BETHEL — The Upper Andro Two Fly Contest and Northeast Drift Boat Championship are scheduled for Friday and Saturday, Sept. 19 and 20, in conjunction with Bethel’s Annual Harvest Fest.
While hosted and organized by The Bethel Inn Resort, the competitions raise funds for the Mollyockett Chapter of Trout Unlimited.
The sixth annual Northeast Drift Boat Championship will be held at 3 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 19. The launch will be from Bethel Outdoor Adventures on Route 2 and the finish line a quarter mile away is at Davis Park in Bethel.
Designed as a spectator event, the competition will test oarsmen’s skills at navigating a course and rowing speed. Each drift boat must carry at least one angler, who must remain standing throughout the timed race.
Last year’s winners, Luke Gray of Locke Mountain Guide Service and Kate Farnham of the Fish ‘n Chicks, will return to defend their co-titles. Official contest rules and a registration form are available online at bethelinn.com/site/twofly.
Contestants in drift boats may use only two flies during the fly-fishing event, which runs from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sept. 20. Teams may launch from public launch sites from the Shelburne Dam in New Hampshire to Rumford Center.
The Two Fly contest will test the skills of anglers to fly fish for the most and the largest of the three trout species: brown, rainbow and brook. They are found in the upper Androscoggin River from the New Hampshire border to Rumford Center.
A fly is defined as made from natural or synthetic materials tied to a single pointed hook. No tandems or treble hooks are allowed. Teams of three, including two anglers and an oarsman, must fish from a drift boat. All fish must be released live. The contest is limited to 20 teams.
Trophies and fishing gear prizes will be awarded at 4 p.m. at The Bethel Inn Resort. A special trophy provided by Maineflyfish.com goes to the angler who catches the largest chub.
The Rocky Freda Memorial Trophy will be presented to the oarsman whose boat caught the greatest number of fish.
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