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
I am a big supporter of teaching the 'why' behind hunting, especially to the youth in my Maine community. So I offered to bring a bear rug and skulls into my daughter's kindergarten class, and it was the highlight of the week for both them, and me.
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...
Fastest deer tag ever
I was relieved to see my name on the list of people who had received doe tags in the lottery. There were so many doe on our trail cameras that it seemed likely that we would be successful. But, as opening day got closer and closer, illness struck my household and I was the last person standing without a tissue or cough drops in my pocket. In my attempt to ‘quarantine’ myself, I packed up and headed north. My watch read 32 degrees when Dad and I snuck into the woods. At a fork in the trail,...
A breakthrough in PFAS research?
Last fall, an email hit my inbox alerting me that I might be hunting deer in an area that Inland Fisheries & Wildlife had flagged as a ‘do not eat’ area because of the high levels of PFAS found in the several deer that biologist had killed in the area. I've written before about the severity of PFAS and how devastating it could be. We have not heard much follow up since that time. I wonder if the area that was closed off will continue to be. Will there be more locations flagged as ‘do...
The stories that stick
When I started writing for the Northwoods Sporting Journal, I had people reach out and share their stories and experiences in the woods. I would mark the emails and tuck them away to go back to every once in a while. A couple of those stories have stuck with me since they first popped into my email years ago. Camp in Rangeley The first was following an article about fishing that I had written. I can’t remember if I commented about wanting to own a camp or not, but I received an email from...
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.
