Blind Fishing Derby returns to Kelowna Yacht Club

KELOWNA – The Blind Fishing Derby has been a Kelowna staple for nearly two decades. Its legacy continues this weekend.

The Kelowna Yacht Club is hosting the 2019 Blind Fishing Derby on July 20.

The event allows visually impaired people to sail across Okanagan Lake with volunteers and engage in a friendly fishing competition, according to a Kelowna Yacht Club media release. Participants who don't wish to fish will receive a verbally descriptive tour of the lake.

Since 2004, a large trophy has had the derby winners' names inscribed on it in braille.

“The derby each year allows me to be reacquainted with the lake and meet some extraordinary boat owners who give so much to make this day happen,” derby participant Bill Mah says in the release.

The event kicks off a 9:30 a.m. Saturday, July 20, at the Yacht Club on Water Street as the boats launch into Okanagan Lake.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Sean Mott or call (250) 864-7494 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above.