February 20-22, 2015, the Guadalupe River chapter of Trout Unlimited (the largest chapter in the nation) will celebrate the fifth year of providing the premier winter outdoor expo in central/south texas.

This three day event includes a banquet on Friday night on the banks of the Guadalupe River, with food, libations, silent and live auctions. This year our keynote speaker for the banquet is noted conservationist, adventurer, film maker and guide, Frank Smethurst.

While we do sell tickets for the banquet, the expo on Saturday and Sunday are free to the public. Visitors can browse booths in our tent that showcase local, regional, national and international products and services. There are education opportunities for families and children with archery and our kid's fishing tank. Texas Parks and Wildlife is a major partner in this event, providing additional educational opportunities. We also bring in noted flyfising celebrities to put on presentations to improve your fishing and fly tying skills, as well as awareness of conservation issues.

All of the funds raised from Trout Fest stay in our local community. This year from funds raised, we held the first ever youth trout camp on the Guadalupe, aimed at eduating our local youth on stream ecology, entemology, riparian concerns, flyfishing and fly tying.

Other items that Trout Fest helped fund are conservation efforts on the trophy trout zone of the Guadalupe tailrace; science based analysis of hydrology and riverbed composition to allow us to better recommend improvements to the river.

To purchase tickets for the banquet on Friday night, or to learn more about the event, please visit our website at www.grtutroutfest.org