Hope everyone’s doing well as we roll into a new year. This will be VBA’s third full season and we’re seriously fired up about the trips we’ve got lined up. If you haven’t already, please help us spread the word—share the website and encourage your buddies (folks you’re willing to vouch for) to sign up for the newsletter so we can keep growing and get more people out on the water.
For anyone new, have them sign up through the website, then email me directly at john@vbaor.org to get the password for the Upcoming Trips page. Just have them mention who’s vouching for them and how they’re connected to the community.
The website is now updated with the 2026 calendar. You’ll notice we’re offering fewer events this year. Unfortunately, we didn’t land the funding we were hoping for, so we had to scale things back a bit. That said, our spending strategy over the last couple of seasons really paid off—we’ve already got all the rafts, camping gear, and camp kitchen we need to run float trips. That means our main expenses moving forward are food and fishing tackle. Katie and I are actively working to find funding to help cover those gaps.
I also want to remind everyone that I’m always open to doing smaller, shorter trips. Anything from a day trip to a three- or four-night float. If I’m around, I’d be stoked to make something happen for you and a couple buddies or your family.
Lastly, 2025 was an awesome season for VBA. The level of participation was incredible and the support from our vendors was huge. Thank you to everyone who came out—it was so great seeing you all and meeting your families. I finally ran the numbers and realized we got 78 people on the water last year. Holy crap. That’s pretty amazing.
Tight Lines,
John Messenger
"The Gorge"
Gorge Fly Shop Team - 541.386.6977
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