(Helen)- To celebrate trout fishing and the excellent catches in the streams and rivers of North Georgia, The Helen Chamber of Commerce will presents the 35th Annual Helen Trout Tournament, 6 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday March 30, at the Helen Chamber of Commerce Festhalle.
Anglers of all ages will have plenty of fun and compete for $4,000 in available prizes.
The Helen Chamber of Commerce will stock the Chattahoochee River with more than 400 pounds of tagged trout for this event. In addition, The Georgia Department of Natural Resources will also be stocking the river prior to the tournament. Anglers of all ages will be lining the tournament boundaries, trying to hook tagged* trout, from the river access area on Escowee Street (just upstream from Hofbrauhaus Restaurant) downstream through Helen to the first Brucken Strasse bridge at Cool River Tubing. A Georgia fishing license and trout stamp is required. All tournament participants are to follow the Georgia DNR rules of fishing in the Chattahoochee River in Helen.
To win prizes, anglers must catch a tagged trout and present it at the Festhalle for weigh-in before 2 p.m. At 2 p.m. is when the Prize Awards Ceremony and Bucket Raffle Drawing begin. This year the top three prizes are by individual weight for tagged trout and include:
- 1st place $1,000 fish sponsored by Cool River Tubing
- 2nd place $500 “Milton Davis” fish sponsored by the Helen Chamber
- 3rd place $300 fish sponsored by Heidelberg German Restaurant
- $50 for each of the next 25 tagged trout by weight
- $25 for the remainder of the tagged trout by weight
Only 2024 officially tagged trout qualify for prizes.
A $25 entry fee includes one raffle ticket for all entries and an official souvenir tournament tee shirt while supplies last. Pre-registered reserved shirts will be held for pick up at the Festhalle until 2 p.m. on the day of the tournament.
Online registration can be found at https://helenchamber.com/helen-trout-tournament
Online registrations will be accepted through March 27, 2024.
To enter by mail, print a registration form at https://helenchamber.com. Mail-in registration forms must be postmarked by March 21, 2024. Mail your registration form along with a check or money order for $25.00 to: Helen Chamber of Commerce, P. O. Box 192, Helen, GA 30545.
In person registration is Friday, March 29 is from 4-7 p.m. and Saturday, March 30 from 6-9 a.m. at the Helen Festhalle, 1074 Edelweiss Strasse, Helen, Georgia. For Tournament information and registration forms, visit https://helenchamber.com/helen-trout-tournament, or call 706-878-1908.
