The
Fishing
Caspian Lake: Lake Trout
Caspian Lake is known as one of the most pristine lakes in Vermont, with crystal clear water, loons, no nuisance aquatic species, and self sustaining populations of lake trout, rainbow trout, brown trout, and rainbow smelt. While the typical lake trout from Caspian weighs 2-4 pounds, giant lakers exceeding 20 pounds are on display at Willey's store and are occasionally caught.
Typical Caspian Lake Trout
Several distinct "seasons" of lake trout fishing occur in Caspian:
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"Ice Out" usually happens in the last weeks of April or the first week of May. Lake trout concentrate near schools of smelt which are staging to spawn. Fly rod fishing can be excellent, especially early in the day or in rainy weather. 2025 ice out fishing included a 104 and a 60 fish day, mostly fly fishing.
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Spring and summer- as surface waters warm above the temperature tolerance level of lake trout, they retreat to deeper water and follow schools of smelt, yellow perch, and other baitfish. These fish can be a little harder to locate, but are often very willing to bite. 50+ fish days can happen during this time. Bite is best at dawn and in rainy weather, but vertical presentations with light spinning tackle can be effective at all times of day.
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Fall pre-spawn- lakers stage in large schools as they ready for the spawn. They are very easy to locate, but can be hard to get a bite from. Light tackle, a careful approach, and persistence are key to success.
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Spawn- lakers move onto spawning reefs as it gets dark in the evening and will chase a fly. Not a high numbers game, but the largest fish in the lake (did I mention they exceed 20 pounds?) are vulnerable at this time to fly fishing.
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Spawn to ice-in-occasionally a day warm enough to fish comes along in December or even January and the post spawn lake trout can be vulnerable to flies.
Caspian Lake: Wild Rainbows and Browns
Typical Caspian Rainbow
Chunky Caspian Brown
7 Pound rainbow taken on a fly during the lake trout spawn in November
Caspian hasn't been stocked in at least 15 years, so the existing population of rainbows and browns are self sustaining wild fish that spawn in tributary streams and spend most of their time feeding in the lake. Typical rainbows and browns are in the 1 to 4 pound range, but fish of 5 to 8 pounds are not an unusual catch, and fish even larger are there. Like the lakers, the opportunity to catch rainbows and browns varies quite a bit by the season:​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
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Ice out-Rainbows stage near tributaries (which are closed to angling) to wait for the right conditions to run upstream and spawn. They can be caught feeding on smelt and sometimes on dry flies when chironomids hatch.
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Mayfly Hatches-Books have been written about the spectacle of the Hex hatch on Caspian Lake. These and other large mayflies can bring the largest rainbows and browns to the surface when conditions are right.
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Laker spawn- This is my favorite time to target rainbows, as they cruise the lake trout spawning shoals looking for eggs. You can spot and stalk them like bonefish. ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
Bass Lakes
20 inch smallmouth on the fly
There are several lakes a short drive from Greensboro that offer excellent opportunities to fish for largemouth and smallmouth bass on flies. As with the trout fishing, the angling varies with the season. Some of the best bass fishing is in late May and June when trout can be tricky to locate.
****To help preserve the wild trout and bass resource, all fishing aboard the "Touch of Gray" is catch and release. If you are interested in harvesting fish, I can help you find a guide that will accommodate that.