CELEBRATE GEORGIA'S OFFICIAL TROUT FESTIVAL IN THE TROUT CAPITAL OF GEORGIA!
CELEBRATE GEORGIA'S OFFICIAL TROUT FESTIVAL IN THE TROUT CAPITAL OF GEORGIA!
(March 22, 2021) After struggling for more than six months with how to operate around the uncertainties surrounding the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the team behind the Blue Ridge Trout & Outdoor Adventures Festival (Trout Fest) – the Official Trout Festival of Georgia – canceled the 2021 staging of the popular, outdoor-recreation based festival in Blue Ridge, GA.
“We hoped to see some clear movement by now on the COVID-19 restrictions that might ‘open’ Trout Fest to the large crowd we have come to see at our past festivals. We also moved the 2021 festival date to a later option in spring, hoping to see that relief, while making headway on many of the tasks associated with Trout Fest,” says Trout Fest event coordinator Bob Borgwat. “But the COVID-19 restrictions, guidelines and policies for large festivals, as these relate to the city and Trout Unlimited at the national level, have remained in place and directed us to this decision – a decision that ensures Trout Fest will not contribute to the spread of COVID-19. That’s the bottom line: We want Trout Fest to remain a safe and engaging environment for our visitors, sponsors, vendors and staff. We’ll see everyone again in spring 2022.”
COMING NEXT YEAR!
Presented by Blue Ridge Mountain Trout Unlimited Chapter 696 and the Fannin County Chamber of Commerce, Trout Fest this spring would have presented its fifth annual event that gathers fishermen, river sports enthusiasts, and outdoor recreation fans and their families in Blue Ridge, Georgia for fun, food, entertainment, shopping, instruction and recreational services while increasing the public's knowledge of trout and the conservation ethos associated with Trout Unlimited.
Located just 90 minutes north of Atlanta and 90 minutes east of Chattanooga, Trout Fest combines trout fishing with outdoor recreation, wildlife art, outfitter gear/services/instruction, and an Activity Zone in the historic downtown district of Blue Ridge and Fannin County, the Official Trout Capital of Georgia.
“We planned for more than 3,500 visitors at Trout Fest ’21, our biggest Trout Fest yet,” Borgwat says, “but we’ll be back next year with new trout-fishing programs and fly-fishing instruction that’s sure to hook anglers from all over the Southeast. We’ll have mountain bike and kayak demos, a trout-fishing pond, axe throwing, gem mining and more … all of this in an all-new Trout Fest Activity Zone that safely opens up a world of outdoor fun centered on Fannin County. Local craft beer and locally produced wines will be on tap for serving alongside food trucks in the Trout Fest Food Court, and the Trout Fest Sound Stage will present our first concert program with artists from Atlanta and Nashville.”
Visitors, vendors and sponsors for Trout Fest 2022 can learn more and get updates on Trout Fest 2022 on the event website – BlueRidgeTroutFest.com – and the Blue Ridge Trout & Outdoor Adventures Festival Facebook page.
Visitors scan fly-fishing tackle at Trout Fest 2019. Click for the latest media information.
More than a dozen local outfitters and guides can help you learn why fly-fishing is a growing sport, especially among anglers in the Southern Appalachian Mountains who chase the rainbow, brown and brook trout in the region's cold-water streams.
NEW! Trout Fest Program Tents present expanded programs including mountain biking and kayaking. Professional fishing guides and outfitters share their fishing programs that tell our visitors what they need to know for a successful day of trout fishing in the Trout Capital of Georgia.
NEW! Trout Fest Activity Zone opens up outdoor fun for our visitors with a climbing wall, a mountain bike course, a trout-fishing pond, long-saw crosscutting, axe throwing, gem mining and more! e!
Trout Fest Food Court features new and returning food vendors, and our Beer/Wine Garden will feature brews from Grumpy Old Men Brewing Company in Blue Ridge and wines from North Georgia mountain farms.
Browse, admire and shop a large selection of fine outdoor art produced by local and traveling artists who feature the resources of the Appalachian Mountains in both their materials and their visions.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Trout Fest made the decision to postpone our 2021 event in adherence to the decision made by the city of Blue Ridge to cancel or postpone all public events until further notice. We will follow the city’s guidelines as these are determined by the city with advice and updates from the Fannin EMA and Department of Public Health.
More than 3,000 visitors enjoyed Trout Fest 2019 (our last event) learning where, when and how to fish for trout while also booking their fishing guides; participating in free fly-fishing/trout-fishing instruction; buying their outdoor gear, art and clothing; snacking on great foods and enjoying the Trout Fest Beer Garden with cold beer, wine and ciders.
We’re sure even more folks are ready to break out when COVID restrictions relax this season.
Make your break to Blue Ridge, support Trout Fest ’21 and discover trout fishing and the wide range of outdoors recreation in Fannin County –
The Official Trout Capital of Georgia!
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Learn more about how you can support and/or participate as a vendor or sponsor in the 2021 Blue Ridge Trout & Outdoor Adventures Festival. Go to:
… or call me, Bob Borgwat – your event coordinator – at 706-838-5259.
And if you find I’m out fishing, don’t be surprised! Please, leave a message. I’ve got an itch I can’t reach to “get my trout on” until I get to Trout Fest ’21!
Hook’ em!
Bob Borgwat, event coordinator
Ph: 706-838-5259
Email: bborgwat@gmail.com
Blue Ridge Trout & Outdoor Adventures Festival
ABOUT BLUE RIDGE MOUNTAIN TROUT UNLIMITED
Blue Ridge Mountain Trout Unlimited is the official local organization (chapter 696) of the acclaimed national organization, dedicated to protecting critical habitat, reconnecting degraded waterways and restoring populations to cold-water fisheries.
BRMTU is the beneficiary of the net proceeds of Blue Ridge Trout & Outdoor Adventures Festival. All funds raised or donated to BRMTU are applied right here in the North Georgia mountains for conservation and stream restoration efforts; stream cleanups; and education and outreach programs.
For more information, please visit BlueRidgeTU.com.
ABOUT FANNIN COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Blue Ridge, Georgia, is located 8 miles south of the North Carolina–Tennessee border line, only 1½ hours north of Atlanta via I-575- GA/Hwy 515, within easy reach of the best attractions in the Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee mountains.
Make sure your first stop on a vacation in Georgia's Blue Ridge Mountains is at our new Fannin County Chamber Visitor Center, 152 Orvin Lance Drive, Blue Ridge 30513.
For more information, please visit BlueRidgeMountains.com.