On Saturday May 7th the Little Elkhart Chapter of TU will be holding our Annual Spring Outing. This Outing is our one main gathering of our Chapter since we are spread out over such a large area, monthly meetings with dinner and a speaker is not viable. The Outing will be held at Riverbend Park, 511 E. Warren St. Middlebury, Indiana with registration beginning at 8:00 am. The Outing is free to attend however we do ask for a $5 donation for all those wishing to eat lunch to offset our costs. The Outing is held outside and is a rain or shine event so dress accordingly. There is a pavilion and LECTU will have a large tent in place.

At 9:00 the Outing demonstrations officially begin. Keith Loutzenhiser will be demonstrating fly tying and will be available to answer questions. Mike Beachy will be giving some sort of “in stream demonstration” pertaining to a trout fishing technique applicable to the Little Elkhart River. Tim Scott will be manning our fly-casting area. Tim can assist with perfecting your cast or help you get started if you are a beginner. Nick Christofeno will be acting as tour guide for the stream access tour. We will be taking those interested guests on a tour of the river highlighting some of the most popular stream access points. At 10:30 Mike Beachy will present the “State of the Chapter” address.

Jay Anglin will be our Featured Speaker at 11:00 inside the big top tent. Jay is a full-time fishing & hunting guide as well as outdoor writer. Jay guides in northern Indiana and southern Michigan. Jay is very knowledgeable and always entertaining. At 12:00 we will be serving a cookout style lunch.

Around 1:00 LECTU will be doing some fundraising with a silent auction, raffle and our Adopt-A-Trout annual rod/reel raffle drawing. LECTU has not held an Outing for two years due to the Covid pandemic. This means that we have accumulated some very nice prizes and items while preparing for Outings that we couldn’t hold. This year’s prize selection should be outstanding with fishing gear and guide trips. LECTU can only accept cash or checks due to restrictions with our Indiana Charitable Gaming License.

The fundraising should end by early afternoon with plenty of time to get geared up to do a little trout fishing on the Little E. The stream runs right through Riverbend Park.

We invite all our members and the Outing is open to the public so you are welcome to bring non-member fishing buddies or family members along. If you are not familiar with the Little Elkhart River this Outing is a perfect place to gain exposure and to get all and any questions you have answered. If you are an active member the Outing is a place to see familiar faces and to reacquaint.

Regards

Mike Beachy, LECTU president