo of all the huge muskies that followed my lure up to the boat, I think you’d be impressed.
You don’t have to stick with just walleye and musky, there is just about anything you would want to catch here. In fact, on my last trip to Vermilion, I tried doing just that, and ended up catching six different fish species. (See the video at the top)
This lake is too big to mention where all the good spots are. Instead, I recommend you get a book, like The Sportsman’s Guide, which not only gives you a map of the lake, but also shows you where to fish! A good GPS and fish finder will help too.
Fishing Experience on Lake Vermilion
I’ve been to Vermilion several times. My Father-in-law Dennis, has a cabin on this lake, and he knows this lake very well. He likes to fish walleye and does very well here. If you hit the right spots at the right time of year, you can catch all the walleye you want. I have fished with him here and caught several walleye.
I normally fish for musky when I’m here, but on my last trip, I had a goal to see how many different fish species I could catch in one day. I started out easy with bluegills in Larsons bay. I pulled in a perch too. So that was two species checked off the list right away.
Next we hopped over to Indian Bay. Reggie pulled in a decent 14 inch largemouth bass right next to the island. He was caught on our favorite lure, the Green Spinnerbait! That makes three species.
Moving further down the lake to Bystrom bay, Reggie pulled in a flying pike, (fourth species) which never quite made it into the boat, but we’re going to count it anyway. I’ll estimate this one at 20 inches.
Over by Moccasin Point, we had some pretty good luck. I pulled in a few walleye, our fifth species of the day.
Just beyond the Moccasin Point boat landing, there is a red buoy. Its not very deep right there, but it was filled with walleye and smallmouth bass.
In between the walleye catches, I wrestled in this smallmouth bass, our sixth and final species. I thought it was fighting a little too hard to be a walleye. All the catches at this location were on leeches.
We tried for more walleye at the seven sisters islands. We didn’t catch any here. Looking underwater, the ground is pretty barren and no sign of fish. Walleye are suppose to roam through this area though, just not while I was here.
Pikes bay is another great place for evening walleye. There is a little more structure on the bottom here.
Right off HooDoo Point is an outcropping of rocks. Its a popular place in the evening to catch walleye, so reserve your spot early.
A bit of advice when navigating these waters, is to watch for underwater hazards! There are numerous rockpiles here and sudden depth changes. I’ve whacked my trolling motor against a few of them and lost my transducer in the process. Take it slow your first time out there and follow your GPS trails.
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