First off, wishing all our LFF Community and their loved ones the best wishes for a safe, healthy, and prosperous year ahead. May your flies get victimized early and often by various piscatorial predators! And may there be many great fishing stories to tell - even if some are borderline truth.
As you can see from the Calendar page, there are many great activities coming up this Spring for those of us who pursue fish on the fly and/or from a paddlecraft. Orvis of Baton Rouge has kicked off their Saturday educational sessions, which currently are scheduled through the end of February. These include "Fly Fishing 101", "Fly Fishing 201" and "Fly Tying 101". These one-day, 2-hour sessions are free of charge, but pre-registration is required. Dates and times can be found on our Calendar page.
The new year also brings the start of regional events, including the biennial Cenla Fly Fishing & Light Tackle Festival (Jan. 20), the Dr. Ed Rizzolo Fly Tying Festival (Feb. 10), Little Mo Fly Fishing Festival (Feb. 17), Fly Fish Texas (Feb. 24), Red Stick Day (Mar. 3), among others. Then there's the ever-popular Fly Fishing Film Tour at the Orvis store on Friday, February 23rd. This event has sold out the last five years. It's a great time, so be sure to get tickets early!
As for kayak fishing events, the Bayou Coast Kayak Fishing Club's annual kickoff tournament - Minimalist Challenge (Jan. 20) - is already booked up on alloted registrations. Fortunately, their premier event - Paddlepalooza (Mar. 10) - has no such restrictions. All the dates for BCKFC and Lafayette Kayak Fishing Club tournaments are set. Other kayak fishing events this Spring include "Boats on the Bayou" (Mar. 24) held in conjunction with the New Orleans City Park Big Bass Rodeo and Fishtival. Also look for numerous kayak demos starting in March, featuring several new boats including the Bonafide models, Hobie Compass, Jackson Cruise FD and Coosa FD.