Angling Celebration in Maine

Event photos courtesy of Ricky Griffiths (@Rikyg_)

Well, the Oxbow Brewing team is at it again. With dozens of acclaimed farmhouse style brews, Oxbow has been satisfying the thirsts of anglers throughout the year. However, September marks a special time of year for Oxbow that is punctuated with a one-of-a-kind fishing community event: the All Species Tournament. Fishing is already a nuanced sport that demands a blend of strategy and good fortune to produce consistent results. Tournament fishing provides orders of magnitude more pressure that tests the skills of even the best of anglers. Multiple species tournaments? Go ahead and ratchet the difficulty level up even more. 

The Oxbow All Species Tournament, set to start on September 21st, is a two day tournament that encompasses everything a skilled fly fisherman could ask for. Brook trout, smallmouth bass, stripers and landlocked salmon provide anglers with a myriad of different things to take into consideration. Flies? You need a varied buffet. Rods? Gear up a wide variety of sticks to cover fish both big and small. Ground to cover? You’ll need to get creative in order to make the podium. If this isn’t enough to get you fired up, all the proceeds of the tournament go towards conservation. It’s not all about the fishing though. The atmosphere is reminiscent of a festival complete with booths showcasing artists, demos, exhibitions and clinics, live music and (you guessed it) BEER. Throw all of this goodness against a backdrop of picturesque Maine in the Fall and you have yourself a gathering worth talking about for years to come. 

Here is a short breakdown of the tournament per the Oxbow Brewing team:

“As the name implies, all legal game fish species that swim in Maine waters are eligible for qualifying points in this unique tournament. The grand prize package will be awarded to the team or solo angler that catches, photos, and releases the most variety of fish species over the weekend. Additional winning categories for largest catches of brook trout, landlocked salmon, striped bass, and smallmouth bass. The tournament headquarters are at Oxbow Beer Garden in Oxford, Maine, conveniently located within 45 minutes of the salty coast and surrounded by pristine lakes, rivers, ponds, and streams that contain almost all of Maine’s fish species. All proceeds generated by tournament entries will be donated to The American Saltwater Guides Association.”

The ASGA is extremely honored to be the beneficiary of this amazing event. Outside of their passion for creating unbelievably good beer, owner Tim Adams has been relentless in his pursuit to create a community passionate about conserving the fish and water they love. Last year, we were able to attend the tournament and connected with so many anglers and new advocates. It was amazing to see so many new faces who already knew about ASGA and the causes we fight for. We were blown away by the community presence–which is truly amazing, because running a successful brewery is no easy task. However, year after year, Tim and his crew do an amazing job at organizing the community in a positive atmosphere with a common goal: conservation. 

Everyone who attends the tournament is a winner by default via the amazing experience. However, there are treasure chest full of awesome prizes on the line worth competing for. Amazing brands have stepped up big for another year including YETI, Sage, Simms, Costa, 12wt, RIO Products, Redington, Atlantic Farms, Riversmith, Orvis & more. In addition to all the amazing prizes, we need to give some extra love to YETI for their unwavering commitment to the fishing community as well for matching all donations and funds raised.

Registration is limited so don’t miss out on what promises to be another amazing gathering in the name of conservation. You can register here or at:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/oxbow-all-species-tickets-924636260947

Stay tuned for more info and tournament buzz as we catch up with Tim from Oxbow on an upcoming podcast episode on The Guide Post…