The bass season for large and smallmouth opens in most of New York State on the third Saturday in June.

Writer, Ed Noonan, an angler who has fished Lake Champlain both for fun and cash believes it is a GREAT lake and offers by far the very best bass fishing in the northeast.

On March 6, 1998,  then President Bill Clinton agreed with Noonan and made Lake Champlain a sixth great lake. Unfortunately political grumbling occurred and 19 days later it was rescinded. Now fishing here is very good but the main attraction is the black bass — both large and smallmouths.  You will find an abundant population of both of these fish from Lock 11 in Whitehall all the way to the Canadian border. And it is this abundance of bass that attracts literally thousands of bass cast for cash anglers of all levels; not to mention as many if not more, weekend anglers. It is estimated that the bass tournaments held here include 75 annually, and that includes professional, regional individual and team open tournaments as well as bass club tournaments from New York and several other surrounding states.