Deschutes River Alliance Annual Auction 2026 - February 21st - Get Your Tickets

The annual Deschutes River Alliance Auction and Gathering is the best event to meet-up with friends, share stories and plan new adventures while helping raise critical-needed funds to help DRA’s efforts to protect and improve the lower Deschutes River. 

What To Expect 

— A crowd passionate about protecting the lower Deschutes River 

 — Enticing live auction packages only available at the event 

 — Golden Ticket Raffle: $100 each, only 100 tickets sold

 — Robust silent auction All brought to you by our generous sponsors!

 The DRA Auction live event is Saturday, February 21st, at The Redd on SE Salmon in Portland, Oregon.

Get Tickets

TrouTFest May 30, 31 & June 1, 2025 - Presented by Deschutes River Alliance

A celebration of trout, the people who chase them, & the lower Deschutes River 

Presented by: The Deschutes River Alliance

With support from the City of Maupin, Visit Central Oregon, iFishiBelong, pFriem Family Brewers, Freebridge Brewing, & Imperial River Company

Friday, Saturday, Sunday
May 30, 31 & June 1, 2025

OASIS RIVERVIEW CAMPGROUND, MAUPIN OREGON

Free and open to all ages

FRIDAY, MAY 30th
CASTING CLINIC (9:00AM-4:00PM)

Join FFI-certified instructors for an all-day casting clinic! Lunch and take home materials included. Purchase your slot here.

Clinics will be led by CI Instructors Mary Ann Dozer, Marion Hiller, Liz Lair, Marti Loeb, and Steve Hiller.

DUTCH OVEN COOK-OFF (12:00-6:00PM)

Contestants for our 2nd Annual Dutch Oven Cook off will begin meal prep at 12pm and begin serving “judges” (that’s you!) at 4:30pm. Sign up here.

TROUTFEST TRIVIA w/ Grayling Education (4:00-6:00PM)

Catch up with friends and learn about freshwater ecosystems, fisheries, and fish species. Assemble your dream team for a chance to win awesome sponsored prizes in this free community event from 4:00-6:00pm.

EVENING ENTERTAINMENT (6:00-9:00PM)

Deschutes-inspired live music from The Takes

Delicious food from the Riverside

Refreshing beer from pFriem & Freebridge

CALLING ALL campfire cooks, guides, camp hosts, dutch oven hobbyists, and culinary professionals.

The Dutch oven cook-off is back for Troutfest 2025! Get the jump on your inspired dish and the competition: Sign up here! Just want to eat all the dutch oven goodness and not chef it up? $10 and you can make the rounds and sample each rustic entree. 

SATURDAY, MAY 31
ON-THE-WATER BUG CLINIC (9:00-11:00AM)

Meet Rick Hafele and John “Smurf” Smeraglio down at the White River BLM Campground for a free, on-the-water Deschutes’ bug clinic. Find out which insects the trout are eating, how the aquatic entomology of the river has changed due to the SWW Tower, and what fly patterns our experts prefer. Sign up here.

CASTING DOCTOR (10:00AM-5:00PM)

30-minute, 1:1 session with a FFI-certified instructor or industry professional with the goal of identifying one fault and one fix for participating anglers. Secure your spot here.

MANUFACTURER BOOTHS (10:00AM-6:00PM)

Walk the grounds and check out the latest and greatest innovations from the fly fishing and outdoor industries. Reps will be on hand to answer questions and ensure optimal use of gear.

BEER GARDEN (11:00AM-CLOSE)

Enjoy refreshing beers from pFriem Family Brewers and Freebridge Brewing, as well as delicious lunch and dinner from the Riverside. pFriem and Freebridge generously donate the proceeds of beer sales in order to keep this event free and open to the public. Thank you Rudy & Steve!

EXPERT DEMONSTRATIONS (12:00-5:00PM)

Seminars on the hour, every hour. These educational presentations are relevant to every level of outdoor enthusiast. From entry-level fish identification to native land acknowledgments to nuanced expert demonstrations, our presenter lineup will cover it all!

SUNDAY, JUNE 1
CASTING LESSONS (9:00AM-4:00PM)

Join FFI-certified instructors for an all-day casting clinic! Lunch and take home materials included. Purchase your slot here.

RIVER/ROAD CLEANUP (10:00-11:00 AM)

Meet at the festival grounds and help us leave no trace of an epic weekend!

CAST A LINE BEFORE YOU GO!

"The Gorge"

Gorge Fly Shop Team - 541.386.6977

GorgeFlyShop.com  |  Join our Team |  Contact Us

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

Veterans Backcountry Adventures will be at TroutFest

www.veteransbackcountryadventures.org

www.deschutesriveralliance.org/events/

"The Gorge"

Gorge Fly Shop Team - 541.386.6977

GorgeFlyShop.com  |  Join our Team |  Contact Us

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

Safe Space - Summer of Hope Fundraiser 2022

Great Cause! Great Venue! Join Travis and Lyndsey for and evening of fun, food and drink in support of a Great cause. 

When: July 23rd, 6-9pm

Where: 3827 Fletcher Dr. Hood River, Oregon

Features: Food, Drink, Live Music, Auction

For tickets and Information: www.safespacecac.org

"The Gorge"

Gorge Fly Shop Team - 541.386.6977

GorgeFlyShop.com  |  Join our Team |  Contact Us

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

Fly-Tying Roundtable Event

Winter Steelhead Fly Tying Roundtable

Fly-tying Roundtable

At the Gorge Fly Shop

201 Oak St. Hood River, Oregon 97031

Jan 27, 2015

6:00-7:30 pm
Event Host:
Andrew Perrault

541.386.6977

info@gorgeflyshop.com

The Rundown:

Tying Winter Steelhead Flies: tips and tricks.

A gathering of local tiers of all levels to share tips, tricks and patterns for successful winter steelhead flies. This is an open forum for all tiers or people interested in tying winter flies.

Details:
Bring a vise if you have one. We will provide a couple of them for those that don't have one. Bring materials to tie your favorite fly. We will discuss how to tie shanks, using wire vs braid, how to build a bulky profile without using too much material, what type trailer hooks to use and some tips on tying with tubes. We will also discuss our favorite patterns and techniques.


Store will be open for any after hours purchases.

Snacks and beverages provided...

"Fly Ty the World with Us"

Don't Miss the Festival of the Fly - Feb 21st, Hood River, Oregon

Lovers of The Columbia River Gorge, this event is for you. Come on out and support your local rivers at the 2013 Festival of the Fly. On tap: Great food, drink, comfortable seating and one exceptional, full-length feature film complete with an amazing raffle. This is a major fundraiser event for both the Hood and White Salmon Rivers, so come hang out for an evening of fishing on the big screen!

The Raffle: Ok, this is not your typical raffle that doles out a few prizes among thousands of people. It’s a pretty intimate event that gives up some serious big ticket items, like fly rods and fly reels! Each show will raffle off a Redington Voyant 5 wt 9' 4 pc outfit,  Rise II 5/6 reel; a Voyant 9’.6” 5 wt. fly rod with a case, a broad assortment of fly fines and the big prize this year: a 9’6” 5 wt Sage ONE Fly Rod! Aside from great gear, there are many local businesses donating great gift certificate prizes.

The Film: GeoFish. Check out the trailer…

Showtimes: February 21st. 6:00 pm, 8:30pm.
Location: Andrews Skylight Theater and Pizza Pub, Downtown Hood River, Oregon

Get your tickets at Andrews before they are gone!

This is a 100% local event put on for you by your freinds and amazing fishermen at Andrew’s Pizza, Gorge Fly Shop, Full Sail Brewing, Kayak Shed, Food Service of America, Morgan Distributing, Lemma Wines, Sage & Redington, Tom Larimer Guide Service & Dick Halverson.

Celebrate Labor Day Weekend with Apple Valley

Peach Celebration and Country BBQ This Weekend

If you are wondering how to spend your holiday weekend, try setting aside some time to swing by Apple Valley Country Store for their annual Labor Day Peach Celebration and Country BBQ. This charming little gem, tucked away along the banks of the Hood River, offers up some of the finest palate pleasers in the area. Apple Valley crafts all their jams, jellies and deserts from local orchards as well as serving up some of the finest, finger lickin, cherry-wood-smoked BBQ around.

This weekend’s celebration coincides with the local Freestone Peach harvest. Peach pies, jams, cobblers and crisps are all on the menu. The BBQ kicks off each morning at 11:00 am where folks can choose from smoked ribs and pulled pork/chicken sandwiches. Leave some room cause this stuff is really good.

Fourth of July - Montana Style



Pro Circuit - Livingston Roundup


When Theresa called to get tickets, the lady on the phone said, “Honey, you best be thinkin about tickets a year in advance.”

Really, for a Rodeo?

In that moment it hit me how important is place and tradition and the desire to celebrate such on America’s coveted birthday. In the summer sun…

Growing up in Maine, The Fourth began with a parade through the neighborhood followed by a costume awards ceremony. One year I won a ribbon that said, “Marvelous” because I dressed like a hula girl with a generous chest size amplified by five pairs of socks.

Then there would be games on the Reserve, which was the large patch of grass that perched there above clay cliffs overlooking Casco Bay – the gateway to the north Atlantic. Egg toss, Balloon Toss, 3 legged race, potato sack race and a tug of war, where the losers would be yanked into an actual mud pit.

Then the watermelon hunt, followed by the talent show and then a big bonfire surrounded by barbeques and bottle rockets. We’d all run around while the older folks sat around yapping and getting lose on cool beverages.

And The Winner of The Sage One Fly Rod Outfit is...

Sending this to...

Much thanks goes out to all those who participated in the raffle this past Father’s Day Weekend. As we stated earlier, the winner would be chosen at random. In this case, we wrote the name of each participant on a uniformly-cut piece of paper that was then dropped in a box. Long time GFS employee, Greg Darling shook the box and held it out to GFS owner, Travis Duddles. Travis then proceeded to dig his hand around and eventually pulled it out with one piece of paper crimped between his fingers. And the lone name scribbled there on the piece of paper is... drum roll please…

Win a Complete Sage One Fly Rod Outfit!

Sage One Outfit: Sage One 590-4 Fly Rod, Sage 4250 Reel, Rio Gold WF5F Fly Line

We celebrated our 20 – year anniversary here at the fly shop this past February. It was a great time, a ho-down if you will. Aside from the in-shop sale and prize giveaways, what really made the event was the coming together of so many people we have enjoyed over the years. How we see it, it was really a celebration of thanks to our customers; for if not for you, we wouldn’t be here doing what we love to do.

After the event, we got to thinking about how we could thank our internet customers. This has become an increasingly valuable part of our business, a service that we are all-too-happy to provide. Our goal with our internet side, is to provide that “in house” specialty feel for on-line shoppers. Although not quite as personal as “ringing the bell” on our fly shop door or leaning across our counter to tell us a little something about yourself, we appreciate the feeling of coming to know many of you on another level. We want to thank you, so beginning this Friday, we will be holding our first ever Internet Appreciation Day Weekend.

For this event we will be raffling off a really nice prize, with some pretty good odds of winning!  Ok, first the big news: The prize is a brand new Sage One 590-4 Fly Rod, Sage 4250 Fly Reel (Bronze) and a Rio Gold WF5F Fly line, complete with backing. This will be raffled off as one complete outfit. At an over-all value of $1100.00, this would surely to put a smile on your face!

**We can’t thank Sage enough for donating this wonderful prize, as well as for their continued innovation and underlying excellence in the fly fishing industry**

How to register:
Make one purchase, of $100.00 or more, on our fly shop's website (on-line catalog) between 12:00 AM (US Pacific Standard Time) Friday, June 15th - 11:59 PM Sunday, June 17th and you automatically get yourself registered to win. The drawing will take place the following Wednesday, June 20th. You can only register once, so splitting orders will not increase your chances in the raffle. The winner will be randomly picked and we will contact this person on Wednesday, June 20th. We will also pin up a congratulatory post on here on our blog.

If there was ever a weekend to purchase some fly gear, well this is it! Visit http://www.gorgeflyshop.com/  this weekend and let your karma fly! Best of luck to you all!

*Please Note* Only internet and phone orders qualify for the raffle.

Hood River Cleanup is This Weekend!

Please support your local river! Hood River Cleanup is scheduled for May 19th!

Finally! Much thanks to Hood River resident Dave Gee for taking the bull by the horns and organizing this event. For many, many days the radiant beauty of The Hood has been compromised by unsettling wads of trash. Let’s clean her up and give her the look she deserves!

Dave is an avid fly angler and one who is passionate about the health of his home waters. If he isn’t busy running his business, Oregon Growers, you can likely find him down on The Hood chasing steelhead around. Dave is also the NFS River Steward for Hood, a position that helps channel his love into promoting sound management policies for the future.

Please join Dave from 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM this coming Saturday, May 19th. Meet at the east side of foot bridge at Hood River Mouth (Next to Museum – look for white pop tent). You can Register Now or simply register the morning of the event at the meeting site. There will be some snacks and Coffee on hand for volunteers courtesy of Dog River Coffee. And be sure to bring some waders if you own them, sturdy footwear and some gloves for pickin’

Hope you can make it!

A Weekend With SIMMS

You have all heard the name, seen the logo and you probably own some of their gear. SIMMS: The undisputed mother of all fly fishing gear and apparel companies. The words, SIMMS and fly fishing just seem to stick together like PB and Jelly these days. That's just the way it is. What started in the nineties as a small startup by fishing guide, John Simms out of Jackson, WY, SIMMS has grown steadily into not only an innovative, industry leading company but seemingly something larger than that. Somehow, these five letters have come to resemble a certain concept or frame of mind. Just glancing at a bumper sticker displaying this text can conjure up that inner angling desire or take one back to a place in time where the water flowed flawlessly. Although marketing displays the words, the fact remains that more serious fly anglers depend on SIMMS gear than any other- which gives this company a vital role in countless stories that play out daily around the globe. It's no wonder that SIMMS ignites thoughts of fly fishing and to many, the two have almost become synonymous.

Why the success? Well, solid employees performing solid business practices comes to mind. Sure, getting a hold on expenses, logistics, quality control and all that stuff is a given for any business to be successful. This isn’t always easy, but SIMMS has this stuff covered. However, what really separates these folks is that they are “IN TOUCH” with their market. They have a deep respect for the people out on the water and they understand that opinions from their customers are never throw-away items. How do you help provide the best gear for people? Well, you listen to the people. Innovation deserves the right kind of advice.

SIMMS has long understood that the selling and engineering of fly gear is best achieved at the personal level. Over the years, specialty fly shops have provided this platform where people can meet, talk and make informed choices on fly gear. The Gorge Fly Shop is proud to be one of those shops helping people buy the right gear and provide necessary feedback to the product line.

Aside from their presence in shops, SIMMS has thousands of fishing guides using their gear. It’s a good scenario for both. Guides stay dry, comfortable and functional and SIMMS gets broad, personal-level marketing and professional feedback.

 

This past weekend marked the annual SIMMS Ice Out Event at their headquarters in Bozeman, MT.  Like an impending hatch of stone flies, guides from far and wide “crawled” to Southwest Montana for this smorgasbord of speaker events, cocktails, factory tours, feedback sessions and the much touted “Guide Olympics”.  I have to hand it to them, they put on a fine, hospitable show for the entire three days - some of which I will share below.