Deerfield River Watershed Trout Unlimited is having its annual Single Fly Event on June 2 and 3.

Coincidentally, that will be during the Massachusetts free fishing weekend, so no license is needed.

You will only be allowed to use one fly all day Saturday, and, on Sunday, you will use a second non-similar fly all day as well. There will be prizes from event sponsors: Deerfield Fly Shop, Overwatch Outpost, Fish Tale Fabricators, Swift River Fly Fishing, and more!

This event will start off on Saturday at 9 am and proceed through Sunday. There are guaranteed low flows for the weekend, a bonus that shouldn’t be overlooked!

They have renamed it this year to emphasize camaraderie over competition and to remember Jim “Pepe” Gariepy.  He ran the Single Fly event for several years and was a past president of the Deerfield Chapter of TU as well.

Saturday will be a standard format: catch and release, barbless (or pinched-down), wading only, and participants will be limited to three exact copies of one fly.

To keep track of your catches, you will use the honor system and measure your fish (photos as back up wouldn’t hurt, but make sure to keep those fish wet). The headquarters for tournament material will be at the Zoar Picnic grounds and there’s a double bonus: Spey Days, a Spey casting clinic with free barbecue, will also be happening there as well.  This in itself is a fun event to check out.

Sunday will see a similar format as Saturday, in addition to a more competitive format as well. The top four contenders from Saturday will be put into a special category on Sunday and will compete against each other on specific “beats” while everyone else continues the Single Fly event.  There will be prizes for Single Fly and Sunday competitive fishing.

For the complete rules, entry fees, schedule, and more information visit the events website here or contact fishtalefabricators [at] gmail.com.

It seems like it will be a fantastic weekend. Let us know if you make it out there and how you do. Send us some good pictures and stories; hopefully, we get enough for a good follow-up!

Tight lines out there.