Mentally, I am not ready to hunt with a bow. I am confident in my rifle to know that I can drop a deer dead in its tracks. I have seen the damage that my 150 (or 180) grain bullet can do to the inside of a deer and I am comfortable with that because I know that the deer did not know what hit it when I squeeze the trigger. Maybe that sort of shot is possible with a bow but from what I have seen on tv and with other hunters posting on social media, it is more likely that the deer will run off and die, assuming that it is a good shot. I have also seen far more bow hunters talk and post about how they have lost a deer than my fellow rifle hunters. That is the last thing I want to happen! After this season and talking with...
I hate coyotes. They just freak me out especially when you can hear them but not see them. On opening day of the 2015 deer season, we heard one howling especially close to where we were headed. Over the summer, there had been a trail camera photo here or there but it had been quiet until that morning. Then, Dad handed my the memory cards to review before we went into the woods last weekend. As if gloating, here are a few highlights: He actually lays down! All in all, he spent about one hour in front of this camera. He was on the camera more than any other bucks were and I am sure the does are not happy about this. I talked to a friend of mine who traps and he has offered me a couple of his traps to see if...
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.
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 one was howling.) We split from Hubby and headed directly towards T3 as another howl came....
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 edge of our property and our neighbor had hunters that he did not know, sit in his blind and...
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 were there to make trapping their hobby and pick up some extra income in the off months of...
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.
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 love of the outdoors and desire to hunt black bear have brought us together for these few days. ...
