By Stephen Smoot
In the same year as Casey Kasem hung up his America’s Top 40 microphone and Ken Jennings went on his legendary Jeopardy run, Franklin opened its now traditional celebration of the coming of spring.
Since then, much has changed. Four presidents have assumed office since George W. Bush. “Lost” and “The Sopranos” ended long ago. But what was Springfest, now Trout Fest, continues to go strong.
Mother Nature in the first week of May generally acts quite finicky but, as Elizabeth Scott, Pendleton County Chamber of Commerce executive director, says, “Last year, we had awesome weather. I’m hoping we have the same this year.”
Trout Fest celebrates one of the primary attractions of Pendleton County, fat hungry trout swimming down cold mountain streams. It assumed its current name in 2019 and has only missed running in the COVID year of 2020.
Despite the fact that the State of West Virginia selected the brook trout as the official fish, Scott stated that “I think that we are the only Trout Fest in the state.” She added that “this year, our big thing is opening day.”
Trout Fest opens on the first Friday in May, this year on the third with one focus on the trout dinner. Twisted Pig, a food outlet owned by Steve and Amanda Wilson of Petersburg, will prepare the food. Attendees get a choice of fried trout, fried catfish, fried chicken tenders, and different side dishes. The craft vendor building will open at 2 p.m.
Live music will also kick off that evening, starting with Spence Hatcher and the Ol’ Sun Gang. Food and craft vendors will also be set up to receive customers and browsers.
Saturday brings even more family excitement as fishermen flock to Franklin for the main event. After a breakfast served by Pendleton Senior and Family Services, the Trout Rodeo commences.
Every year, anglers register for the rodeo. Registration continues as long as the rodeo lasts, from 8 a.m. to noon. Approximately $5,000 of locally grown trout, whose cost is sponsored by Greer, will enter the South Branch River upstream of the rodeo zone. Many of the trout hold tags with various monetary amounts marked on them. These range between $5.00 and $5,000 with winners announced that night.
Any participant of any age can fish in any approved spot, but festival organizers once again arranged to mark off the spillway near Priest Mill for children only. Scott expressed appreciation to Tom and Teresa Calhoon for once again agreeing to allow use of their land.
As the fishers try the river in the morning, West Virginia Metro News reporter Chris Lawrence will broadcast his popular “Woods and Waters” program live from Trout Fest.
Scott stated that the festival still needs more stream marshals. These officials mark down tagged fish as they are caught and receive a free T-shirt for volunteering. The official T-shirts will be made on demand during the festival
On Saturday, live entertainment starts with a performance by Raymond’s Gymnastics, followed by a series of live music bands who will perform until 8 p.m.
Those seeking more information can look up Trout Fest on Facebook, or also check out the official website.
