Frostbite Fleet

The Frostbite Fleet begins its fishing season as most anglers wrap theirs up

Story by John Coleman
Photos courtesy of Randy Colomb

In the fall of 1984, a group of duck hunters, and one in particular, Randy Colomb, of Vergennes, Vermont, noticed that in the shallow Lake Champlain waters surrounding their hunting blinds, salmon were surfacing and appeared very active.  Colombs' observation soon led to many of the hunters carrying a fishing rod along with their rifles. Soon salmon was being served along side duck at the dinner table and the Frostbite Fleet was born.

The Frostbite Fleet is a group of Lake Champlain anglers who begin their fishing season not as the waters warm in the spring, or in the summer when overhanging trees offer fish shade from the hot sun, but instead in the fall, when the waters of Lake Champlain cool below 50 degrees and hunting season begins.   

"When the lake dips below 50 degrees, that's the time to get [fishing]…None of us are real big on deer hunting," Colomb says. As most anglers are winterizing their boats and raising them out of the water for the season, Randy Colomb and other Fleet members are cracking through the ice along the shore, making a path for their boats and heading out into the bitter cold waters and harsh lake winds. "We fish until you can't put the boat in," Colomb says.

"It's like going back 200 years to see what Lake Champlain was like."

While most organizations hold meetings at a long table and proceed through roll call and follow an agenda, the Frostbite Fleet holds its meetings on Lake Champlain's cool waters. The meeting is commenced by a wave of the hand and a simple "Hi" as members pass on their boats. The agenda? Always the same- fish until dark. Many of the anglers hold indoor jobs during the day or are retired. There is no roll call as the members tend to change week to week, but one can expect to see Judd "Super Cab" Sweenor, "Sea" Bill Briden, Dr. Carl "Da Boat" Petri and John "Done Deal" Fuller trolling the waters on the regular basis.

Some might consider Colomb and other Fleet members nuts for going out fishing while others are cutting the Thanksgiving turkey or unwrapping Christmas gifts, however, the lake has plenty to offer willing participants during the colder months, according to Colomb.

"It's what you see on the lake," Colomb said. "Such things as when a fishless afternoon ends with a bald eagle swooping down and picking a fish. Then landing in a big pine tree and showing it off. It's also about the peace and solitude of the woods, the Northern birds migrating south. It's like going back 200 years to see what Lake Champlain was like," Colomb explained.

You could consider Colomb a veteran fisherman. He has 14 custom fly patterns that have been published in various fishing publications, including the popular "Captain's Midnight" and "Marvin's Way" patterns. Colomb has been fishing during fall months as far back as 1978.

"We were catching one fish after another-it was unreal."

Primarily a salmon fisherman, he prefers to troll the lake equipped with four fiberglass fly rods, two on each side of the boat. Colomb explained by making S-turns while trolling, lures on one side of the boat speed up as lures on the opposite side slow, creating a random presentation to the fish, the most important factor to catching salmon, according to Colomb. Other accessories Colomb wouldn't leave ashore is a heater for added warmth and a portable stove and skillets to prepare gourmet meals such as sautéed duck breast served with red wine-cherry sauce over egg noodles.

"Sea" Bill Briden explained his first experience with the Fleet: "The first time I went out fishing with Randy [Colomb] it was about 15-years-ago, and it must have been the first day of the year. It was cold as hell. I was thinking of a polite way to tell Randy, 'This is crazy, we should probably head in.' But sure enough, as soon as we started fishing in front of the breakwater (in Burlinton Harbor,) we were catching one fish after another-it was unreal."

Colomb noted that sea lamprey have long been the number one limiting factor of fish populations in Lake Champlain although recent efforts to suppress them have been successful, and the most recent stock of salmon, notes Colomb, have a good chance of survival.

"We lost our giant fish due to lamprey, and the average salmon size is down to around 12 to 15 inches," Colomb said. "I used to carry hedge trimmers on the boat to remove lamprey from the back of my boat," he said.

For anyone interested in joining the Frostbite Fleet, Colomb encourages new members. But don't check with the Chamber of Commerce to see when they're next meeting is, instead look for the ice to begin freezing on Lake Champlain and listen for migrating birds.

Do you enjoy ice fishing in the grocery store or on Lake Champlain? Let us know.

Fall Fishing Tips

Bass:

During the fall months when bass bulk up for winter, instead of the random aggression bite, which is when a fish bites because it feels threatened or annoyed, bass bite for survival, and are active during the fall.

Bass Fishing Tips from a Pro:

According to Captain Rich Greenough of Sure Strike Charters, a guide-fishing service located in Essex, Vermont, tube baits, spinner baits, grubs and jig heads worked slowly along the bottom of shallow water will yield bass.

The Proof: 

Evidence that bass are still active in Lake Champlain are in the results of the Stren Series Bass Fishing Tourney that took place Sept. 27-30. The winner, professional Ranger Boats angler, Pete Gluszek, won the $60,000 first prize with a total of 10 bass weighing 33 pounds. The top six on the money list combined for a total of 60 bass over four days. Gluszek won using "a combination of jigs and soft plastics worked around submerged wood and grass in 5 to 25 feet of water," citing an article in the Press-Republican.

Landlocked Salmon and Lake Trout:

When the water temperature drops below 50 degrees, landlocked salmon and lake trout, or “lakers,” become active in many portions of Lake Champlain. However, according to Randy Colomb, a Frostbite Fleet fisherman, lake trout spawn during the fall months and aren't as active as salmon.

"[I and other Frostbite Fleet fisherman] quickly moved from the Lakers which are in spawning mode in October and November and are stacked up on rocky breaks where you can catch them all day.   Salmon will jump and fight all the way to the boat," Colomb said.

Tips from a Pro:  

1. Learn where the bait is most likely to be, which is usually in places like dropoffs, points of land, reefs etc. Look for diving gulls which are there to eat the bait that cause fish to be concentrated near the surface.  
2. Currents and wave breaks, trash, and foam lines are all areas that can concentrate bait and the predators that seek them.
3. Don't go anywhere in a straight line. Moving in an S-pattern speeds and slows the bait. Trolling quickly triggers chase and slowing down makes the bait appear injured which triggers weakness aggression in the fish.  
4. I have found that colors like lavender, purple, blue, florescent red, copper and some silver work well. But the fish will tell you [what is working]. Change till you find what works.  

-Randy Colomb, member of the Frostbite Fleet and Lake Champlain fall fisherman since 1978.  

The Salmon Run:

Salmon can also be found in great abundance in the tributaries of Lake Champlain such as the AuSable, Saranac, and Bouquet Rivers. Salmon begin "running" in the fall when they return to their home rivers to search for their spawning habitat.  According to the Department of Environmental Conservation, the main run of salmon usually extends from early Sept. mid-Nov. with the best action occurring from early Oct.— early Nov. According to the Department of Environmental Conservation's Region 5 website, the best spots to fish salmon are in deep pools downstream from dams.

Trout

 According to Colomb, brown trout, like salmon, are a schooling fish and if you find one, there are likely many in the area. Rainbow trout, on the other hand, are the lakes “loners” and are “a treasure to catch,” Colomb said.

For both offshore and onshore fishing in Lake Champlain, Greenough recommends Grand Isle State Park located off Route 2 in Grand Isle, Vermont, the waters off Thompson's Point in Charlotte, Vermont, and Willsboro Point in Willsboro, New York. Colomb reccommends Converse Bay, in Charlotte, Vermont, and Burlinton Harbor, in Burlington, Vermont.