For the 12th year, CRAPPIEFEST is coming to Wood County. And they’re bringing Cody Cannon of Whiskey Myers with them.

The three-day festival will take place March 27-29 at the Sabine River Authority Caney Point Recreation Area at Lake Fork. It is slated to include some bigger plans than it has in past years, said Event, Marketing, and Public Relations Coordinator Cassandra Gann. This, as Gann announced, does include Cody Cannon of country rock band Whiskey Myers for a headliner concert. Whiskey Myers, said Gann, has 5.4 million monthly followers on Spotify.

Gann estimates that nearly 11,000 people will attend the three-day festival, which is in its twelfth overall year. This includes 800 anglers and 150 industry professionals and vendors. She said CRAPPIEFEST isn’t just a festival, it’s an “expo.”

“What started as a tournament is now kind of an umbrella for an expo, for industry leaders and professionals,” said Gann. “It’s basically a Walmart of crappie products…. I want to bring that here.”

The festival will also include a free community fish fry (with fresh crappie), more interactive experiences with professional anglers, and, of course, the tournaments themselves. 

In 2026, Gann says that CRAPPIEFEST will include two tournaments. One will be for the public, where prizes are given based on biggest fish or most exact weight. The other will be a stringer-based tournament geared toward professionals, but the public is also invited to take part. For this second tourney, CRAPPIEFEST will pay every hour and at the end of the day.

CRAPPIEFEST also has free kids fishing, where numerous prizes will be given away. The first place angler will receive $1,000, second place $500, and third place $300. They also have a $10,000 big fish bonus (3 lbs. plus), and a possible state record bonus of another $10,000. As Gann said, this means one lucky kid could come fish for free and win up to $21,000.

The Wood County economic impact for CRAPPIEFEST, says Gann, may be up to $987,500. This is based on estimates for how much each local attendee, out-of-state attendee, etc. will bring in to the county.

Why Wood County?

“You’re an amazing crappie fishery,” said Gann. “The anglers know it, and they love it, and they look forward to this event every year.”