and a strong cup of coffee

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...

‘Til opening day of deer season! I know a bunch of people who are out in the woods this week looking for bears and moose season starts in a couple of weeks… but I am counting down the days til the whitetail and I come face to face (or scope to face). The more I think about it, the more I want to get done before Oct 27th! Dad and I have a new spot with a new seat in it and I want to hang out there for a couple of hours to get use to it. I never realized how familiar a spot feels until you spend countless hours there. By the time I shot my deer last year, I had spent 76 hours in the woods. I knew where the gray squirrels would come from (direction and tree) and I knew what the normal sounds were and what were not. I have written about my hunting spots before and so far, we have shot a deer from each tree stand and my tree seat. The pressure is on for this 4th spot. Also, as Dad and I walk into the woods this fall, we will be celebrating 10 years of being hunting partners. ...

There I was, morning mug of coffee and the newspaper. Enjoy some quiet before the day started. I turned the page and there it was – another article about ticks. I shuttered and as I read the article, I was informed that I am basically doomed. My hatred of those little disease-filled creepy crawlies has been chronicled twice before ( 1 and 2 ) but this brought it to a whole new level: babesiosis. And apparently its on track to rival Lyme disease in the tick-borne illness category. * Shutters * This is what did me in. Jane Brody writes: It has been said that Lyme disease moves on the wings of birds, which some experts believe carry the bacteria causing the condition. Babesiosis, however, moves on the backs of mice and deer. Birds do not spread it. But like the bacteria that cause Lyme disease, Babesia protozoans are transmitted to humans by ticks, which acquire the infection from the white-footed mouse and white-tailed deer. And, yes, the same tick — Ixodes scapularis, popul...

(From left, John Ford, me, Paul Fournier) Thank you to all who listened, called in, tweet'd and left me questions for the show! We had a blast and you can listen to it here . I swapped some great stories with these guys and they were so gracious and kind - they even gave me a copy of their book and signed it for me. Yes - I geeked out! I have said it before and I will say it again - hunters/fishers/outdoors people are the best people around!

A few weeks ago, I blogged about getting bit by a deer tick and the increase in the sheer number of them across the State. Last week, the BDN ran an article about the increase in illness here in Maine due to those horrible bugs. Here are some scary take aways if you live here: * Lyme sickened about 1,000 Mainers in 2011 and more than 180 so far this year * The deer tick can transmit Lyme, anaplasmosis and babesiosis. * The dog tick can carry Lyme but doesn’t transmit it * On average, 50 percent of Maine deer ticks carry disease * Ticks are less of a problem in northern counties of Maine and at higher elevations ( The biggest issue I had with this article is that they never mention that the rash you can get does not have to be near the site of the bite. Instead, it makes that assumption for the reader " But patients can miss the rash if the bite occurs where they can’t see it, such as under the hair on the back . If you get bit on your stomach, like I did, and ...