Youth Outdoor Fest 2026

Looking for a fun, FREE event where kids can explore the outdoors and try something new?

Join us for the 16th Annual Youth Outdoor Fest at Pettibone Park, La Crosse, WI, on July 11th, 2026, from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM!
 

Kids will enjoy hands-on activities like:

• Fishing
• Archery
• Casting a fly rod
• Identifying furs, fish, and birds
• Kayaking
• Playing games
• Interacting with live animals

• Log Rolling Demonstrations
   

  …and so much more—all in one day, completely FREE!
   

This event is hosted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Midwest Fisheries Center, La Crosse Parks, Recreation & Forestry, Fox 25/48, Genoa National Fish Hatchery, and Friends of the Upper Mississippi.

Everything is provided—equipment, activities, and fun for the whole family!

Organizations Joining Us at Youth Outdoor Fest this year:

• Genoa National Fish Hatchery
• The Nature Place
• Scouting America
• Chaseburg Rod and Gun
• Effigy Mounds National Monument
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers- Blackhawk Park
• Wisconsin DNR- Fishmobile
• Burro Rides
• Leave No Trace
• La Crosse County Library
• Kids and Mentors Outdoor
• Izaak Walton League
• Mississippi Valley Archaeology Center
• Rough Fish Assassins with their bowfishing trailer
• People's Food Co-op
• Friends of the Refuge Mississippi River Pools 7 & 8
• USGS-Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center 
• Coulee Region Trout Unlimited
• Upper Mississippi River National Fish and Wildlife Refuge
• FOX 2548
• Marcus La Crosse Cinema
• Friends of the Upper Miss
• La Crosse Area Astronomical Society
• All Glazed Up
• The Parenting Place
• Seven Rivers Disc Golf Club
• Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center
• Onalaska Family Chiropractic Wellness Center
• ORA Trails
• Winona County Soil and Water Conservation District 

Are you an organization interested in participating?

We welcome new organizations to join us at Youth Outdoor Fest! Whether you’ve partnered with us before or this is your first time, we’d love to have you involved. Contact: Cristina Dahl at cristina_dahl@fws.gov to learn more or to join us for Youth Outdoor Fest this year.

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