And A Strong Cup of Coffee
A blog about hunting, fishing, trapping, foraging and taking on new adventures in the woods of Maine.
And A Strong Cup of Coffee
A blog about hunting, fishing, trapping, foraging and taking on new adventures in the woods of Maine.
Most Recent Article
The shot that will haunt me
In December 2021, my grandfather passed away. Weeks before, I jumped him when I came bursting into his house to tell him and my Grammie that I had shot a buck and had completed my Grand Slam. He laughed at my overzealousness but hugged me and told me how proud he was of me. We made a deal hours before he passed away that he was going to deliver me an 8 point buck since I have yet to shoot one. I held on to that belief all through the year. Dad and I obsessed over trail cam photos throughout the summer and fall, we had three really nice bucks showing up. They all seemed to be nocturnal, but they were around. Fast forward to the start of the season and my morning kicked off pretty well by taking a nice doe in the first hour. I had meat in the freezer and could focus on that 8...
Other Recent Articles
Teaching the ‘why’ behind hunting
When my daughter came home and told me she was learning about black bears, I did what I usually do and offered to bring in a bear rug and some bears skulls. I love teaching the 'why' behind hunting. I was shocked and excited when the teacher said yes! I packed up my smallest bear rug, two skulls and two photo albums of my visits to bear dens and headed into the local kindergarten class. Sixteen 5 and 6 year olds greeted me, full of energy. You are never really sure when you go into a...
I am done shooting small bucks
It was an emotional rollercoaster of a season. All I wanted was an eight point buck. I will save the story for another time, but it didn’t happen. But what did happen changed my whole perspective on deer hunting. After twenty years of hunting, I am done shooting small bucks. I shot my doe in the first hour of rifle season, so having the ability to shoot a doe AND a buck gave me the opportunity to keep hunting and looking for that big buck. I could sit and watch more of the does and fawns...
This is why my land is posted
And will stay that way. Years ago, I had my first negative run in with another hunter. Since then, we have posted all of our land and we have added to the number of trail cameras that we have out in the woods. Sometimes we see vehicles driving into our food plot. In that case, I send the photos to a local police officer who finds out who the license plates are registered to. We have seen random people show up on the trail cameras almost every year. This year, we had them again and it’s...
Why The Name?
Because everything is better with a strong cup of coffee – especially going out on a hunt.
If you’ve ever gotten up at 3am to head out in the turkey woods or sat in a tree stand deer hunting in Maine when it’s 4 degrees outside then that strong cup of coffee can be a critical piece of the hunt.
We hope you enjoy And a Strong Cup of Coffee at whatever hour you have time to read, and we hope the coffee is strong.
Meet The Author
Erin started deer hunting with her Dad when she was 20 and soon found herself spending as much time as she could in the woods and fields hunting deer, bear, and turkey.
Erin is a registered Hunters Safety Instructor with Maine Inland Fisheries & Wildlife and has given lectures and been interviewed a number of times on the challenges and opportunities for women in the outdoors.
In addition to And A Strong Cup of Coffee, Erin is also currently a writing contributor for Northwoods Sporting Journal and a senior writer for Drury Outdoors’ DeerCast. Her work has also been featured in Downeast Magazine.
In an effort to get more women and girls outside, Erin co-founded and is the president of Women of the Maine Outdoors.
