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Lake Vermilion Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Lake Vermilion: a 365-island St. Louis County lake under its own 20-26-inch walleye protected slot.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Water temp
~55 F est.
Air / High
60 / 67 F
Wind
S 10 mph

Sources: Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Lake Vermilion is in transition: bait on the move and predators following. Today brings a mixed sky, wind S around 10 mph, steady pressure near 1018 hPa and a high of 67. Water sits around 55 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:44 AM-11:44 AM and 10:15 PM-12:15 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

WalleyeGood

Spring: post-spawn fish scatter and can be slow for a couple of weeks. Fall: one of the best windows, with minnows on jigs and three-way rigs as the water cools toward ice-up.

Smallmouth bassGood

Spring pre-spawn and fall: Iowa DNR notes the larger bass come up to shallow structure, where a shallow-running minnow bait or a spinnerbait just under the surface works.

Northern pikeGood

The best band for pike: right after ice-out they move into flooded vegetated shallows to spawn, and they feed actively again as the water cools in fall.

Yellow perchGood

Spring and fall: perch hold shallower and, by Michigan DNR's account, feed through the day, so shoreline weed edges, flats and the shallows near spawning areas are worth searching.

Tomorrow: Cooler at 62 F with a rain chance. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Before you go

Minnesota requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $25.00 for residents. What a Minnesota licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing walleye here? Check the size and bag limits with DNR before you keep anything. The season dates for Minnesota, read off the agency, are on the Minnesota seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~55 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp60 F
High / Low67 / 44 F
WindS 10-21 mph
Pressure1017.9 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain32% cloud, 34%
Sunrise / Sunset07:40 / 18:06
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~55 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Lake Vermilion this week

The best day on Lake Vermilion this week looks like Saturday Oct 24, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Saturday, Oct 24 β€” good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 β€” Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
9:44 AM-11:44 AM and 10:15 PM-12:15 AM
Minor period
4:08 AM-5:08 AM
Sun
07:40 to 18:06
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Showers, 11 mph
Rain chance
34%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on Lake Vermilion: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Walleye illustration

Walleye

Best: spring and late fall, around dawn, dusk and night

A cool-water perch of large lakes, reservoirs and rivers whose reflective eyes are built for low light, so it feeds most at night and in murky water. The Missouri Department of Conservation ranks it among the continent's most important freshwater game fish. Spring: post-spawn fish scatter and can be slow for a couple of weeks. Fall: one of the best windows, with minnows on jigs and three-way rigs as the water cools toward ice-up.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: spring and fall, when bigger fish come shallow

A bronze-brown black bass of clear, cool streams and rocky lakes, with dark vertical bars instead of a side stripe. Michigan DNR says its southeastern coast, from Port Huron to Lake Erie, is known nationally for both the size and the number of its smallmouth. Spring pre-spawn and fall: Iowa DNR notes the larger bass come up to shallow structure, where a shallow-running minnow bait or a spinnerbait just under the surface works.

Northern pike illustration

Northern pike

Best: cool water, from ice-out through spring, in fall and under the ice

A long, duck-billed predator of weedy lakes, slow rivers and backwaters that ambushes fish from vegetation. Wisconsin DNR points out that, unlike most of the state's common game fish, pike do their best feeding in cool water. The best band for pike: right after ice-out they move into flooded vegetated shallows to spawn, and they feed actively again as the water cools in fall.

Yellow perch illustration

Yellow perch

Caught all year, including under the ice through winter

Yellow perch are schooling panfish of the Great Lakes and northern lakes, and Michigan DNR calls them the game fish most often caught in that state. Spring and fall: perch hold shallower and, by Michigan DNR's account, feed through the day, so shoreline weed edges, flats and the shallows near spawning areas are worth searching.

When to come: the Lake Vermilion calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Walleye
Smallmouth bass
Northern pike
Yellow perch
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 55 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~55 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Lake Vermilion today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Walleye led the card at good. High of 68 F, wind to 7 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Walleye led the card at excellent. High of 65 F, wind to 9 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Walleye led the card at excellent. High of 64 F, wind to 11 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used if we need to ask you about your report. No mailing list, no spam.

Before you go

License

Minnesota requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Minnesota license. 2026 rules: walleye 20-26 inches released, possession 4 with only 1 over 26 inches (season May 9, 2026-Feb. 28, 2027); muskie 1, 54-inch minimum, June 6-Nov. 30; crappie 10; sunfish 20.

Access

Minnesota DNR's LakeFinder page for Vermilion lists the public water accesses; BLM notes that its public islands are reached from the public boat ramps around the lake.

About this water

39,271 acres (Minnesota DNR) and 365 islands in two main basins near Tower and Cook, St. Louis County, northeastern Minnesota.

Fishing Lake Vermilion: the full guide

A rocky lake in two basins

Minnesota DNR measures Vermilion at 39,271 acres with 365 islands; the Bureau of Land Management, which manages public islands on the lake, also counts 365 islands and describes more than 40,000 surface acres. DNR's management plan and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency both treat it as two main basins, East Vermilion near Tower and West Vermilion near Cook. DNR describes rocky shorelines and islands, and the northeastern part of the lake lies within the Superior National Forest next to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

Vermilion's walleye rule

Minnesota's 2026 fishing regulations and Minnesota Rules part 6264.0400 give Vermilion Lake in St. Louis County a special walleye rule: every walleye from 20 to 26 inches must be released immediately, the possession limit is four, and only one may be longer than 26 inches. The inland walleye season runs from May 9, 2026 to February 28, 2027. DNR says walleye reproduce naturally in the lake.

Muskellunge

No Vermilion exception applies to muskie, so the statewide rule holds: the 2026 season runs June 6 to November 30, with one fish of at least 54 inches. According to DNR's 2017-2022 management plan, the population was established with Leech Lake-strain fingerlings stocked every year from 1987 to 1994, followed by lighter stocking to supplement natural reproduction.

Panfish, bass and the public islands

DNR lists walleye, muskellunge, northern pike, smallmouth and largemouth bass, bluegill and crappie in the lake. Vermilion has no panfish exception, so the inland possession limits of 10 crappie and 20 sunfish apply. Bass seasons depend on which of Minnesota's bass zones a lake falls in, so check the zone map in the regulations before keeping bass in spring or fall. BLM's public islands, some co-managed with DNR, are open for day use, shore fishing and first-come, first-served camping without a permit or fee unless posted.

Common questions

What is the walleye slot on Lake Vermilion?

Walleye from 20 to 26 inches must go back. You may have four in possession, and only one of them may exceed 26 inches.

What size muskie can I keep?

One fish of 54 inches or longer, during the statewide season (June 6 to November 30 in 2026).

How many islands does Lake Vermilion have?

365, according to both Minnesota DNR and the Bureau of Land Management. BLM manages some of them as public land open to day use and camping.

Is fishing good at Lake Vermilion right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Kabetogama Lake51 miRainy Lake61 miLake Winnibigoshish88 miBois Brule River99 miCass Lake104 miUpper Red Lake109 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 47.8641, -92.4191 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 19, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 19, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.