Game On: TroutFest ‘26 a Month Away
Worth a Friday Afternoon Off: The Perfect Deschutes Fly Box
TroutFest 2026 is fast approaching: Friday-Sunday, May 29-31 at the Oasis Riverview Campground, with a full slate of trout and river related fun (hopefully in the sun.)
If you can swing it, take that Friday afternoon off, and arrive at the Oasis venue by 4:00. Rick Hafele and Amy Hazel are tag-teaming a don’t-miss-it presentation: how to put together the perfect Deschutes River fly box. Where else in the world can you get the inside scoop from one of the country’s premier entomologists and angling authors, teamed up with one of river’s most experienced guides?
After absorbing this inside information, be sure to stick around for Friday night’s music. The Rahr Brothers, of the up-and-coming Portland-based folk-rock band The Takes will take the stage. Their tunes emerge at the intersection of rock riffs and folk lyricism, with some of their songs evoking the many days the brothers have spent together on the banks of the Deschutes.
Full Slate Saturday
Saturday includes a full line-up of presentations and clinics.
From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Mary Ann Dozer of Fly-Fishing Pursuits will lead a “casting doctor,” style clinic. These 30-minute sessions cost only $25, (click on link to purchase) and you’ll walk away with one fault and one fix for your cast, diagnosed and treated by Mary Ann or her fellow FFI-certified instructors, Marti Loeb and Lisa Amato-Craig. If you think you’ve got more than one fault requiring more than one fix, or are otherwise down for more intensive instruction, sign up for Mary Ann’s half-day casting clinics: Friday morning, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., or Sunday during the same time. Purchase the $200 tickets for these valuable lessons on the DRA’s website under the support us tab, in the “shop” page, or simply click on the link.
Other Saturday highlights include scintillating instruction from John Smeraglio and Rick Hafele: this session will take place at the BLM’s White River Campground, downstream of Maupin a few miles. You’ll learn about, and search in the river for, the specific insects that trout eat, and do so with one of the West’s best entomologists, and one of the Deschutes River’s most knowledgeable guides.
Amy Hazel will also lead another Saturday session, “Staying Flexible on the Deschutes.”
Peak trout weeks on the Deschutes, of which TroutFest takes place in the midst, present any angler with a dizzying array of choices. Take a big leap toward overcoming analysis paralysis by getting in on Amy’s Saturday presentation.
One of the lower Deschutes most experienced guides will share a trout strategy based on observation, a willingness to change tactics, and a predilection to keep moving to find where trout are feeding.
Saturday Night: Games of Skill, Live Music, Food, Drink, Fun
From noon until five, expert demonstrations from a variety of industry professionals will help you understand and appreciate the river and its resident fish, and offer a few tips on how to hone your skill at connecting with trout.
As the sun sinks over the west canyon rim, more music and some light-hearted fun: a back-up-a-drift-boat contest, with contestants vying for the first-ever title of West Coast Driftboat Launch Champion.
If your neck is still kinked from your last harrowing boat ramp experience, instead join in the cornhole tournament: grab a partner and a frosty beverage, and rack up points in competition with other twosomes.
At 7 p.m., The Greg Haller Band takes the stage. Alt-country covers and original songs will have you tapping your toes in the grass and raising a glass to the sunset.
Sunday’s fun includes the chance to partake in Mary Ann Dozer’s half-day casting clinic, or help the DRA crew leave no trace at the campground, pastries and coffee provided for willing helpers.
During the whole weekend run-of-show, a beer garden will open at 11 a.m. daily to help keep you cool, with refreshments provided by Pfriem Family Brewing, Freebridge Brewing, and 2Towns Ciderhouse. Food options provided with a selection of menu items from the Riverside, just up the street in Maupin.
The whole slate of TroutFest fun for 2026 can be viewed at the TroutFest website, www.deschutestroutfest.org. See you there!
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