and a strong cup of coffee

1. My child cries/moans in his sleep! Seriously - see #6.  Is this normal?  Who knew? 2. I needed to bring a lot of gear with me!  My hunting clothes, my 'normal clothes', his toys, his clothes, his bedding, his food... I'm glad I have an Outback! 3. Bringing the wrong "flow" bottle top could alter how quickly he goes to sleep.  Slow flow - forces him to slow down and puts him to sleep.  Rapid flow - drinks too fast and throws up.  And is not tired. 4. I had to make sure to pack enough diapers, food and clothes. 5. Don't forget the bathtub - routine is important! I forgot to bring this the first weekend and our bedtime routine was not the same. 6. You really can stay awake in a tree stand after 2-4 hours of sleep! It helped that it was so cold that I feared hypothermia. 7. Sometimes grandparents can get kids to do things moms can't - like eat all of their peas. 8. There really is guilt associated with being a hunting mom!  I didn't necess...

He may have won this year, but after Dad went scouting on the first few snow falls, we are pretty sure he is still out there.  Until next year...

Our first tree house. During the last two weekends of hunting season, we headed over to the spot where it all started! ~~~ While Hubby and Dad decided to still hunt on the mountain, I needed a place to sit.  Dad said that our original tree house was still safe if I wanted to go there.  He advised me that the roof (made of canvas) had caved in a bit and that could pose an issue.  I hate to be on the ground and trying to hunt, so I figured I would take my chances. When I approached the stand the first time, it looked good.  Not as good as it did when we first built it seven years ago, but stable and strong. When Dad and I built it, (this was our first attempt at a tree stand), we haphazardly nailed boards to the tree to make steps.  They were not even distances apart nor did they have any extra room for larger boots. Climbing up them again had me wondering what kind of limber monkeys we thought we were back then.  It was a sketchy climb up but I m...

This is what 7* looks like 7 degrees .  7 flippin degrees is what the thermometer read when we headed outside on Friday morning. I was as bundled up as possible with hand and toe warmers.  Hubby headed to the Sky Condo with instructions to start walking around 7:30am.  Dad dropped me off at our newest tree seat and he took off to make a loop around me.  The plan was for Hubby to come from the right, Dad from the left and me, in the middle, shooting any deer that happened to get jumped.  If it had antlers, it was going down. When it is this cold, I go into owl mode where I really don't move much more than my eyes.  Plus, I had on so many layers, I could barely move.  Ready for this: 3 pairs of socks with toe warmers, snowmobile boots, 3 layers of long johns under my wool pants and 7 layers on top including my awesome red and black plaid wool jacket.  Plus my neck warmer and hat.  When it wasn't breezy, it actually wasn't too bad. There...

For the past 10 1/2 seasons, we have been a two hunter show.  I sit, Dad walks and we either find deer or move to a new spot. This time Hubby came along and it added new challenges for us. Dad and I have three seats up and decided that we would each get a spot to sit during the first few hours of Saturday morning.  We put Hubby in the Sky Condo because he has not hunted/shot from a tree seat and we have some tiny/slanted seats that Dad and I are used to.  It seemed a little awkward to try and get everyone in place early enough so that the last person was sitting at an early enough time to beat the deer moving. At 5 am, we were out the door and heading into the woods.  The wind was flipping COLD!!! I was my normal, bundled up self and I was comfortable as we walked in.   Dad dropped me off in my tree seat, dropped Hubby off at the Condo and headed up to our third spot.  Dad said I could head out of the woods around 10, get Hubby and meet him at the truck...

It was definitely not the best day of hunting we have ever had.  We had planned to skip Friday afternoon so that Hubby could come up with me, but thanks to an illness, he didn't come and I missed the opportunity to catch the last couple of hours with Dad in the woods. With the moon almost full, Dad and I figured that we would walk in extra early on Saturday and get set up before the deer started moving.  My 4 am wake up call (Mom coming to wake me up so an alarm does not wake the baby up) came at 4:26.  I have never jumped out of bed and dressed so fast!  The problem is that I sit when I hunt, so I dress in many, many... many! layers.  It also means that it takes me more than 30 minutes to get dressed so that I dont get over heated and sweaty before I leave the house.  Not that Saturday.  I was sweating and rushed.  A bad combo. The moon had disappeared behind thick clouds by the time we started along the roadway.  We got the flashlight o...

Dad has hunted on the land that houses the Sky Condo for the better part of his life. About six years ago, we built the SC and started hunting there full time.   At that time, there were no other hunters near by.  A few years ago, a hunter bought a bordering piece of property, re-did the old camp that was there and brought his buddies along.  We haven't had a lot of incidents with them (trespassing last year, putting pink ribbon on my tree seat and lying to us when we asked them what they shot - a search through the list at the tagging station said an 8-point buck).  Two years ago, Dad bought a piece of land that is separated from the Sky Condo property by a powerline and a driveway that is privately owned by our hunting neighbor.  The land was bought in May and once October came, our neighbor put a treestand up along the edge of the powerline, facing our new piece of property and right next to our traveling path.  We were cautious from that point ...

I was so worried about my son waking up in the middle of the night and subsequently waking up my parents, that I barely slept. This was our first overnight and every little whimper had me ready to jump out of bed and make him a bottle. When I got up at 4:30 it seemed as though I had just gone to bed. But it was opening day and there were deer to find! Dad and I had looked over the memory cards from our cameras the night before. Dad asked me to keep track of how many bucks I saw in the photos. One spike, one crotch horn, another spike, a small six (maybe) pointer, two more crotch horns, a NICE, wide six-pointer and a bunch of does. More does. The same does. Turkeys. Grass. Grass. A coyote (boo!) and then... a perfect, beautiful, thick 8-point buck eating grass in front of the Sky Condo. I think he is my ghost deer! I will grab camera photos next week, but he was incredible. His antlers are symmetrical, he has thick shoulders and I want to shoot him very badly! I have my targ...

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 management. Places like New York and Vermont as well as Canadian providence’ like New Brunswick all face the same climate challenges that we face here in Maine. I have also been talking to regional biologists and hearing their opinions and suggestion...

Deer season starts tomorrow!!!  Dad and I have had the cameras up seriously for about a month or so.  The excitement of bringing the memory cards home, waiting to see if there are new pictures and then of what... it's almost like Christmas morning for us.  We have three cameras out, two by the Sky Condo and one by my tree seat. One of this year's photos (the last one, below) got Dad and I talking.  Is it better to know what you have out there, even if you never see it? or is the element of surprise better? For example, here are some photos that we have taken from the trail camera of deer that came, got their photo taken and disappeared. This buck is right below the Sky Condo A different buck (look at the tines and width of the rack), 10 minutes later, also at the Sky Condo This photo was taken near the tree house that Dad and I first built in 2007. This is the same deer as above This year's photo.  This is the only photo we have of our ghos...

After we went to find some Epic Moose , Brian , Robin and I went to have lunch at Grand Falls.  It was a perfect Maine fall day.  The sky was blue, the fall leaves were vibrant colors of orange and red and yellow and the Dead River was pristine.  Brian made us partridge sandwiches with cranberries and walnuts and moose stew.  We washed them down with a beer an soaked up the sun. We could not have picked a more perfect day! Spencer Stream joining the Dead River Spencer Stream Why I love Maine! The trail to Grand Falls Grand Falls Grand Falls

Here are a few more photos that I couldn't quite get to fit into my blog.  Enjoy!!! Robin and Brian Brian was able to get urine from a bull moose that one of his clients shot the week before.  This is straight moose pee! Walking into the choppin's Brian with a call in his pocket and camera set up Brian racking the trees to sound like a bull My first moose seen in the woods! He was a young bull but I would have shot him Checking out another spot Moose tracks! Fall colors

I know that I owe you all a couple blog posts, esp one about my epic moose sight seeing adventure... But until then, check out this live deer camera! I would LOVE to see some of these big bucks while I'm in the woods.  Deer season starts for rifles in Maine in just a couple of weeks so I am using this cam as a sort of prep work for me.  Ha!  Enjoy:  http://thecrush.tv/deer-cam

Hello to all of my non-hunting friends ! I am writing this letter to you because I want to encourage you to become educated on one very important topic that you will be seeing and hearing more about.  It is the issue of bear hunting in Maine.  In the upcoming months, there will be a lot of political spin on the bear issue in Maine.  I want you to feel as though you are getting a real picture of what the issue is before you cast that ballot next November.  Am I biased?  Yes.  I do not bear hunt but I know enough about it to have a very strong opinion about this issue.  I am hoping that as my friend, you will grant me a few minutes to hear me out on the issue. First, when you are hunting, there is no guarantee that you will shoot the animal that you are after.  No matter what you do.  When it comes to bear hunting, Maine is the only state that allows three different types of hunting; hounds ( you must train dogs to find and ...

Besides getting a deer, it's the quiet of sitting alone in the woods.  I have always felt that sitting in a tree for hours is kind of like having a zen moment (or hours) and I love it.  I don't think I have appreciated it as much as I probably will this year. As I write this, my three month old is having a total melt down over nothing (side note, I will eventually put his photo here  http://www.reasonsmysoniscrying.com/  for others to smile about. It's a GREAT blog).  And as much as I love spending time with my family and cuddling with my son, I have not had me time for a while.  I look forward to being alone in that tree just listening to the birds, squirrels and passing traffic. An added benefit of hunting season - good mental health!

Today the any deer (really, doe) permits were released and Dad got one!!! Between finding that out, all of the posts on Twitter with friends and followers posting photos of elk, antelope and other critters they have shot, I can not wait until deer season starts.  Can you imagine if Dad gets a doe and I get a buck?!? We have yet to each get a deer in the same season although we had the chance last year =) Come on November!  

This little story has been locked away since last season.  I was sworn not to share it.  It was a story I was willing to lock away forever.  But, when Dad told a few people, it was like getting the ok to share it.  Dad and I were in the Sky Condo the weekend before the last week of deer season.  It was about 3:30 pm and we were waiting to see if any deer would come in.  To look out from the SC, the left front corner has canvas around it to help cut the wind down.  It can also cut down on a clear view of the woods from that direction but move about 6 inches to the right, and that small piece of woods is visible again.  That is where I was sitting; about 6 inches to Dad's right. We heard a noise and Dad lifted his hat off of his ears.  I assumed it was a squirrel.  We have never seen or shot a deer in the afternoon, always the morning.  I looked in the direction of the noise and there was a crotch horn. "Dad, it's a buck " ...

Deer season is approaching and it's almost time for Dad and I get our tree seats up.  Blake Anderson at Huntertreestands.com offers this advice for the best places and types of tree stands to use to ensure you land that buck! Thanks Blake! The Sky Condo that Dad and I built . Optimized Tree-Stand Placement There are a lot of elements during hunting that are often out of your control, which can ultimately lead to an unsuccessful hunt. However if you optimize those components that are within your control, then you can quickly turn a disappointment into a great victory. Tree stand placement is one of those key rudimentary elements that will decide whether or not you end up empty handed, and there is more to it than just finding a great location. Proper height placement will help you solve several different problems that most hunters face when hunting deer and other intelligent animals. Deer have a keen nose and will easily evade even the most experienced hunter if the p...

A guy who works for my Dad put up a camera on some land that we own.  These are a some of the best pics that he had!  I would love to have two 10pt sets on my wall =) With photos like these, how can you not want to head into the woods now?!?  Com'on deer season!!!