Big Bear Troutfest to Return this Fall

BIG BEAR LAKE— The 18^th Annual Big Bear Troutfest tournament will be returning this fall from Oct. 7-8. Participating anglers will once again reel-up as they compete for the coveted Klamath/Suzuki boat-and-motor raffle prize. A fishing license is required for this tournament unless the angler is under the age of 16. In addition, Big Bear Lake will remain open to the public during the tournament.

The Western Outdoor News (WON) event brings anglers from near and far to try and catch the biggest rainbow trout. Thousands of dollars in cash and prizes will be awarded to the big fish winners in the men and women categories. There is also a kid’s division. All event activities, including registration, will be held at the Big Bear Municipal Water District or Big Bear Marina (BBMWD) parking lot. BBMWD is in charge of approving the permit for the tournament and allows the event to take place on their property.

The entry fee is $75 for adults and $50 for juniors (14 and under), and the first 600 entries will receive a goodie bag with a selection of items from event sponsors. The event suggests that participants download the waiver form and either bring it with them or email it to bille@wonews.com before registration day. Every angler MUST complete a waiver form before competing.

Each angler will have their given number added to the raffle bin for a chance to win prize packages. They will raffle multiple prizes at the awards ceremony and award the top five anglers in each category. Trophies and merchandise will be awarded to the top five winners in each category: Adult Male, Adult Female, Kids Division Male (14 and under), and Kids Division Female (14 and under).

There will also be a Blind Bogey Contest where participants can win cash prizes. Five dollars of every entry will go into pot, and the put is then split ten ways (Fifteen dollars of every entry fee goes to BBMWD for stocking the lake). Ten random weights will be chosen for each day’s combined weight. If your daily weight is closest to, but not over, the pre-determined Blind Bogey weight, you win your share of the money pooled for that day. Day one weights are up to 15 pounds. Day two weights are between one and 30 pounds. The angler’s randomly chosen whose weights comes closest to the random weight without going over wins. All anglers who have signed up will be eligible for the cash rewards as part of the Blind Bogey Contest.

The fishing is expected to be great at Big Bear Lake after rebounding from the generous rainfall that the winter season brought California, and. additionally, WON will stock the lake with thousands of dollars of trout before the event. Five thousand pounds of trout were stocked for the 2022 event with the help of the Big Bear Municipal Water District.

This event brings anywhere from 300-500 anglers to the town of Big Bear for 2-3 days and benefits the towns economy. The event will be limited to 600 entries. For more information, contact Billy Egan at 949-366-0248 or visit https://www.bigbear.com/events/annual/troutfest/.