and a strong cup of coffee

The first of four snowstorms was on it's way when we headed into the woods.  I was pretty sure that we could get a couple hours of rabbit hunting in before I had to head home.  This would be my first attempt at small game hunting so I was excited and eager to find out how it was done. I met up with my cousin Hillary and her finance, Lance to go rabbit hunting with their three beagles.  We loaded up our guns, snowshoes and gear onto snowmobiles and headed out to see if we could get some meat. Our first stop was a quick trip through a grown up boggy area.  It was thick and there were not a lot of animal signs.  The dogs could not find a scent so we moved on. The next stop was at the end of a random snowmobile trail.  The woods were totally different than the spot we had just come from.  There were animal paths and lots of rabbit tracks and poop.  Fresh poop is always a good sign when you are hunting.  The dogs started running when we ...

...is this! Sent to me by one of the coolest people I know. Do you know what it is? It's chaga ! I was going to make a concentrate during the snow storm but I made venison stew in my crockpot instead.  I am eager to break it down to drink in my coffee and tea.  I have had it before and loved it.  I am so excited to try making it on my own - and then, I need to work on identifying it in the woods so that I can continue to get it. Do you drink chaga?

I don't know if I should have eaten more or less but my stomach was freaking out when Steve and I sat in the blind.  I kept adding layers to keep warm and to see if I could muffle the growls.  I hoped that nothing would hear me and run off. Steve and Lorri (who had taken me bear hunting) had put out deer carcases from a local butcher about a week before.  The pile of bones were strewn all over the field by the coyotes that had been there.  We got settled into the blind and watched the crows picking away at the pile furthest away.  My stomach growled and they flew away.  I hoped that something else scared them away but I wasn't sure until I saw this guy sweep in.  The Red-tailed hawk flew down onto this pile and started picking away.  I was able to get a few photos until the sun started reflecting off of the lens and spooked him. Red-tailed hawk picking at the deer bones Steve started the call when the sun sank behind the trees.  The f...

It was cold, but the sun was out and Dad, Hubby and I were eager to go into the woods to look at where T3 will be set up, bring in a couple of tree stands and I wanted to look for sheds. The recent dusting of snow helped to see any new deer tracks.  It also helped to see the main trails and activity of the deer herd.  There were a lot of spots that looked like this.  The deer have been on an acorn frenzy and since there is not a lot of snow, they can still paw at the ground and leaves to find them.  Deer paw for acorns buried along the leaves and snow. I tracked a couple of deer from the Sky Condo as we made our way to my treeseat where I shot my deer this year .  It is always amazing and kind of frustrating to see how close the deer are around you and yet, you don't see them during the season.  But, it is also good to see that there are SO many deer around where we hunt.  Some of the trails amazed me.  They were like super highways throu...

The Maine legislature begins its next session soon and while there are a bunch of wildlife bills being put forward to help keep Maine's wildlife safe and healthy, each year there is one argument that is heard over and over and over again - the desire for Sunday hunting in Maine. The law has been on the books since the 1800's and there have been bills to try and get it over turned but nothing has worked.  Many people think that the law is outdated, needs to be changed and is costing Maine revenue from hunters who would come here to hunt. Here are the most common arguments heard for it: 1. People who work Monday-Friday only have Saturday to hunt 2. If you own the land, why can't you hunt on it whenever you want? I sat in a meeting recently and the guy sitting at the head of the table wanted our group to work towards legislative bills that would 'help the sportsman of Maine." When he said that he wanted to push for Sunday hunting, some around the table nodded....

I took the family on a little road trip earlier this week to get out of the house.  We ended up in the same area that I was bear baiting and were I would eventually shoot my bear.  It was the first time I had been back there and it was fun to show Hubby where I had been. When we stopped for lunch, the coolest painting was in the bathroom.  I know, I know but it was such a cool picture that I had to take a photo.  And what were the odds that near my hunting area, in that specific restaurant and in the lady's room, there would be this painting.  Pretty neat.