and a strong cup of coffee

Nate Webb has researched and hunted animals I can only dream about; wolves, cougars, grizzlies and even Big Horn sheep. I first met Nate when we worked on Maine’s bear management plan for MDIFW. An avid outdoorsman, Nate is incredibly knowledgeable about all things wildlife in Maine and beyond. So, I was not surprised when I saw the notification that he had been named the new wildlife director of the department. I sat down with Nate to go over some of his goals and reflect on all of the impressive animals he has studied so far in his career. I asked him the question “ Now that you are the wildlife director, what’s on your priority list ?” and we went from there. “I want to make sure that we are working towards the broader vision for IFW and following Judy’s direction and initiatives,” Nate started, “Obviously, we want our staff to be well supported and get the trainings that they need so that they can be the best at their jobs. We have a lot of people coming up for retirem...

My friend George Smith publicly  announced that he had been diagnosed with ALS early this year.  When he told me in late last summer, I was shocked and saddened. I can't imagine the Maine outdoors without George in it. The following is my article from the April issue of the Northwoods Sporting Journal . Love him or hate him, you can’t deny that George Smith has spent the majority of his life being dedicated to the Maine outdoors and the sportsmen and women who enjoy it as well.  He is passionate about hunting, fishing, hiking and everything outdoors related, sometimes to a fault but, no matter how you feel about him, I am sure that some aspect of the outdoors that you enjoy has George somehow tied to it. I don’t need to write about George’s accolades or his writing, time at SAM or legislative work because I am sure you know of them.  What I will write about it how George has helped me get my writing ‘out there’ through his own connections and reputation....

Trail cameras are addicting. You buy one, get some pictures then decide that you should have another one at a certain intersection and the next thing you know, you are like us and have almost 10 out in the woods, trying to pattern your deer.   That excitement of pulling those memory cards quickly vanishes when you see things that don’t belong on your property.   In the past couple of months, we have had lots of activity on the trail cameras; a car driving around in the newly planted clover and a man walking through a highly traveled deer intersection.  Both men had to make an effort to get where they were; this was not just an 'oops, I took a wrong turn.'  We had posted signs up already and clearly that was not enough of a deterrent to keep them away. This is when it pays to be friends with police officers.  I sent pictures of the car to a friend, who came back within minutes with the name of the car's owner.  I did the same thing with the p...

I wrote the following for the Northwoods Sporting Journal. What are your thoughts on eating wild game and teaching kids about where their food really comes from? On the Monday after rifle season began, my three year old’s preschool asked him what he had done over the weekend. Straight faced, he looked at her and said, “Daddy shot a deer and I ate the heart” and walked off to play with his friends. She looked at me in disbelief and all I could do was smile and nod. The excitement of getting a deer was at its peak for him when we drove into the driveway with my husband’s deer. That same three year old rubbed his hands down the back of the deer, held onto its antlers and when we hung it in the barn, he stuck his head almost inside the chest cavity and asked, “Is this all steak?” At three he knows that an animal, in animal form, will end up as pieces of meat on our plates. I don’t think that we are doing anything special to teach him where his food comes from. We are hunters ...

United, we win. The more involved you get with something, the more frustrated you can become when priorities shift, you see behind that iron curtain and you lose sight of what’s important and made you get involved in the first place. It’s hard to get reenergized and motivated sometimes, especially when there are so many divides. I have been partly amused and partly disheartened to read articles that my fellow outdoor writers have written about how they miss the ‘good ole days’ of hunting when women were home with the kids and not out in the woods.   I hate to break it to you, but women are the only way that the next generation of hunters are going to take to the woods.   WE are teaching our children why it is so important to hunt, know where your meat comes from and respect the entire field-to-table process.   I don’t remember the ‘good ole days’ because I am too young, but I can guarantee you that I will do everything I can to make sure that my children are c...