It rained. Rained hard and the wind blew. It was anything but ideal for finding moose in the Maine woods. But Brian, Jenn and I knew that the weather was going to be clear and with some rain gear, we were off for an adventures. Last year, I was spoiled; beautiful calm weather and moose first thing in the morning. This year, our normal 4:30am start was pushed back to 10am. About an hour after we left, we were winding down dirt roads heading further into the woods. We pulled into an old skidder road, grabbed our cameras and were off. The sun had finally come out but the wind was still whipping through the trees and causing bursts of leaves to drop from their branches. Brian calling for moose We...
Visiting a cemetery days after Memorial Day was surprisingly emotional for me. As I pushed my almost 1-year old in his stroller past the rows of stones, I was touched by the number of those sites that had American flags next to them. I thought about those who had given their lives for the freedoms that my son will enjoy. I also started thinking about an incredible family that I met at a Sportsmans show earlier this spring. Paul and Dee House turned their tragedy into something that I want to support and tell you about: There is some notoriety that you don't want to have. If you Google "Lee, Maine" you will find articles about the documentary "Welcome to Lee, Maine" and see that Lee is known for being the...
A little while ago, I wrote about George Smith's book, "A Life Lived Outdoors." At the time, I had not finished the book. Now that I have I want to share more of my thoughts. If you love the outdoors and have hunting and fishing stories of your own, you will immediately connect with George and his retelling of those days in the woods. There is an immediate smile that comes across your face as you read about camp and the sounds, smells and feel of being in a small building surrounded by the Maine North Woods. I couldn't help but be jealous of George's ability to leave the hussle and bussle of daily life to retreat to a place where the windows may need to be replaced but the fish bite, the moose are neighbors and...
There are few places were I live that are open and green. There are pockets of city forests or walking trails but there are no real places to get out and explore the woods and ponds. I forget that until I happen to see ducks or geese swimming in these ponds along side fast-food containers, rusty, broken hockey goals, empty plastic water bottles and plastic bags from department stores. For a city full of people who claim to be passionate about wildlife, this speaks...
In search of our turkeys, we walked down this camp road. It was around noon and there were some great spots to sit and call from along the way. Right from the start we knew this was an animal haven! The tracks and scat were all over the place. Some of the tracks actually surprised us. A fresh bear track. Check out those claws. Two bear tracks. A better view of the palm of the paw. It was like Grand Central Station for turkey up and down both sides of the road. Turkey tracks and turkey scat. While we did not see any turkey that day, Brian did call in five Toms the next day. The great thing about hunting and being outdoors is that you never know what sort of adventures you will have during the...
My 10-pointer shot on Nov 25th 2011. The closer we get to November, the more I am concerned about what life will be like for my beloved White-tailed deer. In 2007-2008, we had a harsh winter with a lot of snow followed by massive flooding in the northern part of the State. Since that time, the overall deer herd has been struggling to get back to the numbers we once knew. Guides and older hunters talk about the days when you would see deer all the time and Maine was known for its 'Big Buck hunting.' While, I will always love to tell the story of shooting my 10-point buck, if we really want to rebuild our deer population and be a coveted place for deer hunters to come, we need to start looking at what impacts the deer...
If you have ever wondered what life in the Maine outdoors is like, you need to read my friend George Smith's book "A Life Lived Outdoors". It is a compilation of stories and articles that he has written over the years, so you don't need to rush through the book to get to the end of the story. This a wonderful book that allows you to read a story and set the book down and think about what you have read. I am currently dreaming about what my future camp should be like and what it will smell and feel like to step outside early on a summer morning with a cup of coffee. I am only a few stories in, but I have found myself smiling and laughing and yearning to get outside. I am keeping this book close so that I can sneak in a...
Deer tracks in the snow. Coyote. Sadly, these are two of about two million that we saw on our walk. Rabbit tracks Partridge Wing! There were partridge tracks nearby but I couldnt get a good...
I recently sat down with Kyle Ravana, the state’s deer biologist, to talk about what his goals are for the deer herd, what challenges he sees ahead and he answers the question: “Would you rather have a warm winter that is easy on deer or a harsh winter that kills off a lot of deer ticks?” Maine Biologist, Kyle Ravana You took over this position in February. What are your goals for your first year on the job? I really want to get familiar with the job, the materials that we have and the current deer data. I’m diving into the management systems that we have and looking at what our strengths and weaknesses are. I have been researching how other states work with their deer herds and what works or doesn’t work for them in terms of...
