Children and their families are shown in the Oconaluftee River and the Oconaluftee Island Park at last year’s Talking Trees Children’s Trout Derby on Aug. 3, 2024. (SCOTT MCKIE B.P./One Feather photos)
By SCOTT MCKIE B.P.
One Feather Asst. Editor
CHEROKEE, N.C. – “The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope.” That quote is attributed to the late John Buchan GCMG, GCVO, CH, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir, a Scottish novelist and historian who served as a British Army Officer and as Governor General of Canada.
Bella Frady, then-age 8, from Kolanvyi (Big Cove), is shown with her brother, Jonathan Frady, at last year’s event.
Every year, over a thousand children, with parents, grandparents, aunties, and uncles in tow, fill the Oconaluftee Island Park on the Qualla Boundary (Cherokee, N.C.) for the annual Talking Trees Children’s Trout Derby sponsored by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI). They flock to the Park adjacent to the Oconaluftee River with the hope of landing a prize trout, and they leave, fish in creel or not, with a memory of family fun that will last a lifetime.
This is the twenty-fourth year of the event which is set for Saturday, Aug. 2 from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. The free event is for children 3-11 years old with a total of $20,000 in prizes available including the Grand Prize – a Polaris RZR 150. Organizers state that each child will receive a free meal ticket, and there will be food trucks available on-site for everyone else.
The Trout Derby is an event of the EBCI and is facilitated by several tribal programs including EBCI Natural Resources (which includes Cherokee Fisheries & Wildlife Management), Cherokee Fish Hatchery, EBCI Facilities Management, EBCI Division of Commerce, Cherokee Indian Police Dept., Cherokee EMS, Cherokee Fire Dept., and others.
Sponsors are an important part of the event and have been since its inception. They are broken down by sponsorship size. This year’s sponsors include:
Golden Trout Sponsor ($10,000+): Vannoy Construction
Rainbow Trout Sponsor ($5,000 to $9,999): EBCI Tribal Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission
Brook Trout Sponsor ($3,500 to $4,999): S&ME
Donaldson Trout Sponsor ($1,500 to $3,499): Great Smokies Inn
Brown Trout Sponsor ($500 to $1,499): Granny’s Kitchen, EW2 Environment Inc., Cherokee Enterprises, Smart Electric Co. Inc.
You can register online at: https://visitcherokeenc.com/events/talking-trees-childrens-trout-fishing-derby/
