Programs

This tournament will take place on Tuesday April 1, 2025, the opening day for catch and keep fishing in Gatlinburg, and will have a split focus between fishing and cleaning up litter along the streams. There will be two age divisions for this tournament. The adult division will be ages 16 and up since TWRA adult licenses begin at age 16. The kids’ division will be ages 15 and under. This will be a catch and keep tournament based on a 2 fish limit and total weight of those two fish. There will also be prizes for the single largest fish in each age division. You may legally keep 5 fish, but only 2 may be submitted. The two fish weigh-in for this event was instated to promote more sustainable resource management by leaving some fish for other fishermen in the days following the tournament.

• All TN and Gatlinburg fishing regulations must be followed.
• This tournament will only take place in waters stocked and managed by Gatlinburg Trout Facility.
• Proper fishing license required.
• Anglers must be registered by 7:30am on the day of the tournament.
• In accordance with local regulations, anglers may start fishing 30 minutes before the forecasted sunrise time forecasted by the National Weather Service.
• All fish must be freshly caught and fully in-tact (not dressed or cleaned).
• All fish must be weighed in by 12:00pm noon.
• All fish will be weighed and measured by Gatlinburg Trout Facility staff to ensure fairness, and all fish are subject to being cleaned and inspected by staff if cheating is suspected.
• Anglers must return to weigh-in with at least a small amount of trash (small grocery bag size) to be eligible for prizes. We won’t be picky….. just bring us some trash please. We will handle the disposal.
• Trash cleanup needs to take place on the on the riverbank or in the river so that the traffic flow is not interrupted, and so that no one is in danger of being struck along the roadside.
• Anyone found littering will be eliminated from the tournament
This tournament is meant to be a fun and positive event. Any unsportsmanlike conduct such as cheating, crowding other fishermen beyond reason, or arguing with staff over measurements may result in elimination from the tournament.

People who do not want to fish or who disagree with keeping fish are still encouraged to participate in the river cleanup, and there will be a very generous prize package which they are eligible for.