hi i have been fishing lake champlain in the NorthEast region and haven't been having much luck. i would like to find out what bait i should be using and how i should fish it. it is summer here. 

Conner, check out your computer as this is your second post with the keyboard data shown.

If the lake has really clear water don't use real heavy line and if you do make sure to use a flurocarbon leader as the line visibility will spook the fish. Try Carolina rigging a fluke or other finesse bait. Wacky rigging a plastic worm may give you good results, you can put a small weight in the worms head and wacky rig the worm through the collar or smooth ring in the center. In the summer bass don't much like to chase lures when its hot so slow your presentation. Working a jig and pig slow is a good idea too. Brush hogs always produce for me too.

When in doubt I can just about always rely on the old drop shot . Downsize your line 6-8 lbs ....

I have to agree...drop shot all the way.

Check out Rich Zaleski's webpage.   I think it's RichZ.com.  He has a great how-to on dropshotting and many blog reports from Champlain.

Southern Champlain has been a little bit tough lately. Especially with all the pressure from the LCI.  For the most part the fish have moved off of the banks and are in 4-8 feet of water. If your looking for quantity fish a senko. If your looking for quality fish a jig or a frog !