Orvis Species Slam

sATURDAY, JUNE 8 – sunday, June 9

The Orvis Species Slam is a unique fly fishing event similar to a scavenger hunt. The event is designed to challenge your knowledge of the Creeks, Rivers, and Lakes surrounding Vail and put your fly fishing skillset to the ultimate test! It’s a fly fishing adventure quest for anglers of all skill levels.

The objective for each team of 2 anglers is to CATCH – VIDEO – RELEASE as many species as possible from the Official List during the event. All release videos will need to be captured and logged with a smartphone by the team to receive credit for the catch.

It’s not about how many fish you can catch, but rather your ability as a team to locate and catch a VARIETY of cold and warm water species. Success in this event is determined by accurate fish identification, location knowledge, teamwork, and fly fishing skills. The winning team will have a solid plan and a bit of luck to boot!

SATURDAY, June 8

4:00 PM – Mandatory Safety Meeting/Rules Overview
Location: Orvis tent at The Hangout at Golden Peak
5:00 PM – Competition Starts / Lines in

SUNDAY, June 9

7:00 AM: Competition Continues / Lines in
3:00 PM: Fishing concludes / Lines out
3:30 PM: All video content must be submitted by this time.

CATEGORY:

Open – Men & Women (12 & up)

format & rules:

• A 2024 Colorado fishing license is required for all anglers (be prepared to show your license at the venue.)
• All Colorado Fishing Rules & Regs (no more than 3 flies at one time) must be followed.
• Competition features 2-person teams.
  • Teams must stay together on the same body of water at all times.
• Anglers can utilize both boating and wading techniques for this competition.
• This is a Catch and Release event.
• Fly fishing only. No lures, live baits, or artificially scented baits.
• Teams will attempt to catch fish, take a video, and release the eligible species, while documenting it all with a smartphone in the allotted timeframe.
• All or part of this operation is conducted on Public Lands under a special permit from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.
• All anglers should be aware that all competitions take place in mountain rivers which may have challenging conditions such as underwater obstacles, unseen hazards, rocks, debris and vegetation.

Equipment:

• Any fly rod is allowed.
• Each angler may have up to (3) three rods, rigged if desired.
• All fly fishing tackle is allowed with the exception of pegging. Only fish caught IN the mouth count.
• Pinched barbs are required on ALL hooks – barbless hooks are also approved for use during the competition.

fish handling:

• Safe & sustainable handling of fish must be practiced at all times!
• Any videos of fish in the dirt or fish being improperly handled will not be counted. When in doubt have your partner film the fish in the net before he or she captures the safe release of the fish.
• Visit Keep Fish Wet for best practices.

SCORING:

• Judges have the final ruling on all fish submissions.
• Fish should be large enough to be identified by the judges panel. If a fish cannot be properly identified, it will not count as an approved catch.
• Teams will compete and be awarded points for the species of fish caught.
• Each team will upload a video of their catch.
• • These submissions will be used by the judges to award points.
  • If a competitor does not have service, they should still upload their video. Once their phone gets service, the video will upload.
• Each fish species has a point value, in the event of a tie, points will be used as a tiebreaker.
  • In the event of a tie, the single biggest fish for each team, of any species, will be used to break the tie.
  • Teams can submit multiple fish, but only the biggest will be scored. 10/points per inch to be added to your final score.

official fish species list:

• OFFICIAL FISH SPECIES LIST (not for the website) 
  • Tiger Muskie – 200 
  • Northern Pike – 100 
  • Largemouth Bass – 75  
  • Smallmouth Bass – 75 
  • Catfish – 75 
  • Black Crappie – 75 
  • Bluegill – 50  
  • Sucker – 50 
  • Whitefish – 50 
  • Yellow Perch – 35 
  • Cutthroat Trout – 35 
  • Brook Trout – 35 
  • Rainbow Trout – 25 
  • Brown Trout – 25 
  • Longest fish – 10/pts per inch (measured)  

species slam bonus:

• Anglers competing in the Orvis Species Slam can earn bonus points at the Orvis Casting Shootout.
• The Orvis Casting Shootout is scheduled for Saturday June 8, 2024
• An additional target will be set up at the Casting Shootout venue.
• Competitors will get one cast to earn bonus points
• Bonus Points available: TBA

LOCATION:

Gore Creek – Vail, CO 

Eagle River – Minturn to Dotsero, CO 

Colorado River – Radium to Dotsero, CO 

Wolcott Ponds – Gypsum, CO 

Harvey Gap State Park – Rifle, CO

*based on water levels 

2023 RESULTS

PRICE

EARLY BIRD  // February 1 – April 4, 2024
$150 per team

STANDARD // April 5 – May 28, 2024
$170 per team

EVENT WEEK // May 29 – June 8, 2024
$190 per team

NEW FOR 2024!
FISH COMPETITION COMBO
Sign up for more than one fish event and receive a 10% discount off all events. Eligible events include YETI Catch Wars, Orvis Casting Shootout and Orvis Species Slam.
BUY NOW

PAYOUT

TOTAL PRIZE PURSE: $2,700

1st Place Team – $1,000/Team ($500 per person)
2nd Place Team – $800/Team ($400 per person)
3rd Place Team – $500/Team ($250 per person)
4th Place Team – $250/Team ($125 per person)
5th Place Team – $150/Team ($75 per person)

PRIZES

Prizes to be determined.