The annual Banks Lake Triple Fish Challenge is just around the bend, coming up on April 12-14 at Coulee Playland. 

In addition to the fishing tournament on Saturday and Sunday, the weekend will feature an expanded Fun-Day Friday on the afternoon of April 12 from 1 to 5 p.m., featuring live music and an open beer garden for the first time, as well as the popular rainbow trout net-pen for kids, crafts and face painting stations, gold panning, S'mores, and an expanded food vendor choices.

"This year we're going to have as many as 350 rainbows brought into a netted area at Coulee Playland," said Nic Alexander, president of the nonprofit organization Reel Recreation, which hosts the tournament. "Give the kids an opportunity to fish for free."

The trout pen is stocked by Pacific Seafood with 3- to 5-pound fish, and will be about 10 times larger than last year. 

Friday's stage will welcome two acoustic musicians from the north central Washington region: Rylei Franks of Wenatchee, and Nic Allen of Leavenworth.

Then on Saturday morning, the two-day tournament begins.

Contestants are going for three different species of fish on both days – hence the "Triple Fish" name. To qualify for the grand prize, anglers must land a bass (either smallmouth or largemouth), a walleye, and then what's known in fishing competitions as a "kickerfish."

Rylei Franks, originally from Soap Lake and now based in Wenatchee, will bring his acoustic original songs to the stage on Fun-Day Friday.

The kickerfish is something like a wildcard - and at this tournament -  that means either a trout or whitefish for the third species catch. But the kicker is, you have to catch the same species both days in order to qualify for the grand prize.

If that doesn't happen, don't let it stop you from bringing your fish to the weigh-in each day, Alexander says. 

"We have prize categories for all of the species," he said. "The biggest fish of every species both days, youth categories, adult categories."

The grand prize is a fishing kayak with an Edge rod included, valued at $3,000.

He said organizers plan on hosting approximately 500 visitors for the Friday Fun-day, and as many as 100 participants in the formal tournament.

Reel Recreation is a nonprofit organization in the Coulee area dedicated to encouraging, promoting, and engaging youth in outdoor recreation.

Tournament registration, rules, and more information is available online at at http://www.reelrecreation.com