Sunday Visitor
We can not hunt in Maine on Sundays but that doesnt mean we can not enjoy the wildlife! This doe was enjoying the grass when we caught a glimpse of her. Maybe that means there is a buck or two around.
My bear is home!
Lori let me know last week that my bear was done and I could come get him! When we dropped him off a year ago, there were a lot of problems, namely his head being cut in half. But, when all was said and done Jim and Lori did the following: 1. Piece the skull back together. 2. Remove the bald patch in the center of his back that the bear got when he was being hauled off the mountain. 3. All paws were removed and turned 180 degrees because the pelt was not cut right when it was butchered. 4. Flaps of skin above his shoulders were removed and sewn back onto his sides were they belonged. 5. All of the normal taxidermy stuff like...
Deer Season 2015
We kicked off the new season on Saturday and it could not have been a better morning. The moon was out, the stars were bright and there was just a slight chill in the air. It was 24 degrees. After last year's last minute switch in sitting spots and my success, I let Hubby pick where he wanted to sit. He wanted the Sky Condo and I took T3. As the three of us walked along the path into the woods, the silence was broken by a single howl. It was loud and close. Sound travels Dad said but we all knew that the coyote was close. He was probably in the woods between us and T3. Luckily, it was just one coyote (only...
The Right to Hunt
I recently wrote an article for The Liberty Project on the right to hunt and the legislative bill in Wisconsin that would prohibit people (anti-hunters) from harassing hunters on public land. Check out the article here and let me know what your thoughts are!
Anatomy of a bait site
Bear season officially ends this week for me (Nov 28 for those who wish to still hunt them) I went out a couple of times and while this happened, I did not fill my tag this year. Luckily, I have a decent amount of bear meat left from last season so I will be in good shape for a bear roast when its -10 and snowing. Again, I helped Steve with a couple of bait sites and I wanted to post what our sites looked like. He knows I took these pictures, so while I won't tell you where they are or what sort of secret ingredients we used, I can show you the basic set up. Anatomy of a bait site (from left to right): 1. Deer hind quarter tied to...
Erin – 0 Turkeys – 254,125
I was ready! Everything was packed and the sun was out. I drove down to meet up with Steve and we were going turkey hunting. Well, I was. He had already tagged out and was sharing his blind with me. We made our way through the trees and towards the blind on the edge of the field. The turkeys were already there picking at the food in the field. It was the first time I had ever hunting agricultural land and the first time hunting turkey in the fall. We wanted to make sure that we were not seen, so we crawled our way into the blind and set up the chairs, my steady stick and gear. We watched the birds...
The joys of owning land
How does the saying go? Good fences make good neighbors? If that's the case, what do posted signs make? Two posted signs and a property marker tied onto the tree After a few incidents last year, Dad and I spent Saturday putting up posted signs around the piece of property. It is kinda of sad to think about the changes over the past few years and how it used to not be an issue: people knew who owned what pieces of land and who hunted on them. There was a respect for owners and when they said no to hunting, it was respected. Last year, I was yelled at while sitting in my tree seat, we had people walking along the...
Coyote vs Bear…
You be the judge. For reference, the whole pile is about 5 inches across and Dad said that its about 4 days old. It's filled with apples and seeds.
Preparing for deer season 2015
If you have been a dedicated reader, you know that we have built a new treehouse for the 2015 season. If you are a new reader, do a quick search for T3 and you can see what we have done so far (and why.) When the weather is cool with lots of sun, it's hard to be anywhere but outside. Since rifle season opens in a couple of weeks, Dad, Hubby and I took to the woods to get things set up and ready for the Oct 31 start. We hauled carpet, plywood, tar paper, canvas and a chair down to T3 to add the finishing touches. We also brought a limber to get those little branches out of the way of the shooting lanes. On the...
Becoming a Maine Trapper
I bought into the Hollywood version of trapping. I sat on my couch in my warm house and watched the guys on Mountain Men check their traps and through ‘that could be fun.’ I watched as they put their traps out, checked them the next day, skinned an animals and did it all over again the next day. Through the wonders of editing, it looked so simple to be a trapper. I had a couple of friends who offered to take me out when I told them I had an interest in learning, but they wanted me to take the Trappers Ed class beforehand so I could legally handle the traps. There were six of us in the initial class in Sidney. Most...
I am going to start camping out
With these deer around, I may want to get my sleeping bag and heater ready for deer season! What do you guys think? Is it too early for these big guys to be going around to their scrapes? This guy is back in the pattern of stopping by twice a night to check things out.
Sure, I can shoot a bow
A few weeks ago, Dad got his old bow out for us to play around with. He estimated that he hadn't shot it in about 40 years and he wasn't sure how good the string were so we were a little cautious. We had some rusty broadheads and smiled when we confirmed that we were all up to date on our tetanus shots. 40-ish year old broadheads I had never handled a bow, much less shot one. I was excited, nervous and cautious. Dad, being Dad, picked up the bow and drew back like he had just put it down yesterday. He may not want to admit it, but he is a natural outdoorsman. Look at that form! I don't know any see it.t archery...
More exciting trail camera pictures
It is like Christmas every time you check the cameras... will the same buck be around? are there new bucks? what about the coyote? how is the fawn? Then, you get a glimpse into the woodland word. I am surprised that this little ones still has its spots but it is healthy! Look at that belly. We have quite a few pictures of this fawn with its mom. It is the only baby around and I would love to get a chance to watch them while I am hunting. Look how wide those spikes are! No brow tines on this guy. When you zoom in on the second picture, this looks like a crotch horn. He has a decent body too, which would provide us with some...
I am a trapper! (hopefully)
By the time this post goes 'live' I hope that I can announce that I have passed my trapping education class! Over the past few years, I have been trying new things in the outdoor world (hello bear hunting) and one of the things that I wanted to know more about was trapping. I may never actually set a trap myself, but I think that in order for me to write authentically about it, I should know how to do it or have at least tried it. I plan to go out with a few friends this winter and see how they run their trap lines. I would love to come back with a martin or fisher but I want to know about it first. As a renewable...
Women’s hunting camp
In the Northern Maine woods, down a long dirt road surrounded by a beaver bog and thick, dense forests there was a small cabin without electricity, a phone or any sort of cell service. In that cabin, five outdoors women sat with their guns ready to kill Maine black bears. The swollen stream flowed past us at bear camp. The rain would start and stop during my time at camp and we would hold out breathe to find out if we would go out and hunt again or if we would be rained out and the bears that we came to hunt will continue to roam the woods and fields. Five of us were at bear camp and while we lead very different lives, our...
No more skulls
I have bad luck with skulls. It started with my bear and will end with my coyote because I have learned which taxidermists (and butchers) are not worth the convenience. I shot a 457lb bear last October and went with my guide to bring it to the butcher. I had decided that I wanted the skull saved and would have the hide made into a rug. I didn’t have the room or the desire for a mount. The butcher got his knives out and began hacking away at the bear. I watched but didn’t really know what I was looking at. He hooked the bear by its hind legs, lifting it off the ground and started peeling away the hide. ...
I survived my first solo bear hunt
Everything was going just fine until I realized that I had the wrong gun. I had packed everything that I would need and was getting comfortable with the idea of sitting by myself in the tree blind. It was 90 degrees. The odds of a bear coming in were really not good. Plus, when Steve dropped me off and checked the cameras, there were no pictures and the bait had not been touched. I was a little more relaxed about it but I was still weirded out about having the wrong gun. Me, my awesome Kryptek Helios top and the wrong 30-06 I'm couldn't believe that it happened. I had assumed that my gun was in my gun bag and switched it with...
Here goes a second season
With these trail camera photos becoming a common occurrence, I am excited and still a little nervous for bear season. I have developed a very healthy respect for these animals and there is still some caution when I head into the woods to hunt one. Even if I do not get one, these photos are a clear indication that the bear population in Maine is healthy and thriving. These are not small bears and by the time we head into the woods, they will have had a few more weeks to put on...
Now, I am getting excited
I know that today marks the start of bear season, but nothing get me more excited than seeing bucks on the trail cameras, especially when they are the deer that you have been after for multiple seasons! I can not wait til opening day of rifle season. Meat is meat and I will be grateful to fill the freezer, but those two big bucks... they would be a feat! Littlest Little Little Big Biggest From the look at this picture, this is the 'smaller' of the two large bucks that we have around. Fingers crossed that this season, we can give you a close up...
The bait sites are getting slammed!
After Steve and I tweaked the bait sites and refilled the barrels and crates, we waited to see if and when the bears returned to the sites. Three days after we were there, Steve went back to check: bam! bears at both sites and no food left. Other hunters have been seeing the same thing; lots of bears (many of them good sized bears) are already hitting the bait sites hard this season. When Steve and I were up the first time, we noticed that the blackberries and raspberries were not looking good. Without a lot of fun and rain, the berries were small and still very green. The temperature has dropped a few times down...
