and a strong cup of coffee

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.

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...

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  Many people think that the law is outdated, needs to be changed and is costing Maine revenue from hunters who would come here to hunt.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....

As I was looking through photos of 2014 and printing some out, I couldnt help  but get nostalgic.  I had no intention of bear hunting a year ago.  I had actually told my Dad (a few times) that I had no desire to shoot a bear, didn't think I could like the meat and that it was just not in my wheel house.  Skip ahead a few months and with the invitation of Steve and Lorri, I learned how to prepare and set bait and went hunting.  Then, given the opportunity to hunt with hounds, I took a chance to learn more about it and came home with an incredible story and some delicious meat. I may look calm but I was freaking out Grateful Look at those scars! I told the taxidermist that I want each one of them to be seen when I get the hide back Such a great hunt So big that it took 6 men or a tractor to move him

You do "funny" things when you are a hunter. You willingly wake up at 4am.  You willingly spend hours tracking, sitting and walking and you willingly sit out in 0 degree weather waiting for an animal (coyote) in my case.  Some mornings, it is fun to document my questionable saneness and the last weekend of deer hunting season was one of those cases.  I never did get a coyote but night hunting for them starts this week! Frozen Selfie

Copyright Darrold Door.  Picture found at: http://www.maine.gov/ifw/hunting_trapping/hunting/bear.htm Bear hunting. Just those two words can bring out some very strong emotion amongst hunters and non-hunters.  I would tell you to vote NO on1 and I could give you a long list of reasons why but if you are reading this, chances are I am preaching to the choir when it comes to understanding why hunting is necessary to keep animal populations healthy. I have never gone bear hunting. I have really never had an interest. My friend Robin is an incredible outdoor woman who has been bear hunting for the past three years.  I have been OK living vicariously through her with the hopes of trading my unwavering support for bear meat, however, this year I am heading into the blinds myself to get a bear. In an effort to truly understand what goes on 'behind the scenes' of bear hunting, I have gotten myself connected with folks who are going to take me out to the bait sites, s...

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 smallest town in the US to lose more than one soldier in war - specifically the Iraq war.  Sgt. Blair Emery, 24 and Sgt. Joel House, 22 were killed five months apart from one other.  I encourage you to watch this clip from the movie that is a l...

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 the ability to read all of those books on your to-do list can actually happen.  Someday, I will have a place to call 'camp.' A few stories are focused on just day to day living in rural Maine; the sadness that spreads across those of us w...

As I was driving to work today I had a thought; one of my biggest issues with transitioning to turkey hunting is the idea of aiming at the head and hoping enough pellets are close enough together to kill the bird.  What if I learned to bow hunt for turkey?  That would give me one arrow to aim (like one bullet) and I would have one target to hit instead of aiming in a general spot. For those of you avid turkey hunters, what is your thought on this?  I would not be able to do this until next year, but it is a tempting thought.  Will it work?

While out on our snowmobile ride, we went down a stretch of powerline that was peppered with deer stands.  I envision something like the Dunkin Donuts/snowplow commercial where one deer steps out and there are at least three hunters ready to take aim. I am glad that we hunt on private land! Here are the photos.  Which one would YOU want to hunt from?

I have blogged before about women's hunting clothes, or the lack thereof.  This year, as I prepare to take on turkey season, goose season and my beloved deer season, I am starting to really look at what I wear and what I need to stay warm and mobile.  I'm a still hunter.  I find a spot and sit. I have also been given fair warning by Dad that come November, I should assume that I will be pulling 5-6 hour stints in one spot.  Last year, with my layers (three on bottom and seven!! on top), it was tough to get my gun nestled into the crook of my shoulder and have control.  I realized that I needed better, thinner layers. Photo from Northern Solstice Alpaca 's Facebook page. So I was intrigued when I spoke with Robin from Northern Solstice Alpaca farm at the Sportsman's Show, about the benefits of wearing alpaca clothes.  Besides being especially warm, water proof and cozy, the fibers are hollow so they wick away moisture (unlike wool that holds it in) a...

Photo from Ducks.org While drinking coffee and reading the latest issue of Ducks Unlimited , I decided that I want to shoot a goose.  I know nothing about it; not what type of gun and ammo to use or how close I need to be.  I did learned that the season in Maine is the fall, which will work well for my schedule and learning curve. When I was younger, my neighbor and I would track geese in the corn fields.  We were not trying to hurt the birds, just wanted to see how close we could get.  At our best, we got within 20 feet of a flock of snow geese before they saw up coming up over the knoll. The thunderous sound of the birds taking off was startling and amazing.  I have never shot a bird, only deer.  Dad and I will go turkey hunting again this spring, but I think I want to learn how to hunt geese.  Any tips or comments that I should know before I jump into this new adventure?

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...

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...

Three years ago, Dad and I headed into the woods to get a moose. I took a week off from work and we were rocked and ready. Zone 17. In hindsight, I can see why Rick wanted to trade permits for that zone. Throughout the week, we saw one dead moose and a spot where one was gutted. That was it. It was the second time Dad had been drawn and the first time he didn't come home with some meat. At the start of the 2012 moose season, it was projected that 75,000 moose were roaming the woods. In my interview with Commissioner Woodcock, he spoke about the changes that were taking place this season that would allow more people to get their permit who had not. This past fall, my brother in law (BIL) who is a biologist for the State of Maine was gracious enough to let me tag along to see what he does and why it is important to the overall health of the moose herd in Maine. We headed to a tagging moose station in Roxbury, Maine for the October hunt. Maine biologists play a key rol...

A few weeks ago, I sat down with the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, Chandler Woodcock to talk about the increase in moose and doe permits across the State and what it means for sportswomen (and men) this upcoming hunting season.  Q: The number of moose permits has been released for 2013 and they have increased since last year (from 3,725 to 4155).  What's changed? A: Our biologist, Lee Kantar has been working tirelessly to get an accurate moose count.  He has gone up in a helicopter and used some new technology to get accurate numbers of moose around Maine.  The majority of the increases will be seen north of Bangor and we looked at each WMD individually to make sure we are carefully monitoring the harvest.  Greenville and Rangeley are both hunting and viewing areas for moose, so we have limitations on how many permits are issued in those areas.  We also have areas in the State that have come to us and asked us not to increas...

Well, we know we are in a good area and that our calls work. We got into the woods by the Sky Condo a little earlier than we did on the first day.  The weather predicted rain so we wanted to get in as much time as possible.  We got to our ground blind, set up the decoys and settled in to start calling.  This morning though, we didn’t have to start anything.  We heard a gobble within five minutes of sitting down.  I got my box call out and called back.  He answered almost immediately.  We had a great conversation for a steady 30 minutes with him often double or triple gobbling.  Then the gobbles became more spaced apart but did not stop.  Dad decided that be would circle down to the power line where we were pretty sure the turkey was hanging out.  We hadn’t been able to get him any closer in the past hour and knowing the area as well as we do, if I could keep him gobbling, Dad could find him and get him. I kept using t...

It is hard to hunt anything when there are rain drops falling off the trees.  It is probably the worst during deer season when everything sounds like the snapping of a branch.  But, this was my first day of turkey hunting and having never been before, I had no idea what I should be listening for besides a gobble. Our turkey decoys Dad and I had two decoys set up about 15 yards away from us.  I had a slate call, a box call and my camo on.  It was starting to get light out when we reached the blind; that time of morning when you can not tell if you really are seeing something move or if it is just your eyes.  It was probably a little later than we should have been in the woods, but we are new and learning. About a half hour after we sat down, I saw a bird fly down.  There was still some ground fog so I could not tell if it was a jake or hen (or tom, but it seemed kinda small).  Dad couldn’t tell either.  I continued to cal...

This year, Dad and I decided that we would sit out of the moose lotto. It made sense. In 2010, when Dad was picked, we spent a solid 8 hours a day riding the roads in his truck looking for moose, walking around in the woods calling for moose and seeing a lot of hunters and only 1 dead cow. Since we know the time commitment that we are looking at if we get picked, and with me nursing a 4 month old come October, we decided to not apply for a permit. But, with the new Maine Moose Lotto revamped from what it was in 2011, Dad and I could still get points for applying and ensure our names were not entered to be drawn for permits. For each year that you apply and you do not get a permit, you gain a point. I am up to 5 points right now. The catch is that even if you don't want a permit, you still need to pay the fee of $15. So, for Dad and I, we paid $30 and will just gain a point each. When I posted a comment about this on Facebook, I received two comments: " I don...

I have written (and rewritten) a blog about 2 proposed bills being sent to the 126th Maine Legislature about proposed changes in our current youth deer hunt. Here is the original blog with the bills, LD79 and LD101 explained. Currently, in Maine, youth hunters are between 10-15 and become adult hunters at 16. They are allowed to begin their season a week before Maine residence, who can start the last Saturday in October and must be with an adult. According to the Executive Director of the Sportman's Alliance of Maine, there are 16,000 youth deer hunters and their success rate is about 10%. The real issue that is being debated is, with the Maine deer herd in such rough shape, is it worth risking the health and growth of the herd to give these 16,000 hunters the chance to shoot does and bucks instead of just does. What, if any, program do you have in your State? Does it work in attracting and keeping young hunters interested?