January Outdoors Insider, reprinted from the Burlington Free Press DECEMBER 28, 2008

Quarry Of The Month?   When safe ice forms on Northeast Kingdom lakes and the game is on for chasing fish through the ice, a number of hardwater anglers turn their attention to lake trout. In places like Lake Willoughby, Caspian Lake, Crystal Lake and Echo Lake, there is a cult of fishermen who target the monster lakers that lurk there.

 

HOTSPOT   While Lake Willoughby gets its fair share of press and attention, one of the most productive lake trout spots during the ice fishing season is Caspian Lake in Greensboro.   

Caspian is a deep, clear lake with good structure, an active ice-fishing culture, and some very nice lake trout and landlocked salmon.  The lakers at Caspian can reach world-class size: Consider that a 32-pounder was pulled from there in 2004 and in 2007 a 27.14-pounder was caught in early May.    There's good access at Caspian, too, and as an added bonus some really big yellow perch.

 

Here's a few fast facts about lake trout, one of the most popular fish pulled through the ice in January.  The Vermont record is a 35-pound, 3.2-ounce monster caught by Shawn Dutil in the summer of 2003.   Lakers grow very slowly, often not maturing until a decade old. Lakers are very long lived. Larger fish are 20-25 years old and some reach the age of 40.  Relentless hunters, lake trout feed primarily on other fish.  Lake trout have been known, very rarely, to hybridize in nature with brook trout. Splake is the name given to this hybrid (and sterile) species. 

 

January 17: Trout ice fishing season opens on select lakes and ponds 

 

Visit the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department for more information.