One of British Columbia’s best Bass fishing lakes is by far Vaseux Lake, located in the Southern Okanagan Valley. This lake offers fantastic fishing for both Large Mouth and Small Mouth Bass. The large mouth can reach up to 10lbs and you can experience a day that numerous 5 to 6lbs fish are not uncommon. There is a healthy population for Smallmouth Bass as well. The smallies average around 2 to 3lbs and 5lbs fish are not an uncommon sight.
Due to Vaseux Lake being a nature sanctuary this lake is a NON Motorized Lake, including electric motors. This provides the angler with a challenge to put in a days of hard work of rowing or paddling around the lake. My most preferred way to approach this lake is by Pontoon boat. Kayaks and Canoes work well too! This lake can become windy very quickly so make sure that when you are out on the lake to always pay attention to any change in the wind/weather.
Hotspots:
Westside of Lake: Because the west side of the lake is hard to get to it sees a lot less fishing pressure. The rocky drops directly across from the campsite are great spots for small mouths. My favorite bait for this area is crank baits, shad and pumpkinseed colour I find work best. I find this area the best during the Pre-Spawn (Mid June-Beginning July) a 25+ fish day is not uncommon! These small mouths have explosive power and are a blast to catch!
The Island on South End: The south end of the lake around the private island is also a great hotspot for small mouths. Work the rock ledges with tubes and crank baits.
Eastern Side: The East side of the lake has numerous homes located on the lake that provides a lot of docks that the bass like to hide out under. Soft plastics such as Senkos and Berkley Hollow Belly Swim Baits have provided me with much success here. Along the road near the sharp corners there are numerous boulders and deep drops that offer good small mouth fishing. Use deep diving crank baits or natural colour tubes to get to the bottom of where the fish are. This is a good spot in April and hot summer days when the fish go deep.
North End of the Lake: The north end of the lake is very shallow and is home to numerous large mouths. Target the lily pads with a flippin stick, heavy braided line and jigs. I’ve also found good success in the early morning with surface lures such as poppers if the water is calm.
How to Get Here:
Vaseux Lake is approx. 25 kms south of Penticton and about 5kms south of Okanagan Falls on Hwy 97. There is a very nice and clean campsite along the highway that is a good spot to stay at. You can either launch your boat here or just south of the campsite at the car top boat launch.
Vaseux Lake is an incredible fishery and is managed with full conservation first in mind! Let’s do our part and try to keep it this way by always leaving this lake in better shape than we found it. Pack out what you bring in and try to keep your distance from the beautiful wildlife that this lake is home to. If you need any more information please feel free to contact the BC FISHN Team and we will be happy to help you out!
Good luck and tight lines!
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