and a strong cup of coffee

Here is how we got to this point. The two men did not seem to see is and Tim and I tried not to give ourselves away but we were on the edge of the field.  Tim tried calling the land owner because the property was posted and he was supposed to be the only one hunting.  No answer.  We stood there and listened as the two men began calling and waiting for a response.  They were much closer to those two birds who had just been calling back with us.  One gobble and those guys would be headed into the woods. Luckily, those stubborn birds kept quiet.  But the idea of hunters in the area made us question our decision to move on from a spot that we knew had active birds. Tim placing decoys in the field So we carefully crossed the field and got into position along the edge.  Tim called and we could hear the birds within 50 yards of us.  No matter what Tim did, they still did not want to move.  We changed tactics and I sat in the woods while Tim...

As you know, Dad and I saw way more deer than turkey when we attempted to turkey hunt for the third spring season in a row.  It is still a little surreal to think about because our first turkey season ended two weeks before I had O. My schedule was so busy that I had to cancel a turkey hunt with David Hodgkins of Blackfalcon Custom Calls and reworked my schedule to get a half day hunt in with Tim Cote of Cote and Son's Guide Service . I met Tim at 4am and we headed to a spot where he had been the night before.  He knew that there were toms around and he knew which spots they would be in.  It was a perfect set up. Come on turkeys! We sat just over a little knoll with a couple of chairs and bushes helping to keep us hidden.  Tim put out two decoys and we sat there in the earliest light of day and waited.  It did not take long before we heard the first gobble. Then another and another.  We had three or four birds calling before it was truly light eno...

Dad and I were making our normal trip to check the trail cameras.  We pulled out of the driveway and drove 1/2 mile up the road.  I was looking for the snowshoe hares since they have a tendency of playing in traffic when Dad slowed the car down, moose ! Maine moose heading across the field I got my camera out as Dad brought the car to a stop. "I bet he is headed over to the mountain." The moose was headed in the direction of the land where we had seen the moose tracks the day before. Maine Moose In order to get a few more pictures, Dad pulled the car into a roadway along the edge of the field and slowly stopped.  The moose stared at us for a few seconds and kept walking.  He never changed his pace or his direction. Maine Moose He walked through the field and on his way (hopefully) to our land where he could try to escape from the horseflies that were bothering him.  Luckily, there were no sign of ticks or spots where he had been trying to r...

Still no bucks on the trail camera but the does and fawns are still around and looking very healthy!  The coyote is still around and the deer tracks in the muddy areas are proving that there are some big deer around.    

The 4th of July was a sunny and warm day so Dad, Hubby and I headed into the woods at 7am to paint T3 and beat the heat.  We carried down paint, ladders, rollers, another trail camera and some rags.  I was excited to see what deer sign were around since this is the same spot that I shot my deer last year. We needed a weed-wacker to blaze trail! I was so happy that I was dressed the way that I was: jeans, rubber boots, sweatshirt... and enough deet to (hopefully) kill all bugs that came in contact with me. I snapped a few before shots and then grabbed a gallon of paint and climbed the ladder.  My job was to paint as much of the outside as I could reach then paint the inside - specifically what the rain may hit - and then paint the outside and my sunporch.  I also needed to make sure that I did not paint myself into a corner or miss one spot that only I could have reached.  Luckily, I had had my strong coffee! Before the paint job Hubby helping to nail ...

When we pulled the memory card a week or so ago, we saw this picture.  Nothing before and nothing after, just this one glimpse in time.  I posted it on my Facebook page and got some great comments about what it could be.  What are your thoughts?

Ever since the season ended on June 6, we have had turkeys on every pull from the trail camera.  Every time! Clearly these guys are just mocking me.

As I was reeling in the first bass that I would keep, Don started the GoPro to document the actual catch.  Hmm... I may need to get one of those! Come here please. Gotcha! Bringing him into the boat   YUM A big thanks to Don at Maine Outdoors for sending these along.

A couple of weeks ago, I was lucky enough to catch Don Kleiner of Maine Outdoors with some free time on his hands and convinced him to take me fishing.  We could not have picked a more perfect day to be away from the world and on the water. We set off to catch Smallmouth Bass.  Having caught my first fish with Robin, I was hopeful that I could at least catch something besides grass.  Don was brave enough to attempt to teach me how to fish a few years ago and I hoped, as I stepped into the boat, that I had improved my skills a little bit since then. Our first spot was a fairly shallow spot near some overhanging trees.  Don taught me that fish do not have eyelids so when it is sunny out, they usually hid in the shade so that they can keep watch over any predators that may be around - like eagles, osprey or us.  My first cast was horrible but I kept reminding myself that I did just fine with Robin and needed to not over think it.  The next few casts we...

I was thrilled to see these pictures on the camera.  I dont think I have ever seen a fawn this little in the pictures.  We had three of them, but he was in a hurry so this is the least blurry one.  I can not wait to see if there are more pictures when we pull the card next time. Doe and new fawn run across the field And even though we saw the rafter of turkeys, it is nice to see the hen with such a healthy group of babies. Hen with 10 poults It will be great to see them grow over the next few months.  Hopefully they can do that without any interference from this .  Otherwise, Dad and I will have to take care of it.