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>> Favorite Bird Dogs P. 8, 31, 71
>> The Healing Power of Fly Fishing P. 52 >> New State Record Crossbow Bear P. 17 >> Boats, Dogs, Firearms & More for Sale P. 80
2 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman —————————————————————————————————————————————
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Sporting Camps – A Maine Tradition Since the Mid-1800s The Maine sporting camp tradition began a century-and-a-half ago, in the mid-1800s, long before Leon Leonwood Bean opened his first store in 1912. In the late nineteenth century and the early twentieth century, sporting camps were destinations for wealthy sportsmen and women from all over Maine, Boston, New England, and the world. Sporting camps have hosted presidents and dignitaries. Guests typically traveled by railroad, steamboat, horse-drawn buckboard, canoe, or a combination of transportation modes, to reach sporting camps. Because the journey could take days or even weeks, once they arrived guests often put down roots at a camp for weeks or months at a time. Sporting camp guests were quite refined, often wearing their finest clothes while staying at camps – the men opting for woolen trousers, vests, jackets, and caps, while the women chose flowing outdoor skirts, blouses, and fine Sunday hats. The fishing and hunting opportunities offered at Maine camps have not changed significantly over the years, although the circumstances
surrounding them have. It was not uncommon in the early years of sporting camps for an individual angler to catch and keep fifteen or more fish every day, or for a game pole to be strung with deer that outnumbered the hunters in camp. Nowadays, regulations prevent us from taking such high numbers of fish and game, and many sportsmen and women enjoy the practice of catch-andrelease fishing. Younger visitors are also stepping outside the bounds of “typical” sports to enjoy hiking, animal-watching, birding, snowmobiling, four-wheeling, and a host of other outdoor activities. Although regulations have changed and we wear moisture-wicking, fast-dry fishing garments, and although we travel by four-wheel-drive truck rather than train to reach Maine sporting camps, the hospitality and variety of experiences offered to the outdoor enthusiast remain world-class. Camps in Maine vary, from very remote areas to locations just outside of town; from rustic log cabins without electricity to updated camps with all the amenities of home. The traditional American Plan still provides three hearty, home-cooked
meals served in an attractive and comfortable main lodge, while many camps also offer housekeeping plans for guests who want to do their own cooking. Nearly all camps still provide canoe and motor boat rentals, and many provide the services of knowledgeable Maine guides. Seeing the Maine sporting tradition getting caught up – and lost – in the hustle and bustle of modern day, a group of concerned camp owners founded the Maine Sporting Camp Association (MSCA) in 1987, with the vision of preserving that unique part of the state’s heritage. By working closely with allied groups from the tourism, hospitality and sporting industries, and by exchanging ideas and information both within and outside the MSCA, the association helps continue the tradition of providing the highest quality recreational experience to individuals and their families, a quality experience visitors will remember long after they return home. To start your sporting tradition, visit www.mainesportingcamps.com. ¦
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4 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman —————————————————————————————————————————————
Editorial
North Maine Woods – A Phenomenal Experience, for Those Who are Prepared We spent some time hunting, canoeing and fishing in the North Maine Woods (NMW) last month. It’s an experience not to be missed. NMW consists of 3.5 million acres in the northern and northwestern portions of the state – mostly privately owned in unorganized townships. That’s an area about twice the size of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. And like Massachusetts, it’s a challenge to drive in the NMW, but for very different reasons. The gravel road surfaces feature shale and slate. Everywhere we went, we saw owners of pick-up trucks and SUVs patching or changing tires that had been punctured or cut by the stones’ sharp edges. Signs, Signs, Nowhere Are There Signs There is no uniformity or consistency to road signs and directional markers, as accurately described by Northern Outdoors (northernoutdoors.com): “The dirt roads can be confusing. … There are very few road signs, and the signs that do exist are typically hand-painted and tacked to trees.” Our route directions included taking a short stretch on the “Cutoff Road.” But did that mean the Cutoff Road just south of the 20-mile Checkpoint that runs between Northern Road and Seboomook Road, or the separate Cutoff Road four miles away, located north of the checkpoint, that connects Northern Road and South Branch Access Road? Another consideration – no filling stations. If you are entering NMW northwest of Moosehead Lake, fill up in Greenville, and top off your vehicle’s tank in Rockwood. And bring an extra five gallons in a jerry can strapped to the back bumper. It’s unsettling to go mile after mile staring at a slowly-falling fuel gauge. Knowing Where You Are Obtain a GPS unit or application for your phone that does not rely on a cell signal. And bring extra batteries or a way to reliably charge your devices. And have back-up systems – we witnessed the need Duplicative road names are for redundancy when three days of rain common in the North Maine fogged the screens on some so-called “all Woods. weather” electronic units. Obtain a satellite-based two-way communicator such as inReach or a similar device, that allows exchanging of important text messages with folks back home. Keep your DeLorme Atlas within reach, and don’t be afraid to pull off the road shoulder at each intersection to verify your location. An experienced member of out party missed a turn off the Golden Road, and ended up in Jackman, about 20 miles from his intended route. The Atlas and Gazetteer remains your most indispensable tool, and the roads are labeled with near-flawless accuracy. The North Maine Woods is a place you should plan to spend some time – after making proper preparations.
¶
On the Cover Firearms season for deer arrives Saturday, October 29 for Maine residents, and October 31 for those from out of state, and runs through November 26. Youth Deer Hunting Day is October 22. Muzzleloader season starts November 28, and runs through December 2 in all WMDs, while hunters in WMDs 12, 13, 15 - 18, 20 - 26, and 29 get a second week, until December 10. Good luck, and be careful out there. www.MaineSportsman.com
New England’s Largest Outdoor Publication
Sportsman The Maine
ISSN 0199-036 — Issue No. 600 • www.mainesportsman.com PUBLISHER: Jon Lund MANAGING EDITOR: Will Lund will@mainesportsman.com OFFICE MANAGER: Carol Lund carol@mainesportsman.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Kristina Roderick kristina@mainesportsman.com ADVERTISING DIRECTOR: Nancy Carpenter nancy@mainesportsman.com DISTRIBUTION DIRECTOR: Deb Lund Carter distribution@mainesportsman.com Second class postage paid at Scarborough, ME 04074 and additional entry offices. All editorial inquiries should be emailed to will@mainesportsman.com Phone: 207-622-4242 Postmaster: Send address changes to: The Maine Sportsman, 183 State Street, Suite 101, Augusta, ME 04330 12-Month Subscription: $30 • 24-Month Subscription: $49
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Almanac by Will Lund.................................................... 14 A Ranger on the Allagash by Tim Caverly.................. 70 Aroostook - “The County” by Bill Graves..................... 74 Big Game Hunting by Joe Saltalamachia.................. 27 Big Woods World by Mark Scheeren & Hal Blood...... 25 Central Maine by Steve Vose....................................... 53 Cooking Wildly by Kate Krukowski Gooding............... 58 Downeast Region by Jim Lemieux............................... 60 Editorial.............................................................................. 4 Freshwater Fly Fishing by Lou Zambello....................... 50 Jackman Region by William Sheldon.......................... 64 Jottings by Jon Lund........................................................ 9 Katahdin Country by William Sheldon......................... 72 Letters to the Editor.......................................................... 6 Maine Sportswoman by Christi Holmes....................... 57 Maine Wildlife by Tom Seymour................................... 19 Maine Wildlife Quiz by Steve Vose............................... 37 Midcoast by Tom Seymour........................................... 54 Moosehead Region by Tom Seymour......................... 62 New Hampshire by Ethan Emerson.............................. 39 Nolan’s Outdoor World by Nolan Raymond............... 59 Off-Road Traveler by William Clunie............................ 66 Outdoors & Other Mistakes by Al Diamon.................. 79 Quotable Sportsman by Will Lund................................ 18 Rangeley Region by William Clunie............................. 45 Riding Shotgun by Robert Summers............................. 78 Saltwater Fishing by Barry Gibson................................ 55 Sebago to Auburn Region by Tom Roth..................... 48 Self-Propelled Sportsman by Jim Andrews.................. 68 Shooter’s Bench by Col. J.C. Allard............................. 30 Smilin’ Sportsman by Will Lund...................................... 78 Snapshots in Time by Bill Pierce.................................... 13 Southern Maine by Val Marquez................................. 47 Sporting Environment by David Van Wie.................... 71 Sportsman’s Journal by King Montgomery................. 11 Tales from the Warden Service by Ret. Lt. Doug Tibbetts.43 Tidewater Tales by Randy Randall............................... 44 Trapping The Silent Places by David Miller.................. 69 Trading Post (Classifieds)............................................... 80 Trout Fishing by Tom Seymour....................................... 49 Vermont by Matt Breton............................................... 38 Western Maine Mountains by William Clunie.............. 41 Young Maine Guide by Luke Giampetruzzi................ 26
GUEST COLUMNS & SPECIAL SECTIONS
Deer Hunting: The Ridgetop Buck by Nate Grove.......................... 20 Jaison’s Big Buck by Jaison Hashey......................... 22 Whitetail Memories by Jerry Scribner....................... 23 Public Land Access for Hunting by Stacy Warren .24 GUEST: Healing Waters by Tom Laaser........................ 52 Snowmobiling in Maine by Steve Carpenteri............. 32 Upland Game Hunting by Steve Carpenteri.............. 36
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6 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman —————————————————————————————————————————————
Letters To The Editor
Island Dweller Witnesses Boaters’ Incompetence
To the Editor: I have been on the water my whole life, from the Missouri River to the Florida Keys, and for the last 30 years permanently on an island in Casco Bay. I have sailed, boated and canoed, and I’ve always thoroughly enjoyed marine activities. If you ask any captain, fisherman, dock hand or harbormaster from Portland to Boothbay Harbor, they can tell you tragically humorous stories about the blatant incompetence of many boaters who are now on the water. Anyone who has been out boating for any length of time (or simply observing from shore) has witnessed clear and present dangers to operators and passengers. It seems the pandemic made boating look like a very “safe” way to enjoy the
outdoors, and here in Maine, if you write the check, they hand you the keys. Unlike many states, Maine requires no licensing for boat owners. I have taken several Coast Guard courses, and participants are generally required to take at least “Basic Boating and Safety.”
No one was injured when this boat hit a municipal pier in British Columbia several years ago, although the Royal Canadian Mounted Police reported that the driver’s “navigational skills and safe boating habits” were being investigated following the crash. RCMP photo
I do not go out on weekends anymore, as so many other operators do not know about rights of way, give-way boats, navigational rules, shipping channels, and above all, PROPER SPEED. Something must be done; people are going to get hurt. What I witness going
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by my house is appalling. Michael Drennan, Cliff Island, Casco Bay ***** Editor’s note: Many Mainers, including legislators, agree with Mr. Drennan’s concerns. In response, the state recently took a small, preliminary step toward increasing boater education, at least for inland water operation. In its original form, LD 1663, introduced in the legislature in 2021, would have prohibited unsupervised operation of a boat greater than 10 horsepower by anyone under 16, and would have prohibited boat operation by anyone who was not in possession of a “certificate of boating safety education.” The bill was amended in committee, and the final version that became law (PL 2022, Ch. 656) grandfathers existing boat operators, stating that beginning in 2024, anyone born in 1999 or later must pass a boating safety course. However, the course can be completed online. The new law also created a “Stakeholder Group on Issues Related to Boater Safety and Education on Inland Waters of the State,” and requires that group to produce a report to the legislature in early 2023. —
Through the Ice with Temps Below Zero To the Editor: Randy Randall’s column titled “Deadly Cold” in October’s issue of The Maine Sportsman related several stories of folks suffering from hypothermia while outdoors in Maine. Every year, we lose folks to this condition, and Randy is right on when he told the story of the young scout who became hypothermic in August. It can happen any time of the year. The column went on to describe a fellow on Moosehead Lake who had broken through a pressure ridge on his snowmobile late at night in below 0° F temperatures. He struggled to shore, where Randy and a group of campers were lodged. I witnessed that incident. It happened 30 years ago when Randy, I and (Continued on next page)
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about 20 others from the Bangor City Club were at Casey’s Camps on Lilly Bay. This fellow and two others were coming out of Spencer Bay, heading for Greenville. The thoroughfare between the shores had open water, which at night looked like clear ice. Unfortunately, the rider made it about halfway across the open water before sinking his sled. His other friends had taken a different route, and they never realized he was in the water. Luckily, he managed to get out of the water and, seeing the camp lights at Casey’s, headed our way. We were playing cribbage when we heard his faint cries for help, and found him in bad condition on the ice.
As Randy relates in the column, quick action in gradually warming him up saved his life, because he was on the verge of severe hypothermia. Ben Brown, Freedom, NH —
Resident Humorist Max Hembley Checks In To the Editor: In the September issue of The Maine Sportsman, Lou Zambello’s excellent article reports on the chaos caused by global warming. The 11-day shift in the salmonid migration has caused much confusion and angst among my fellow se(Continued on next page)
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8 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman —————————————————————————————————————————————
Letters
Yes, Virginia – Bears Eat Deer
nior anglers. After extensive conversations with my companions at the VFW and American Legion watering holes, I think we have solved the problem. We cannot change the evolution of fish migration, but we can change the human calendar. Just add or subtract (we haven’t figured out which will work) 11 days from the calendar. This can easily be done by adjusting a chunk of days in a single month, or by modifying one day each month for 11 months. I’m looking forward to a shift in the calendar and a return to the good old days! Max Hembley, Winkumpaugh Corners, ME and Doug Henning, North Berwick, ME
To the Editor: I am a longtime subscriber. Years ago, you printed a photo of a large black bear with a whitetail fawn in its mouth. Would there be a way to see that photo again? Thank you. Jim Beach, Augusta, ME
(Continued from page 7)
—
Another Writer Loves German Shorthaired Pointers To the Editor: Love the photo appearing on the cover of the October issue of The Maine Sportsman. Yes, as you wrote in the “On the Cover” explanation, you do have sev-
Zeke (left) and Boomer are German Shorthaired Pointers (GSPs) currently owned by columnist Bill Pierce.
eral staff writers who are GSP-aholics. King Montgomery graciously submitted a photo of our now dearly departed GSP, “Jack,” for a past cover of the Sportsman. Thanks so much again for publishing that photo, as we cherish it to this day. So, you do have yet another GSP-loving staff member. And the tradition continues – presently, “Zeke” and “Boomer” are doing a fine job of keeping our family’s GSP heritage alive. Bill Pierce, New Vineyard, ME —
Editor’s note: This photo, taken by Burnham, Maine hiker and Maine Sportsman reader Naaman Pratt, which ran on the cover of our August, 2014 issue, remains among the most memorable and controversial images ever to appear in The Maine Sportsman magazine.
¶
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�������������������������������������������� The Maine Sportsman • November 2022 • 9
Return to Tim Pond I first fished Tim Pond shortly after our family moved to Maine in 1935, so it may have been in the summer of 1936. My brother Mort and I were accustomed to managing for ourselves and were surprised and delighted to have a dock man assist us out of the double-ended Rangeley boat when we returned to camp. However, we were not pleased when he also carried away the few trout we had caught. We were accustomed to cleaning our own fish, and we didn’t realize we’d be seeing those fish again the next morning, deliciously pan-fried and on our breakfast plates. We didn’t have bamboo fly rods and were trying to cast with our telescoping Bristol steel rods, but we had a great time
The author found that some things about Tim Pond had not changed in 86 years. Other aspects have changed, such as the presence of aggressive, trout-stealing loons.
This photo was taken at the exact moment the author was hoisting a Tim Pond brook trout clear of the water to prevent the fish from being eaten by a hungry loon. Credit: Jym St. Pierre
and caught a few of the smallish trout that predominated in Tim in the old days. We understood there were larger trout in the pond, but it was rare to catch one. The camps may have been operated
by a local businessman, A. B. Sargeant, who sometimes cast for trout in the evenings after supper. He was a dignified figure, wearing a shirt and tie, vest and a felt hat. He used the classic oversize wet flies like
Dark Montreal, Parmachene Belle and Royal Coachman; terminal fly plus a drop-
per fly. It seemed like his fish box held larger fish than the ones the rest of us were catching. My younger brother, Erik, had the opportunity to fish with Mr. Sargeant, and learn from him. Now, some 86 years later, the tradition of having a dock man continues at Tim Pond Camps., as does having fried trout for breakfast, if you caught some. No Guernsey Cow This writer fished Tim Pond again this past September, along with family and friends, but this time no Guernsey cow was tethered near the access road, as when I’d first visited. (Continued on next page)
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10 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Jottings (Continued from page 9)
The main lodge burned down many years ago, and with it, the historic memorabilia, photographs and mounted trophies, but many of the original log cabins remain, upgraded with more comfortable beds and showers, and a new cabin is under construction. Although the consensus in camp was that the
fishing was slow, we caught trout, and some were larger-than-average squaretails. The Camps offer three excellent meals a day under the American Plan. Trout if you catch and keep. New families and generations have continued the tradition of fly fishing in comfort and ease. Tim Pond for many
years was known as a pond that had never been stocked and that held lots of hungry trout, although rarely did they attain large size. We caught larger trout during our recent trip than we did years ago. I had good success fishing a small streamer recommended to me years ago by the proprietor of the Rangeley Fly Shop. It has been productive over the years
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and still catches trout. Loons on the Pond One aspect has changed. I do not remember seeing or hearing any loons on Tim Pond in the 1930s, but they are present now. Back in the old days, I believe fish-eating birds like loons and great blue heron were actively discouraged from settling on trout ponds. I remember seeing a mounted loon decorating the lodge at King and Bartlett Lake. A brash young man asked who shot the loon, and no one seemed to remember. When I fished Pierce Pond a few years back, loons liked to hang around catch-andrelease anglers to snag a released fish if the angler was casual about the release. I remember whacking the water’s surface with a plastic paddle to send a signal to an underwater loon that it was not welcome close to my boat. One of the guides there told of one of his sports losing a sixteen-inch salmon to a loon.
At Tim, I was reeling in a good-sized trout when suddenly my rod bent and bumped against the gunwale and the reel click screamed, as an underwater loon tried to make off with the trout. I regained control of my reel and started cranking in my trout/loon combo. It was a heavy load, but I persisted, until the loon let go. But the big bird continued on its hunt for the trout, so I hoisted the trout into the boat as the loon surfaced and scowled at me. I swear it scowled. The head looked wider than usual. My impression is that loons first catch a fish crosswise in their bill and turn it ninety degrees to have it going headfirst down their gullet. Perhaps the remedy is to keep on a steady pressure to keep “your” fish. I hate to think that an angler will have to hustle a trout aboard to keep ahead of a hungry loon.
¶ Hey Kids!
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������������������������������������������� The Maine Sportsman • November 2022 • 11
Presentations Guaranteed to Catch Fish One summer morning it was oppressively hot and muggy, and even breathing raised a drenching sweat. The surface bite ended soon after the sun peeked over the trees. Bottom-bouncing flies and streamers, or plastic worms and jigs didn’t produce, and it looked like it might be one of those days. I made one more half-hearted cast, set the rod down against the gunwale of the johnboat, and reached for a cold bottle of water. A great blue heron flapped into the cove and began wading, fishing. I reached for the 35mm SLR camera and popped off a few shots. (You can never have too many blue heron photos.) Another swig of water, and I glanced toward the pads. The brightly-colored popper was gone, and the line was slowly moving to the right.
Step right up, readers, and learn the secret fishing techniques of a master angler, including the famous “cup of coffee retrieve,” the “really off-balance approach” and the “errant cast.”
You can never have too many blue heron photos. All photos by King Montgomery. All illustrations by Mort Cohen.
I made my presence known, and a nice largemouth bass exploded from the surface, displaying the fly in his mouth. So it sometimes is that a do-nothing presentation is best for enticing fish. (I’d rather slowly
So it sometimes is that a do-nothing presentation is best for enticing fish.
walk over to my dinner, than have to run a distance for it, so I understand.) Over my many years on the water with cane pole and bobber, spinning gear (my first real reel was a Mitchell 300 made in
France shortly following the end of World War 2), and fly fishing tackle, I’ve managed to learn mostly from my own mistakes, the screw-ups of others, and sometimes by just being observant about what works
A smallmouth bass inhaled the dangling fly, pulled the fly and leader free from the bush, and headed for deeper water.
for catching fish, and what doesn’t. I’ll share a few of those latter observations by highlighting some surefire ways of presenting the fly, lure, or bait to just about guarantee you’ll catch fish. The Errant Cast. The gust of wind blew the hairbug over a small branch of a bush growing at water’s edge. I swore at the swirling wind that caused this errant cast. The fly swung like a pendulum, barely ticking the surface of the water. On my third curse of “friggin’ wind,” a smallmouth bass inhaled the dangling fly, pulled the fly and leader free from the bush, and headed for deeper water. A few determined runs and magnificent leaps, and the bronzeback came to net. This unique presentation has worked before, particularly (Continued on next page)
A few determined runs and magnificent leaps, and the bronzeback came to net. www.MaineSportsman.com
12 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
This unusual technique causes the angler to set the hook only after feeling the weight of the fish.
Just as the Thermos lid gave way, “Jaws” busted the fly, and hot coffee cascaded everywhere!
Sportsman’s Journal (Continued from page 11)
when it’s windy, which it usually is. (Have you ever noticed that the wind starts blowing, seemingly from all directions at once, as soon as you un-case a fly rod?) On those rare calm days, the presentation is more difficult, because you have to be accurate enough to cast over the appropriate overhanging limb. This and other never-miss presentations can help improve our casting by encouraging us to take lessons, to watch casting videos, apply what is being taught, and to practice more often. Or maybe not. The Really Off-balance Approach. The wind again. My poor stern-mounted trolling motor had been grinding against its force for two days, and the battery was tired. I placed a Dahlberg diver within inches of the shoreline rip rap, when a monster gust of wind spun the johnboat like a top. As I transferred the 8-weight to my left hand, and reached over with my right hand to engage the trolling www.MaineSportsman.com
motor to counter the wind, a huge bass blew up on the fly, sending water six feet into the air, or so it seemed. Bent over awkwardly, my right hand flailing to turn off the motor, and completely off-balance, I struck the fish with my left hand, and a five-pound largemouth was eventually landed and released. This unusual technique causes the angler to set the hook only after feeling the weight of the fish – a built-in delay that guarantees a quality hook set. The Cup of Coffee Retrieve: The popper was gently bobbing near the old pine that
had fallen beside the beaver lodge. Knowing that a slower presentation is usually better than faster, I reached for my Thermos. Placing the fly rod under my left armpit, I strained to unscrew the lid using both hands and much of my strength. You guessed it – just as the lid gave way, “Jaws” busted the fly, the hot coffee cascaded everywhere, I dropped the Thermos, grabbed the rod, tightened up on the line, and landed a nice largemouth. The “armpit retrieve” was helped by the fussing with the Thermos lid. The unscrewing motion caused the fly to quiver enticingly. Both techniques combined to create a deadly
This nice crappie hit because he was pissed off!
The final novel but surefire method to ensure fish will bite is “the call of nature” presentation.
method. Spilling hot coffee all over yourself is optional. Over the years, I have noticed that no retrieve at all – or at least a very slow one – is often the most effective way to elicit strikes. Make Sure Your Face isn’t into the Wind Presentation. The final novel but surefire method to ensure fish will bite is the “call of nature” presentation. Without going into detail, suffice it to say that I set the 4-weight rod down, with a sparsely-tied size 6 Clouser deep minnow dangling over the side of the boat at the end of a seven foot leader, and turned my back to it. (Remember – the wind should always be at your back
in this situation.) Halfway through the act, the fly rod began sliding along the aluminum gunwale of the boat. I quickly turned (big mistake, but it was a pricey fly rod), grabbed the rod, and boated a nice black crappie just under two pounds. I was relieved. Sometimes vertically ‘jigging’ a fly over bottom structure will draw a strike, particularly from sunfishes such as crappie, largeand smallmouth bass, and bluegill. ***** It’s always fun to get back on the water to see what more strange, but guaranteed effective presentations I can come up with. I’m convinced that the points lost for “style and form” in some of these techniques are more than made up for in judging “innovation and creativity,” which usually produces more fish anyway. Try these time-tested and proven methods for catching fish. They seem to work when all else fails.
¶
������������������������������������������� The Maine Sportsman • November 2022 • 13
“Snapshots in Time”
Historical Glimpses from Maine’s Sporting Past Compiled by Bill Pierce, Former Executive Director, Outdoor Heritage Museum
Four Good Maine Moose Stories from 1896
$100 and costs for keeping a moose during closed season.
Readers: I hope you enjoy some moose tales from the December 31, 1896 edition of the RANGELEY LAKES newspaper. —
Kept Two Moose; Paid the Fine
Bridling a Moose
Joseph Steirs, a young sportsman from Providence, R. I., is said to have paddled his canoe alongside of some moose that were feeding among the lily pads in Ripogenus lake. By putting a jacklight in the bow of his canoe, he succeeded in placing his hands on the flanks of two moose and buckling a leather strap around the body of the third. While he was trying to place a strap on another moose the animal got frightened and tipped the canoe over, spilling Steirs and his guide into the water. Last week Frank Harlow, a guide who is also employed on a small steamboat owned by Frank Wesson, the revolver maker, of Springfield, Massachusetts, shot a moose at Loon Lake that had a leather strap buckled around its body back of the fore-shoulders. Though he is not sure, he believes it is the same moose that Mr. Steirs met on Ripogenus.
Milking a Moose
Everybody who knows Charles Anance. the guide, who stops about Moosehead Lake, has heard him tell his adventure with a cow moose whose calf had been killed by a bob cat. She came out to Anance’s camp and hung about for several days, bellowing and making
Vintage photo of a tame moose.
heartbreaking outcries for her dead calf. One night when she was drinking from the lake, Anance went up to her and put his hand upon her side. Instead of jumping away, as Anance had expected, she looked at him for a moment, and sticking out her big nose, licked his hand with her rough tongue. Of course, the anglers did not believe him, and guyed him so much about his adventure that he got mad and offered to bet $5 that he would go up to that cow moose and milk her while she was drinking. The money was put up, and the next morning Anance took a can and went out and got more than a quart of moose milk. Anance says the moose
not only licked him with her tongue while he was milking her but shed tears of gratitude.
Leading a Moose on Tether
Last summer, John Gerrish saw a four-year-old bull moose swimming in Elbow Lake, a few rods above North Twin dam. He got into a canoe and kept the moose from landing until he had placed a slipnoose over its head and drawn it up about its neck. Then he swam the moose about in the lake until it was tired, and led it ashore the way he would a cow. Gerrish kept it in a log pound for a month, and did not liberate it until a game warden told him he would be liable to a fine of
Two years ago, Fred Wing, who was running a hotel at Molunkus, found a pair of young moose in the woods that had lost their mother. He put them into the hotel stable and fed them on cow ’s milk until they were as tame as lambs. When a game warden informed Wing he would have to pay $200 for keeping two moose in captivity, he pulled down their pen and let them run at large. [However,” they came to the stable every night for shelter. In August, he sent them to Bangor, and they were on exhibition at the fair. Later, he paid a $200 fine for his captive moose, and sent them to The Maine Fair at Lewiston, where they earned him $1,000. *** Note to readers: I suggest that you NOT try to milk any moose while you are out and about making some outdoor history of your own. FYI for any bold flatlanders out there, milk cows do sometimes have horns; however, bull moose (the big ones with horns, known as antlers) will NOT meekly acquiesce to a milking. Just a helpful “outdoor tip.” But if you do decide to milk a moose, please have someone capture it on a cell camera. Your surviving family members will appreciate the YouTube proceeds when the video goes viral. – Bill Pierce www.MaineSportsman.com
Almanac
14 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Three Minutes with a Maine Guide
Compiled and Edited by — Will Lund —
by Lisa DeHart
Tips For Poling a Canoe My biggest advice for poling a canoe is this: Don’t go upstream. There is a lot of mystique about poling a canoe upstream, but a river is a powerful thing. Anyone new to the sport who jumps in that boat and with no patience or technique, and because they’re brand new to it, tries to go upstream, gets swept down time after time, gets all ugly and frustrated, and wants nothing to do with poling again. I think this hurts the sport. If instead, you pole downstream with the current in those rapids, those fast waters take on a whole new magic. First of all, you can see. You can see the entire line of the rapid all at once. Second of all, you can stop. Anywhere. Anywhere there is a little patch
The author poles downriver, standing for increased visibility. She steers the canoe easily by weighting to one side, then to the other, like a bicyclist, a snowboarder or a skier. Jeff DeHart photo
of slow water. Unlike eddying out, you don’t have to turn the canoe upstream to do it. Don’t like something you see down river? Plant that pole forward in a quick series of snubbing moves until you can stop and scout, holding at the top of a rapid. You’ve just gone from being a leaf, to being a fish!
Here’s what makes poling so powerful in a rapid – in addition to the fact that you can see, you can also stop. If you lean a canoe on its side, it will turn. So will a bicycle; so will a snowboard; and so will a pair of skis – pretty much anything long and skinny-shaped. Given this absolute, moving a full sized, fully loaded boat downstream through any rapid, by yourself, becomes only as much effort as putting your weight first on one foot, and then on the other. The older you get, the more you’re gonna want that. —
The Emergence of Tungsten Tungsten is an extremely dense metal. In fact, its name comes from the Swedish language, and translates into English as “heavy stone.” (Continued on next page)
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It is 1.7 times more dense than lead, and the only other materials that come close to its weight are solid gold, and uranium. Tungsten is in the news in Maine, in the contexts of both hunting and fishing. New Turkey Hunting Regulation First, the state’s recently-revised wild turkey hunting regulations permit the use of 28 gauge and .410 shotguns “with shot sizes 7 through 9 in Tungsten Super Shot (TSS).” Prior to this change, only shotgun bores from 10 ga. to 20 ga., and shot sizes from 4 to 6 (or, with a mixed load, 7s), could be legally used to hunt turkeys. So what’s the difference between tungsten shot and lead shot? According to tungsten supporters, plenty. “Tungsten Super Shot flies farther, hits harder, and penetrates deeper than any other shot on the market,” writes Kristine Ostertag, a sportswoman with King Eider Communications, in a recent post titled “Tungsten Super Shot is Changing the Game for Turkey Hunters.” “The benefits come from tungsten’s higher density compared to any other pellet material,” said Ostertag. “Tungsten is 60% more dense than lead.
Kristine Ostertag finds tungsten shot to be very effective for wild turkeys. A recent Maine law allows turkeys to be hunted with bores as small as 28 ga. and .410, and with shot as small as #9, so long as the shot material is heavy, dense Tungsten Super Shot (TSS).
Therefore, you can reduce shot size and increase pattern retention at longer distances compared to steel or lead loads.” Noting that tungsten is harder than lead, Ostertag adds a recommendation, and a caveat: “I recommend using a modified choke tube that can handle tungsten,” she writes. “Check before shooting, since not all choke tubes can take tungsten.”
With traditional lead #5 shot, each shell holds just over 300 pellets. With denser, smaller #9 tungsten, that number is more than doubled, to 720. Tungsten advocates claim the larger number of pellets permits better coverage at distance. This is Kristine Ostertag’s target at 50 yards, using a TSS shell with #9 tungsten shot.
At nearly $60 for a box of shells, TSS ammo is somewhat more expensive than lead ammo. Tungsten for Jigs, Too Tungsten is also becoming the material of choice for manufacturing certain types of fishing tackle, especially panfish jigs. (Continued on next page)
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16 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Almanac
(Continued from page 15)
“Heavy-for-their size tungsten jigs are all the rage in ice-fishing circles these days,” touts Northland Fishing Tackle Co., in a release by Traditions Media. Echoing the language applicable to tungsten shotgun shells, Joel Nelson, a company pro team member, is quoted as saying, “The advantage of tungsten is that it’s extremely dense. Its size-toweight ratio allows use of smaller jig heads that quickly get down to whatever depth panfish are holding.”
One of Northland’s tungsten panfish jigs, in a “tiger beetle” pattern.
Fishing with small unpainted lead jigs is already prohibited in Maine, and if in the future that ban is expanded to small painted lead jigs, alternative materials such as tungsten will play a larger role. —
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Wilderness First Aid:
Heart Attacks While Hunting – Recognize the Symptoms, and Be Prepared to Act by Stacey Wheeler, RN Simply put, hunting can increase your risk of having a heart attack. Heart attacks are three times more likely to kill a hunter than any other hunting injury in Maine. Hours of hiking in the woods, tracking, and packing or dragging out your harvest, all put strain on the heart. The adrenaline rush alone of seeing that big buck in your sights can induce trouble. According to the American Heart Association, 790,000 people in the U.S. suffer a heart attack each year, and over 140,000 of those individuals do not survive. Knowing the signs and getting early treatment are pivotal. • • • • • • •
Most Common Symptoms Chest pain or pressure Pain or numbness that travels down your arm Nausea Sudden sweating Jaw pain Indigestion Shortness of breath • A sense of impending doom • • •
First Aid Essentials Cellphone Aspirin 325 mg (uncoated) Water
The exertion and excitement that accompany hunting, especially in high elevations, can spell trouble for a weak heart. The key to survival is quick recognition and properly administered first aid. Stacey Wheeler photo
Tell someone where you will be If you suspect you are having a heart attack, you have two options: • Get out; or • Get help. Survival chances increase if your condition is treated within the first hour. •
Here’s What to Do (Quickly) Chew and swallow one aspirin. Sit or lie down, and try to relax. Call 911 and call your hunting buddies. • Assess your situation; if pain starts to subside, you may want to try to walk out. Heart attacks can affect anyone, even those who are young, eat well, exercise and are in relatively good shape. Do not deny symptoms, as this is the number one reason people do not survive. Stay aware, and survive your hunt. • • •
¶
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������������������������������������������� The Maine Sportsman • November 2022 • 17
New Maine State Record – Crossbow Bear
Check out our website www.MaineSportsman.com On the Wrong Side of the River — Stories from a Maine Guide — by Carroll Ware of Fins & Furs Adventures Carroll caught his very first brook trout at the tender age of ten. He always maintained from the moment that 10-inch brook trout took the Parmachenee Belle fly, he and the trout were hooked! Carroll comes from several generations of outdoorsmen and women, hunters, fishermen, Guides and schoolteachers. Initially licensed in 1989 as a Master Maine Guide, Carroll spent the next 33 years guiding hunters and fisherman in the great State of Maine and various destinations in Quebec. This book of true stories comes directly from Carroll’s lifetime in the outdoors. Order your copy today for just $15 plus $2 shipping!
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The state big-game record book maintained by The Maine Sportsman magazine now lists the name of Paul Reed, Jr. of Durham, ME, who tagged this 577-lb. (live weight) boar, hunting with a crossbow on August 29, 2022 in Mt. Chase. The weight was certified by Warden Scott Martin and Sherri Skinner of Mt. Chase, and witnessed by Kevin Pagnano. Congratulations, Paul! Photo courtesy of Tracy Reed, Reed’s Firewood www.MaineSportsman.com
18 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
November 2022 Sunrise/Sunset Portland, ME DATE 1 Tue 2 Wed 3 Thu 4 Fri 5 Sat 6* Sun 7 Mon 8 Tue 9 Wed 10 Thu 11 Fri 12 Sat 13 Sun 14 Mon 15 Tue
RISE
7:15 7:16 7:18 7:19 7:20 6:22 6:23 6:24 6:25 6:27 6:28 6:29 6:31 6:32 6:33
SET
5:33 5:32 5:30 5:29 5:28 4:27 4:25 4:24 4:23 4:22 4:21 4:20 4:19 4:18 4:17
DATE 16 Wed 17 Thu 18 Fri 19 Sat 20 Sun 21 Mon 22 Tue 23 Wed 24 Thu 25 Fri 26 Sat 27 Sun 28 Mon 29 Tue 30 Wed
RISE
6:35 6:36 6:37 6:38 6:40 6:41 6:42 6:43 6:45 6:46 6:47 6:48 6:49 6:50 6:51
SET
4:16 4:15 4:14 4:13 4:13 4:12 4:11 4:11 4:10 4:09 4:09 4:08 4:08 4:07 4:07
November 2022 Tides Portland, ME DATE 1 2 3 4 5 6* 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed
HIGH AM PM 5:15 5:28 6:23 6:39 7:29 7:48 8:30 8:51 9:24 9:48 9:12 9:39 9:56 10:27 10:38 11:12 11:18 11:54 11:56 — 12:36 12:35 1:18 1:16 2:02 2:00 2:50 2:49 3:41 3:42 4:34 4:38 5:26 5:34 6:17 6:29 7:05 7:23 7:49 8:12 8:30 8:58 9:11 9:44 9:53 10:30 10:37 11:18 11:24 — 12:08 12:14 1:00 1:07 1:56 2:05 2:57 3:09 4:02 4:16
LOW AM PM 11:09 11:58 — 12:19 1:06 1:31 2:10 2:37 3:07 3:35 2:57 3:27 3:42 4:14 4:25 4:58 5:06 5:40 5:45 6:21 6:25 7:02 7:05 7:44 7:48 8:30 8:35 9:19 9:27 10:10 10:22 11:02 11:19 11:54 — 12:16 12:43 1:11 1:30 2:01 2:14 2:46 2:57 3:31 3:40 4:16 4:24 5:03 5:11 5:52 6:01 6:43 6:53 7:37 7:49 8:36 8:51 9:38 9:59 10:41
*Daylight Savings ends at 2:00 AM Sunday, November 6.
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Quotable
Sportsman
by Will Lund
“And then all of a sudden, there it was, right in my face, and I felt it hit the side of my face with its tail. Then it landed on my right foot, and I kind of jumped out of the way.” Cameron Sinclair, after a 7-foot Mako shark jumped directly into the cockpit of their boat during a Sea Ventures Charter trip this past summer off Monhegan captained by Cameron’s grandfather, Dave Sinclair. The shark had been hooked by one of the anglers aboard. Sources: NECN, and TrendingSubject.com — “We got weights in fish!” A weigh-in official at the Lake Erie Walleye Trail (LEWT) fishing tournament in Ohio on September 30, 2022. Several pounds of lead sinkers, wrapped up in fillets from other fish to disguise their shape, were found stuffed into the five “winning” fish. The fish weighed a total of 33.91 lbs., when witnesses estimated the undoctored total weight would have been closer to 20 lbs. The two anglers accused of cheating were to have won $28,760. A grand jury indicted them on fifth-degree felony charges of cheating, attempted grand theft and possessing criminal tools. Pennsylvania authorities seized a boat and trailer belonging to one of the defendants.
“You’re seeing tens of boulders, strewn around the channel of the river, creating riffles, re-creating pools as the water flows downstream, creating surfaces for insects, amphibians, reptiles and birds, and creating roughness in the channel, which slows down high storm flows.” Sharri Venno, environmental planner for the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, describing a section of Meduxnekeag River that has been restored to a more natural state suitable for salmon. Most Maine rivers and many streams were widened, and obstacles removed, to facilitate 100 years of log drives. Reported by Murray Carpenter, Maine Public Broadcasting — Hellbenders have several nicknames related to their unusual appearance, including “lasagna lizard,” “snot otter,” and “Allegheny alligator.” Laura Benshoff, NPR’s “All Things Considered, in a piece titled “Wildlife conservation tends to save charismatic species; that may be about to change.” A hellbender is a rare, giant salamander whose population numbers in New York’s Allegheny River are in decline due to loss of habitat.
A hellbender salamander can grow up to 29 inches long, making it the largest salamander in North America. Laura Benshoff/NPR photo
This photo shows two of the lead weights (circled) found inside walleyes presented to judges at a September 30 fishing derby in Ohio. Photo: YouTube, via Bigwater Fishing Podcast #49
— “Ethical behavior is doing the right thing when no one else is watching.” Credited to Aldo Leopold (18871948), an American author and philosopher. —
— “Cholesterol Express.” Dave Small, renowned Maine photographer, describing the caravan of trucks heading home from last season’s hunting after staying at the Lucky 7 camp in Eustis. The name derives from the practice of Dave’s buddies of cooking all the remaining food on the morning of the last day, and eating it all, so no food is brought home. In Dave’s words, the meal consisted of “two or three pounds of bacon, sausage links, leftover potatoes, dozens of eggs, [and] pancake mix and cinnamon swirl bread, all made into Monte-Cristo sandwiches …”, followed by a lot of “staggering around” as the hunters tried to pack their gear.
������������������������������������������� The Maine Sportsman • November 2022 • 19
Maine Wildlife:
Mice
by Tom Seymour
Even soap has no immunity to mouse predation. Do you really want to wash your hands with a bar of soap half-eaten by some pernicious rodent?
Without the presence of mice, many predators would go hungry. Photo: Tiffani Howe, Dover-Foxcroft
since sliced bread.
Mice rank among the most destructive and despised creatures of all. And yet without them, countless other, more acceptable species would suffer from malnutrition. Personally, I would trade the other species for the total eradication of mice. I live in an old house, and each year in the fall, mice migrate inside, and make their presence known in cabinets, drawers and closets, and under sinks. In addition to the physical signs of their presence, one little mouse inside a kitchen stove can sound like a legion, pounding and banging. This they prefer to do in the middle of the night. For me, it’s an ongoing war, with little opportunity for total victory. However, technology has taken us one step closer to leveling the playing field. While mice are not very smart, they do become wary of wooden mousetraps, especially traps that have already killed one of their kind. Enter all-plastic traps. These powerful traps have serrated jaws, and instead of a pan, they feature a round cup that you fill with cheese or peanut butter. To accomplish this, I use a plastic knife – no need to touch with the fingers and thus leave human scent, although plastic doesn’t hold scent very well anyway. These traps are set by squeezing the two parts together, and they are opened in the same manner. Because these plastic traps don’t hold scent, they are eminently reusable, and one trap can account for many mice. They truly are the best things
Camp Mice Anyone who owns or has visited a seasonal camp in Maine, unless that camp is brand-new and totally mouseproof, has had to deal with mice. Generally, the older the camp, the bigger the mouse problem. That’s because here, generations of mice have grown to call the place home. Also, while the human tenant only visits for short periods now and again, the mice are full-time residents. Older camps are particularly noisy, and who among us hasn’t tried desperately to doze off while mice scamper along the cabinets and inside the walls? Even if we set out the new plastic traps, it takes some time to catch all the mice living in a camp. And then we have physical damage caused by mice. Open a drawer and find knife handles, the plastic inserts in scissor handles and so many other kitchen tools, chewed by hungry mice. Even soap has no immunity to mouse predation. Do you really want to wash your hands with a bar of soap half-eaten by some pernicious rodent? Foodstuffs, too, are fair game for marauding mice. As soon as the camp goes vacant, anything that is not protected by a glass, metal or plastic container will quickly turn to mouse food. Clearly, mice present a serious problem. Life would be so much easier and more pleasant without them. These are the negative sides of the mouse situation. Now let’s consider the positive side. Main Meal As far as I can see, mice have only one redeeming feature – they are the main, or staple, meal of many wildlife species. Without a sufficient supply of
mice, many creatures would experience a large hole in their diets. In addition to those birds and animals that depend upon mice for a living, there are those that prey upon mice when available – kind of like a side dish. Herons and bitterns don’t go out of their way to hunt mice, but happily spear them when they see them. Except for eagles and ospreys, our birds of prey, including all of our hawks (even the smallest ones), feed upon mice. However it’s the critters that really need mice in order to prosper that count the most. All of our owls eat mice, and for many, mice are a staple food. Those barred owls that we enjoy hearing at night as they call to one another are largely dependent upon mice. Fortunately for these creatures, we have no current shortage of mice, nor is one foreseen for the future. Mice are a staple food for martins as well as ermines. Foxes and coyotes both catch and eat mice, although both are omnivorous and have an extensive list of acceptable foods. Bobcats and lynx also include mice as part of their regular diets. Keep Fighting Okay, so what I said earlier on about trading the creatures that feed upon mice for an end to the mouse problem was irresponsible. But we mortals can only stand so much. It’s like the neighbor’s barking dog – after a while, something has to give. On a practical note, the only tools in our arsenal are the new mousetraps. Poison, while effective, has a big drawback. The victims often die inside the walls, leaving a stench that persists for months. So on it goes. A win here, a defeat there. Never weaken!
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20 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
The Ridgetop Buck by Nate Grove – Durham, NH
As the adage goes, you can’t shoot deer from your couch. It is equally true that even in the woods, you can’t shoot deer where they aren’t. You’ve got to go where they are, which means you have to use your brain and do some legwork to find those spots. During last season’s unusually warm New Hampshire firearms season, I went to the top of the ridge in
search of my buck. Tracking Snow The squalling snow had dumped two inches in the first hour of daylight, and I knew the likelihood of finding a track wasn’t high. Because I had hunted this area the previous Saturday, I was confident the deer were at elevation. My plan was to side-hill it toward the backside of a first peak, and then connecting
with a game trail that slid through the narrow, high-walled saddle and hairpinned to the 2,300 foot pinnacle. With luck and good tracking conditions, perhaps I’d find the bedded buck whose sign I’d seen the weekend before. The trek upward proved uneventful, and as I suspected there weren’t yet any tracks at the top. By mid-morning, the sun
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winked through the clouds, and I headed west toward some nearby green edging. With the sun at my back, shining brightly onto patches of white carpet, my feelings of anticipation increased. Would a Doe Lead Me? Shortly, my tactic was rewarded. A fresh track, not five minutes old, showed that a doe had paused behind a wall of green, done a three-way stop, and changed course to walk along the base of a ledge. Taking the track, I stepped slow and easy on the chance she – and I – would meet up with a cruising buck. For nearly half a mile I poked along, letting her increase the distance between us. Then, a shift in wind exposed me, and she bounded off without pause for another half-mile before she slowed and turned uphill once more.
It was now nearly noon, and I peeled off. My teenage son Will and I had agreed to meet up at this time and recraft the plan if necessary, so I headed downhill to the truck. Second Effort Over a sandwich, we decided to double-team the taller mountain immediately to the north. At 3,600 feet and densely covered with thick, young spruce, it was considerably more of a challenge. However, the difficult greenery combined with its height and added seclusion were too good to pass up. As the truck crawled two miles steeply uphill, we stared in awe as a bend in the road revealed the entire peak to be in the grip of dense, gray, snow cloud. Perfect, I thought – dark, quiet and out of sight. Without a track to follow, I needed a (Continued on next page)
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The beautiful 10-pointer was down, and the author and his son faced a five-hour drag back to their truck. Nate Grove photo
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secretive game trail, way up high. After we split up again, I found a shoulder-width trail that had once been a skid road. At this elevation, four inches of snow buried rock and root, but did not fully conceal the huge rubber tire of an old skidder, its center embedded with a cluster of saplings. Appreciating the Frozen Silence Three-quarters up the mile-long trail, I found myself socked in by clouds. At 21 degrees, the air instantly froze any moisture that touched the trees, and when I finally crested the plateau, I noticed that rime frost weighed slender tree boughs downward. From my topo map, I knew there was a pond just downhill to the west. There had been no cutting done here, I observed, the only tree damage done by blasts of mountain air. I followed moose trails as old as time. The way to the pond was easy and irresistible. The gray air, virgin snow and rimed green trees made for one of the most beautiful forest contrasts I’ve ever seen. At 3,500 feet, I could not help standing in the shallows of the mountain pond, appreciating the frozen silence. A short climb back uphill, along the ridgeline, brought me to the peak. A small, hand-
carved sign left by a former traveler atop a splintered stump attested to my location. Looking about once more, I resolved that, while a 10-point buck would surely be nice, this scene was its own reward. Stepping back onto the moose-path, I moved slowly from trunk to tree, pausing frequently and looking as far ahead as I could see.
After field-dressing the big buck, and with the help of my on-X app and strong headlamps, Will and I hauled the buck uphill and down in the dark for five solid hours. After midnight, dog-tired, we finally hit
the logging road and saw the reflection of the truck taillights just ahead. With a two-man heave, we had the buck in the bed of my trusty Tacoma. The next morning, up early, we drove to LL Cote’s in Errol for
registration and official weighing. My ridgetop buck tipped the scale at 201 pounds. Although it had felt 20 or 30 pounds heavier during the long drag off the mountain, I’d say the buck passed muster.
¶
Buck Appears Moments later, it all came together. At the far end of the slope, through the freezing mist and monochromatic old-growth, glided a mass of brown. I glimpsed broad shoulders and wide antlers. A big buck and I were on the same game trail, and we were on course to meet in a few short seconds. Stepping to a spruce, safety now off, I made ready for a 60yard shot. In that brief time, the buck had disappeared, but just as quickly I had it again, its bobbing antlers showing above the low spruces. At 16 yards, the buck rounded a mature spruce, pausing to look up at the exact moment I placed the pin on its vitals and squeezed the trigger. Long and Happy Drag The beautiful 10-pointer was down – and it was down a long way from our truck.
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22 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
— Deer Hunting in Maine —
Jaison’s Big Buck by Jaison Hashey – Swanville, ME
Just then, I lost sight of the deer. I dropped the scope down to re-locate my target. I saw the buck, but a birch tree that was bent down was directly in my line of fire, so I leaned out of the stand at an angle to get a shot. I shot the biggest buck of my life on November 21, 2020, and it meant the world to me. I’d had a rough couple of years, and I knew my luck had to break at some point. I woke up late that morning, and rushed out to my stand in Swanville, knowing a big buck had been cruising the area. To cover my crunchy walk in, I grunted a couple of times as I settled into
my ladder stand at 7:15 a.m. Instantly, the squirrels and the blue jays started making raucous noises beyond the beech tree patch north of me. As I listened carefully, the crack of a large branch caused me to jump, since it was otherwise so quiet that morning. I couldn’t tell the direction from which the steps were coming. “A Shooter” As my eyes
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strained to the north, I suddenly caught movement to the east out of my peripheral vision. I turned my head, and immediately knew it was a buck and it was a shooter. The buck was skirting the edge of a thicket and the beech grove. Soon it would disappear into the firs, never to be seen again. I raise my 280 Remington to my shoulder. Just then, I lost sight of the deer. I dropped the scope down to re-locate my target. I saw the buck, but a birch tree that was bent down was directly in my line of fire, so I leaned out of the stand at an angle to get a shot. The buck did not
The author and his 201 lb. buck he bagged on November 21, 2020.
stop its steady march by my stand, so I settled the sight picture in its neck – the only part of the deer I could see. I slowly squeezed the trigger, and POW! – the big deer dropped in its tracks at 70
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yards. Got Bigger As I Got Closer Some hunters experience “ground shrinkage” as they approach their downed deer. For me, however, the opposite was true. As I walked up to the majestic creature, I gasped at its size. Final tally? 201 lbs. Ten points. The big buck was witnessed, registered and weighed by the good folks at the Monroe General Store. I feel blessed to have taken such an animal. My children and entire family would get a thrill out of seeing my story and the photo of the deer in the pages of The Maine Sportsman. Thank you for all you do for the sport of hunting.
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— Deer Hunting in Maine —
Whitetail Memories by Jerry Scribner – Belgrade, ME
During the 1988 hunt, I heard a deer coming toward me along a frozen, snow-covered skidder trail. The granular snow made the sound of the buck’s approach unmistakable – a sound I can clearly remember to this day. This year I turn 70, with 57 deer hunting seasons under my belt. As I get older, I frequently reflect on those magical days spent in pursuit of the whitetail. Scanning the various racks and mounts that adorn our walls, I relive the hunts that resulted in each harvest. Two of my earlier racks usually command my attention. For many years, I was content tagging the first deer that crossed my path. Thus, I shot many does and “skippers,” not harvesting a wall hanger until I was 34. Eight Pointer On November 26, 1986, I headed up the frozen ridge above our camp. The going was far from ideal for a deer stalker. The weather the past several days had left a ground cover of a foot of snow with a hard crust on top. The crust would support your weight for three or four silent steps, then give way with a loud CRUNCH!. Maybe it was this unnatural sound cadence that allowed me to “sneak” up on deer that morning. Cresting a small rise, I came face-toface with two does. I immediately froze, and we commenced to have a “stare down.” I endured several minutes of their hoof-stomping and head-bobbing be-
fore I noticed a bigger deer approaching from behind them. Although his head was down, there was no question that a very respectable stag was finally presenting me an opportunity. At that range, even I was able to close the deal on my first mature buck – a decent eight point. Palmate Antlers Exactly two years later, November 26, 1988, my brother Jay and I noisily headed up a frozen snow-covered skidder trail in Coplin before daybreak. On a prior hunt the previous week, I had discovered the bed and tracks of a big buck that was calling this ridge home. At a fork in the trail, we split up and continued our ascent. With increasing daylight, I was able to discern wet seepage in the center of the trail. By slowly stalking uphill in this wet footing, I found I could proceed rather quietly.
After walking three-quarters of a mile, I heard a deer coming toward me. The granular snow made the sound of the buck’s approach unmistakable – a sound I can clearly remember to this day. In a few moments, the big buck walked out into the trail 50 yards uphill from me. A couple of shots later, and I was standing over a very large buck with a palmate rack. This ancient monarch of the north country earned me my first “Biggest Bucks in Maine” patch. Take What’s Offered After harvesting these two “wall hangers,” I was destined to spend many hunting seasons holding out for mature bucks. Some years I was successful; other years I was not. Fast forward to the fall of 2021. Early in the season, after finding good sign and feed along the edge of a recent cut in Redington Township, I decided
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The author and a few of the white tail deer racks he has accumulated through his 57 years of hunting the Maine woods.
to employ a “wait ’em out” approach. Sitting against a tree, I sparingly used an estrous doe call. Three hours into my vigil, I heard a deer behind me. Turning slowly, I noticed that a curious doe had approached to within thirty yards. With an “any-deer” permit burning in my pocket and a freezer needing replenishment, I took the shot without regret. I had bittersweet thoughts while on my way to the tagging station. But after the first few bites of medium-rare doe tenderloin, any remorse immediately disap-
peared. It also brought back wonderful memories of all those does and skippers from my early hunting years. Don’t get me wrong – I thoroughly enjoyed those “trophy years.” If God provides me with future whitetail hunting seasons, I will not hesitate in harvesting mature bucks if presented with the opportunity. That being said, I am now convinced that hunting is about the journey, not the outcome. As Fred Bear stated, “A hunt based only on trophies taken, falls short of what the ultimate goal should be.”
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24 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
— Deer Hunting in Maine —
No Land to Hunt? Ask...or Find Public Access by Stacy Warren
It’s always worth asking a landowner for permission to hunt – you may be pleasantly surprised by the answer. For example, the author has been allowed to hunt on posted land after she trapped and removed nuisance beaver for a landowner. “Sometimes,” she says, “landowners just need to be reminded that we’re the good guys.” Now that deer season is here, the number of hunters in the woods increases exponentially. Even on land that my family has hunted exclusively for the last fifty years, we are now seeing an influx of strangers. Feeling frustrated, I decided to start expanding my options for bow and rifle seasons. So where do you start? If you have no land of your own, and you aren’t comfortable knocking down doors to ask, where do you hunt? First of all, it’s important that you ask permission to hunt land that isn’t yours. Even if the land isn’t posted, if you feel you have to sneak around, it just won’t feel right. And the last thing you want to do is be chased off land you didn’t ask to use, because at that point you’ll know the answer would be “No” for sure. So, if asking makes you cringe, then where can a hunter go that is simply open to hunting and not privately owned? Public land. Hunting on Public Land I’m constantly reading about public land hunting, which often gets a bad rap as being overrun with www.MaineSportsman.com
hunters, but I’m thinking there’s a lot of accessible land Maine hunters aren’t even aware exists. The Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry (DACF) has some great information on their website about where to hunt on state-owned properties. Hunting is not allowed at State Historic Sites or Memorials, but you can search by activity, and it lists the public lands and state parks open for hunting. Just be mindful to know the rules pertaining to state parks, especially when you can hunt. I was surprised to see so many options in southern Maine, since I’ve never really considered southern Maine anywhere near accessible to hunters ... but it is. Bear hunting has more restrictions and requirements, and bear hunting is allowed on public lands, but only by permit or lottery. More information about how to apply can be found on the DACF website. Land Trust Properties As Options And a fairly new option I came across is land trusts that are not state owned, such as the Ezra Smith
Wildlife Conservation Area, donated by the late George Smith and his family. The property is managed by the Kennebec Land Trust (KLT), which allows hunting on most of its 7,400 acres of land. There’s quite a comprehensive list, so go to their website and check it out. While not all land trusts allow hunting, surprisingly, many do. And different rules apply. For example, while the Maine Woodland Owners Land Trust doesn’t allow hunters to place game cameras or tree stands, the KLT does, with written permission. For a list of all Maine land trusts, go to the Maine Land Trust Network website. There is contact information for each land trust, so if you can’t find the information you want, then calling or emailing is always an option. If you have the opportunity to hunt any of these land trusts, you may want to consider making a donation to one, since access to this land wouldn’t be possible without the trusts. North Maine Woods Another resource for hunting is the North Maine Woods, which is an organization of several timber
The Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust allows hunting within its “Kennebago 300” conservation area, east of Cupsuptic. Photo credit: RLH Trust
companies and other landowners that let you access their land for a fee. You pay at one of the gates, and the land is there to hunt. Just know the Zone rules for whatever game you are hunting. When we hunt the NMW, it’s a trip, week-long or at least three days because we live so far away, so it’s not something right out your door, but it’s nice to know it’s there. And there are several registered guides throughout the NMW that can help you get that deer, moose, bear or small game. Paper company land outside – and closer than – the NMW offers lots of free opportunities. We rabbit hunt “up north,” and it’s on paper company land. The new gates limiting access to foot traffic only may deter hunters who are used to driving to their spots. There are plenty of roads to bird or rabbit hunt, deer hunt, moose hunt, and even bear hunt, if you’re not able to hunt over bait. We’ve all seen landowners who have “No hunting” signs posted everywhere,
but sometimes conversations can lead to opportunity such as just asking to bow hunt instead of rifle hunt. Sometimes the answer is still “No,” but it’s worth asking. We’ve been lucky to score hunting on posted land after we trapped and removed nuisance beaver for a landowner. Sometimes landowners just need to be reminded that we’re the good guys. And don’t forget to ask a farmer. He may hate those turkeys eating into his silage pile, and might suggest that you “Shoot all of them.” And if all else fails, ask friends if you can hunt with them. You may just find a mentor. Many friends make a trip to hunting camp each year and leave their own property un-hunted. Opportunity! Ask, ask, ask. You may just be surprised to find more people than you realize are willing to let you hunt. The more we talk to landowners, the more we build relationships that will help protect the future of hunting.
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The Magic of Deer Camp by Mark Scheeren & Hal Blood
Whether it’s the stories, the socializing, or the opportunity to focus on a certain type of hunt or even a certain deer, hunting camp is an enchanting place, and whitetail are the catalysts that bring everything and everyone together. In late October and early November, I’ll be deer and bear hunting in my native New York Adirondacks, and then I will head to Maine to join some of my fellow Big Woods Bucks Team members at camp. In the past, I’ve hunted all over the northeastern states and Montana as well, and one thing doesn’t change – the enchantment of deer camp. My First Deer Camp Deer camp isn’t a place per se; it’s an experience. If you are new to it, don’t worry, you’ll understand what I’m talking about soon enough. I remember the first time I traveled up to Jackman in 2006 to hunt with Hal Blood for a week. I was driving up Route 201 in the bright light of a full moon, and I was overwhelmed with joy and anticipation, along with a quiet nervousness. At that point in my life, I’d literally not had a full day off of work in more than 10 years – building a company and growing it is like that. As I drove, I wondered, “What is
a Maine deer camp like?” I soon found out it was like any other – wonderful people, great food and drink, and story after story that made you easily forget your anxieties and pains in life. That is the magic of camp – it helps you forget life for a little while. I do realize there are varying degrees to what I’m talking about here. Certainly my life has had its challenges, and so I treasure anything that brings me such deep joy. Others might find the stories and learning from the camp elders their particular brand of magic. Still others might like to drink and socialize without judgment as their attraction to their mountain pilgrimage each year. For still others it might be a place to focus strictly on a certain hunt, a certain deer, and where the effort on these particulars becomes their complete theme. Each hunter’s individual motivation really doesn’t matter – the point is, the magic is what you make it, and the intense allure of the whitetail is the catalyst that brings us all together.
Sharing Stories Last year I invited fellow Big Woods Team Member Glenn Bombardier to my camp in the Adirondacks. His first day in camp, I’d had a particularly great day tracking a big bodied ADK bruiser. At one point I saw him in his bed, had the scope’s reticle on his shoulder, but I just couldn’t see his head, so I passed on the shot just in case it was a doe. But nonetheless there was a real satisfaction that “I could have got him.” As I rolled into camp that night, I saw a beautiful eleven point buck in the back of Glenn’s Toyota. I got out of the truck and could not wait to hear the story. The best part was my nephew Josh, a very new hunter, got to hear the story directly from Glenn in the quiet of that camp. I also got to tell my story, and had I shot, oh what a story it would have been – a double tracking in the ADKs! But that wasn’t meant to be – it was Glenn’s day, and it was special in its own right. So, whether you’re a veteran of deer camp, new to it, or just getting your stride, I
When Mark Scheeren returned to deer camp after a day tracking, he saw that his friend had tagged out with an impressive 11-point buck. Mark could not wait to hear his friend’s tale. Story-telling is a primary deer camp activity. Mark Scheeren photo
hope you share your stories of magic so the rest of us can be there in our minds with you, all the while allowing us to forget about the difficulties and challenges of life for just a little while. Hal’s Thoughts There really is something special about a deer camp. Every hunter remembers the first time they went to
a deer camp. The anticipation of just being invited and then the journey to camp is an excitement that rivals shooting your first deer. I still remember my Great Uncle Milo inviting me to “the lodge” to deer hunt. I knew of the lodge, as my father would leave on his hunting trip to the (Big Woods World continued on next page)
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26 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Looking Back at My First Year as a Maine Guide It’s been a little over a year now since I’ve had my guide’s license for hunting and fishing. I have to say, I love it. With a little help from The Maine Sportsman magazine, other guides, and several outfitters, I’ve been doing between five and ten trips a month, from spring to fall. It’s not super busy, but a good start anyway. So far, as far as fishing goes, my trips have been mostly for bass and pike fishing, and also some trout and salmon. For hunting, I’ve been doing some turkey and waterfowl. I enjoy the variety. It definitely keeps me on my toes, and I have to stay on top of my game. Not a “Job” Like Other Jobs I can’t compare guiding to any other job I’ve had, and obviously it’s a lot different than most jobs, but it’s the most stressful and most rewarding experience I’ve ever had. Although I call it a “job,” it never feels like
The author enjoys his job immensely, but he says it brings with it some pressures and responsibilities. It’s one thing to go out all by yourself and not catch any fish; however, with clients along, you need to do your best to ensure different outcome.
Being a Maine Guide is easy -- as long as you are able to lead your customers to massive, trophy pike like this! Luke Giampetruzzi photo
it.
I always enjoy doing it, but the pressure is definitely on. In most jobs, you show up every day, and you know what you’re supposed to do, where you’re supposed to be, and at what time. Can’t Relax Until the Action Starts When you’re guiding, it’s constantly trying to stay on top of where the fish are and what they’re biting
Big Woods World (Continued from page 25)
lodge every year, and no matter how much I begged him to take me, he said I wasn’t ready. I still always waiting for his return in anticipation that he may have a deer strapped on the trunk of the car. I met my Uncle Milo at the very www.MaineSportsman.com
on. That’s constantly changing, so it can be stressful. It’s one thing for me to go out by myself, and if I don’t catch anything, it’s no big deal. When I’m guiding, I can’t feel that relaxed on a trip until we start putting fish in the boat, or until ducks and geese start showing up. There are always ways to improve your odds by scouting, but you can only do so
much when the fish aren’t biting or the ducks aren’t flying. And that’s the hardest part I’ve found as a guide is those slow days. I hate them. It’s Been a Good Year Fortunately, I’ve had a lot of awesome days of fishing from springtime through October. We’ve put a lot of fish in the boat, and some trophies, too. There’s nothing
first Blood family reunion. There were about 75 of us Bloods who wanted to meet our extended family, most of whom live down the Midcoast. I was drawn to Uncle Milo, as he went out of his way to talk to me about hunting. I was sixteen at the time, and when he found out that I had already shot a couple of deer, he wanted to hear my stories.
better than the feeling you get when it all comes together and you see someone smile from ear to ear. You know you helped them reach their goal whatever that may be, and that’s what I love about it. It’s almost more enjoyable to me to see someone else enjoy the Maine outdoors, than if I were doing it myself. Guiding certainly has its challenges, but for the most part the people I’ve fished and hunted with have all had great attitudes, even when times get slow. They’re just happy to be out doing it. The Future: Full-time Guide? I especially enjoy meeting new people and sharing stories of their past in the outdoors. It’s always so cool, especially when you get to learn things about their style of hunting or fishing back home. Even though I think it will take some time until I can become a full time guide, that’s definitely the end goal for me.
¶
We talked and talked, with him telling me deer stories, and many of his tales revolved around hunting at the lodge. Then he told me to come to the lodge that fall to hunt. I knew now my father couldn’t say no, and that set the stage for my early training grounds with the older guys at the family lodge.
¶
������������������������������������������� The Maine Sportsman • November 2022 • 27
Ten Mistakes That May Cost You a Trophy Buck For more than a month, the big buck had been working a rub line in a small section of woods between a cut corn and green field. He was making appearances a few times each week, on the edge of the field, before dark. A straight south wind was needed to hunt this stand. Unfortunately, my work schedule hadn’t allowed time to hunt that stand during times when the wind was right. Instead of waiting, I decided to hunt on a southwest wind. I knew it wasn’t ideal. Approximately 30 minutes before legal time ended, just as good light was fading, I caught a glimpse of a big-bodied deer coming my way. As the buck approached to within 75 yards, he
Why do certain hunters tag big bucks year after year? Perhaps it’s because they avoid the errors detailed below by our Big Game columnist. stopped and appeared very alert. The evening breeze wasn’t hitting me in the face as it would’ve been on a south wind. Instead, the cool air licked at the side of my face and neck. The buck never lifted his tail and never ran. Instead, after testing the air, he simply turned and walked back the way
he came in, never to be seen again that season. That’s Mistake #1 – hunting on a less than ideal wind for a stand. Life sometimes makes it difficult to hunt. I still contend, some of my best hunts have been days I didn’t hunt a stand because the wind wasn’t perfect. Later, when
the wind was right, I’d often return and have great results. That leads me to Mistake #2 – not having multiple stands or blinds set up for varying wind directions. Here’s a big reason I hunt from the ground so often during gun season. When the wind isn’t ideal for one stand, having multiple options keeps
us hunting and not at home. Mistake #3 – wearing hunting gear when we aren’t hunting. This is very common among firearms hunters, because the game is easier. Most of us have worn hunting clothes when we aren’t hunting. Whether it’s riding to and from our spots fully dressed, or wearing our gear into the store to grab coffee before we hunt, this is a habit that (Continued on next page)
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28 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Big Game (Continued from page 27)
can drastically reduce our success rates on big bucks, because of scents absorbed. Mistake #4 – not showering before we hunt. Hunters in a hurry to get in the stand often do this. Smells of the day and night lay on our bodies. Each of us has bacteria on our skin and hair. That bacteria feeds on our dead skin cells to give us a unique odor. When we fail to wash our bodies, that bacteria build up, and gives off more odor.
More odor means a better chance those bucks will know we’re hunting them. Mistake #5 – eating snacks that make noise or give off unnatural odor. I eat raw cashews while on stand. I eat them because they taste good and fill me up. I also eat them because they have little to no odor. Granola bars in a crinkly, loud wrapper, peanut butter sandwiches, jerky or whatever other people eat, all can alert deer
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to our presence. Why give them any more advantage than they already have? Mistake #6 has more to do with a deer’s eyes than their nose: Cutting wide shooting lanes right before the season calls attention to our presence. It’s one thing to cut a small tree or a few branches out of a shooting lane, but excessive trimming or all-out cutting of wide paths or trails through our hunting areas can alter deer movement faster than most any other disturbance in the forest. Keeping our disturbance to a minimum and even carrying limbs we touched out of the woods, will keep deer passing close by our stands. Mistake #7 – hunting the same
stand too many times. I’ve preached on this one for years, but we’re all susceptible because some stands are so productive. The kiss of death for most any stand is hunting it more than twice in a row. I firmly believe that deer avoid areas people frequent. Mistake #8 – becoming a creature of habit by arriving at the same time each day, parking in the same place, walking to or leaving our stands on the same trails each time. Just when we think we’re patterning a deer, it’s actually them patterning us and avoiding us more easily. Change things up now and then, just to throw them off. Mistake #9 – shooting a doe with a buck on her trail. As a youngster, my desire to
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shoot any deer caused me to shoot multiple does that had bucks on their trails during the rut. As I gained more experience, became less obsessed with killing and more interested in observing deer, it became obvious when a doe was in estrous. That sideways or outstretched tail lets us know she’s ready to breed, and that a buck will likely be following. Mistake #10 takes discipline and success to overcome – shooting a good buck, when we desire a great buck. This can leave us unsatisfied and downright mad at ourselves. Setting reasonable goals can help here. Waiting on a 180+ class buck in Maine is a hard sell. Setting a goal of shooting a 120 class buck is very reasonable in our state, but passing that 100” eight-point is a must if we want to achieve these goals. It becomes easier to pass a good one after you’ve killed a few great bucks. Good luck to all the hunters looking for a big buck this month!
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30 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Looking Backwards to Move Forward Outdoor writer and conservationist Andy Schafermeyer published a column in the New Hampshire Sunday News that caught my attention and has kept me thinking all during the run-up to deer season. Schafermeyer wrote about an epiphany of sorts that led him to downsizing and simplifying his sporting equipment in an effort to gain a better, more satisfying experience. Scaling back on fishing tackle can certainly enhance the fight in small fish and the subsequent pleasure of bringing the catch to hand, something Schafermeyer called “a greater challenge and sense of achievement.” To reach the same end with hunting may be a bit more complicated.
While modern firearms, calibers and scopes are popular, there’s a growing counterculture of hunters who preach simplification, and oftentimes that means considering iron sights, lever actions, and calibers that have served hunters effectively for more than 100 years.
Two prime candidates for a “simplified” deer hunt are the Savage Model 99 and the sleek Winchester Model 64. Both of these examples mount Lyman peep sights. J.C. Allard photo
It is not as easy to simplify hunting equipment.
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a fast, semi-automatic feed of ammunition and a scope that resembles a telescope.” He goes on to say, “An appropriate but effective downsize might be the lever-action .3030 with a peep sight that I got when I was a teenager.” Many of us devote much of our sporting lives to acquiring and mastering the use of the perfect lock, stock, barrel, cartridge, and sighting system for whatever hunting situation we might encounter. We often end up with far more than we need, stretching the budget, and sometimes condemning a fine rifle to the far back corner of the gun safe, just because it may not fit what we sense we need for that day, that terrain, or those shooting conditions. What if we paused and pondered where we’ve been and where we can go again? Mixed somewhere in the collection is likely a once-favored but now-ignored firearm that bespeaks a less complicated, less frenetic time, when that firearm represented the sublime pleasures of taking to woods in hopes of a fine, fat deer. Can that rifle and a fist full of cartridges rekindle the magic from so many years ago? Looking Back This idea tran(Continued on next page)
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scends mere nostalgia. It goes beyond an attempt to rekindle the feelings of times past. This is about using an old tool that once gave great pleasure to simplify and smooth the roughest edges off the here and now. And yet, in seeking simplicity, we are often forced to make choices – especially those of us who have a lot of past to account for. I didn’t own a deer rifle as a teenager, as Andy Schafermeyer did, so my move toward simplification only looks back a few decades; and I am 100 percent in agreement with his suggestion to consider a peep sight. As he says, “It will require increased concentration, greater marksmanship, and a shorter shooting distance,” but each of those things will make us better hunters and better sportsmen. The plan for this season includes hunting some brand new territory, making this a good time to switch to iron sights and the simplicity of a lever action. The new acreage includes stands set to over watch deer transiting zones flanked by bedding areas and feeding areas. The rather dense vegetation includes tall oaks to provide acorns, beech trees, and goodsized hemlocks. A scattering of giant white pines stretches toward the sunlight. No viable shot exceeds 60 yards. Two old-timers from the back of the gun safe seem perfect for hunting this new land in a more simplified manner. The vintage 1950 Savage
Model 99 in .300 Savage and mounting a Lyman Model 56 fully adjustable sight, and a Winchester Model 64 in .30-30 which mounts a Lyman Model 66 sight. Our Maine Sportsman editor shares my passion for the lithe Winchester, but the .300 Savage provides far better ballistics. Cartridges of the World says, “It is not adequate for moose or brown bear, but it is a fine deer or elk cartridge and a better choice than the .3030 for deer under any conditions.” Going Strong First offered by Savage in 1920, the .300 continues to take deer after more than a century. The .30-30 probably accounts for even more deer, and it dates back to 1895. The .30-30 will move a 150-grain bullet at al-
most 2,400 feet per second. The .300 Savage steps along at 2,800 feet per second. Muzzle energy for the .3030 with the 150-grain projectile reaches 1,902 foot pounds. A 150-grain bullet in the Savage attains 2,610 foot pounds of energy. Clearly the Savage offers more power, but either will suit. If a secondary purpose to our hunt is to experience a return to a simpler form of the annual deer hunt, then either the Winchester or the Savage will suit very well. Plenty of new, modern high-performing cartridges fill the marketplace. However, it is far too early to count the tried and true old timers down and out. Many of us do still yearn for a simpler life.
¶
Hunting Dog of the Month
When Don St. Germain and Katrina Nutt hunt birds in the North Maine Woods, they bring their fourpound “teacup” Chihuahua, Lui, along for the ride. Lui peers out the window. If Don or Katrina sees a bird, exits the vehicle, loads and shoots, they let Lui out to locate the downed bird. So far, however, Lui has not successfully managed to retrieve a full-size bird. Photos courtesy Nancy Carpenter
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32 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Soon It’ll Be Trail-riding Time! by Steve Carpenteri
Soon it will be time to hit Maine’s 14,000 miles of snowmobile trails. Smart riders will get ready early so they don’t miss a day on the trail. Photo courtesy of Arctic Cat
Like kids hovering around a pile of gifts on Christmas Eve, Maine’s 140,000 registered snowmobilers eagerly await the first substantial snowfall so they can rev their machines and head out for a ride on the state’s 14,000 miles of groomed trails. Early predictions from those who know (e.g., the Old Farmer’s Almanac, generally accurate since 1792, among others) suggest that Maine is in for a long, cold winter with plenty of snow. This is good news for snowmobilers, whose riding seasons have been curtailed or shortened in recent years by rewww.MaineSportsman.com
Deep snow is predicted for this winter, so now’s the time to tune up your snowmobile, review the registration status, support businesses that make the trail system possible, and make plans for enjoyable and safe riding adventures. duced snowfalls. So it’s time to get yourself and your sled ready, before enough of the white stuff falls to create a trail base. Those who don helmets and goggles for a wintry spin across the landscape should catch up on their machine’s maintenance schedule. Now’s your opportunity to repair what’s broken, get a tune-up, and otherwise ensure that sleds are ready to go and
safe to operate over the next five months. Register Now! Registration fees provide the funding to build and maintain the trail system. The funds also help support the clubs and volunteers who provide the critical work to maintain trail systems, and support private landowners who allow trail access. According to DIFW, ATV and snow-
mobile registrations are valid from July 1 through June 30. Snowmobile registrations submitted on or before May 31 will expire on June 30 of the same year. Snowmobile registrations submitted on or after June 1 will expire on June 30 of the following year. Maine residents may renew their snowmobile registration at mefishwildlife.com. Residents must com-
plete new registrations through a registration agent or the MDIFW main office in Augusta. Non-residents may register their snowmobile online at mefishwildlife.com. Snowmobilers who want to go the extra mile may help support Maine’s snowmobile program by purchasing a Snowmobile Trail Fund Donation Sticker. This program features three different stickers to reflect a donor’s contribution of $25, $50 or $100, respectively. For every donation, $2 is retained by MDIFW, and the remainder is transferred to the (Continued on next page)
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courses.
Snowmobile Trail Fund of the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Bureau of Parks and Lands.
Youth Snowmobile Laws Under Maine law, a person may not permit a child younger than 10 years of age to operate a snowmobile, unless an adult accompanies the child. This does not apply on land that is owned by the parent or guardian or on land where landowner permission for use has been granted to the parent or guardian. In addition, a person under 18 years of age may not operate a snowmobile or ride as a passenger without wearing protective headgear. Also, operators under 14 years of age may not operate a snowmobile across any public way maintained for vehicular travel.
Safety First As might be expected with some 140,000+ snowmobiles registered in Maine, there has been a corresponding increase in accidents involving these expensive, powerful machines. Participation in a snowmobile education course will teach you how to properly operate and maintain a snowmobile. Current laws, responsibilities, and personal safety are also addressed. Snowmobile safety courses are encouraged in Maine, but are not currently required. Learn more at mefishwildlife.com/safety-
(Continued on next page)
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*Offer available on approved purchases of new 2020-2023 Yamaha Snowmobile made on the Yamaha Credit Card issued by WebBank. Offer valid 10/1/22 through 12/31/22. Account must be open and current to be eligible for this offer. Introductory 3.99% APR financing with minimum payments of 1.34%, 1.51%, 1.86%, 2.20% of the purchase price balance are effective for initial 36 months. After the 36-month introductory period, minimum monthly payments shall be due equal to the greater of 1% of existing balance plus standard interest charges based on creditworthiness, late fees and late payment amounts, or $25 until the purchase price is paid in full. Minimum interest charge $2 per month. Standard interest charges based on standard APR 15.99%-23.99%. Always wear an approved helmet and eye protection. Observe all state and local laws. Respect the rights of others. Ride within your capabilities. Allow extra time and plenty of distance for maneuvering. Do not perform stunts. © 2022 Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A. All rights reserved.
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JACKMAN Jackman Power Sports 549 Main Street 207-668-4442 www.jackmanpowersports.com ©2022 Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. (BRP). All rights reserved. ®, ™ and the BRP logo are trademarks of BRP or its affiliates. Products in the United States (US) are distributed by BRP US Inc. Always ride responsibly and safely and wear appropriate clothing, including a helmet. Please observe applicable laws and regulations. Remember that riding and alcohol/drugs don’t mix. See your authorized BRP dealer for details and visit ski-doo.com.
www.MaineSportsman.com
34 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
EXPLORE. DISCOVER. DOMINATE. — Visit Your Local Arctic Cat Dealer for Current Promotions — GORHAM LEBANON White Rock Outboard Northeast Motorsports 351 Sebago Lake Road 451 Carl Broggi Hwy. 207-892-9606 207-457-2225 www.whiterockoutboard.com www.nemotorsportsofmaine.com JACKMAN Jackman Power Sports 549 Main Street 207-668-4442 www.jackmanpowersports.com
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WARNING: Arctic Cat snowmobiles can be hazardous to operate. For your safety, all riders should read and understand their owner’s manual and safety instructions. Always wear an approved helmet and other safety apparel. Be aware of natural hazards you may encounter and don’t drink and ride. All scenes depicted or described were performed by professional riders under carefully controlled conditions. Never attempt to duplicate these maneuvers or encourage others to do so. Arctic Cat recommends that all operators take a safety training course. For safety and training information, please see your local dealer. ©2023 Arctic Cat Inc. All rights reserved.
DOMINATING TRAIL PERFORMANCE INDY VR1 • Ferocious Acceleration • Effortless Control in Any Condition • The Most Advanced Technology on Snow
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LEWISTON Central Maine Powersports 845 Main Street 207-689-2345 www.centralmainepowersports.com Polaris recommends that all riders take a safety training course. Do not attempt maneuvers beyond your capability. Always wear a helmet and other safety apparel. Read, understand and follow your owner’s manual. Never drink and ride. Polaris is a registered trademark of Polaris Industries Inc. © 2022 Polaris Industries Inc.
www.MaineSportsman.com
Young snowmobilers will learn how to safely enjoy Maine’s most popular winter sport by following in the tracks of responsible adults. Photo courtesy of Arctic Cat
Snowmobiling (Continued from page 33)
Free Snowmobile Weekend Assuming that the Farmer’s Almanac is correct in its big-snow predictions, here’s a date to keep in mind if you’ve got friends or family in another state or Canadian province who want to try our state’s trail system – Maine’s annual Free Snowmobile Weekend will be held March 3-5, 2023. During this weekend, a non-resident (any person from another state or province) may operate a snowmobile in Maine, so long as the snowmobile has a valid registration from another state or province (no reciprocity is necessary). Join a Club All along those 14,000 miles of
groomed snowmobile trails are cities and towns that host Maine Snowmobile Association members and affiliates that have been active and involved in Maine’s snowmobile industry since 1968. Over 2,100 businesses support these trails and put a great deal of effort into ensuring a safe, enjoyable outing, no matter how long (or short) the trip. MSA members include a network of local clubs that accept responsibility for trail-clearing, bridge-building, maintenance, grooming and landowner relations, in a concerted and organized effort to keep the trails open and active. The MSA has a (Continued on next page)
ATV SXS 6-Wheel 8-Wheel 232 Jericho Road, Berlin, NH (603) 215-6002 www.JerichoOutdoors.net
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full-time office staff and lobbyist based in Augusta. Services include representing the association’s members in contacts with the media, the Maine legislature, state reg-
ulatory agencies, and Maine’s congressional delegation. The MSA also produces a newspaper (The Maine Snowmobiler), as well as an annual tourism guide, various safety publications, and the very popular map
of the Interconnected Trail System (ITS). The MSA maintains a complete and updated information pipeline through e-mails, its Web site and Facebook presence. Its busy, dedicated staff is also heavily
involved in trail development, landowner/access issues, recreation, tourism and legislative concerns. For more information, log onto the Maine Snowmobile Association Web site (MSA Info – Maine
Snowmobile Association) or call (207) 6226983. Here’s hoping the Old Farmer’s Almanac’s predictions are accurate – and let’s get ready to ride!
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36 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
A Black Lab in the Uplands by Steve Carpenteri
It doesn’t take too many seasons of ground-pounding before Maine’s upland birding contingent realizes they’d have better luck hunting with a bird dog. In my case, I wanted a dog that could perform on woodcock, grouse, ducks and geese, which pretty well eliminated all the “classy” breeds (pointers, setters and the like). I wanted a dog that wasn’t afraid to get wet, cold or muddy – one that would hunt from dawn till dark, and still have enough energy left to play a rousing game of fetch at the end of the day.
A properly-trained Black Lab is a flushing and retrieving machine.
The author found his black Lab to be a smart and perceptive flushing dog and retriever, and he trained the dog to respond to low whistles and hand gestures.
Why a Lab? It’s no surprise that I finally chose a black Labrador retriever. Fast, sleek, energetic, enthusiastic and unstoppable, a Lab is equal to any upland task. These dogs are extremely intelligent, with superior noses and hearing. Once they understand the nature of the game (find, flush and fetch the game of choice),
they often far exceed the hunter’s expectations and, eventually, become better at it than their owners – by far, in many cases. For example, several times I sent my Lab in to “find a bird,” the intent being for the dog to flush a grouse or woodcock in range, only to have the dog come back out with a bird firmly gripped
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in his mouth – that’s quick! Of course, when a bird fell but wasn’t dead, the dog would be on it in a heartbeat, invariably (and proudly) bringing the prize to hand on the sit. Training is Key As a group, the flushing dogs (Labs, cockers, spaniels and similar breeds) act and perform in like
fashion. The trick is in the training, and Maine-specific flushing dogs must learn to stay close, hunt hard and listen to commands. My training regimen was simple but consistent – the dog would walk at heel ’til I sent him into a thicket, apple tree or similar cover. I might have the dog sit and wait
while I found a good spot to shoot from, and then send him in to run a short, tight circle around me. The dog was always required to stay within 20 yards of my position to minimize out-of-range flushes, and when the dog finished his search he would automatically come back to me for new instructions. In this way, we could cover all the best habitat, and each bird flushed would be in shotgun range. The occasional wild-flushing bird would be marked down and receive our attention later. Start ’Em Young Training, by the way, begins at puppyhood. I am not a fan of shouting, yelling, whistles and horns when hunting the uplands, so I teach my dogs to respond to finger snaps, hand signals and low whistles – there is very little conversation between us while we are hunting. Early on, I would teach the dog to listen (Continued on next page)
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������������������������������������������� The Maine Sportsman • November 2022 • 37 (Continued from page 36)
for my finger snaps. Having his attention, I would point left or right and the dog would go that way, ostensibly to find a “bird” that I had cleverly hidden in the brush prior to the training session. I knew the bird was there, but he didn’t. Eventually the dog would trust that I would point him in the proper direction, and he’d go in fully expecting a bird to be there. Fortunately, flushing dogs don’t keep count or become disappointed if there is no bird to be found – they just move on to the next spot, full of anticipation and enthusiasm. Sooner or later there will be a bird to flush, and the dog will be ecstatic about it. Training Brings Results When walking old tote roads or clear-cut edges, I will bid the dog
A well-trained flushing dog works the edge cover and pushes birds out where hunters can get a shot. Photo courtesy of GettyImages
“sit and stay” while I move around to a good vantage point. Next, I will send the dog into the cover to look for birds, always keeping him within that 20yard limit. If he gets out too far, I’ll snap my fingers, which stops him immediately, and then point him in the direction I want him to
go – no yelling, hollering, horn-blowing or whistles required. With consistent, repetitive training (at least 20 minutes per day for the life of the dog), a flushing dog can be taught to respond and perform like a pro. It’s like having a vacuum-cleaner that can cover 20 yards in
Every Maine grouse brought to hand is a trophy all its own. A flushing dog will help hunters bag more birds with a lot less effort. Steve Carpenteri photo
a swath, and no bird can escape or be overlooked. On average, I would kill 40 grouse per season (on the wing) as well as woodcock, pheasants, quail and waterfowl. The beauty of a flusher is that these dogs are also consummate retrievers. I’d of-
ten plan my hunts to start with grouse and woodcock in the uplands, and end the day pass-shooting for wood ducks, black ducks or geese. All this, and these dogs are still ready to chase a ball around the back yard!
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MAINE WILDLIFE QUIZ: Mice by Steve Vose
Maine is home to three different species of mice, including the house mouse, deer mouse and white-footed mouse. For such a small and innocent-looking creature, mice are horribly destructive. Of the three species, the house mouse is considered the most troublesome. In homes, they feed on and contaminate food with droppings and urine, and cause structural damage to buildings by gnawing and nest-building, including chewing on wiring. Across the United States, it is estimated that mice and rats cost homeowners, farmers, businesses, municipalities and schools over $20 million annually in repairs and eradication costs. House mice additionally spread disease to humans and pets, including salmonellosis (food poisoning), leptospiro-
Questions 1. How many mouse species exist in Maine? 2. Of the three species of mice in Maine, which is the most troublesome?
sis, dysentery, and lymphocytic choriomeningitis. Deer mice and white-footed mice are two types of rodents in Maine that can get and spread hantavirus, a serious disease that can affect the lungs of humans (see more on hantavirus in this month’s trapping column by Dave Miller, page 69). White-footed mice are also known carriers of Lyme. Cats, dogs, foxes, hawks, owls and snakes all prey heavily on mice. Despite their low standing on the food chain, 3. Across the United States, how much money is spent cleaning up and eradicating mice and rats? 4. What are the four main diseases spread by house mice?
mice populations remain plentiful, due to their remarkable adaptability to almost any environment, combined with their high birth rates. A single female mouse can birth between 32 to 56 pups each year! While the house mouse, deer mouse and white-footed mouse all have slightly different lifespans, the average mouse in the wild lives 1-2 years. The average lifespan of a mouse in captivity is 3 years. The official title of the world’s oldest mouse belongs to a lab mouse named Yoda, who lived to be four years old. Yoda died in 2004, one week after his fourth birthday — or, in human years, his 136th birthday. He was a genetically altered dwarf mouse, specifically bred and cared for to reach old age. 5. What predators feed on mice? 6. How many pups can a single female mouse birth per year?
Answers on Page 42 www.MaineSportsman.com
38 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Chasing Dreams I went to deer camp for the first time at age five. I fell asleep at night listening to my father, grandfather and uncle tell deer hunting stories. My grandfather’s rule for camp was that we had to eat beans and pass gas like old dogs. Ever since he died, we’ve managed to continue those traditions. November is finally here! The local TV weather guy always gets me fired up. I’m sure you all know him. He frequently comes across all chipper and happy when temps are warmer than normal, with sunshine and blue skies in the 10day forecast. I just don’t like his attitude. Give me clouds, cool temps, and precipitation. My favorite days feature miserable weather, when the driving is sketchy, with wind blowing the snow around. If I can find a buck track in that nasty weather, I’m pretty confident I can catch him and maybe even kill him. Vermont’s firearm seasons are relatively short compared to our neighbors to the east, which is why you’ll see a lot of green plates across the northern half of New England. In 2022, our youth/ novice weekend occurs October 22nd/23rd, our early antlerless muzzleloader hunt for those with permits runs October 27th – 30th, then rifle deer season starts November 12th and ends November 27th, with a www.MaineSportsman.com
wrap-up of late muzzleloader for nine days from December 3rd – 11th. Camp Tradition The hunting camp tradition is strong in Vermont, with many shacks tucked off old dirt roads and squeezed into the back corners of fields. Opening weekend of rifle season is my family’s traditional gathering time at camp, even though many of us have been archery hunting and out across other states by the time that weekend rolls around. It still feels like deer hunting actually starts then. I’ve only missed a couple of opening weekends in the last 40 years. One was due to being deployed to Iraq, which seems like a noble enough reason, and the other I missed due to something called “steakhouse syndrome” that occurred when I was rushing to eat a deer tenderloin and got a large piece wedged in my esophagus – a far less noble excuse for missing camp. I eventually got it knocked down and was at camp the next night. I even made it out in time to bump up
a buck that my uncle shot Sunday morning! If you get invited to a Vermont hunting camp, it is reasonable to expect a good time with highly variable accommodations. I’d encourage you to go, because it can be a lot of fun. Just keep your expectations low. This will not be a traditional Maine sporting camp experience. My grandfather’s rule for camp was that we had to eat beans, drink beer, and fart like an old dog. Since he has passed, we’ve managed to continue to do all those things. Our bunks are filled with people from age 8 to 68, so things feel good there. The deer hunting in VT can be mixed, like everywhere, but every year game poles across VT sag under the weight of bucks taken by hunters who get into the woods. Where to Go For trackers, the northeast portion of the state holds more traditional timber company land hunting. Don’t neglect the spine of the state, though; the Green Mountain National Forest in the southern half of the
The crew at the author’s family deer camp in the mid-1990s around an opening weekend 10-point buck.
state has big country, and the units running up the middle have some big chunks of accessible ground. While posted land is on the increase, we can luckily still strike out across private ground, with plenty of public ground around. Rules on a legal buck vary, so pay attention to what unit you’re headed to. In those central and northeastern Wildlife Management Units (WMUs) C, D1, D2 E1, E2, G, I, L, M, P, and Q a legal buck is any deer with at least one antler three inches or more in length, whereas those units that are mostly in the Champlain and Connecticut River valleys, WMUs A, B, F1, F2, H, J1, J2, K, N, and O, a legal buck is any deer with at least one antler with two or more
antler points one inch in length or longer. Important to Pause and Reflect With deer season kicking off, it is easy to get laser focused on the pursuit of a buck. I love that aspect of deer hunting, but I think it’s important to pause occasionally and reflect back on our roots. It only takes a moment to appreciate how lucky we are to be out in the woods doing what we love. Spending time connecting with family and friends in traditional ways strengthens our bonds for the rest the year, and creates lasting memories. When this writer was five years old, he fell in love with the magic and mystery of going to deer camp. Had he been able to (New Hampshire continued on page 40)
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Inherit the Hunt About ten years ago, my grandfather told me to go down into his basement and pick out any gun I wanted. He had been fighting Parkinson’s disease for as long as I could remember. He knew his hunting days were now over, as the disease had robbed him of much of his motor control. He was starting the process of selling his gun collection to pay off some debts and bills, but he allowed my uncles, my dad and me to pick something out first.
What if you inherited one of your grandfather’s rifles? But then what if the barrel length, stock and sights didn’t feel quite right, and you missed several deer? Would you change the gun, to make it truly yours? Decisions Having been the second generation of a family-owned and operated gun shop for nearly 80 years, my grandfather had amassed a pretty good personal collection of walnut and blued steel. He had mostly mid-20th-century Remington and Winchester rifles and
shotguns. Lots of good used hunting stuff, but nothing of tremendous collector’s value or highly prized rarity. I knew, though, what kind of gun I needed to take. My grandfather was known for his reverence for the .300 Savage. He was particularly fond of its chambering in the Reming-
ton pumps, owning thirteen of them. To carry a piece of him with me in the woods, I would need one of the beloved “300s”. Twelve of the 13 were rifle-length Model 760s. I chose the odd one out: a Model 7600. It was a custom gun that my dad had had made for him. Though I wasn’t a
fan of the high gloss Monte Carlo-style stocks, I was drawn to the shorter 20” barrel – about half-way between rifle and carbine lengths. The rifle was topped with a vintage gloss pre-Monarch Nikon 2-7, mounted on see-thru Weavers, like all the old timers used to do. This was the only rifle I had known my grandfather to carry in my lifetime. It’s what he shot his cow moose with (6 times!) when I was seven years old—the hunt where (Continued on next page)
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my other (maternal) grandfather had a massive heart attack and passed away while helping change a flat tire after getting the moose back to the truck. This was really the only gun for me to choose. Missed Opportunities I made it my goal to kill a deer with that gun before my grandfather passed away. But three deer seasons in, I lost that timed race. For eight years, I carried that .300 without connecting on a deer. I shot a respectable number of deer in that time, but always on days I was carrying one of my other pumps (I have four that I rotate around every three or four days). After my grandfather’s passing, I continued to hunt with the gun the way he had it set up, though I didn’t like the stocks and loathed the seethrough mounts. I missed several running deer with it over the years. Two different bucks in one day, even. None were easy shots, but I like to think that with a more natural feeling setup, I could have put some red on the snow. Changing Times Last year I finally gave in. Though I wanted badly to kill a deer with that gun
exactly how he had carried it, I was sick of missed opportunities. I had the barrel cut down to real carbine length; I put a Leupold 1-4x20 with low profile mounts on; and I stripped the gloss finish off. I have a small woodburning business, and I had a customer who wanted me to burn his gunstock for him. I hadn’t done a gunstock before, so I didn’t want to make him my test dummy if something went wrong. So I decided that my grandfather’s .300 was a good test candidate. It was already stripped of finish, and I wasn’t worried about ruining the original value of the gun, since it had already been customized, and I didn’t have any plans of ever selling it anyway. I drew out a couple deer scenes and burned them in. I finished it over with a special extra matte finish that wouldn’t darken the wood – so the burning would stand out better. I was happy with how the gun looked and even happier with how it felt. I instantly had much more confidence carrying it in the woods. Moment of Truth I delayed carrying the .300 much until Thanksgiving week,
Vermont (Continued from page 38)
see into the future, he would have been shocked at the adventures he’s had and the deer he has been able to chase. Our old camp started out as just one cramped room, with bunks along the walls at one end. I remember lying www.MaineSportsman.com
The author fulfilled a 9-year long quest last November by taking a small buck with the Remington 7600 .300 Savage he inherited from his late grandfather. Ethan Emerson photos
After missing several running deer with his grandfather’s rifle setup, the author customized the Remington to his own liking, including burning some deer scenes into the stock.
when hunting out of my grandfather’s camp at Parmachenee Lake. On Tuesday morning, I was headed into an area of lowland with a half dozen big signpost rubs. Just before I got there, I caught a young buck moseying out from a softwood patch into an area of beaver pond swale. Two quick shots later and I final-
ly had a deer with my grandfather’s gun! It was the smallest buck I’ve ever shot, a 4 point 113#. I recognized its size (or lack thereof) before shooting, and for a split second I hesitated. But I distinctly thought about how this was finally the opportunity and gift I’d been waiting for with that gun.
in the second bunk while my father, grandfather and uncle chatted in the early darkness of a November night. The old barrel stove popped now and then, while the gas lights hissed and cast dim circles of light near the table. I fell asleep listening to deer hunting stories that night, and have had vi-
It doesn’t get much better that a broadside standing buck at 70 yards in the open that has no idea that you are there. It was too perfect of an opportunity to pass up. Perhaps, even, a gift from my grandfather, who was strictly a meat hunter. I couldn’t have been happier.
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sions of chasing bucks dancing in my head ever since. November is here. May the weather guy deliver us snow. Enjoy going to deer camp, and the hunt, and I hope everyone gets to chase down the buck of their dreams.
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Pre-season Practice at Varney’s Clay and Wing Shooting In last month’s column I mentioned that I didn’t think I’d get in very much range time with my shotgun before hitting the October woods after grouse this year. However, I am happy to report that I finally got down to Varney’s Clay Sports for some of the best shooting instruction I have ever experienced. Brad Varney owns and operates a topnotch clay and wing shooting facility in Richmond and, in my opinion, is the perfect instructor for those wanting to learn how to shoot more grouse. He has hunted grouse his whole life and knows what he’s talking about – he also knows how to teach folks to accurately powder clay pigeons, too. The first thing Varney had me do was a check for eye dominance. I thought I already knew how to do that, and had determined long ago that I was right-eye dominant. Varney had me take a PVC t-section in my right hand and aim it directly at his eye. When I did it, I could feel my left eye try and focus through the PVC pipe, then it flipped back to the right eye. Varney then had me try the same procedure with my left hand – raising the t-section to point at his eye. My
The skilled and insightful instructor was able to improve the author’s accuracy on a couple of difficult shots, such as the “grouse busting out of a high tree” scenario.
Wing and clay shooting instructor Brad Varney tuned up the author’s grouse game in one easy lesson. William Clunie photo
left eye took over and Varney exclaimed, “Did you notice your left eye was pulling to take over when you used your right hand, and really did take over when you used your left hand?” I told him that I did feel this phenomenon exactly as he described, and he told me that I was right-eye dominant, with a little left eye dominance creeping in at times. I had to ask, “How does this play into my shooting grouse with a shotgun?” My Excuse The patient shoot-
ing instructor told me, “I’ll bet you miss a lot of birds over your left shoulder – that’s because your left eye battles with your right eye for dominance. We’ll go out and shoot a little and see how much of a battle this is.” As Varney set up the facility for blasting clay pigeons, I started to think about the fact that I could use this “left-eye dominance thing” as a great excuse whenever I miss a bird and my hunting buddies question my shooting skills. When I mentioned this to Varney, he had me try
and hit a clay pigeon as it flew over my left shoulder. I hit the first few clay targets, and Varney said I might not be bothered too much by my left eye trying to take over. He put a patch over the left
lens of my shooting glasses, and we tried a few more shots, concluding that it didn’t really matter so much in my case. SO, my excuse went right out the window. As the highly skilled shooting instructor moved me around the facility, he had me try shooting in various scenarios that imitated the bird hunting shots I normally see during a day in the woods. I did better than I thought I would, and Varney praised me. Then he asked, “What hunting shots at grouse give you the most trouble?” I thought a bit and said, “Maybe straight away shots, and definitely when they are coming out of a high tree.” He grabbed my arm and said, “Come along, this way, I’ve got exactly what you need.” Best Lesson Ever Varney had me try a couple straight-away shots, and I missed. He told me how our (Continued on next page)
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If you believe as I do that Maine people must fight now to hold onto the culture and the values we have always known, please give me your support. I promise to listen to you and put people’s interests before any political party or group. I pledge to you that I will stand tall and provide the bold leadership necessary to get the job done.
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42 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Western Maine (Continued from page 41) eyes don’t really pick up how much of an angle there is, and that most folks don’t follow the arc of the “trajectory” of the bird with their shotgun barrel like they should. After applying what he said, I was able to consistently hit those dang straight-away shots. I’m sure Varney noticed the big smile on my face. The next thing Varney had me do was to take a shot at
a clay pigeon coming out of a high tower overhead, simulating a grouse flying out of a high tree. I missed a few shots, and Varney started talking, clearly explaining the reasons why so many folks (myself included) miss those shots at grouse that bust out of a tree. Varney said, “Most folks do exactly the opposite of what they should do – they raise their shotgun and pull the trigger as their
barrel crosses the path of the bird. The barrel is going one way, and the bird is going the other – that makes any kind of follow-through improbable. You must start the shot high, right where the bird comes out of the branches, follow the path of the bird, then fire when the muzzle catches up with the bird.” I tried to do as Varney said, and the next few times when he launched the clay pigeons out of the high tower, I dusted those
clays like a pro. Varney mentioned that he is selling his impressive facility, the wonderful place where he enjoyed a lifetime of showing folks how to get better at clay and wing shooting. On the grounds for sale are his wonderful home, the shooting range, and plenty of acres of prime hunting grounds. He said he might do a little instruction on the side, but he wants to retire and do as much hunting and fishing as he can.
Wildlife Quiz Answers: Mice 1. Three mouse species exist in Maine. 2. Of the three species of mice in Maine, the house mouse is the most troublesome. 3. Across the United States $20 mil-
lion annually is spent cleaning up and eradicating mice and rats. 4. House mice additionally spread disease, including salmonellosis (food poisoning), leptospirosis, dysentery, and
Anyone looking for a great hunting and shooting facility would do well to check out his place. Anyone wishing to get the best wing and clay shooting instruction around better give him a call soon – Maine’s premier wing and clay shooting instructor is going into semi-retirement, and heading to the woods to do a little hunting himself. Find information at www. varneysclaysports.com or call (207) 737-4993.
¶
(Quiz on Page 37)
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������������������������������������������� The Maine Sportsman • November 2022 • 43
You’re a Liar! or How Much Will This Cost Me? “What are you going to do about this guy?” For a couple of years, I was frequently asked that question, and I didn’t have an answer. It was alleged that he’d shot numerous deer for members of his family and relatives, and the deer tagging records listing the names of many of the fellow’s kinfolk seemed to substantiate those allegations. His nickname was Lucky, and it appeared that he was. On several occasions, I had observed his 4-wheel drive International pick-up truck parked at various places, so I didn’t know exactly where he usually hunted, but in seemed to be generally in the area of the Cider Hill Road in the Town of Exeter. Stake Out I knew that Lucky worked at the Eastland Woolen Mill in Corinna and got out of work at 2:30 p.m. So, since I was getting desperate, I decided to stake out the mill on the afternoon of November 9, 1973 and wait for him to leave. I parked my Rambler Ambassador, sort of hidden, by the Corinna Town Hall and waited for the mill to let out at 2:30 p.m. My guy left the mill right on time, and headed towards his residence. I decided to stay put as I thought he would soon come back past my location and head out Route 43 towards Exeter. Sure enough, later he drove
Based on a review of the tagging records, I surmised that either all members of Lucky’s family were outstanding hunters, or that Lucky was providing deer for them to tag. by in that direction, alone in his truck. I began to follow, keeping as far back as possible but still maintaining an occasional glimpse of the truck in order to see if he turned off somewhere. Due to the road having a series of long curves with some adjacent large fields, I was able to see the vehicle turn off onto the Bolstridge Road. Knowing this road would lead to the Cider Hill Road, I slowed down to avoid spooking Lucky and to give him some time to get where he was going. Fresh Tracks After a short period of time, I started along the Cider Hill Road in my Rambler. I began checking little turn-offs, looking for an indication that a vehicle had recently turned in somewhere. Before long, I discovered a set of fresh tracks on an old road that headed in a northerly direction off the Cider Hill Road. I examined a muddy area at entrance to the road and saw a puddle that still had bubbles from a vehicle driving through it. I also noted some clear snow tire prints that matched those on the International truck, as I had previously observed that truck’s tire pattern. I knew the road led up to some higher
ground, as well as several large fields. I stashed the Rambler out of sight and continued on foot. When I reached the fields, I saw the truck to the west. It was parked next to a partially grown-in woods road, with no sign of my hunter. Now, at least I knew where he was hunting and decided to take up a spot behind a little stone wall where I could observe the truck and just wait out the rest of the afternoon. While the likelihood of him shooting a deer while I was there was remote, I was in a good position and figured it would be worth the effort – after all, he was “Lucky.” The Sound of Shots After an hour or so, two shotgun reports rang out from the woods beyond where the truck was parked. A few minutes later, Lucky came out of the woods and while carrying a shotgun, walked up past his truck to the height of the land and looked all around. He then went back to his truck, turned in his 4-wheel drive hubs on the front wheels, and got in the truck with the shotgun. He then proceeded into the woods with the truck. I determined that it would now be to my benefit to follow the truck into the woods,
which I did at a safe distance. As dusk was setting in, I followed along until I heard the truck stop and the tailgate being dropped. Peeked in the Back of the Truck It was now obvious to me that Lucky was loading up a deer and would be heading back to town. It being early in the deer season, I was sure that Lucky would not be tagging out, so I concealed myself in some thick growth. The truck drove slowly by me in the darkening gloom, with its lights on. As it went by, I came out behind it and caught up to the truck. There was a cap on the truck body, but the cap had no back door. I looked inside. There, in the truck bed, was a spike horn buck with one antler shot off. I dropped back, still unseen, and let Lucky continue on. Then I headed back to my Rambler. Check the Tagging Records I took my time returning to town, and when I arrived, I stopped at the tagging station, Pearson’s store, to check on recently-registered deer. I was informed that Lucky’s father had just been in and registered a spike horn buck that had one antler shot off.
I went on home for supper and waited for Warden Norm Gilbert to arrive, as we had plans to work together later that night. Shortly after supper, Norm arrived, and I described my afternoon activities to him. We decided to address the situation by stopping at Lucky’s house before going on to work. The Confrontation At Lucky’s house, we found Lucky and his brother soaking out the heart and liver and celebrating the hunt with a drink of bourbon. We all went into his garage, where Lucky said he would show us the deer his father killed in Exeter. I asked him about the details, and he relayed how his father had killed this deer all by himself, up off the Cider Hill Road. I told Lucky that could not be what happened, as he was the one who had shot the deer. Lucky bristled up, and replied “You’re a [blankety-blank] liar!” I said, “Lucky, I wish you wouldn’t say that … let me explain.” Then I sat down on his Moto Ski snowmobile, and described just how he had done everything. When I got to the part about him coming out of the woods, looking around, and turning in his hubs, he turned pale and asked, “How much will this cost me?
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44 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Lost on a Tote Road I was scared. I could feel the sense of panic welling up inside me. I couldn’t believe I was lost. Turned around. Nothing looked familiar and I didn’t know which way to go. What should I do? No one will find me. They won’t know where to look. How far’s the truck? Where did I take a wrong turn? I felt like running back the way I’d come. All I wanted was for something to look familiar. Something I recognized – a road or bridge or a hill in the distance, and then I’d know where I was. But I didn’t run. First off, I knew better, and second, my bum knee wasn’t ready for running anyway. I was stuck and felt very lonely. I was lost, and the only way home was a puzzle I alone could solve. “You Old Fool” Tough spot to be in when you’re in your middle seventies. I thought to myself, “You old fool! If you don’t get out of these woods, they’ll call the wardens, and when they find me, I’ll have a lot of explaining to do.” I hated the thought. Where had I gone wrong? The day was creeping on, and I was running out of time. It was my own damn fault. I’d been lured by the sunshine and the brilliant autumn leaves and the warm fall day and the desire to once more walk the woods roads hoping to scare up a partridge. I tricked myself into thinking I’d be okay, and I was, for a while. The boys were all gone before sunup. I was left alone at the cabin. I kept the fire going, and made a new pot of coffee. I did a few chores. I cleared the table of breakfast and washed the dishes and cups. Swept the floor. Carried in firewood for the night and filled the wood box. Added some junks to the woodstove and closed the damper. Then I looked out and saw the blue sky and the white clouds reflected in the surface of the lake. “It’s too nice to stay inside,” I told myself. A short walk would do me good. www.MaineSportsman.com
I searched for the old road and continued walking, but things felt different. I didn’t recall that brook. Nothing looked familiar. Why didn’t I remember crossing that culvert? Panic began to set in.
Picture Perfect Day There was an old logging road - a good place to poke along and maybe see a grouse. It’s mostly level ground. I told myself I can make it. I grabbed my orange hoodie and orange cap and took my shotgun and a bottle of water and my new Earthmate GPS I’d been given as a birthday gift. I knew just enough to turn it on. The day was picture perfect, and it felt wonderful just to walk along the old road carpeted with pine needles and feel the weight of the shotgun cradled in my arms. I walked and walked, not feeling tired; enjoying the day and taking note of everything – deer tracks in the mud, an old beaver dam, some skidder ruts, and a new pulp cutting. I knew it was a mile through to the other road, but then I discovered many new roads. Active logging had been going on during the past year, and tote roads branched every which way. Slash was everywhere. The ground was torn
up, and grey woodchips blanketed the ground. I searched for the old road and continued a ways, but things felt different. I didn’t remember that brook. Had I picked the wrong road? I looked back at the cutoff lot. I Don’t Remember Crossing That Culvert Now I was confused. Where had I entered the cut? Where is the sun? How’d I get turned around so quickly? Just like that I’d lost my bearings, and now panic was setting in. The roads all looked the same. Which was the right one? I made my way back to the cutoff and looked for my own tracks. I must have come in from over there, so I walked that way, but nothing looked familiar. Why didn’t I remember crossing that culvert? Where the hell am I? Navigational Aid The boys had showed me how the GPS would show my position on the map. I dug out the PN40 and turned it on. It took a while to light up. I said to myself, “I hope this works.” I poked the buttons to bring up the map, and squinted to view the tiny screen. I decided the little diamond was me, and the lines were the roads. It took a bit to get oriented. I wished the screen were brighter. Slowly, I began to unravel the knot. Zooming in and out, I started to regain my bearings. I breathed easier. “The truck is over there,” I said to myself, and this dot is me, and in order to get home I have to walk that way. I turned around, searching for the trail. “It’s got to be that one,” I thought. I began walking. I kept checking the GPS to see if the dot was following me, and when I saw it was on the same trail I was on, I knew I was out of trouble. That’s all it took. Just enough to help me sort out one skidder road from another and pick the right one. Best birthday gift ever!
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Deer Hunting Traditions Run Deep and True It’s November, and deer hunting season takes precedence in the wild, forested mountains of the Rangeley Region. As soon as the weather takes a crisp turn, frosted and colorful leaves drop, and hunters stalk about the wooded hills – taking home a trophy whitetail buck weighs heavily on the minds of deer hunters this month. In my youth, I used whatever meager hunting gear I could patch together, and made it work. As my working career progressed and I earned more income, I purchased new guns, knives and clothing. Over time, I had quite a collection that ranged from some of the traditional gear I used as a kid, to some very high-tech stuff that I thought I had to have, or that I just wanted to try out. The closer I get to the 70-year-mark, the more I find myself drawn back to the simpler, traditional deer hunting gear that carried me through my youth – wool clothing, an old Primos Grunt call, my Buck knife, and an old Silva compass tied to my belt loop and stuffed in my left pants pocket. My first rifle was a $70 Spanish Mauser in 8mm that my father went in half on – income from my odd jobs as a kid paid for my share. It wasn’t a
In this era of synthetic stocks and stainless steel barrels, the author still has a hankering for what he calls the “old-timey stuff” – lever actions, oiled wood stocks, blued steel, leather slings, and the smell of Hoppes # 9.
Traditional hunting gear comforts the author. William Clunie photo
bad rifle, but it sure didn’t take me long to purchase my next rifle. I picked up a Marlin 336, in 30/30 Winchester, as soon as I started making decent money in my late teens. I always had several rifles around, but for serious deer hunting, the lever-actions always took a front row seat. I liked how they handled in the woods, and I could hit anything at 100 yards quickly and accurately.
Lever-Action Preference I probably watched too many old Cowboy/ Western movies as a kid. My obsession with lever-actions started with the rifle most kids used at that time – the Daisy “Red Ryder” BB gun. A large majority of young boys wanted to be Lucas McCain (played by actor Chuck Connors), a lever-action gunslinger fighting crime in the popular television series of the day, “The Rifleman.” I could swing that Daisy lever-action into
action fast and get the tin can targets flying at some amazing ranges. It wasn’t very long before I transitioned
my love of the lever-action to the real world of hunting. I went from the Model 336 Marlin to a .444 Marlin in the same model, then a Marlin 1895 “Guide Gun” in .45/70, and next a Marlin 1895CB in 45/70, and then back to the Marlin 336 in .308 Marlin. Oh, I forgot … I also had a Marlin 1894 LTD in .45 Colt Long, for Cowboy Action Shooting tournaments. The only one I still have is the Marlin 1895CB, and many years ago I added a little Marlin 39 in .22LR for rabbit hunting and plinking. I don’t know why, but I just can’t put a scope on those lever-action Marlin rifles – it simply doesn’t seem right to me. Even now, with my aging eyesight, I still prefer the looks and feel of a lever-action rifle with peep sights. The goofy thing is, when I hunt with lever-action rifles with peep sights, I’m good (Continued on next page)
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Rangeley Region (Continued from page 45)
out to around 100 yards, but I can’t see if the deer have antlers or not. For several years now, I have hunted with a bolt-action rifle with a scope because I want to see and shoot out beyond 100 yards if the opportunity presents itself, and it’s obvious that it helps to be able to see if the deer is antlered or not. Now this may seem even goofier, but I have just discovered a love of the Savage model 99 rifle, and I’m okay with scoping this lever-action rifle for some strange reason. With this combination, I have the best of two worlds – my favorite rifle action, and a scope that helps me take
deer at longer ranges if I get that chance. From what I’m finding, the Savage 99 comes in a several calibers; 30/30 Win., .308 Win., .300 Savage, the .250 Savage, and a few other odd ones. I’m focusing on getting one in .308 Win., or maybe the .300 Savage – both would be great deer hunting calibers with 150-grain bullets traveling somewhere between 2600fps and 2800fps. Why Value Tradition? I’m sure others feel the same as me … when it comes to the tools I use for hunting, I have an unreasonable urge to use older, traditional gear rather
than newer, high-tech stuff. It’s a funny thing – a sentiment that is terribly hard to put into words. Something mystical draws me to oiled wood stocks, blued steel, leather slings, Damascus steel knife blades and canvas tents. The smell of Hoppes # 9, Neat’s Foot Oil, and fired shells goes together perfectly, like a glass of milk with homemade chocolate chip cookies after dinner. Sure, I’ve hunted with synthetic-stocked rifles and shotguns. I even hunted coyotes with an AR-15 for a few years. The new stuff works great and really takes a beating, but for some reason or another, I am comforted by the old-timey stuff.
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Trophy Gallery
That’s a Big Buck! Maine Sportsman subscriber Brian Goodale of Cape Neddick, ME dropped this massive 10-point buck during the 2020 season.
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Hunters – Check Out These Overlooked Public lands Deer hunters who are looking for public land hunting areas should consider hunting in central sections of Southern Maine. This area offers good deer-hunting opportunities, with lots of public lands that are open to hunting. Deer numbers are also excellent in many of them. Some of these public lands are historically overlooked and are true hotspots for deer. Maine’s Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) are always great places to hunt; however, they do receive yearround human activity from hikers, ATVers, and folks like me who scout all year long. There are other opportunities available, and most do not receive much hunting pressure. If you choose to hunt on private property, then always ask for permission from the landowner, offer to pick up any litter on their property and ask where they want you to park. Give them a gift card from a local coffee shop even if they refuse to allow you to hunt, just for taking up their time. If you are uncomfortable with that, then consider public lands. Here are a few general and specific public lands to check. Town Forests Often overlooked locations like town forests and parks can offer sportsman great hunting locations. Every town in this area has public land that’s open to recreation, including hunting and fishing. Some are large and landlocked also remote – most local hunters aren’t aware of them. One of these parcels is near my home in Shapleigh, I killed my first deer there in the 1960s. Many of these properties are old, forgotten woodlots from abandoned homesteads that were taken by the town for nonpayment of back taxes. These properties are easy to find by searching town websites. While surfing these sites, look for town forest information and other town owned public lands open to hunting. As an example, Shapleigh has a few large town forests that have good white-tailed deer numbers – some receive zero hunting pressure. You should check out other towns, as well.
The hunting is good for all ages at the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Preserve. Photo: US Fish & Wildlife
Rachel Carson Refuge Although this area is located in coastal, high-populated southern Maine, it still has some excellent hunting opportunities. I just returned from a bowhunt on the RCR – didn’t see any deer, but the area had a lot of deer sign – it’s what I call a “just-a-matter-of-time” spot. It may surprise you, but much or the refuge allows firearm hunting, and it is open to deer, fox and coyote hunting, as well as migratory birds and waterfowl, plus upland game birds and falconry, in designated areas. To take advantage of this excellent opportunity, you must obtain a hunting permit; check their website for information. You will be hunting on federal land, and there are some requirements on the refuge that are in addition to the usual state hunting laws. The refuge is patrolled by federal wardens, and my encounters with them have been very positive and friendly; however, you do need to follow all requirements. These are detailed in a booklet you can download. A permit costs $15. Massabesic Experimental Forest (MEF) MEF is the largest non-industrial forest in New England, and the largest block of public land in southern Maine, totaling 3,600 acres. It consists of two
units, north and south, located in the towns of Alfred and Lyman. It has an interesting history. The original forest consisted of overgrown farmlands abandoned after the Civil War and Great Depression. However, in 1947, Mother Nature devastated the area with a large fire that consumed over 61,000 acres, engulfing towns and villages. Then came the “coup d’état” with high winds that blew down many more of the heat-stressed trees. Over 80 percent of the trees were lost. The U.S. Forest Service began management of the forest, and it became an experimental forest where research and forest ecology were conducted. They then began artificial regeneration and direct seeding, and today the forest is large and prospering – it has great deer habitat with red oak and white pine stands. The forest has the largest white-cedar wetland in New England, and some animals that are rare and uncommon to southern Maine. There are seven miles of hiking trails, and some are located deep into the interior of the forest. Life Goes on The 1947 fire referenced above that devastated an area from Brownfield to the sea in Kennebunk has a special meaning for me. On my parents’ honeymoon, instead of a night of bliss, they spent the day helping folks evacuate in Waterboro as the fire approached. One of the homes they evacuated was burnt to the ground. It was later rebuilt, and after a series of other owners, my daughter, her husband and my grandkids live at that re-built home on the West Road in Waterboro. I remember my mother telling me she watched the flames in the distance as they burnt through Shapleigh. Today, if you look closely, you can still see old, burnt stumps from the fire. Both the forest and people that were affected by the 1947 fire have recovered, towns and schools were rebuilt, and life goes on as if the great fire never happened – only the decaying, burnt stumps remain as a reminder.
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Hunters Optimistic This Deer Season Local deer hunters have reason to celebrate this month. This marks the first year a hunter with an any-deer permit can take a doe (antlerless deer) and a buck. Hunters can also purchase un-issued any-deer permits, increasing their chance at filling their freezer. I won a Superpack any-deer permit, my hunting partner Rene got a regular any-deer permit and my youth hunting buddy Waleed got his first antlerless deer permit, so we are in good shape with options galore as we enter the season. Rene and I both have permits for Zone 16, where we like to hunt in Auburn and Turner (DeLorme Atlas, Map 11, C-5). I always like to try for a nice, plump doe right off, but plans change when you have a deer in your scope. Truth be told, I’m tickled just to be out in the woods with my hunting partner Rene, marking more than 30 years that we’ve chased deer through the same woods. This year marks Waleed’s first deer season. At 14, he took his first gobbler in the spring, and he is ready for the deer hunting experience. With his hunter safety certificate in hand, a new set of deer hunting garb, and the enthusiasm that only a neophyte hunter can exude, this young man is ready! We spent the last few months prepping, which included trips to the rifle range to practice rifle and shotgun slug shooting. If Waleed joins me in my Turner woods, he will carry my .44 Winchester carbine. If he hunts his mom’s property, we are required to use a shotgun, so we dialed in my Remington 12-gauge with sabot slugs. I plan to try to get a left-over permit for Mom’s farm so I can up my odds of a full freezer this season. A few years back, Rene and I each bagged a deer on the same hunt. I’d love to repeat that feat. Waleed has heard tales of hunts past in the Turner woods, so he is anxious to experience the way we hunt that piece of forest. www.MaineSportsman.com
A few years back, Rene and I each bagged a deer on the same hunt. I’d love to repeat that feat.
Rene Lavoie of Lewiston shows off a beautiful 8-pointer taken on a memorable hunt with the author. Photo by Tom Roth
Permit Allocations Antlerless deer permits for Wildlife Management District (WMD) 16, covering portions of Auburn and Turner, top out at 6,025, a healthy number for that zone. A whopping 11,510 permits were allocated to WMD 21, covering South Auburn all the way down to the Sebago region and beyond. Hunters to the east, like Bill Tapley of Lisbon, have a crack at 11,380 antlerless permits. Tom’s Tactics This season will see a host of tactics by me and my hunting partners. Rene and I enjoy a legal two-man push on our deer woods. We have been hunting the same woods for close to four decades, and we know the land and what the deer do. All the land features have a nickname, so it’s easy for the two of us to communicate. “You sit on Machine Gun Rock
while I push through the thick stuff,” he will say. “I’ll wait by the old rock wall until you get into position,” will be my response. On his mom’s farm, we have a ground blind set up, along with a twoman tree stand. I’ve been watching the game cameras all summer, and I think our best bet is to get in the blind early in the afternoon and wait for the deer that generally cross the field in the afternoon. We may hang out in the tree stand in the morning, but I’m hesitant to do something that could spook the supper crowd. I’m likely as excited to teach Waleed the ways of the woods, and how to field dress a deer (with any luck), as he is to get in the woods and experience his first deer hunt. Other hunters are equally as excited as I am with the opportunity to harvest two deer. Brothers Greg and Ricker Hamilton have a lifetime of deer and turkey hunting experience together, and I always look forward to Greg’s report of their success and antics. They too have been hunting the same patches of woods for decades together, and each knows his role in time-honored and productive pushes. Likewise, buddy John Desjardins comes from a big deer hunting family in the southernmost range of WMD 21, and almost everyone in the family has an antlerless deer permit. John, Greg and I chat back and forth, starting with the first morning awaiting daylight right up through the end of the season. It’s a thrill to open my phone and see a freshly downed deer photo, knowing one of them connected. If I haven’t tagged out yet, that spurs me on even more. Some hunters have grumbled about having to pay an extra cost for the antlerless deer permits this year, but I can’t think of a bigger bargain than the ability to take two deer home for $14. Good luck to all those hunters out there, and I hope you make memories to last a lifetime in the November woods.
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A Trout For Thanksgiving Last November was warmer than normal, which didn’t inspire me to spend much time in the woods deer hunting. Besides that, trout were biting like mad. Our warming climate, plus new management policies on certain rivers and streams that allow for year-round fishing, have transformed fall – even late fall – into the equivalent of a “second season.” So rather than sitting idly on a deer stand back in the woods, I decided to take full advantage of the new fall fishing season. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife stocks year-round rivers in fall, often with fall yearlings – far larger fish than those released in spring. Besides that, in certain locations, fish stocked the previous spring, especially in rivers with dams, feel the spawning urge and travel upstream as far as the water beneath the dam. There they remain, fat, sassy and ready to make some angler’s day a happy one. Having been in the river or stream system since the previous spring, these trout have fully acclimated to their surroundings, and bear little resemblance to fresh-stocked fish. Also, every once in a while, a few fish that were stocked
The author says he has seen folks catch no trout in a certain pool, and leave. Then he has moved to the same pool and started catching fish, even as the other anglers are still in sight, driving away. Here, he tells the secrets of how to present a lure or hook to entice those wary fish.
The author chose to go trout fishing instead of deer hunting last Thanksgiving, and was rewarded with this beautiful brook trout. Tom Seymour photo
two springs ago will swim upstream in fall, providing some very high-quality fishing. Tackle Considerations These trout, even the recently stocked variety, are not dummies, and it requires a certain amount of finesse to catch them. I have patiently watched people fishing a pool that I knew brimmed with trout, and not catch a single one. Their problem was that they used heavy, clumsy terminal tackle, and also did not present it correctly. Many times, I have fished the same pool, even as the prior occupant was driving away, and caught trout. It’s a difference in terminal gear. No matter what, trout react better to offerings that act in a natural manner, compared to those that
appear as obvious counterfeits. In other words, a bait or lure should go with the flow, and not immediately plummet to the bottom. Even lures and baits meant for bottom bouncing should not sit on bottom, but gently travel along with the current. This requires fishing out each cast to the very end. The secret here is to match the tackle to the water. Too-heavy, or too-big lures, hooks and sinkers will turn trout off faster than a mink swimming up the pool. Specifically, avoid big sinkers. Most modern, non-lead sinkers are, by virtue of composition, lighter than their predecessors, and in order to get the line down, people naturally use larger sinkers. Also, most garden-variety tackle outlets sell bright – as in, shiny – sinkers.
Large, shiny sinkers are very effective at spooking trout, resulting in no hook-ups. However, bigger sinkers are only needed for thicker lines. If you use nothing larger than a 4-pound test line, even a nontoxic sinker in b.b. size is all you need. I often go even smaller. Also, swivels have no place in stream fishing for trout. They serve no
purpose, and detract from the presentation. Use only a plain hook or lure, tied directly to the line, and dispense with the unneeded jewelry. Fall Benefits As opposed to springtime fishing, high water isn’t necessarily a bad thing. High water awakens the urge that attracts trout from downstream, and without it, most previously-stocked fish would remain downstream. Also, as long as we don’t cast our shadow on the water, we needn’t practice the extreme stealth needed during clearer conditions. A lure or bait fished in high water needs to go with the flow, in a natural manner. However, fish may hold deep, and in order to present our offerings to them, we need to fish deep. There are (Trout Fishing continued on page 51)
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Learning how to Fly Fish Lakes and Ponds – Part 1 Are you comfortable fly fishing streams and rivers, but wondering how to transfer your skills to large ponds or lakes? The author takes readers step-bystep through the process of finding fish on large water bodies, starting with identifying likely food sources and determining where anglers will find concentrations of that food. I know a number of crackerjack fly anglers who fish moving water throughout Maine, and beyond. They confidently wade into any river or stream knowing they will most likely do well, whether it’s nymphing the Magalloway below Aziscohos Dam or coaxing the big browns on Connecticut’s Farmington River with size-22 midges. But ask them to fly-
fish for trout or salmon in a lake or good-size pond, and it’s a different story. They act like beginners taking their first fly-fishing class. “But I don’t know how to fly fish for trout in a lake!” they say. “What flies would I use?” “Where do we find the fish?” “I’m not sure I want to try it,” they conclude. Many seem lost at
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the idea of casting into the expanse of a lake versus the close quarters of a river. And yet, climate change-driven extreme weather is limiting the number of days that rivers fish well. Between early June and September, they are often too low, too warm, or in flood – sometimes all in the same week! My home water, the Kennebago River, used to fish well for good-sized salmon all season. Now, it’s limited to late May and the last two weeks in September. Lakes provide thermal refuges for cold-water species and are less affected by severe weather. They offer more days of decent fishing, so it behooves us to learn how
A tranquil evening of dry-fly fishing. All photos by the author
to fish them. And here is a little secret – the fish are bigger. Trolling or Casting Most anglers fish lakes by trolling. They use technological gadgets and gizmos to spot fish, read temperatures at different depths, register bottom contours, and vary the depth and speed of a variety of lures and
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other offerings. Nothing wrong with that, and lots of fun. But many of us also enjoy casting a dry fly or hand retrieving a steamer, setting the hook, and playing a fish on light tippet. Lakes can provide that experience too. The biggest challenge of lake fishing is getting your fly in front of an active fish, and that means locating them. Lake-dwelling trout and salmon swim where (1) the water temperature is ideal for them, (2) they have access to cover (most often deeper water), and (3) they can find food. Surface Feeding Let’s tackle the last one (food sources) first. Fly casters prefer fishing on – or close (Continued on next page)
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to – the surface, but where do you find surface-feeding fish? The answer: You find salmonids where food organisms stuck in the water surface become concentrated. These foods include: • Emerging aquatic insects resting on the surface before flying off. • Terrestrial insects blown into the lake, including bees, flies, mosquitoes, moths, inchworms, and spiders. • Dragon flies, damsel flies, and the much smaller midges that live around water and return to its surface to lay eggs. But how do you narrow down where to fish without randomly searching the entire lake? Lake Currents Riverine fish find currents that funnel food to them. For example, an eddy will trap insects in its swirling water for waiting fish to find. Lake-dwelling fish also utilize currents bringing concentrated numbers of floating insects to them. You may not think lake water can have a flow, but it can. Years ago, I was fishing Labrador’s Minipi Lake. A fiveknot wind blew down
The average size of trout caught in lakes is bigger than trout caught in rivers and streams.
the length of this long lake, but where it briefly narrowed, wind and riffles funneled, creating a subtle current. Emerging greendrake mayflies were being swept through the channel, and several noticeable noses were breaking the surface. On my first cast, my Quigley greendrake cripple was sucked down by a brook trout the size of a tournament-winning bass. It weighed a little over eight pounds. I have another example from earlier this year. I was fishing a lake a half-mile from its outlet with a breeze strengthening in that direction. I spotted a lazy dimple here and there, but my casts
Trout Fishing (Continued from page 49)
two ways to accomplish this, one with little chance of success, the other highly successful. Let’s consider the first. Most people, in order to get their lure down near bottom, resort to added weight. This may take your lure down deep, but it also impedes the action. No longer does your lure move naturally in the flowing water, but rather it bounces
were ignored. Then, I thought I saw a powerful rise against a shoreline dock. I rowed over for a closer look, and noticed a string of rises right against the shore around rocks and small docks. No smallmouth bass live in this lake, so I assumed they must be trout. I cast my parachute-Adams towards the biggest rise, and was surprised when the fly started drifting at a brisk clip along the shoreline towards the dam. It didn’t travel far before a fourteen-inch brook trout hammered it. I realized that a shoreline current had set up, and brook trout were doing what brook trout do – finding cov-
This 8-pound brook trout was sipping mayflies caught in a wind-driven current on Minipi Lake.
Fishing close to shore from a kayak gives a similar experience to wade fishing.
er and utilizing a current to bring them food. A heavy rainstorm the previous day had raised the lake, and it was draining towards the dam. The freshening wind blowing the same direction was strengthening the current, and the trout
and bumps along in a contrived, unnatural manner. Or worse, it doesn’t move at all. Either way, trout aren’t going to take your offering seriously. So what to do? The answer lies in line diameter. The heavier the line, the more water resistance; and the more water resistance, the slower it sinks. It’s a simple concept, but a vitally important one. When choosing a spinning line, don’t make your decision solely based upon
(and now, this writer) were taking advantage of it. Being observant pays off. We’ll continue in the December column, moving on to discuss how to determine proper depths and water temperatures.
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pound test, but instead, choose a line based upon diameter. Some mighty strong line comes in very thin forms. I use lines between 3 and 4 pound lb. test, and some of these are exceedingly thin, but cannot easily be broken by hand. Also, cast far upstream and allow a belly to form in your line. This will permit your lure to sweep low and deep. Properly armed, you’ll slay them this fall.
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52 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
— Guest Column —
Fly Fishing – and Maine Sportsmen – Help Me Deal with PTSD by Tom Laaser
Being a disabled veteran and living with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), it sometimes feels like you’re broken – a puzzle piece that will never quite fit right with the others. At first, solitude brought me comfort. Soon, however, I learned about the healing power of Mainers. Afghanistan – Injury, and Rehab I was injured in Afghanistan in 2014 while serving with the 10th Mountain Division. After I’d completed an extensive rehab period, the Army decided I could never fit back in the grand military puzzle, and retired me. Since then, I healed and accepted the fact I will never connect with people as I once did.
A healing veteran learns one of the best things about fly fishing in Maine is the supportive Mainers he meets along the way. Maine -A Healing Place Of all the places in the world, Maine proved to be the most healing. It is gorgeous, in an understated way. The pines, the rocky coasts, the glittering mica in the rocks along the hiking trails – those elements have always brought a sense of home to me. The state’s size and low population also meant that I had the chance to be alone. Passion for Fly Fishing My passion for fly fishing was well matched to the state’s rivers and streams, as well as to my need for solitude. I found myself hiking deeper into woods to find untouched streams. I’d drive
down miles of logging roads. My desire to fish helped to keep me away from people as I traveled into the quiet of the Maine woods. Chance Encounter One day, I was struggling with a particular steam. An old timer in a tan vest and bucket hat crooked to the side ambled up to me. He offered me a fly he guaranteed to work, talked about the different things to know and look out for with this particular stream, and even let me in on some of his “secret spots.” A while into our conversation, I learned he was a veteran himself. I had expected to hate this intrusion on my fishing, but I found that on that day, he
The author in Afghanistan in 2013. He was stationed at Clark Base, near the Pakistan border -- a camp that received neardaily mortar fire. www.MaineSportsman.com
was my favorite part of it. A few weeks later, I heard about the group called “Project Healing Waters,” a nonprofit organization that helps disabled veterans through fly fishing. I expected to go once out of curiosity, and never again. Instead, what I found was a group of vets around a long table at the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine in Augusta, diligently tying flies, offering advice, and telling jokes. I’ve since come back to tie more flies, and I’ve even gone on a few trips with them. “Now, I Don’t Have to Stay Apart” When I was injured nearly a decade ago, I felt all I wanted was to be alone. The puzzle
piece left in the box. I thought I could go into the Maine woods and fish. However, what I encountered in those woods was the most beautiful part of this state – Mainers. On stream after stream and from one fly-tying table to the next, I found Mainers to be kind and patient to a fault. Always willing to help. Passionate for all things outdoors, and for the community around those activities. These Mainers have made me realize I don’t have to stay apart. They’ve made me feel connected. When I stand in the cold waters of Maine, fly rod in hand, and see another person downstream, I wave, smile, and think to myself, “That’s the best part of fishing, right there.”
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During the summer of 2022, the author fished the Androscoggin River with other members of Maine Project Healing Waters.
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Trespassing Tim It’s no secret that the Maine Warden Service has a tough job, and that job is made much harder by those sportsmen who do not obey the laws. While I feel the vast majority of those who live in and visit Maine’s woods and waters every year are upstanding, law abiding citizens, there are always a few bad apples. Maine’s Warden Service does a great job of enforcing laws regarding “black and white” areas of the laws. They also do a good job making judgment calls on what I like to refer to as the “gray” areas of the laws. Maine’s many and complex game rules and regulations sometimes make it extremely difficult for the average person to navigate these laws and ensure that they never violate these laws. Not always an easy task. There are the very obvious and clear “black and white” violations – e.g., a hunter caught red handed hunting at night with a loaded rifle and flashlight. Where things get exponentially more difficult, are the areas of “gray,” and that is where my friend “Trespassing Tim” makes his entrance onto this story’s stage. The Story A few years ago, Tim was hunting a piece of property be-
As the author’s friend Tim began to explain to the two wardens that he had permission to hunt the property and ignore the “No Trespassing” signs, both law enforcement officials began shaking their heads in disagreement. longing to another friend in the northern part of the state. He had actually been hunting the property for a number of consecutive years during each November’s deer season. The directions to the property where roughly this: 1) Travel past the large clear cut on the logging road; 2) Crest a large hill; 3) Cross a small stream; and 4) Park in the parking lot on the right and enter the hunting area there; and 5) Don’t worry about the “No Trespassing” signs – I put them out to discourage people from dumping garbage. My friend couldn’t believe how good the hunting was on the property, and one year he invited a friend of his son to join him and his son on a Youth Hunt. One of the boys even shot a nice spike horn. At the beginning of the next deer hunting season, Tim noticed that his friend had set out several remote monitored game cameras and several more “No Trespassing” signs in the small parking lot. He was immediately impressed at the additional security his friend had added. and was planning to call
him after his vacation week of hunting to tell him. Tim continued to hunt the property every day that week with no luck. On Saturday, his young son joined him, and they were hunting the property together on the last day. At almost last legal light, an enormous buck walked out in the clear cut, but my friend’s young son couldn’t manage to get the deer in his scope. Seeing that the buck was about to disappear into the wood line, my friend fired a shot and cleanly missed. Two Men Approach While searching for blood, my friend was surprised to see two men walking through the woods toward him. Thinking they were other hunters, he waved them over. As they drew closer, he could see the uniforms clearly identifying them as members of the Maine Warden Service. Undeterred, as he had done nothing wrong or illegal, he went on to strike up a conversations with the two men about how he had just seen the biggest buck of his life. The two officers politely let my friend tell his tale before saying, “Do you know you are trespassing
on private property?” My friend, undeterred as he believed he had done nothing wrong, told the officers he was hunting the private land of his friend. The wardens then asked, “Where do you think you are?” My friend, a long time man of the Maine woods, knew exactly where he was, and was happy to provide the two officers the name of the landowner and a brief rundown of the directions he had been provided. The wardens both shook their heads, looked at each other and smiled. “Do you know that you are two miles from that property?” asked one of the wardens. My friend was dumbstruck by the statement, and all of the blood ran out of his face. “The Owner Has Been Watching You on Camera.” “Yes,” continued one Warden. “The landowner has been watching you on those remote cameras all week blatantly ignoring his ‘No Trespassing’ signs, he is very upset.” At this point, my friends knees began to weaken, and he had a growing and uncomfortable sense that a large fine or jail time
was in his future, and that soon he’d thrown into chains and irons in front of his young son and hauled off to the dungeons! All’s Well That Ends Well Fortunately, that fate did not come to pass, as the Maine Warden Service does a fine job of navigating the gray or the areas of the law where good people just screw up. My friend was able to walk away from the situation with new directions on how to get to the actual property he was supposed to hunt. Once they were back at the truck, my friend’s young son reminded him that they had forgotten their hunting backpacks and camping chairs in the woods on the property. My friend replied that those items now belonged to Mother Nature, as he was NEVER going back on the property again! I hope everyone has a safe and productive hunting season, and many thanks to the Maine Wardens Service for demonstrating to my friend and his son the good judgment that helps separate those hunters who intentionally break the law, and those who are law-abiding citizens who just need guidance and understanding to stay on the legal path.
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54 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
For Deer-Hunting Success, Find a Setup Deer hunting in Midcoast Maine differs from hunting in the big woods of northern regions in that for best chances of success, a hunter needs to develop a setup, or a dependable place where deer travel. A setup must remain viable year-in and year-out. That way, the hunter can concentrate upon a known quantity rather than depending upon the luck of the draw. When I was young, certain fields were dependable deer producers. In these situations, it was possible to erect a comfortable, permanent ground blind to cover most of the field. Field hunting was afternoon and evening hunting. Each day around dusk, deer would leave the surrounding woods and filter into the field to forage for green grass. It took patience to get a buck in such situations, because the bucks would ordinarily set the does out first, seemingly to make sure there was no danger. But patience eventually pays off, and some people shoot a big buck from the same field most ev-
ery year. For those who just hunted for the meat, it was relatively easy to take a doe from a field setting. Good fields were like deep holes in a stream. You knew the trout were always there; it was just a question of getting them to bite. But fields had one fault. Unless they were regularly mowed, they would quickly become overgrown with pioneer vegetation – poplar, raspberries, alders and white birch. Eventually the field was no longer a field. Case in point – the field I hunted as a teenager is no longer a field, but a woodland. It makes me feel old when passing by and remembering that there, I sat behind a stone fence and shot deer on the other side of the field. Also, fields have fallen victim to development and consequent posting. Fortunate is the hunter who still has a good open field to work. Cuttings, Edges Fortunately, fields aren’t the only options for reliable deer-hunting setups. Old cuttings, often far back in
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the woods, serve a similar purpose to fields. Deer tend to forsake the thick woods in late afternoon, in favor of the openness of old or recent cuttings. The difference between hunting an active cutting and hunting a wide-open field is that in a cutting, the hunter often does not have the benefit of distance in order to establish a stand. Instead, it may be necessary to sit directly on the edge of the cutting and watch to the left and right. In cuttings, it is pretty easy to determine where the deer travel. In fact, travel lanes from the woods to the cutting and even from cutting-to-cutting get refreshed each year. Such historic travel routes are like money in the bank. Watch them long enough, and sooner or later deer will come through. When hunting woodland clearings, we find a variable factor not normally found when hunting fields. Other hunters may stumble into your stand and scare the deer away. Even if they don’t come directly upon your field of view, their scent and sound may suffice to destroy the effectiveness of your setup. As aggravating as this is, there’s little we can do about it. Once the damage is done, it is done. It may take several days or even a week
Pam Grass of Searsport scored big while hunting her favorite whitetail spot.
or more for things to calm down at your favorite woodland setup. But don’t give up. A buck in the rut, crazed by doe scent, may come tripping along at any time. When they are in that state, the last thing they have on their mind is a hunter. Power Lines Utility rights-ofway often prove worthwhile places to spend time each November. As with woodland cuttings and fields, deer use these to get out in the open and forage. Unlike cuttings, long shots prevail, and scoped rifles become necessary for success. I remember the longest shot I ever made with open sights. It was along a power line right-of-way, and a deer was walking in some tall grass at the extreme end of the effective range of my
peep-sight-mounted rifle. It was just too far to shoot, so when the deer would put its head down, I would sneak, hands-andknees, closer and closer. Finally the animal spotted me and ran. I stood up and swung on it. It was like firing at a partridge that was just about to go out of range or behind a tree. I remember following through and watching the deer disappear. Later, I found it stone dead. The projectile had formed a perfect mushroom – the kind you see in ammunition ads. But really, that was too far for open sights. When hunting at great distances, use a scoped rifle. Whether rights-ofway, fields or cuttings, try to find a setup this fall. Then hunt it hard.
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New Maine Mackerel Regs On Tap It appears very likely that Maine will issue final regulations establishing a 20-fish per person daily limit on mackerel, to match the upcoming federal limit. That’s not a bad result, says the author, given that a complete recreational ban was initially under consideration. In the March, 2022 issue, I reported that the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (regulators in the group of states from New York to North Carolina that manage fish in federal waters off those states) had determined that stocks of Atlantic mackerel were only at 24% of the target biomass of some 180,000 metric tons. The MAFMC was then tasked with rebuilding the mackerel stock, as it’s actually responsible for mackerel management even though much of the commercial and sport catch now takes place outside of its jurisdiction off New England. So, the MAFMC set up a number of public hearings last spring to gather input from
fishermen, and began developing a management plan to reduce the catch by 50%. When the dust settled, the MAFMC proposed a 20-fish bag limit for recreational anglers in federal waters, along with deep cuts in the commercial catch. As of this writing, the MAFMC’s new plan is scheduled for implementation on January 1, 2023, but the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) has already come out with proposed complementary regulations for our state waters (inside the 3-mile limit). Basically, for the recreational sector, DMR has proposed the same 20-mackerel daily bag limit per person, but there would be no minimum size.
Mackerel caught on a recreational, party, or charter boat could be pooled in one or more containers, and compliance with the possession limit will be determined by dividing the number of mackerel onboard by the number of persons onboard. In addition, mackerel caught recreationally could be communally stored alive in dockside bait pens. (In other words, several striper anglers or tuna
Jeff Pendleton of Wiscasset caught five of these juvenile bonito on a sabiki rig in Boothbay Harbor on a single day in mid-September. Note the sharp teeth, broad vertical bars, and elongated dorsal fin that differentiate the bonito from our more wellknown Atlantic mackerel. Jeff Pendleton photo
fishermen at a marina or pier could put their mackerel in a single pen). Also, mackerel purchased from a lawful bait dealer with
proof of receipt would not count toward the 20-fish possession limit, nor would chunked, frozen mackerel. (Continued on next page)
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56 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Saltwater Fishing (Continued from page 55)
Finally, the possession limit would not apply to holders of several commercial licenses, including lobster and crab licenses, finfish licenses, and retail licenses issued by the DMR. I predict the proposed regulations will indeed become implemented, and although I’m not certain of the timeframe, there’s little question in my mind that they’ll be in place for the start of the 2023 saltwater fishing season. Kudos to the DMR for not considering a recreational closed season on mackerel (which the MAFMC had at one point suggested) that might have proved detrimental to striper and tuna fishermen, as well as Maine’s coastal tourism. After all, mackerel are about the only saltwater fish in our state that can easily be caught from shore,
bridge, jetty, pier, or small boat by novice adult fishermen and kids. I don’t think a 20-mackerel bag limit will be much of a burden on Maine’s resident and visiting saltwater anglers, and if it actually ends up helping to rebuild the stock, so much the better. Bonito Back Again Speaking of mackerel, those juvenile Atlantic bonito that first (as far as I know) migrated up along the Maine coast in late summer of 2016, were back this year. These 10” to 14” fish apparently mix in with Atlantic mackerel, yet are distinctly different in that they sport a set of mean, very sharp teeth and a long dorsal fin, and their coloration is brighter and greener with distinct dark bars that will morph into thin, almost horizontal
Maine’s Department of Marine Resources is expected to implement a new rule that would establish a daily bag limit of 20 recreationally-caught mackerel per person per day that will go into effect for the 2023 saltwater fishing season. Barry Gibson photo
stripes as the fish matures. Adult bonito, sometimes called
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“green bonito,” are uncommon in the Gulf of Maine, so it’s still a bit of a mystery as to why the young ones swim up into this neck of the woods. Bonito are a much-revered and sought-after game fish in the waters south of Cape Cod. They can grow to better than 15 pounds, and their blistering runs make for superb sport on fly and light spin tackle. And, they’re very good eating. Personally, I would release these young fish to grow so they can be caught when they’re older. There is some thought that they can be used as live bait, but I think their value as a sport fish is paramount. Great Striper Season By almost all accounts, the 2022 Maine
striper season exceeded everyone’s expectations, particularly in the number of big fish taken. I viewed hundreds of photos posted online of fish ranging from just-short to slot fish to over-slots in the 36” to 50” class. Many of the fish within the slot size were taken by folks who stated that that it was “their first keeper ever,” and a lot of youngsters caught their first bass as well. Personally speaking, the percentage of slot fish to under-slots aboard my charter boat out of Boothbay Harbor jumped from 2% in 2021 to 13% this year. Why did so many big bass migrate up into Maine waters this past season? More thoughts on this in an upcoming column.
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A Case for Duck Stamps Waterfowl hunters must purchase a federal duck stamp. However, the author encourages all outdoor enthusiasts to likewise buy a stamp, since the benefits of wetland protection funded with the sale proceeds extend well beyond hunting. Whether or not you hunt waterfowl, you should buy a duck stamp. While duck and goose hunters 16 years and older must buy one to hunt waterfowl, everyone can and should buy one. The Duck Stamp Program is one of the most successful conservation tools in history; it has raised over $1.1 billion and protected over 6 million acres of wetlands. Formally known as the Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, the stamp program was started in 1934 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The first stamp cost $1. Today, a stamp costs $25, but 98% of that goes toward purchasing wetland habitat. The program is easy, efficient,
and direct. Stamps can be purchased at your local post office, or some retailers like Cabela’s. Benefits Extend Beyond Waterfowl Waterfowl aren’t the only ones that benefit from wetlands. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, more than one-third of threatened and endangered species live exclusively in wetlands. A slew of wildlife, from frogs to muskrats to falcons and fish, depend on wetlands. The wetlands themselves help with flood storage, improve water quality, and provide other recreational opportunities, including trapping and birding. The stamp can also be used for admission to National
This photo depicts the 2022-2023 federal duck stamp. Hunters must sign their stamp. Christi Holmes photo
Wildlife Refuges, like the Rachel Carson and Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuges here in Maine. In addition, many people collect the beautiful stamps. Competition Every year, a national art competition is held by the US Fish and Wildlife Service to determine the stamp’s design. Five eligible species are named in the rules, and artists must depict one of the five. Submissions must adhere to strict guidelines (no letters or numbers), and are judged by a panel whose members evaluate specific criteria, such as accuracy of the bird and originality. The contest started in 1949, and it’s the only juried art competition sponsored by the federal government. This year’s stamp features redhead ducks. Winners of the contest do not receive compensation, but often sell prints of their design to collectors, hunters, and conservationists. State Contest The State of Maine also hosts a state Duck Stamp Art contest. While a state stamp is not required for waterfowl hunting, the money raised from selling the state duck stamps goes toward conserva-
The 2022 winning State of Maine duck stamp by Rebekah Lowell of Biddeford depicts a pair of wood duck. Photo: Maine DIFW
tion and management of waterfowl in Maine. This year’s winner features wood ducks. Judging takes place at The State of Maine Sportsman Show in Augusta. Junior Contest A national Junior Duck Stamp Art competition is also held. The winner receives $1,000, and stamps can be purchased at
the Post Office. Money raised goes toward educating and engaging students in wildlife and wetland conservation and outdoor recreation, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service. So even if you don’t hunt waterfowl, buy a duck stamp, and encourage your friends to do so, also!
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Many people collect duck stamps. The proceeds fund an efficient program to protect wetland. Christi Holmes photo www.MaineSportsman.com
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Moose Loin Chops – A Romantic Dinner for Two? CONGRATULATIONS to this fall’s many successful moose hunters! My husband and I were fortunate enough to have been selected in the lottery. We are so excited! Here’s a recipe to bring us all good luck for a prosperous hunting season.
As winter comes closer, stews become thicker, with more herbs and spices – all to build up our reserves. I am dedicating this recipe to my dear cousin Jeff Hall, who recently left us. I used to make him soups and stews every month or two. Once I ran out of
canning jars and froze a few quarts, and the veggies were mushy. Veggies just don’t do well freezing. So, I bought more jars! Enjoy, and Bon Appetit!
rosemary sprigs, placing leaves and needles on cutting board with basil, sage, garlic, and salt; coarsely chop together. Transfer to mixing bowl, and stir in black pepper and wine. Slowly whisk in olive oil. Place moose steaks in large resealable plastic bag, add marinade, and seal bag. Refrigerate overnight, turning bag occasionally to redistribute marinade. Sauté mushrooms and onions, slowly, until almost caramelized. Preheat grill with cast-iron grill pan
in the grill to high heat. Sear moose loins on both sides until outside is deeply browned and caramelized, and internal temperature is 125°F for rare or 135°F for medium rare. Transfer meat to cutting board and tent with foil; rest for 5 minutes. Serve on top of sauteed mushrooms and onions with any side. Shown in photo: Drizzled blue cheese dressing over tomatoes, cukes and avocado, with sprinkled black pepper.
I have tried this marinade using fresh and dried herbs, and my preference is fresh. However, a longer marinade time yields flavorful results too! Ingredients: • 1 pound moose loin steaks, 2-inch slices • ½ teaspoon dried thyme (or 2 sprigs) • ½ teaspoon dried rosemary (or 1 sprig) • ½ teaspoon dried basil (6 leaves) • ¼ teaspoon dried sage ( 4 leaves) • 1 clove garlic, minced • 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt, plus more for seasoning • 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning • ¼ cup red wine, Cabernet, Shiraz, Malbec) • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil • Garnish with thyme and rosemary sprigs (optional) • 2 tablespoons salted butter • 1 tablespoon olive oil • 2 cups oyster mushroom, sliced • 2 cups sweet onions, halved and sliced Directions: If using dried herbs: Combine thyme, rosemary, basil, sage garlic and salt in medium bowl. Stir in black pepper and wine. Slowly whisk in olive oil. If using fresh herbs: Strip thyme and
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������������������������������������������� The Maine Sportsman • November 2022 • 59
Deer or Partridge – What to Hunt This Month? This month always presents me with a dilemma. All year long, I’m awaiting my favorite hunting seasons, for partridge and deer. Bird season opened at the end of September, and deer season starts the beginning of this month. So what am I going to spend my time doing? Cruising woods roads and taking hikes, looking for grouse, or sitting in my stand, waiting for a whitetail? It’s truly a predicament. Steady Bird Action We’re already a month into bird season, but you’ll still see birds through the end of the season. Sure, it slows down, as they are picked off by other hunters, but the action can still stay steady, especially farther off the beaten path. In fact, in past seasons, the bird hunting scene got better as the season progressed. The cooler temps pushed grouse out of
Deer hunting can be very rewarding, but sitting in a stand for hours can get monotonous. Partridge hunting involves more consistent action, and is more social, but it takes a lot of birds to fill the freezer. So which way is the author leaning this month – deer, or birds? the thick cover and into the roads to warm up in the late autumn sunlight. “I prefer late-season bird hunting,” a friend explained to me. “They come out of the brush more and they’re easier to see on mornings with a dusting of snow on the ground.” Trying to Outsmart the Deer On the other hand, deer season is pretty short, especially if you just firearm hunt. Archery and muzzleloader seasons lengthen the time frame, but many people don’t utilize those seasons. Everyone chases deer differently, but I have a method I tend to stick with. Normally, I’ll have my tree stand set up by the
end of September, as well as a cellular game cam. I leave the area alone, to avoid spooking any deer, until the season begins. I hunt mornings in my stand, on a game trail, from dawn until about 11 a.m. or so. Depending on my motivation, I may return to hunt through the afternoon. One, the Other, or Both? So what’s the answer? Spend your time partridge hunting or deer hunting? A little of both? That depends on what you enjoy more. Partridge hunting is sure to keep you busy through the season, with a four-bird daily limit, and plenty of covers to explore. On the other hand,
The author and his brother Kent, with their limits of partridge. Brian Raymond photo
deer hunting will bring most hunters one (if you’re lucky) specimen to bring home. It’ll fill up a freezer, but hunting from a stand can prove monotonous, in my opinion at least. It’s a lot of sitting and waiting, for only a handful of blood-pumping encounters. Partridge hunting is action packed. It’s not uncommon to spot over two dozen birds a day, although you’re bound to miss some opportunities. It’s a lot of walking and exploring, and riding woods roads with your friends and family; it can seem a lot more social. With this in mind, many hunters can at-
test that taking a deer can be a rewarding accomplishment like no other. When all of the points of the hunt come together, and you connect with an animal that is so naturally skilled at eluding people, the feeling is unmistakable. The Decision – For Now I think I’m going to focus mostly on partridge hunting this year. I love deer hunting, but after a long season without filling a tag last year, the sitting idle began to wear on me. I think I’ll still pursue deer, and definitely throw my .308 in the Jeep when heading on bird trips, in the event that I do come across a deer. But for me, the social environment and thrill of chasing birds is more exciting. Regardless of what you hunt, be safe, and fill the freezer!
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The author’s friend Dillon Henderson tagged a massive 237-pound buck during the 2021 season. Dillon shot the deer in his hometown of Hermon. www.MaineSportsman.com
60 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Columnist and Family Had a Productive 2021 Deer Season On Thursday morning of the third week of November 2021, I grabbed my any-deer permit from the glove compartment, loaded my Remington 742 30-06 rifle, and cautiously picked my way up the maple sap orchard. At the top of the hill stood an old fallen log. “A perfect seat,” I thought. From here I had a good vantage point that looked down to a crimson, leaf-strewn valley. I cleared the leaves and twigs from a 2-foot area at the base of the log to prevent any noise. I watched and waited for an hour before noticing two deer coming down the hill toward me. A crotchhorn buck and a doe slowing approached my stand. I raised my rifle and focused the scope on the buck. The buck ran to within 35 yards of me, stopped looking directly at me. Do I shoot now, or should I wait, hoping
The author, his son and nephew all scored bucks in 2021. Chances to fill the freezer will improve with the issuance of more antlerless deer permits, especially now that DIFW’s initial computer problems were rectified to handle the large demand for the permits.
The author’s nephew, Mark Lemieux (left) of Buxton, with his 189 lb., 8-point buck, shot Nov. 11, 2021. Mark was accompanied on the hunt by his son Xavier.
the deer would turn away from me? The deer turned his head
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to the left, looking for the doe. Now was my best
chance! I squeezed the trigger, exploding a 165-grain cartridge.
Lincoln Lakes Region
The buck faltered slightly and ran back up the hill. After waiting for five minutes, I whistled to my hunting partners. My son, Rick, and my nephew, Kevin Pendexter, appeared within a few minutes. After they congratulated me on my probable success, we began our search. We noticed several drops of blood on maple leaves near where the buck had been standing. After trailing the small flecks of blood for 50 yards, my nephew shouted, “You got him!” By the end of the season, my son and my nephew had also each tagged a buck. WMD Statistics, 2022 This year, thousands of hunters applied for the 96,340 antlerless deer permits that were issued statewide. According to the Department of Inland Fisheries (DIF&W) bi(Continued on next page)
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ologists, this number represents an increase in the availability of antlerless-deer permits in most of Maine’s Wildlife Management Districts (WMDs). And if DIFW can fix its computers to allow handling the large demand for excess and unclaimed permits, many hunters will be able to take to the woods with antlerless permits in their pockets. An examination of Delorme’s Maine Atlas and Gazetteer, Maps 15, 23, and 25 will help hunters select prime deer-hunting habitat. A high deer-density exists in the forest and farmlands between Routes 1 and the Atlantic Ocean. In WMD 26, my residence, 2,030 antlerless-deer permits were issued, and another 205 bonus permits were issued in subunit 26a. In the towns of Bucksport and Castine, deer are so numerous that both towns offer an expanded-archery season. Fortunately for me, several friends in WMD 26a have given me permission to hunt on their properties. Annual figures published by DIF&W list the 2021 deer
harvest and shows that numerous towns in WMD 26 and 26a tagged over 100 deer last year. These towns include Bucksport (253), Orrington (136), Orland (159) and Penobscot (147). The coastal habitat of WMD 27 contains hundreds of acres of hayfields, blueberry fields and cultivated farmlands with an ample amount of prime cover to sustain an ever-increasing deer herd. These coastal towns in WMD 27 also showed an increase in last year’s deer harvest. Some of the top deer kills occurred in the towns of Addison (115), Milbridge (81) and Harrington (84). Areas where prime deer habitat exists are along the Ridge Road in Cherryfield, Map 25, D-3. Other areas that contain pockets of deer are located along the Big Ridge Road in Addison, Map 25, D-5.
Fall Bass An additional latefall option for sports in the Downeast Region is open-water fishing. Many lakes and ponds in Hancock and Washington County are open to fishing from October 1- December 31 with artificial lures only (S-6). One November water to consider is Graham Lake in Ellsworth, a prime bass producer (Map 24, C-1). According to Graham Lake resident, Ron Parent, the lake offers excellent bass fishing in the fall. Bass anglers often use plugs or bass lures to entice smallmouths in the 2- to 3-pound category. The possibility of anglers catching a 4- to 5-pound smallie exist on each outing. The central part of the lake harbors the largest bass numbers and also offers the best environment to catch white perch. The deeper water here contains an abundant popula-
Matt Morris of Maryland with his 7 lb. 2 oz. bass caught September 10, 2022 in a local Downeast water. Steve Perrigo photo
tion of white perch, some of which range in length from 8 to 12 inches. The most-popular access is reached by going north approxi-
mately four miles from Ellsworth on Route 180. The boat launch is on the right at the southern end of Graham Lake.
¶
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62 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Region Offers Deer, Grouse, Snowshoe Hares and Trout This Month Once, hunters of trophy whitetails flocked to the Moosehead Region from far and wide, in quest of massive racks. Some combination of soil, mineral and forage combined to produce deer antlers that were the envy of the Northeast. Unfortunately, loss of wintering habitat has reduced the deer herd in the north woods. And yet not all those majestic bucks have left. Enough remain to coax trophy hunters back, year after year. Hunting the big woods bears little resemblance to sitting on a stand in the farm country of central and eastern Maine. Here, bootleather and a good set of field glasses take the place of comfy deer stands. Because the region is crisscrossed
Compared to the frenetic spring and summer months, November in the Moosehead Region holds a certain charm for its relative quietness and serenity. However, numerous hunting and fishing opportunities abound for those willing to look for them.
Eric Holbrook’s bird dog Ella-Bean and late-season grouse. Eric Holbrook photos
with logging roads, current and discontinued, it is possible to reach places that at first would appear too remote to access. The ticket here is to walk a little and look a lot,
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and always to persevere. While much of the land to the west and north of Moosehead Lake is mountainous and heavily wooded, some of the land on the east side of the lake proves quite inviting to deer. More open areas, interspersed with grassy patches and wild meadows, serve
to sustain a huntable deer herd. Here, it is possible to take a stand in late afternoon and watch for passing deer. Other Pursuits Even if your sights aren’t set specifically upon deer, the Moosehead Region has much to offer in November. The season on grouse lasts through-
out the month, and the season on woodcock is open through November 15. If you plan to go bird hunting now, chances are you will not encounter any other hunters. Grouse, by virtue of attrition, are not as numerous as in early October. Most of the young, foolish birds have long since found their ways into hunters’ game pockets. But the region is so wide and expansive that it is still possible to find pockets of grouse that haven’t been pushed. And, of course, older birds – those crafty individuals that hold advanced degrees in putting trees and shrubs between themselves and hunters – are still present. Woodcock have mostly migrated by now, but still – especially if the weather has been a bit warm, something more common with each passing year – some late-arriving flights can be expected in November. My friend Eric Holbrook, area guide, sometimes finds himself in woodcock while grouse-hunting in November. As the seasons become warmer, expect to find more late-moving woodcock. Then we have hares. Common in the Moosehead Region, snowshoe hares come out along gravel roads at dawn and dusk. Want some real sport? Try shooting hares (Continued on next page)
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with a .22 rifle. Distances are sometimes great, so you can get a chance to see how far your rimfire rifle can reach out. Also, I knew someone who used to hunt with an all-purpose hunting dog that pointed hares as well as birds. My friend shot the hares with a bow – great fun and an exciting challenge. West Outlet Trout fishing remains alive and well in November in the Moosehead Region. However, the stocked trout ponds are now managed under the S-7 listing in October and November, meaning all trout, togue and salmon (there
are no togue in these ponds and I cannot understand why they are found on the list) must be immediately released unharmed. Going out on any pond in November stands as a cold proposition, and diehard trout fans can catch lots of fish now, but I find the effort not worth it. If you simply wish to take lots of trout, then go for it. However, the West Outlet of Kennebec River remains open year-round, and the only restriction now is ALO, artificial lures only. The S-19 rule, 2 trout per day, still stands. For me, a good day on West Outlet makes the 2-hour drive
more than worthwhile. The place has a certain charm that keeps me coming back year after year. When fishing West Outlet, note that you will see surface action now and again. These are salmon, mostly small ones. All salmon must be released here, since the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife is trying to build up this relatively new fishery. Most of us come here for the brook trout. For them, fish deep and slow, letting the current take your lure. And bring a landing net. Our DIF&W releases some large trout here in fall, and it’s hard to land them
You never know what you will see while gazing out upon Moosehead Lake.
on the rocky shoreline without a landing net. Gray Season For all its gray, leaden skies and chilly temperatures, November in the Moosehead Region holds a certain charm. It’s quiet and serene. The crowds of
summer and fall have long-since dispersed, and for those who remain, this contemplative time inspires long, slow drives and walks, if for no other purpose than to find peace in nature. For that alone, it’s worth the visit.
¶
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64 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Where to Look for Jackman Region Deer Back in the early 1980s, Lenny Potvin convinced me to go on a “Big Woods” deer hunt in the Adirondack Forest in upstate New York. Having spent a lifetime (up to that point) hunting small wood lots and familiar parcels, I was a bit intimidated. The knowledge gained on that first deep woods hunt in New York’s forever forest altered my mindset dramatically. Up to that point, I al-
Hunting the big woods of Jackman does not have to be intimidating, says the author. But whether you head for the high ground, or stay to the low-lying streams, be sure to have equipment and gear that will get you into the big country’s unimproved road system, and safely back. ways heard the stories of lost hunters and uncomfortable nights huddled in a dark noman’s land. My mind heard the echoes of a wolf I couldn’t see howling from behind a tree.
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In-Town Buck We left the small hamlet of Long Pond long before daylight the first morning. As we exited town, I asked Potvin why I couldn’t shoot the handsome buck casually chewing on a spindly apple tree located on a local’s front lawn. Potvin quickly shut that plan down, telling me I needed to crest a few mountains on foot to earn that right. Four hours later, I summited the first major ridge line. When I looked down, I got an aerial view of that cozy little town, and I wondered if that
big buck would really meet me at the top. Of course, it got my curious mind rolling. Why am I up here, while the deer browses on the town’s landscape thousands of feet below? Was getting to higher ground really the answer? Local Intel? Deer hunters looking to fill their tag in the legendary Jackman mountains face the same conundrum I wrestled with all those years ago. I tried asking a local character that very same question – should I try the higher ground? Without making
eye contact, he gazed towards Sally Mountain, looked straight down at the ground and said, “You’ll get ’em where you find ’em.” Not much help, but oh so very true. My own observations involve wind and thermal currents. Hunters need to plan their hunt to take advantage of favorable wind directions. They also need to consider how rising daytime temperatures push air currents up and around mountains. No breaking news here. Once a deer gets a whiff of those new boots, the deer has the advantage. It just seems wind direction and my charted course don’t usually get along. As I get older, climbing mountains holds less appeal. I (Continued on next page)
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know I’m not alone. One of my recent articles mentioned a collapsible stool which worked out well while rabbit hunting earlier this fall. I received a fair amount of email correspondence from older hunters wondering if this seat would extend their time afield.
Minimum Maintenance Roads Hunting the big woods of Jackman does not have to be intimidating. A large network of logging roads reaches deep into that scary-looking piece of real estate. Of course, traveling these minimum maintenance roads requires some advance (Continued on next page)
The Jackman Region has miles of paper company roads that extend deep into its mountainous terrain. This allows deer hunters with a serviceable fourwheel-drive vehicle to access remote parcels relatively easily. As shown in this photo, deer do occasionally cross these minimum maintenance highways. Hunters would do well to travel slowly and keep an eye out for deer and deer sign. Photo: Shutterstock
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66 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Off-Road Traveler Hacks for Finding Your Way Out of the Woods Let me first explain that I am in no way a computer/high tech expert. As the expression goes, I only know enough to get myself in trouble. I do email like a pro and have been on Facebook long enough to know I don’t want to be an active participant any longer. I do enjoy the fact that, with a few keyboard clicks, I can research anything I want – like having a library right here on my laptop. Regarding avoiding getting lost in our state’s woods, let me also begin with this
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It’s best, says the author, to have a good understanding of new navigation technology, but also of its limitations. In addition to being comfortable with the traditional map and compass, a savvy outdoorsperson knows Mother Nature provides a few directional clues of her own. statement: Before heading into the wild areas of Maine, please learn how to use an old fashioned, non-digital map and compass. Do not rely solely on electronic devices to find your direction, since batteries fail, and cell towers are sometimes unavailable. With that said,
I want to mention a story from way back before GPS units and mapping applications were so readily available. I had a friend/ client who came up to hunt grouse in the North Maine Woods (NMW). We entered at the 20 Mile Gate just north of Rockwood. After entering the NMW at the checkpoint, we
proceeded to Pittston’s Farm for a nice lunch break. After lunch we hit the Golden Road, heading east until we turned north on the Telos Road. At that point I can’t tell you exactly where we traveled, only that at one point it was getting hard to find out what road we were on.
My friend then mentioned that we could simply ask his “TomTom” (tomtom. com) where we were. I had no GPS experience at that time, and was amazed when this TomTom GPS unit showed us exactly where we were and mapped out a plan for finding our way back to civilization. Sure, we could have eventually found our way out with our compass and Gazetteer, but the GPS unit really saved us time and added much confidence to the day of bird (Continued on next page)
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hunting. Since then, I have enjoyed many miles of travel with similar GPS mapping devices, both in the back woods and in the middle of the busiest cities in the nation. Don’t Get Lost I don’t have an onboard, built-in, factory-installed GPS system in my current truck, but will always look at this as a top selling feature when considering a vehicle purchase. Even though I currently use the onX Hunt (onxmaps.com) application on my cell phone and laptop, there are several other companies that produce a comparable unit to get you home safely. The number one feature I like with the onX Hunt application is that when I run out of cell coverage, I can switch to the “offline” mode and still keep track of where I’m going. And just recently, I discovered and signed up for the “Off Road” package that gives me an overlaying map of all the ATV and snowmobiling trails. I will be using this feature often during the
hunting season and upcoming snowmobiling season. I plan to continue bird hunting in the NMW, including solo trips. Of course, my wife thinks this is crazy, but I love the freedom of sometimes hunting on my own. Hunting with good friends is the best, but I still enjoy a few solo trips throughout the hunting season. To stay safe and let my wife remain calm during these excursions, I’m looking at Garmin’s “inReach” system (garmin.com). With this unique unit, I’ll be able to text with my wife back home, even if I am in an area that lacks cell phone coverage. The inReach unit also has a couple other features that appeal to me. The inReach unit allows me to connect directly to an emergency service if I get into any kind of dangerous situation where I cannot get out on my own. With a simple push of a button, I can request emergency personnel at my location. Another excellent feature is the “TracBack” option that allows me to follow my
Jackman Region (Continued from page 65)
preparation. A high clearance vehicle – preferably one with four-wheel-drive – is a must. Also, have good tires and a spare. While traversing Lower Enchanted Road on a spring fishing trip with former Maine Sportsman editor Ken Allen, one of my brand new tires blew out. While the tires were new, they were not good quality – I had gotten a little tight-fisted and bought some cheaper foreign rubber. Lesson learned – I now spend the extra moolah and get the best tires I can afford. Speed is another issue. Some folks fly on those roads. Art Corson, Regis-
One gravel road often looks like another deep in the Maine woods, so the author recommends keeping a good reading of your location using both digital and traditional mapping equipment. William Clunie photo
exact steps back to my truck from anywhere I might wander while out in the woods. Just hitting a button gives me a digital direction to follow my original path back to the truck – a good feeling when you’re disoriented in the middle of nowhere. Directional Details Old timers always would say moss grows on the north side of tree trunks, so if you got lost without a compass, you could
regain your bearings. I’ve seen places in the woods where the moss was growing all the way around the tree trunks, so I don’t hold fast to that rule. Another “natural” direction-finder? The shapes of mountains. A geology professor once told me that the surrounding mountains on the horizon showed the direction of the glacial movement – the northwest side of the mountain would have a gradual rise,
tered Maine Guide, once told me to never buy a truck owned by a guide. After following Corson (correction – chasing Corson) along some of the back route “highways” in The Forks, I completely understood what he was hinting at. Driving slowly does have its advantages. No sense in speeding by a set of hot tracks crossing the dirt road. It also helps save the travel vehicle for another day. Besides, it’s the journey, not the destination. Streams, Too! After penetrating the forest via a logging road, how far off that road does a hunter really need to travel? Reflecting back to that Long Pond hamlet deer, I’m thinking maybe not too far.
while the southeast side drops off because that was the way the glaciers moved across the state of Maine. As they scraped across the mountains from the northeast, they crushed and left deposits (huge boulders) on the southeast sides of the mountains. Check it out for yourself wherever you can get a view of the horizon – it is obvious to the naked eye.
¶
With that said, following those fresh tracks could turn into a hunt measured in miles. Marking the vehicle with GPS coordinates and a good map should alleviate any fears finding that truck come the end of the day. The region also has an abundance of rivers and streams that make navigating easy. Waterways also do a good job of camouflaging noise and carrying scent away. They really are an extension of this big woods trail system. Pages 39 and 40 of The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer detail the very mountains, rivers, streams and back country roads that lead hunters on a journey to wearing a Biggest Bucks in Maine patch on next year’s hunt.
¶
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68 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
View from a Maine Deer Stand How many hunters, from how many civilizations and generations, had stood on this exact same elevated shelf of flat granite and recognized the advantage provided by its view downhill through the hardwoods to the acorn-strewn forest floor below? An old man stood on a flat granite rock and stared out at a serene section of mature hardwood trees that stretched down the side of the mountain, away from him. He cradled a rifle under his arm and stood silently watching the November woods. His feet were immobile, as if planted on the smooth flat surface. It was a place where he had stood, at least once each November, for more than 50 years. Always quietly watching, while the bare granite silenced any small movements of his feet. An Accident of Nature The rock he stood on had fallen from the icy, debris-encrusted face of a melting glacier 11,000 years ago. It had landed fortuitously, in such a way that a flat sheet of stone lay exposed on a plane with the distant southeastern horizon. The old man stood on what was only the small edge of a huge, irregular boulder. The migrant stone, from miles away to the northwest, was mostly buried by windblown glacial outwash sands after it fell from the glacier face. A muddy mix of glacial debris also surrounded and www.MaineSportsman.com
buried most of the huge stone. In those earliest, days, from the hunter’s viewpoint, the ocean would have been clearly visible – only a few miles away. Salt water inundated the depressed crust of the earth along the coastline and flooded inland along what would later become river valleys. As time went on, the barren wasteland acquired organic deposits in the muddy peat bogs left by receding waters. Tundra vegetation covered the hillside, and eventually alders and willows appeared. Caribou grazed on the hillside below the granite stone. Wolves followed, and the vegetation progressed to birch, poplar, spruce and other mid-forest species. First Hunters The first human hunter to stand on the old man’s spot may have been a member of the Red Paint People, more than 5,000 Novembers ago. He would have been on the western edge of his people’s habitat and staring back toward the receding coastline where his tribe lived. The Abenaki might have stood here as well, taking advantage of the elevation and
the southeastern view to scout for deer, caribou and moose. They were the first humans to make serious inroads to the interior of the state. With birchbark canoe technology, they could wander and hunt at will. The deer stand looks out over the upper headwaters of the Androscoggin, an important highway for Indigenous hunters. The Abenaki thrived here, and as many as 32,000 of them inhabited the area at the time that the old man’s ancestors first arrived from Europe. The natives had already hunted near the deer stand for thousands of years by the time those first ships arrived. A Different Hunter By 1800 the land near the deer stand had been divided up and labeled as townships, grants and corporations. The granite didn’t care. The largest pines were being cut down and hauled away. Small openings, visible from the stand, appeared in the canopy of the woods in the valley below. The old man’s family settled the area – fields and clearings were cut and burned, a sawmill was built, barns were raised.
The view from the granite ledge, downhill into the hardwoods. Jim Andrews photo
The hunters who came to the stand now still needed the wild meat to survive, but their attention had turned to planting, tending domestic animals, and building permanent structures. Sheep grazed in rough pastures that gradually encroached on the base of the mountain. These openings in the forest, and the new growth that quickly grew to fill them, favored the deer – and they multiplied, as the wolves, bears and cougars were eliminated. The old man’s great-grandfather killed deer by the dozens and sent the saddles, packed in salt, to larger towns for sale. Distant wars raged and waned. Railroads determined new population centers, not waterpower or fertile soil. The old man’s family stayed, but many others left and never returned. The valley below the deer stand quieted. A Hunter’s Last Stand Nothing marked the spot as a deer
stand. No seats or shelters were installed. No ladder stands stood against the oak trees that covered the ridge. But any hunter quickly saw the advantages. The quiet granite footing, the abundant acorns and the elevated view downhill through the mature hardwoods. The old man remembered standing here as a boy with his father. And an immense buck they killed together one cold morning as it grazed on acorns through the trees below the granite outcropping. And other deer had fallen here over the years. It wasn’t that he was emotionally attached to the place. He knew places inevitably changed through time. And that disappointment was an old hunter’s constant companion. But, as he watched the sunrise, he wondered how many November hours he had stood here throughout his life, and how many more he had left to enjoy.
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Trappers Must Take Precautions to Avoid Animal-Borne Viruses Now that it is November and trapping is at last in full swing, there are several wildlife diseases that are important for trappers and all sportsmen to know about. Sportsmen are regularly exposed to animals that can carry various diseases that may cause sickness or in some cases even death. Trappers occasionally assist in the research of diseases. One that is currently being researched is Echinococcus Multilocularis, a miniature tapeworm that can be carried by foxes and other canines, including domestic dogs. Trappers are providing test samples to scientists to aid in their work. Echinococcus Multilocularis The University of Maine and the state’s IF&W have started a research project on this tapeworm. The tapeworm’s life cycle begins when small rodents, such as mice and voles, consume its eggs, which then form cysts on their liver, lungs, brain, and other organs. When canines eat infected rodents, larvae within the cysts develop into adult tapeworms. Infected canines release the worm’s eggs in their excrement, which starts
the cycle all over again. Humans can inadvertently consume tapeworm eggs if they handle the excrement of infected animals and then touch their own food, or if they eat food that has been gathered out of doors, such as berries, herbs, and mushrooms that were contaminated by an infected animal. Early research revealed that the tapeworm infects about one quarter of all wild canines in North America, including furbearers such as coyotes, foxes and wolves. Dog owners need to realize that their pets could become infected and that it may be passed on to them. Pet dogs taken to dog parks, and hunting dogs, are the most likely domesticated dogs to be exposed. Tiny Worms – Nearly Invisible When people think of tapeworms, they envision the ones you can see, which are not of a public health significance. They would never think of this species of tapeworm, because it is so small you cannot see it. You will never see the eggs or the tapeworm, because they are super small. Dog owners need to be aware of not only the risk to themselves, but also the risk to their dogs if exposed. De-worming medications are effective in treating affected domestic dogs. Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS) is a deadly disease transmitted
The lifecycle of Echinococcus Multilocularis, a microscopic tapeworm, directly involves rodents and predators, such as foxes, coyotes and wolves, but can also impact domestic animals and their owners. Source: Ontario Veterinary College
Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome can result when waste products from white footed mice or other rodents are carried through the air and into a victim’s lungs. Sources: Mayo Clinic, and ePainAssist.com
by infected rodents through urine, droppings, or saliva. Humans can contact the disease when they breathe in the aerosolized virus. Although uncommon, HPS is potentially deadly. A rodent population explosion can exacerbate the spread of the disease. Known carriers in the U.S. are the deer mouse (the primary carrier) along with the cotton and rice rats (in the Southeast) and the white footed mouse in the Northeast. Infected rodents shed the virus through urine, droppings, and saliva. HPS is transmitted to humans through a process called aerosolization. Aerosolization occurs when dried materials contaminated by rodent excreta or saliva are disturbed. Humans become infected by breathing in these infected aerosols. Transmission also may occur when directly introduced into broken skin, the nose or the mouth. It can also be passed through eating or drinking water exposed to it, or if an infected rodent bites someone. Hantaviruses are viable in the environment for up to four days at normal room temperatures. Freezing temperatures will actually increase the time the virus remains viable. The disease is extremely dangerous to those persons who are infected, even when immediate medical care is provided. The disease affects the lungs, but also the shock to the body can cause heart failure. Trappers are exposed to a lot of rodent waste at cabins and storage sheds, or while using rodents for bait & lure making, as well as while using rodent nest materials for making sets. Symptoms If you have been exposed to rodents or rodent infestations and have symptoms of fever, deep muscle aches, and severe shortness of breath, seek medical help immediately and let your provider know of your recent exposure to rodents.
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70 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Maine’s Game Wardens and Rangers From my early days as a Ranger at Sebago Lake State Park to later years as Supervisor of the Allagash Wilderness Waterway, my staff and I worked hand in hand with Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Wardens across Maine. Instances included complaints of stolen watercraft, poaching, folks operating under the influence, and possession of illegal drugs. We also assisted with search and rescue efforts, and recoveries of lives lost. Family History Remembered Those recollections were recently brought closer to home when I received information from my 91-year-old Uncle [John] Alden Stevens. Even at his age, Alden is very sharp, and he recently talked about a great Uncle Harry Hilton who, as a young man, lost his life years ago while working as a Maine Game Warden. According to information found on Warden Hilton’s tombstone in the Hilton Cemetery of Mayfield, Maine, thirty-three-year-old Harry was found dead on October 20, 1913. Ever since I was a young boy, my family has spoken about the murder of Harry Hilton. It was a suspicious death right from the start. Newspaper clippings dated 1913 and 1914 reported that Warden Hilton’s death was immediately questioned. A journalist at the time wrote there was “a suspicion of foul play entertained by some, largely because of a missing pistol and money that the dead Warden [Hilton] was known to have in his possession.” The Warden’s father was so grieved by his son’s death, that he took his own life (see newspaper clipping, center column). Just the way Hilton was discovered would lead any reasonable person to conclude there was foul play involved. Recollections passed down through my family indicate that earlier in 1913, Hilton had summonsed several individuals for fishing in closed waters, who were found guilty and thus paid fines and court costs. The circumstances of the death, as reported by the Bangor Daily News, stated the body was found when a Mr. Alphonse White went to check his boat www.MaineSportsman.com
October 20, 1913, Warden Harry Hilton was found dead off some floating docks on Moosehead Lake. The author’s sister believes Hilton was murdered, based on the circumstances and on family lore.
Bangor Daily News, March 3, 1914
tied to a dock on Moosehead Lake. At the time, there were several floats moored near Rockwood Village that had been tied together by rope to keep them from damaging power boats that were secured. One Sunday night, there had been a strong wind between eight and nine o’clock p.m. that caused the fastening ropes to break. When the floats separated, the body of Harry Hilton rose between two of the docks. The water at the deep end of the floats was reported to have been five feet and three feet at the shallow end. The last time Hilton had been seen was two weeks before when he was observed in the vicinity of the tie-ups. While the newspaper of the day reported the Coroner’s Jury found accidental drowning, the article did not mention if the autopsy had analyzed Harry’s lungs to determine water content, or if the body had been examined for apparent external bruises
or wounds. Through the years, my family recounted the history passed down from Harry’s dad Charles Hilton to my grandfather Lester Stevens, who then shared it with his children, Uncle Alden, and his sister my Aunt Elinor Stevens Walker. So strong are the suspicions of foul play, that Mrs. Walker eventually wrote about Hilton’s death. In 1974, Elinor published and copyrighted a book titled More About Maine. On page 151, she wrote, “Harry Hilton … left to become a game warden for our State. He was murdered at Rockwood [while] promoting law enforcement.” Warden Historian Works to Remember Those Lost For several years retired Game Warden David Georgia has sought to discover and honor wardens who were killed in the line of duty. The goal is to have those names engraved on Maine’s Law Enforcement Officers Memorial at 230 State Street in Augusta. The memorial stands in honor of those who served and gave their lives all the way back to November 1886, when Wardens Lyman O. Hill and Charles Niles died in action. Georgia, well known for his lectures about the history of the warden service at the Department’s Warden Academy, has taken that knowledge a step further. For several years, Dave has investigated forgotten wardens who lost their lives in the line of duty, and then labored to have their dedication remembered by adding their names to Maine’s Law Enforcement Monument. My brother Buzz and I, along with our Uncle Alden, wish Dave Georgia well in his efforts to include all the names of Wardens and Rangers who have lost their lives while in the conduct of their duties. Hopefully someday we will proudly read the name of Warden Harry Hilton and remember that he, too, made the ultimate sacrifice. Tim Caverly has authored eleven books about Maine’s northern forest.
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The Dog Days of Autumn We’ve had three years of non-stop Autumn around our house. No, I’m not talking about climate change. I’m talking about our three-year-old Llewellin Setter. Her name is Autumn. Llewellins are a type of English setter, bred specifically as field dogs, rather than for the show ring. Llewellins are generally smaller – Autumn is 48 pounds – with medium coats, high stamina, speed to burn, great noses and a tight bond with the hunter. They’re always on the go. Non-stop excitement. Even when she’s asleep, Autumn’s feet twitch and her tail thumps happily while she dreams about birds, especially after she has recently had a snout-full of grouse. Non-stop Autumn. Four Seasons That doesn’t mean Llewellin setters are one-dimensional. With Autumn, we’ve found activities for every season. Which is good, because setters need to run themselves to exhaustion every day or they’ll drive their owners nuts. In winter, our big activity is skijoring. It started kind of by accident when she was a pup. I took her cross-country skiing and wanted to keep her close and not both-
The author’s Llewellin, Autumn, is a snowbounding, dock-diving, river-swimming and birdhunting bundle of energy, instinct and skill – all four seasons of the year.
Autumn, the author’s Llewellin, at the summit of Mt. Moosilauke, near Glencliff, NH. Photo: David Van Wie
er other skiers. I put her on a long retractable leash and fastened it to my belt so she could run along. Turns out she wanted to run out front. That’s her breeding. Soon she was pulling on the leash enough to help me along. Even at six months old, she zoomed ahead, flying down the trails. Now, fully grown, she loves it.
So, we got her a harness and a better leash rig. When the conditions are right, it is so fast it can be scary. No, I don’t make her pull my full weight up the hills; I do most of the work, and she gets impatient that I’m so slow. Back on the flat and downhill, it’s Yee-haaaaa! Spring Ahead Come spring, we’re limited mostly to trail
running and hiking. I stay on the trails, while she does her setter thing – back and forth, covering every inch of ground within shotgun range. Fortunately, we have miles of trails behind our house and many hiking options in the mountains nearby. I estimate she does three or four miles for every one of mine. Sometimes she disappears out in front of
me, and seconds later blows past me from behind. How does she do that? Fishing Partner This spring, I started bringing her to the stream with me fishing. She splashes along chasing water bugs, bubbles and sparkles. She quickly learned (with a bit of scolding) to stay behind me and (mostly) out of the pools where I am casting. She likes to sniff the trout I catch and watch them dart away when I release them. I only wish I could teach her to point the trout for me, like she does with grouse. Dock Diving Llewellin setters get pretty warm with their long, soft coats. They appreciate cooling off in a pond or river, and come out super-charged and ready to run. On hot summer days, we take Autumn to the neighbor’s dock on the river. If we let her, our girl will swim for an hour straight, back and forth following dragonflies, which must seem like small birds to her. One day, when I dove off the dock, she followed me in. Before long, she was running and leaping off, flying out over the river as far as she could go – a delighted dock diver! (Sporting Environment continued on page 73) www.MaineSportsman.com
72 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
Ditch the Tree Stand – Grab a Paddle Our canoe silently drifted through a narrow channel lined with waist-tall, finger-thick grass. Sitting in the rear seat, I gave the boat an occasional stroke, careful to let all the water slide off the paddle before fully lifting it clear. My son, Willie, sat stone cold in the front of the canoe. He was just a young lad at the time, and I was trying to get him his first deer. The waterway made a series of “S” turns through a large bog. I’d worked this boggy area over previous years and had stellar success. As we floated around one of the many 90-degree turns, I spied a small buck bedded down in the willows along the water’s edge not 30 yards away. He saw the deer about the same time
Hunting deer from a canoe allows access to areas that receive little pressure from land-based sportsmen. And it’s easier to float your trophy home than it is to drag the prize over hill and dale!
Canoes work well for accessing hard-to-reach deer country. They also do a stellar job floating a trophy back to camp. Here, the author takes a leisurely paddle after harvesting a small six-point buck early in the day. An easy paddle beats a long drag when it comes to transporting a deer from the field to the freezer. Always wear a life jacket; mine was removed here for the sake of photos. Bill Sheldon photos
I nudged the paddle between his shoulder blades. He softly closed the bolt on his rifle and shouldered it. The drift closed the distance to 15 yards.
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The deer, figuring we didn’t see him, stayed put. I was feeling good about another successful canoe hunt and waited for the smell of gunpowder. Canoe Ready My most memorable deer hunts have involved a canoe and paddle. This method has helped me access areas that few hunters make the effort to get to. While shooting a deer from a canoe takes some extra caution and perhaps a certain skill set, it’s very doable. In Maine, you cannot shoot a deer from a motorized watercraft (including electric-powered) that is underway, but you can shoot one from a paddle-powered craft.
I made a few lowcost modifications to my canoe that have helped get an advantage on more than one nice buck. My 13-foot Mansfield measures 42 inches across the beam – wide by most standards. This short, fat canoe fits perfectly into the world of floating for deer, since it’s slow and stable. A piece of carpet remnant on the floor of the canoe helps soften the inevitable bumps and bangs associated with a couple of hunters moving about. A scrap of carpet clamped along the gunnels helps eliminate some occasional paddle scrape. A crude scabbard, western style, constructed from more of the same carpet store
throwaways, sits ziptied to the gunnel. On a solo hunt, the gun sits safely, ready to trade places with the paddle. When floating with a partner, I have a couple of rules. The rear person paddles and navigates the canoe. The front seat handles shooting duties. Everyone wears a life jacket. It’s much simpler and safer this way. Wearing Waders? Because many of the back water channels that weave through picture perfect deer cover are thick with beaver dams, I wear my waist-high waders. They’re great for anything from crossing those pesky beaver dams to beaching the canoe. For me, the waders are important. Rain, snow and sleet have no bearing on my hunting plans. With a set of fleece liners underneath, combined with neoprene booties, I stay dry and warm. A dry-bag holds an extra set of clothes and the usual assortment of emergency survival gear. The bag also keeps any water from reaching my electronics, no matter what happens. That all important bag stays secured to the thwart. Looking for Waters Finding waters with remote shorelines in Katahdin Country (Continued on next page)
������������������������������������������� The Maine Sportsman • November 2022 • 73 (Continued from page 72)
is as easy as reviewing The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer and looking for blue lines representing moving water. Don’t overlook surveyed lakes and ponds. My favorite setting involves finding a bog with a narrow stream running through it. This usually gets me where hunters on foot can’t – or won’t – go. The deer in these areas receive less pressure. Don’t rule out larger bodies of water with undeveloped shoreline. Beaching the canoe and putting boots on the ground rates as
a viable option. More often than not, it’s utilizing the canoe to provide access to otherwise ignored parcels. The measurable advantage to hunting with a canoe also involves bringing that prized animal home. One eight-point buck that fell to my canoe antics was 1.2 miles in – much easier to float him home than to drag him over hill and dale. My canoe hunts have always had the feel of a big time, guided, professional hunt. Yet, they all went off with just my old Mansfield and some carpet remnants.
Sporting Environment
Getting Close! At about 10 yards from the deer, I started getting nervous. Willie had his shouldered gun pointing right at his first deer. The canoe continued to drift straight at that deer, closing to five yards. Just as I was about to throw the paddle at it, he turned and whispered, “Can you get me a little closer?” That small buck heard that request too and bolted across the bog. I told him any closer and I could have got it with the paddle. Ah, the memories.
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By the time the author floated this nice eightpoint buck back to civilization, darkness had prevailed. A small but powerful flashlight helped with the after-hours navigation. Note the author’s judicial use of carpet remnants for the bottom of the canoe, and a home-made scabbard to help muffle various canoe-related sounds.
(Continued from page 71)
Autumn’s first grouse on a November hunt. Photo: David Van Wie
Autumn Loves Autumn Come September, we are back in bird mode. We start refreshing her nose and habits at a private licensed farm where they stock birds in the fields and woods. It is great for practicing our teamwork. Pheasants, chukars and quail provide a nice variety of habits to sharpen her senses and test my shooting. Autumn knows what’s up when I pull out her bell and put the shotgun in the car.
Autumn helps the author fish for trout. The author hopes to train his dog to point out fish as well as she does grouse. Photo: Bill Conway
Then, after “cast and blast” weekend to start the upland bird season, October is a busy month. We hunt the town forest and travel north to work the spruce-fir cover and old logging roads where the King of the Game Birds keeps us on our toes. Sometimes we even get a few. October is for many upland bird hunters the pinnacle of the year. Something About November But for some reason, November is my favorite. I know it’s deer season,
but I prefer grouse hunting in the colder weather when the trees are gray and bare. We avoid dawn and dusk to give the deer hunters their best hours. Maybe it’s the lower sun angle and how it is easier to see Autumn in her orange vest racing through the trees. Maybe the scents are better for her. With an early snow, the birds seem to hold a little tighter. Whatever the season, it’s hard not to love the dog days of Autumn.
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Whitetails and Waterfowl Excite Aroostook Hunters Aroostook County doesn’t enjoy the density of deer seen in Southern and Central Maine, but big-bodied, heavy-antlered bucks are our bread and butter. The Crown of Maine boasts vast acres of forest and farmland for hunting these wondrous whitetails and seldom are “No trespassing” signs seen. That’s why for decades, downstaters and out-of-staters have and continue to trek to The County each November. They wait and anticipate all year for deer camp – that week in the woods to finally earn that first (or perhaps another) Maine Sportsman Biggest Buck patch. Urban Edge Deer A couple of my lifelong friends are avid whitetail hunters, and they enjoy impressively consistent success
hunting efforts. Like a lot of Aroostook folks, these two are fishermen, campers, trappers, and boaters who are always looking for deer and deer signs during their outdoor ventures. Being everyday working men, their actual hunting time is limited, but each in their own schedule and separate villages use every spare minute to hunt. Up before dawn most November morns, driving gravel back roads, farm field roads and two-tracks through small wood lots, they scan for deer. Other mornings might find them wandering field edges and tree lines where their game camera have revealed regular deer traffic. I live only a mile from Main Street, where Route 1 passes
A quick outing after work for the last hour of dusk can prove very rewarding for whitetail hunters throughout Aroostook County’s farmland. More and more deer are seen along urban edges, where they encounter a greater number of year-’round food sources – and fewer coyotes – compared to past years.
Deer hunters need not make a long drive to the “Big Woods” to find a nice buck. This dueling duo was caught on a game camera near some apple trees in a small pasture less than a mile from Bridgewater Village. All photos by Bill Graves
tagging bucks each autumn. The interesting fact regarding putting venison in the freezer for each of these two
sportsmen is that they rarely hunt the big woods. They both live in small towns surrounded by the thou-
sands of acres of farm fields, pastures, tree farms and small wood lots, and this is where they concentrate their
(Continued on next page)
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Seth Rooney poses with a fine buck taken from a grain field along the Easton Road during a drive-and-spot pre-work hunt. Deer populations are increasing in socalled “urban edge” regions. (Continued from page 74)
though Presque Isle, yet I often have deer, bear and moose in my six-acre back field. It’s often possible to hop in the truck at lunchtime and eat a sandwich while cruising agrilined secondary roads or sitting watch on a likely feed field. A quick outing after work for the last hour of dusk can be very rewarding throughout Aroostook urban edge farmland. More and more deer seem to be residing in rural edges where there are more year-’round food sources and fewer coyotes compared to the last 20 years. Rural Road Options Between Bridgewater ad Monticello, visit Bootfoot, Snow, Montieth and Jewell’s Corner Roads and the several dozen side and field roads for drive and spot or field sitting options. Delorme’s Atlas and Gazetteer, Map 59, C-4 will get hunters on site. Between Smyrna Mills and Island Falls use Route 2 and its many side roads to investigate crop fields, wild apple orchards and second growth pastures for browsing
A fine retriever saves a lot of time and toil messing about in boats during a early morning hunt before work. Bogans and backwaters along local rivers are full of mallards and black ducks.
whitetails; Map 52, grids 3 & 4 will guide you to the general area. Map 65, sector A-4 overviews Limestone to Caswell and the area’s myriad agrifields and woodlots for driving, sitting overwatch or still-hunting. It’s not always necessary to travel to the
“Big Woods” any more to find big bucks; there are plenty of closer rural options, which will save a busy hunter time, gas and money.
When Mother Nature cooperates and mild weather prevails during late November, Aroostook County rivers abound with waterfowl. There are no fewer than eight species of ducks and geese on this stretch of water.
many end-of-season November days are spent hunting big ducks rather than big
bucks. Teal and wood ducks have headed (Continued on next page)
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76 • November 2022 • The Maine Sportsman ————————————————————————————————————————————
November offers some top-rate duck hunting for big puddle ducks. There’s light pressure, since most sportsmen are after deer and partridge. The author’s 20-ga. Ruger Red Label is a fun gun for potholes and small swales over a few decoys.
Greg Palm of Presque Isle grins with excitement after retrieving this fat full-colored drake mallard with some special jewelry – a leg band – during a late season outing.
The County (Continued from page 75)
south, but mature mallards and burly black ducks, often called “red legs,” are plentiful, offering great gunning even after lakes and ponds ice over. Floating larger rivers, jump-shooting coves, eddies and backwaters in streams, or setting out a decoy spread on water or grain fields all produce regular action. Christina Reservoir in Easton and cut grain fields surrounding the pond abound with ducks and is easy to reach. Once the reservoir freezes, the birds simply move to
the nearby Aroostook River. The stretch between Mapleton and Presque Isle abounds with islands and lots of coves and bogans that hold ducks and geese all day long. A mile or so upriver, Fort Fairfield bridge over the Aroostook River, near Goodwin, you’ll find a set of islands perfect for a natural blind and a few decoys for pass shooting. Potato Field Geese Only three things will send Canada geese winging south from Aroostook: 1) all the roost waters freeze
Setting up layout blinds along a berm between to potato fields works well for late season Canada geese, and at this hunt there was a small bunch of snow geese that came to taste the local Aroostook cuisine. www.MaineSportsman.com
over; 2) snow gets too deep for the birds to reach food; or 3) the ground freezes 6 inches deep and snow cover of 6 inches arrives. All of these have been common in “The County” in Novembers past, but climate change has altered freeze-up time. I’ve even hunted into December a couple of years in the last decade. There are generally a lot of honkers throughout Aroostook most of this month, and recognizing a couple of necessary hunting changes will boost success. Morning temperatures are often near freezing, so geese will fly later as they
Garrett Cushman and Greg Palm set out decoys on one of dozens of Aroostook’s no-name farm ponds that get mild hunting pressure during November deer season. Mallards and black ducks will continue to use these ponds until everything freezes up.
wait for the sun to rise higher and thaw ground surface in feeding areas. Instead of a normal twice a day meal schedule, the geese will usually fly late and remain in the field until dark, which is now early by the clock due to the time change. The final change in habit is a big one and crucial to hunter success – the colder the weather, the more likely the geese will feed in dug potato fields rather than the usual grain. The small potatoes and roots left by harvesting machinery offer more starch, sugars and nutrients to help the birds withstand the frigid condi-
When cold weather and snow arrive in The County, geese favor potato fields over grain fields for the extra protein and starch to keep warm The author and a friend set their haybale blind right by an irrigation pivot, and the honkers piled in to eat spuds
tions. Informed hunters will set their decoy spreads on potato land, and scouting will reveal the preferred fields near roost waters. November is a fickle weather month in Aroostook – whitetail trackers hope for snow cover, while waterfowlers wish for milder temperatures that leave water open and ground unfrozen. Mother Nature remains unpredictable, but whatever the weather, sportsmen and -women will find an open season, a quarry, and a way to hunt.
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At some point in November, there will be snow and there will be ice in Aroostook, but as long as there is open water there will be Canada geese around to hunt.
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Trophy Gallery
That’s a Really Big Moose Bob Bella (left) of Bucksport, and Steve Parker of Nampa, ID celebrate their huge bull moose taken September 28, 2022 in Zone 4. The moose weighed 987 lbs. field dressed, and its antlers featured 19 points with a width of 59.25 inches. The hunters were guided by Paul Beauregard, PB Guide Service. Bill Sheldon photo
Megan Orchard and Tyler Seeley of Presque Isle each earned their Maine Sportsman black bear club patches this fall, within a few days of one another. Megan used a .308 on August 29, 2022 to harvest a boar, while Tyler also tagged a male bear, using a .50 caliber muzzleloader.
Those Darn Out-of-Staters! Holley Brown of New York City was fishing the Belgrade Lakes during her first-ever trip to Maine last year, when she earned her “One that Didn’t Get Away” patch with this 15-inch, 1-lb, 14.5 oz. white perch, caught on a Berkley Grub. Ed Bialick, who witnessed the feat, had this to say: “This is what happens when a city girl comes to Maine for the first time. I’ve been fishing in Maine for more than 45 years, and I have never caught a white perch that big!”
Three Birds Down Drew Belanger, an 11-year-old sixth grade student at Fort Kent Elementary School, downed three partridges while hunting with his grandfather Elmer Belanger on the back roads of Eagle Lake on October 10, 2022. An avid hunter, Drew uses a youth model .410 shotgun. Photo by Stacy Belanger
A phenomenal run of success in September and October, 2021 earned Ashlee Vilasuso of Orrington a coveted Maine Grand Slam, starting with a 225-lb. black bear on September 3; this 17-1/2 lb. tom turkey on October 19; a 144-lb. doe on October 23; and a 783-lb. cow moose from Brassua TWP on October 26. Her brother David, shown above, earned his Grand Slam in 2020. Congrats, Ashlee! www.MaineSportsman.com
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Smilin’ Sportsman
Woman: “Am I too old to learn how to do a split?” Gym instructor: “Well, that depends. How flexible are you?” Woman: “I can’t make Tuesdays or Thursdays.” — A teenage girl brought her boyfriend home to meet her parents. They were horrified by everything about him. After he left, the girl’s mom said, “Dear, your new friend doesn’t seem to be a very nice boy.” “Oh please, Mom!” replied the daughter. “If he wasn’t a nice boy, why would he be doing 500 hours of community service?” — Little Johnny’s teacher said to him, “Johnny, your essay titled ‘My Dog’ is exactly the same as your sister’s. Did you just copy hers?” “No,” replied Johnny. “It’s the same dog.” — Husband, on the phone to his wife: “Honey it’s me. I don’t want to alarm you,
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but I was hit by a car as I was leaving the office. Paula brought me to the hospital. They have checked me over and done some tests and some x-rays. The blow to my head was severe. Fortunately, the impact did not cause any serious internal injuries. However, I have three broken ribs, a compound fracture in the left leg, and they think they may have to amputate my right foot.” Wife: “Who’s Paula?” — Wife: “Look at that intoxicated fellow walking down the street.” Husband: “I see him. Do you know him?” Wife: “Yes – ten years back, he proposed to me, and I rejected him.” Husband: “Wow! And he’s still celebrating!” —
The man in the rocking chair seemed wistful. “As I get older,” he told his grandson, “I think back sadly on all the people I lost along the way. Perhaps I should have chosen a different lifetime career than as a Registered Maine Guide.”
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Flavor of the Future Maine needs to get in the alligator business. Warming oceans are reducing the lobster harvest. Loss of habitat is taking a toll on moose and deer herds. We can only support so many social-media influencers. Our entire economy is being reduced to pot shops and craft beer. The best option for diversifying our financial base is to try something radical. And radical would be an alligator’s middle name. If alligators had middle names. Consider the Gator Consider the average gator’s economic value. Its hide can be used for high-quality footwear, handbags and kinky underwear. Its meat is delicious, tasting sort of like a hog and a halibut had a baby. Tourists would flock to see breeding pens full of giant crocodilians. They’d buy gator skulls and gator-foot backscratchers by the gross. And if a few of the out-of-staters got eaten, it would save on feed. Obviously, there are some roadblocks preventing gator farming from blossoming here anytime soon: Alligators won’t tolerate the state’s winters. Neighbors who oppose putting an aquaculture facility next door aren’t likely to look kindly on muddy swamps full of ravenous reptiles. And you just know some idiot kid is going to get dismembered. Resolvable These problems can be addressed. First, as the state warms due to climate change, winters are becoming less frigid. And as traditional alligator breeding grounds, such as Florida, sink into the ocean, the creatures are going to be forced to migrate north. It’s only a matter of time before displaced gators reach the Piscataqua River Bridge and apply for asylum. We should start preparing. The NIMBY problem is more complicated. The simplest answer would be to just sic the livestock on the complainers, thereby swallowing the squabbling. But there’s a public-relations downside to that approach. It might make more sense to buy off the dissenters with a nice pair of alligator boots or a fashionable gator-skin purse.
With climate change threatening the traditional Maine economy, our columnist offers a reptilian alternative.
Et alligators, dirigo (Latin for “With alligators, Maine leads.”)
As for kids getting eaten, it’s just a matter of educating the little squirts about the dangers of dangling their appendages over the barriers around gator farms. The best way to do this is to rely on the highly successful model we’ve used to convince impressionable students not to smoke pot. In the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program, law-enforcement officials lecture in schools about the dangers of drug use. Gator avoidance would work the same way. The new program could be called Leave Alligators Alone Arrogant Youth Or Forfeit Feet (L.A.A.A.Y.O.F.F.). Game wardens could conduct the classes, along with former alligator wrestlers who lost their jobs when rising seas washed away Florida. Re-Branding The next issue the state needs to face is how best to market our alligator products. The first step is to give the creatures a more exciting brand name. It may surprise you to learn that a bunch of gators is known as a “congregation.” I don’t know what cabal of idiots
came up with that name, but it’s gotta go, because it makes it seem as if the alligators were captured after attending Sunday services. Maine needs something that says our reptilian hoards are wild and dangerous: A bloodbath of gators. A butchery of alligators. A gnarly mass of crocodilian awesomeness. Or for those who happen on them while skinny dipping, a mistake of gators. Once the marketing issue is cleared up, the alligator trade can begin in earnest. Roadside stands selling deep-fried gator dogs would pop up across the state. Rich people from away could be conned into paying 40 bucks for a gator roll. Fine dining establishments might charge exorbitant prices for alligator roulade, artisan alligator filet au jus or duo of alligator ribeye and muskrat. Support Animals? There’s also another niche market to exploit. According to an August story in the Washington Post, alligators make snuggly emotional-support animals. The article focused on Joseph Henney of Pennsylvania, who lives with a 70-pound, five-and-a-half-foot gator that sleeps on his bed and loves kisses. WallyGator eats a couple chicken legs and some dead rats every few days. He visits nursing homes to comfort the residents. And, no doubt, he keeps Captain Hook away from the neighborhood. Unlike dogs and cats, alligators don’t shed hair all over the house. If you have a rodent problem, your pet gator can clean it up. And if you don’t have an infestation, dead rats are way cheaper than bags of kibble. With the right ad campaign, it would take no time before people were flocking to Maine to purchase pet alligators, gorge on gator cuisine and immerse themselves in the alligator experience. Even though that last one seems dangerous. Al Diamon writes the weekly column Politics & Other Mistakes for the Portland Phoenix and the Daily Bulldog.
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— TRADING POST — • Subscribers may place one free 20-word • The regular rates are $15 for up to 20 line classified ad per month (2-month limit) words and 50¢ for each additional word • Items for sale must include a price • Check, money order, MasterCard or VISA (Credit or Debit) are accepted • Real estate ads must include an address or location
• You may submit your ads by: Phone: 207-357-2702 E-mail: classifieds@mainesportsman.com Mail: 183 State Street, Suite 101 Augusta ME 04330
SUBMIT AD AND PAYMENT BY THE 30TH OF EACH MONTH AND YOUR AD WILL APPEAR IN THE NEXT ISSUE. BOATS 16 FOOT SOLID FIBERGLASS RANGELEY BOAT Built by Riverbend Fiberglass in good condition except needs gunwale work. $250 OBO. Located near Augusta. ME. Reply to: Ads@ MaineSportsman.com —
CAMPS / HOMES FOR RENT CAMPS FOR RENT For hunting, fishing, families, sledding, ATV. Ashland,
Medford, Argyle, Lagrange. Ample parking, off-grid. $400/ week, Modern $700/ week. 207-745-1725 DEAD RIVER CAFE Year-round home for rent on the North Branch of the Dead River. Sleeps up to 9. Four bedrooms, 1-1/2 baths, 2 car garage. 3-1/2 miles North of Pines Market in Eustis. Long Term Winter Rental Jan 1st-Mar 31st, $12,000. Contact Jamie: 207-577-6516
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DOGS QUAIL HOLLOW KENNELS: BRITTANYS Simply the best personal shooting dogs and family pets. Puppies and started dogs. Woodcock training November through March. Forty years of excellence. Call after sunset, 856-935-3459. —
FIREARMS VERY NICE MOSSBERG 835 ULTI-MAG TURKEY/DEER COMBO Finished in Mossy Oak Obsession. Shoots 2 3/4”, 3” and 3 1/2”.
Has 24” ported turkey barrel, with fiber optic sights. Also has a 24” cantilever fully-rifled and ported barrel. Very nice shotgun. Asking $600. Have some sabot slugs, buckshot and turkey loads that could possibly go with it. Call or Text 207-402-4180. —
ICE FISHING CLAM ICE FISHING SHACKS Two-Man $100. FourMan $150. T-bar Ice Auger $35. Jet Sled $50. Assorted Tip-ups $40. 207-400-6239 —
MISC. LINE-CLASSIFIED FOR SALE AD Place a 20 word TEXT AD for a boat, rod, bow, car, truck or truck cap, firearm, ammo, or other personal item at $10/month. Offer good through DEC. 31, 2022. Mail ad to our office or email: ads@ mainesportsman.com —
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One-of-a-kind two bedroom Chalet nestled on 5+/- acres with amazing mountain views from it’s unique catwalk dining area! This year-round location offers privacy and the option to cut some trees and open up an amazing mountain view with snowmobile and ATV trail access right from your driveway! This is a must see to appreciate! $200,000
4.76+/- acre lot with a 3 bedroom, 1 bath home in a great four season recreational area! Large living room with cathedral ceiling, sliding glass doors to the backyard, woodstove, plus a remodeled bathroom, first floor bedroom, glassed-in front porch, and attached one car garage. ATV/Snowmobile trails are two miles from the property. Conveniently located to Skowhegan and Madison. $179,900
Beautiful 7.7+- acre lot cleared and ready for building. Trails throughout back of property with old growth stand of tall straight pines. Road maintained year round. Electric available at the road! So peaceful, this is a must see! $60,000
info@countyseatrlty.com • www.countyseatrlty.com
ATHENS – Located on a quiet country road in the heart of Maine deer country, this charming cabin awaits. With over 100 acres of prime woodland and 2,500 feet of road frontage, you will find deer, black bear, moose, turkey, rabbits, coyotes, and a variety of upland game for your hunting or viewing pleasure. This parcel has been professionally managed and is enrolled in the Maine Tree Growth Tax Program. The kitchen is well-appointed with an electric oven and range, ample counter and cabinet space, and a large refrigerator. Relax by the crackling sounds of the woodstove or lounge in the spacious living room. This cabin also features two bedrooms and a full bathroom with a standup shower. Close access to a network of ATV and snowmobile trails. Only a few minutes drive to Lake Wesserunsett, Ironbound Pond, Kingsbury Pond, the Kenenbec River, and Wesserunset Stream. MLS #1538560 – $339,000 ATHENS – 221 acres of prime woodland located on a private gated road with nearly a mile of frontage on Longley brook. Great area for hunting and outdoor recreation with a snowmobile trail that crosses a portion of the property. There is also nearby access to ATV trails. Property is enrolled in Tree Growth for tax purposes and an updated Forest Management Plan is available. MLS #1540721 – $331,500 SKOWHEGAN – This 1.983 acre parcel of land is a rolling field on the bank of the Kennebec River. The seller has taken care to make this property a retreat just outside of town but within minutes you have all the conveniences. The 201.97’ of water frontage is easy to access with the stairway down the riverbank or you can sit on the river’s edge by the firepit and take in the view. There is a young fruit orchard on the property with varieties of apple, cherry, plum and pear.The lot has been surveyed, soil tested and a septic design is available. MLS #1521084 – $140,000 WELLINGTON – A whopping 580 acres of land – a rare find. There is a gravel pit within the property and frontage on both Higgins Stream and Buzzell Brook. Property offers 3 miles of interior roads. This property is waiting for you to come and explore. MLS #1369861 – $399,000 WEST FORKS PLT – Four-season, 12’x20’ camp on a 3.59 acre lot. Camp sleeps at least eight people. No power, water, or septic; just grey water system. Wired for lights and outlets for a generator. Ondemand propane hot water heater and an outdoor shower, plus a 110 gallon rain water catch system. There is a propane stove, heater, and lights. The camp is fully insulated and heats very quickly. There is a generator shelter and 8’x8’ shed. It is plowable, so access available year round or snowmobile in. The Appalachian trail is just down the road, plus snowmobile and ATV trail access nearby. Excellent hunting and fishing in the area. Public beach at Pleasant Pond about a mile away. The camp is about a mile and a half off of pavement and about 5 miles from route 201. MLS #1529310 – $74,000 FAIRFIELD – A wonderful opportunity to own 64 acres of private, well wooded property. Minutes from all the amenities of civilization, yet isolated. Build the homestead of your dreams, explore recreational opportunities. If you have been looking for the right piece of land and privacy, come take a look. Only minutes from downtown Waterville. MLS #1514384 – $129,999 HARTLAND – 112+/- acres of land on a town maintained gravel road with power available at the road. The ROW from Huff Hill Rd. offers a nice gravel road for more access to this property and is also the ATV and snowmobile trail. The property features beautiful views as well. Currently in tree growth for tax purposes. Tax figure is estimated only. (23025Sa1002) MLS #1537236 – $137,500 CORNVILLE – Large lot on a paved, public maintained road with many possibilities. This lot contains a nice landing area with easy access right off Beckwith Road. There is power at the road and approximately 400 feet of frontage on Route 150. This is a rural location, but it is only minutes to downtown Skowhegan. Currently in Tree Growth for tax purposes. MLS #1537634 – $92,500 11/22
★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★
SAVE THE DATE for the 41st Annual
State of Maine Sportsman’s Show! March 31 – April 2, 2023 Augusta Civic Center – Augusta, ME Stay tuned to the State of Maine Sportsman’s Show Facebook page and website for updates!
www.show.mainesportsman.com www.MaineSportsman.com
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Happy Thanksgiving! Endless Opportunities
Discover the versatility and convenience of Northeastern’s Camp and Cabin kits. Perfect for vacation homes or retirement retreats, these log cabin kits are easy to build and very affordable. They feature simple, open designs and come complete with pre-cut Eastern White Pine Logs, insulated doors, windows, rafters, roof sheathing and subflooring, plus step-by-step instructions.
on the Penobscot River!
340 Main Road, Passadumkeag, ME Nyki Greene
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Caryn Dreyfuss, Broker • (207) 233-8275
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EUSTIS – Looking for views, then check out this lot in the scenic Eustis Ridge Overlook! Wooded 3.87 acre parcel recently selectively cut to enhance the beautiful Flagstaff Lake and mountain vistas. Rough driveway in, building site cleared, underground power in place. Access ATV/snowmobile trails from your door. Quiet, private spot for your fulltime or get away home - don’t miss out on this one, inquire today! MLS #1541633 – $99,500 RANGELEY PLT - Bemis Road, ATV/snowmobile right from this building lot! Level, well wooded 1.84 acre parcel (two .92 acre parcels being sold together) has been surveyed, soils tested/4BR septic plan (expired), power available at road. Enjoy 4-season recreation from your door - close to the AT, fly fishing on the causeway, public boat ramps, Oquossoc amenities. Low plantation taxes, town maintained road. Don’t miss out on this one – inquire today! MLS #1520779 – $83,000 SANDY RIVER PLT - Looking to get away from the hustle and bustle of daily life? Check out this large acreage parcel located behind the gate on Red Moose Lane! The 31.77 acre wooded timber tract offers seclusion and privacy on semi-remote road not plowed in winter. Live off the grid, get back to nature! Deeded access to association waterfront on Beaver Mt. Lake, super spot in the heart of recreation heaven. MLS #1530298 – $100,000
Springfield – Remote. Well wooded acreage. Direct ATV and snow mobile access right on McGinley Road. Clean northern Maine air, wildlife outside the front door and the chance to feel free. Call today for a look at this traditional Maine cabin. $59,900
Lee – New cabin is well insulated and should heat easily with electric baseboard. Good sized wooded lot offers privacy on Old Steamboat Road. Close to ATV and snowmobile trails. Year round access, electricity, near many lakes and ponds. $65,000
Lakeville – Gorgeous piece of land, heavily wooded and near the end of the Spaulding Pond Road with lakes all around. The cabin is small but sturdy. The privy and fire pit make it comfortable. Definitely well worth a look. $49,000
T4 R7 – Looking for remote pristine waterfront? Enjoy seeing a perfect starry night sky? Do you enjoy hunting and fishing? This leased camp on Seboeis River could be just what you are looking for. Call today for your appointment to see. $49,000
Weston – Sandy frontage. Crystal clear water and beautiful cold water fishery of Deering Lake. Year round access and electricity available at the road this level lot would be a great place for your full time home or vacation getaway. $129,000
Lincoln – Come take a look at this large undeveloped lakefront lot on Cambolassee Pond in Lincoln. End of the road privacy, only 10 minutes from Downtown. One of the few undeveloped lakefront lots left in this area. $75,000
Lee – This nice 10 acre lot is on a year round road with electricity. The lot is nicely wooded right on North Road. $21,900 Enfield – This large lot is part of a larger parcel, owner would consider selling larger piece. Not far from Cold Stream Pond and Cold Stream. Public road of Caribou Road and short distance to electricity. $34,000 Lincoln – This 1.43 ac lot is 335’ wide giving lots of room for privacy. Only 3.5 miles from the hospital with direct access to snowmobile and ATV trails on Transalpine Road. Only a few 100ft from public boat landing. $19,500 Lee – Well wooded. Remote. Critters everywhere. Add in the good, clean air of Northern Maine and you’ve got yourself a “keeper”. This smashin’ little lot right off Mallet’s Mill Road shouldn’t last long – call today for a guided tour. $69,900
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E S T A T E
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1-800-675-2460 Call any of our brokers to work for you! “Tate” Aylward ............. 794-2460 Peter Phinney............... 794-5466 Kirk Ritchie................... 290-1554
FOR COMPLETE INFORMATION ON OUR PROPERTIES VISIT OUR WEB SITE AT CWALAKESTREET.COM
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