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Mar 2023 8

The shot that will haunt me

By | Hunting in Maine, Maine Deer hunting, Maine Hunters, Whitetail Deer, Women Who Hunt | 2 Comments | 5 min read

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...

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Jan 2023 6

I am done shooting small bucks

By | Hunting in Maine, Maine Deer hunting, Maine Hunters, Tree Stand Hunting, Whitetail Deer, Wildlife Conservation, Women Who Hunt | 1 Comment | 2 min read

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 at different spots on the property.  One morning, I watched a fisher running around my stand.  I enjoyed being in the woods, knowing that I had a specific buck that I was after and that I had already put meat in the freezer. This season was more of...

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Dec 2022 22

This is why my land is posted

By | Hunting in Maine, Maine Deer hunting, Maine Outdoors, Trail Camera Views, Whitetail Deer | 0 Comments | 3 min read

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 getting a little old.   Trespasser 2022 I sat in my stand at the end of deer season this year with my phone vibrating constantly in my pocket.  When I looked, I saw a number of photos of a random person on our property. This was the second time...

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Dec 2022 16

Fastest deer tag ever

By | Maine Deer hunting, Maine Hunters, Tree Stand Hunting, Whitetail Deer, Women Who Hunt | 1 Comment | 2 min read

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, Dad paused and waited for me to get into the Sky Condo before he continued on. I flicked off my headlamp and watched his light disappear around the corner.  For all I know, the deer stood there and watched us split up because just when Dad started...

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Jan 2022 24

Reflecting on my 2021 grand slam

By | Adventures in the Woods, Hunting in Maine, Maine Black Bear, Maine Hunters, Maine Moose, Whitetail Deer, Women Who Hunt | 1 Comment | 3 min read

When I was drawn for my moose tag, I set the goal of going for my grand slam. I needed a bear, moose, turkey and deer between September and November.  Now, the hunting season is over and I find myself reflecting on my 2021 grand slam and the people who helped to make it happen. Mom and Hubs managed childcare/school pick ups and drop offs and sometimes full days of babysitting so that I could be in the woods. Jeremy at Fit To Hunt went to work and helped me customize a training program that would get me into shape for walking through the Maine woods to get my moose.  I would load weights into my backpack and walk for miles.  Sometimes with the kids and sometimes alone. When it came time to hike those choppin's looking for a moose, I was...

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Jan 2022 3

The buck that completed my grand slam

By | Hunting in Maine, Maine Hunters, Whitetail Deer, Women Who Hunt | 4 Comments | 4 min read

It was 21 degrees when we headed into the woods. I just needed a deer to complete my grand slam. I had a doe tag and was eager to get into my stand. The leaves were crunchy with frost but the woods were calm.  I climbed into the Sky Condo and waited for the world to awaken.  Almost immediately, animals started moving.  I sat perfectly still, my breath hidden by my green fleece balaclava.  It was almost an hour before I could see well enough into the woods to know if I was hearing deer or squirrels (it was squirrels). A deer blew from the end of the field.  Something must have spooked it.  The neighbor? I knew that if I was going to change seats, this would be the time.  Nothing had come into the field.  I grabbed my gear and walked as...

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Dec 2020 4

Snow and deer hunting: like peanut butter and jelly

By | Whitetail Deer, Winters in Maine | 0 Comments | 4 min read

I am a sucker for the snow.  If there is a snow storm coming or even the threat of a snow squall, I am in the woods. Two years ago, I stood in a snow storm Dad shot a nice 8 pointer and later that season, I shot my own buck in such a heavy snow squall that we couldn't initially find the buck minutes after I shot him because his tracks were covered in snow. On Wednesday morning, the snow was predicted to arrive between 9am-1pm.  I was not moving from my stand.  Something would be coming out to eat before the storm.  I just had a feeling. The world was quiet when I settled into the Sky Condo. I heard a snap off to my left and while my initial thought was deer, there were no additional steps. As the sky lightened, I heard something...

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Nov 2020 29

I got buck blocked

By | Whitetail Deer | 0 Comments | 3 min read

About an hour into my sit, I heard steps coming towards my stand.  It was a beautiful morning and my heart skipped a beat with the idea that a deer might finally be headed my way.  Trail camera photos showed my last remaining target buck during daylight at that stand, so I was hopeful. But as it got closer, I heard purrs, clucks and chirps. The steps turned into one big mass of noise and soon, like a movie, the woods were nothing by black blobs moving towards me. They set up in a shooting lane, eating acorns and moving closer, essentially blocking me in my stand.  The flock would see me move and spook before I would have a chance to move my gun into a position to get a deer.  I was stuck and they were coming closer. When they got bored...

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I got buck blocked by turkeys
Nov 2020 13

Was that a flag?

By | Whitetail Deer | 0 Comments | 3 min read

Week two of rifle season was completely different than week one.  I changed stands and jumped a deer as soon as I got into the woods.  I've been hunting for almost half of my life now and for the first time, as I walked into the woods alone, the sound of something so close that I could not see did not send my heart beating out of my chest.  Instead, I listened to see if I could keep it from running too far away by slowly continuing on to my stand. It was warmer than the week before which meant sitting for 12 hours would be much more bearable. I settled into the stand quieter than I normally do, knowing that the deer was not too far away. There was a slight breeze coming from behind me and I shifted a few inches to use the wall to block...

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