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September 2012
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Energetic flagger! This flagger was seen in central Vermont. He sat in his car, used the radio to communicate to the other flgger, then waved people thru with his hand...out the window of his vehicle.
Volume 6 Issue 9
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Do you have an interesting story to tell? It could be about a fishing trip with Dad or Grampa, maybe a hunting trip with some buddies or just about exploring nature with Grammie. We are always looking for good stories/pictures to publish in our paper. If you have a story that you think our readers might be interested in, then give us a call at 603-989-3093 or send a copy by mail or email to fred@theoutdoorgazette.com.
On The Cover
Russ Baker of Vermont with his 2011 trophy NH moose- Brandon Kirk from Newport NH,hunting over bait in central NH. Weight 120 lb. This was Brandon's first archery bear. - Joe Miller, of N. Haverhill NH, with a Cape Cod Striper he caught while fishing with Capt. John Curry September 2012
Page 3
Editor’s Back Porch
Stump Season is Open
What’s the next best thing to bowhunting? Stump shooting with your friends and family! A few weeks ago my two son’s, Devin and Josh, along with daughter Olivia and grandson Riley, headed up to our camp in Worcester, Vermont for a day of stump shooting and escape from the honey-do home chores. Stump shooting is a great way to get ready for the upcoming bow season. Being traditional bowhunters, it really helps us to shoot in the woods in and around trees and branches. The key to shooting instinctively is being able to pick a spot and focus on it at the time of the shot. If there is a tree or branch or rock, close to the stump we have picked as our target, it can distract you and if the shooter focuses on that obstacle at the last second before release, well that is where the arrow is going to go. In our group we pick tight shots frequently. “ Hey Fred
By Fred Allard
don’t worry about that tree!” can be heard just before my release.
On our recent stump shooting day, my two sons, Devin and Josh. and I weathered the harrassment to make three killing shots on this Vermont stump.
The good-neighbored ribbing is meant to make me loose focus, and hopefully hit the tree. If I hit the tree you can hear loud laughter all thru the woods as my cedar arrow explodes in to kindling. If I make the shot, well congrats are given, reluctantly haha, and the next shooter gets in to position and tries to weather the banter, or the tickling of his ear with a fern. We all watch as the arrow is released hoping for another impact with the obstacle not the target! Usually we bring lunch along with us or roast some dogs over a little fire, retell hunting stories (that we never get sick of hearing)…Good times and good practice, bring on bow season! Fred Allard lives in Haverhill, NH with his family. He is a Bowhunter Education Instructor, a scorer for the Northeast Big Buck Club, the New Hampshire Antler and Skull Trophy Club and the Vermont Big Game Trophy Club. He is the President of the Montshire Traditional Bowhunters. Fred can be reached by emailing fred@theoutdoorgazette.com.
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National Hunting & Fishing Day, September 22 Marks the 75th Anniversary of Sportfish & Wildlife Restoration
National Hunting and Fishing Day on September 22 is a perfect day to celebrate that 2012 is the 75th anniversary of America’s Sportfish & Wildlife Restoration Program. “Celebrating National Hunting and Fishing Day helps recognize that hunters and anglers have been the leaders in major conservation programs since the beginning of the 20th century,” said Vermont Fish & Wildlife Commissioner Patrick Berry. “They are responsible for the majority of funding for Vermont’s fish and wildlife department through the federal excise taxes they lobbied to create and through the annual licenses they purchase. Thanks to the Pittman-Robertson Act and the Dingell-Johnson Act, the money collected must be dedicated to supporting fish and wildlife conservation.” The resulting scientifically based fish and wildlife conservation programs have led to the dramatic comeback of many species that appeared to be headed for extinction in Vermont.
The Outdoor Gazette
For example, Vermont’s populations of white-tailed deer, moose, bear, and wild turkey, are now restored to abundant numbers. “We can thank our sportsmen and women for their continuing efforts to ensure the wise use and proper management of our fish and wildlife resources,” said Commissioner Berry. “And we can also thank them for providing most of the funding over the past 75 years for the fish and wildlife conservation programs here in Vermont and throughout the United States.” The program was jumpstarted in 1937 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act
(also known as the PittmanRobertson Act), which raises funds through a dedicated excise tax on sporting guns and ammunition. In 1950, the Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Act (also known as the Dingell-Johnson Act) was enacted. This law provides funds for fish conservation and boating and fishing recreational programs in each state through an excise tax on fishing and boating equipment and fuels. Both sources of federal funding, coupled with license dollars, continue to pay for most of the fish and wildlife conservation work done by state fish and wildlife agencies throughout the
September 2012
country. Congress established National Hunting and Fishing Day to recognize hunters and anglers for their leadership in fish and wildlife conservation. Since launching in 1972, National Hunting and Fishing Day has been formally proclaimed annually by every U.S. President. “National Hunting and Fishing Day gives us a chance to reflect on the foresight of generations of hunters and anglers who have worked ceaselessly to protect the resources we all enjoy,” said Commissioner Berry. “We can use Saturday as an opportunity to enjoy firsthand the legacy they have created and that we all must work together to preserve.” To learn more about fish and wildlife conservation in Vermont, go to www.vtfishandwildlife.com. For more information about National Hunting and Fishing Day, check in at www.NHFDAY.org. And for detailed information about the federal Sportfish and Wildlife Restoration program, go to: wsfrprograms.fws.gov.
Page 5
8 Years in the Wilderness By Tom Rideout
Bears and Good neighbors!
The cooler air is making life a little more enjoyable around here at Sturtevant Pond. The simple chores like mowing the lawn, moving firewood and preventive maintenance go a lot more easily when I am not sweating so much. The mornings are especially enjoyable as the fog hangs heavy on the pond until well after 9am. Martha stills braves the pond each morning in her kayak, but I lose sight of her immediately in the fog. I have been going out fishing early in the morning and have to be careful about finding my way and not to run over Martha in her kayak. I noticed that some of the swamp maples’ leaves are turning. Around camp, the white birch leaves are in need of raking, and a few apples from our resident apple tree have fallen to the ground. All indications are, that the summer is winding down and Fall is in full swing. The guides around here have been busy running their bear baits. It hasn’t been the best of berry crops so the bears should be hitting the baits with gusto. In the past, when I ran baits for bear hunters, the whole process was one of apprehension, as
one never knew what the bears were going to do. In those years with banner berry crops, it was difficult to
draw the bears to the baits, and my success dwindled. For those of you who have never ran bear baits, it is a lot of work and usually goes unnoticed by the hunters. Most of my hunters, when I first started offering bear hunts, were from Sportsmen’s Shows that I attended during the winter months. Pennsylvania was a great state to
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ed it. The whole show was held in a large area that housed several large buildings. One could not see everything in one day. It was an amazing show and I always did a lot of business there. I found that one had to be careful about promoting one’s business because people all have different outlooks on things when it comes to hunting and fishing. It seems like everyone has a different definition of what hunting or fishing is. I tried to be truthful in portraying what was available. I would tell deer hunters that hunting in western Maine is not an easy thing. A hunter would be lucky if he or she saw five or six deer in a full week of hunting. I found out that even by telling a hunter these facts, they had their own idea of what they were going to expect. I cannot count the times I have had hunters from down South tell me after a couple days of hunting around my camps that there were no deer here. “I can see 30 deer in a morning,” or “I passed up over 20 bucks last season hunting in New York” were the typical comments I heard from southern hunters. Bear hunters also had different ideas about bear hunting. For some reason, many hunters thought bears were stupid and that they would walk right into the bait. After one night on a bait, and not seeing a bear, many hunters request another
bait, saying, “There are no bears coming to the bait.” Now don’t get me wrong. I have had numerous hunters shoot a bear on their first night on a bait, but on average it took two or three nights on a bait before a hunter had an opportunity at a bear. What many hunters do not realize is that the bears know the hunters are there. One of my main requirements for someone bear hunting with me was, when I assigned them a bait site, it was their responsibility to bait it while they were hunting it. It is bad enough that the bait site was being contaminated by the hunter’s scent; I felt there was no reason for any more scent to be left around to make the bears even “more spooky” than they already were. This past spring and summer I have seen more bears around than I have had in past years. It is a good indication that this fall’s hunt will be a good one. I do not like eating bear meat. I don’t like the taste (at least the taste of the fat in the meat), so I don’t shoot them. I have seen several nice bear and one huge bear while deer hunting over the past few years and I have passed on them. During my ownership of Bosebuck Camps back in the 1980s and 1990s, I would encourage the kids that visited the camps during the summer to keep all the fall fish they caught off the dock. I would take these chubs and suckers and render them in the sun out back of the camps and use the fish oil on all the bear bait sites. The fish oil helped as an attractant, but it also brought in other animals. Many of my bear hunters were amused watching the antics of raccoons or even fishers at the bait sites while waiting for a bear to come in. After the bear season was over, I would continue to put out fish oil at least once a week or so until trapping season. Once trapping season started, I would set traps at the bait locations. This allowed me to make a little more money for all the work I did carrying buckets of bear bait up and down those steep hills. I found that, after a bait site had been established, and maintained for at least one year, animals would still visit it. I used to trap old bait sites that I hadn’t put bait on for a couple
Continued next page
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Page 6
find both bear hunters and deer hunters. I used to attend the Harrisburg, PA show. This show ran for 11 days, and close to 90,000 sportsmen and sportswomen attend-
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Controlled waterfowl hunt application deadline is Sept. 17
Applications are available for controlled waterfowl hunting permits to be used at two Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department wildlife management areas. Interested hunters must apply by Monday, September 17, 2012. Hunting under controlled conditions for ducks at Mud Creek in Alburgh and geese at Dead Creek in Addison has been popular since the early 1970’s. Permit applications for these two areas are available on Fish & Wildlife’s website ( w w w. v t f i s h a n d w i l d l i f e. c o m ) . Printed applications are available at Vermont Fish and Wildlife offices in Essex Junction, Addison, Barre, St. Johnsbury, Springfield and Rutland. Applications must be filled out correctly and postmarked no later than September 17. There is no fee to apply. A public drawing to award hunting permits will be held Friday, September 21 at 12:00 Noon at Dead Creek Wildlife Management Area headquarters off Route 17 in Addison. Attendance is not required. Successful applicants will be notified by mail and must pay a $10 permit fee on the day of the hunt. Pre-registered goose hunting at Dead Creek WMA will occur every Wednesday from October 17 through November 7. Waterfowl
hunting at Mud Creek WMA will be by pre-registration on October 14 and 16. Any vacancies due to “no-shows” on those days will be filled on the morning of the hunt. All other Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays during the open seasons will be self-registration days. Permits will be available at the Mud Creek operations building. Mud Creek WMA will not be open for hunting on Saturday, October 13.
of years and still manage to catch a few raccoons, fishers or martens. These animals remembered those sites for many months after they were abandoned. One of our problems here in western Maine, with the future of bear baiting and bear hunting in general, are the practices of the land management companies that oversee many of the forest lands we have public access to. One problem is that large guiding operations are buying up more and more bait sites, leaving few for the little guy or individual hunters looking to set up a couple of bait sites. The land managers are
doing a fairly good job at limiting the number of bait sites per mile. One thing new this year I noticed, is that signs are being posted stating that areas are restricted to permit applicants, both for bear bait and bear hunting with dogs. This dog business is new, and if it is true, then it is an ominous sign for things to come in the future. The land management companies’ purpose is to make the landowners money, and now that more and more of the land is being harvested, revenues from the wood harvesting is declining. This forces the land managers to look for new ways to gener-
Duck season opens on October 13 in the Lake Champlain and Interior Vermont Zones, and on October 2 in the Connecticut River Zone. The Lake Champlain Zone has a split season (October 13-17; October 27-December 20); the Interior Vermont Zone is a straight season (October 13-December 11); and the Connecticut River Zone is a split season (October 2November 4; November 21-
December 16). A statewide Vermont open hunting season for Canada geese will occur September 4-25. A second Canada goose hunting season will be held Oct. 13 – Dec. 1. Be sure to read the 2012 Syllabus of State and Federal Hunting Regulations for Migratory Birds available on Fish & Wildlife’s website and from license agents for detailed regulations.
Photo by Dan Millet
ate revenue. Selling the land, especially the shorefront lots, is one way to generate revenue, and selling the hunting rights is another. It is a common practice out West and down South but a new idea here in the Northeast. Let us hope that this is not the case, and I am hoping that the landowners want to be good neighbors and maintain the traditional public access to their lands, which has been historically maintained. It will be a wait-and-see proposition and might not even be established in my lifetime. This leaves future generations who want to enjoy the out-
from previous page
doors to be the guardians of making sure everyone continues to be good neighbors. Tom Rideout is the former editor of NH Outdoor Gazette and was the owner of Bosebuck Mountain Camps on Aszicoos Lake in western Maine for 17 years. He has held a Master Maine Guide’s license for more than 35 years (hence the 8 years in the wilderness) He and his wife Martha operate Sturtevant Pond Camps in Magalloway, Maine and operates Pakesso Guide Service, which specializes in upland bird wing shooting . You can reach Tom at tom@sturtevantpondcamps.com
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September 2012
Page 7
Lessons from the Great Outdoors Anticipating the cold seasons
Summer passes way too quickly. It feels like I have just gotten into the swing of it, just gotten my winter clothes put away and my shorts out, and all of a sudden we get a morning when I have to don a fleece for my morning paddle in thick fog with freezing fingers on the metal shaft of the paddle. Summer has always been my favorite season. I love to swim and spend time on the water. I love going barefoot and not having to layer on clothing every time I step out the door. I don’t need to think about where I left my mittens—or anything else, like I do when things could disappear under a layer of snow at any moment. I love being warm! I just can’t get enough of it, so I am always disappointed when I am reminded that it will end all too soon. There have been signs before this; for weeks my eyes have felt like they are full of sand from my fall allergies. The days are noticeably shorter. The swamp maples were beginning to turn red and the birches yellow. The
blueberries are gone, the raspberries have just a few remnants on the canes, and the blackberries have been ripe for weeks. Tom has the fall
firewood stacked on the porch. The loons are congregating. The start of the fall semester was looming, and I had workshops to plan. There was fog on the pond in the early morning, but mostly the weather was sum-
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mery until the third week in August. Temps in the 80s and pop-up thunderstorms in the afternoons seemed to go on day after day. Then, one day, a cold front goes through, and instead of just drier air behind it,
there is true cold. I know, in my head, that there have always been days in late August when we have to fire up the stove, but I am still always surprised. And it seems that time goes faster and faster as I get older. That feels like a bad joke. As one has fewer days to live, you would hope that each one gets to be longer, not shorter, but it doesn’t seem to work that way. We are now back to our wintertime sleeping schedule, since it is dark by 9 and still dark when we awake around 5. The shorter days mean that the Earth, like myself, are living on the credit that built up in our accounts earlier in the year. The days, now, are the same length that they were in April. Then, the earth was absorbing and storing heat, gaining every day. Now it is giving off more than it is storing each day, and we will continue to lose until our balance is used up in December. I am not a lover of Fall, unlike most hunters. I try each year to
appreciate it more; there are wonderful things about it. Tom said just last night that he is really looking forward to it. But I can never get myself to truly love it; there is just too much to do to get ready for winter, and while I know I should appreciate that activity for itself, for the fun of doing it, somehow, no matter how I try to tell myself otherwise, it always seems like just more chores. There will still be warm days; these cold days of late summer are, like the warm days in April when you are tempted to till the garden and plant the peas, just harbingers of things to come. There will still be hot days in September and warm ones in October—beautiful, clear days with colorful hillsides. Even after the leaves are down, it will stay beautiful for bird hunting. There are apples to be harvested instead of berries, and applesauce and pickles to make instead of jam. But there will come a morning when there is a skim of ice on the pond, and whatever appreciation I have dredged up for Fall will turn to dread of winter. But, then, I like winter. Why I should is a bit strange, but by then I can begin to anticipate its end. I can sit in the sun while ice fishing in January and know that the days are getting longer, that spring and summer will, indeed, come around again. I know that I really should stop anticipating the future all the time and enjoy each day for itself as I am in it, especially as I get older and have fewer days to enjoy. But it just seems to be my nature. And as much as there are things to dread about the cold seasons, there are things to look forward to, as well. There is apple picking. There are the colorful hillsides of foliage season. There is bird hunting and deer hunting. There are partridge to eat—the best food ever provided by nature. There are the beautiful clear
Continued next page
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Page 8
September 2012
The Outdoor Gazette
The Outdoor Gazette’s Outfitter Review
Cape Fishing with Captain John Curry
My favorite saltwater fish is the “Striper”. Not owning a boat worthy of ocean fishing, I must rely on friends that do, or hire a guide/outfitter for chasing the big bass. The striper bug became too frenzied to resist, so I finally picked a guide to go with. Captain John Curry,
A good view from our boat.
www.capefishing.net. The weather report was sketchy and we almost cancelled. The forecast the evening before was for wind and rain. The three of us Joe Miller from North Haverhill, NH, Archie Apigo, Lebanon NH, and myself
Joe Miller, of North Haverhill NH, with a striper caught fishing the flats of cape Cod with Capt. John Curry. skies of Fall and the dry, crisp days of mid-January. There are piles of new white snow, snowshoeing and snow machine riding out in woods that you never see any other time of the year because they are so hard to get to any other way. There is ice fishing; there is something magical about being able to walk around on a lake that makes it different from being in the same place in a boat. There is sitting by a warm fire as you bask in the aroma of slow-cooking venison stew watching the snow pile up outside. There are the sounds of ice booming and The Outdoor Gazette
have limited days to fish, especially together, so we chanced it. The weather was perfect and the water was flat! John’s boat is a beauty. And we were very comfortable during our Cape Cod fishing trip. The fish were not cooperative at
first. We started the day casting lures at the mouth of a canal. Then went to drifting eels on the bottom. This produced some action as Archie had a bluefish on for a short time, but it bit the eel off just below it’s head. Joe was next, he had a fish on momentarily then lost it. He reeled his line in to check his bait, the biggest flounder I have ever seen, followed it right to the boat. Too bad! We then motored about six miles down the coast to a small harbor and looked for birds feeding on baitfish. We found them and they were near shore, in about 2 feet of water. The fish were here too, jumping all around us. John said this was the reason he bought this boat “it can not only handle the big water, but can get to rising fish in shallow water too”. John quickly changed all our equipment and we were casting to rising stripers in no time. To say that it was fun would be an
understatement. I boated ten bass myself that day. I caught them all in 5 feet of water or less. Some of them smashed the lure just as it hit (coming out of the water for a nice show). After a couple hours of this fast action the tide finally pushed us to deeper water. We casted our lures along a contour change close to shore as the current flowed seaward. We landed a few more bass here too. Once the tide was flat, we headed out and tried sand worms with the hope we would pick up some flounder. The action was furious, but they were not flounder. We found a school of spiny dogfish. Once it was evident they were not going to leave us alone, we went to trolling. John,
John’s boat is a beauty. And we all had a great time during our Cape Cod fishing trip. The day ended way too soon, as a again, had our equipment changed of fishing with friends usually day up quickly for our trolling session. We trolled the last hour of our day does. I can’t wait to feel the tug of a with more of those dogfish landed big striper on my line again. As on big striper lures? Pesky little Arnold would say, “I’ll be back” Want to give it a try? Go to things. I have to hand it to John, he pulled out all the stops making sure www.capefishing.net for Captain we were on fish. He changed loca- John’s contact information.
from previous page
trees popping in the still silence of a deep freeze. There are animal tracks to be identified and followed. I guess I don’t really mind the cold weather after all. You can’t live in the North Country if you do. Martha VanderWolk owns and operates Sturtevant Pond Camps in Magalloway, Maine with her husband, Tom Rideout. A lifelong educator, she currently teaches in the Sustainable Business and Communities Program at Goddard College. She can be reached at Martha@sturtevantpondcamps.com.
Fish on! Archie Apigo battles a fish. tions and equipment multiple times. I like a guy that takes what the ocean gives him, then does what he needs to do, to put fish in the boat. He is definitely not a one-tactic kind of guy.
September 2012
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Page 9
Taxidermy Trails By Rodney Elmer
Dear Management
In the fast lane or break down lane? Let’s use another way to think about things, an analogy. Let’s call deer management your favorite kind of car. We’ll start from the ground up. The tires that hold everything up and make it roll; Hemlock and cedar trees are on the front and help steer and stabilize. Spruce and fir on the rear, with pine making a poor spare tire. Without these, the car goes nowhere. The springs represent Carrying capacity, if the car can handle another bump is always in question and we don’t’ know how much it will hold. Habitat makes up the frame and body to hold it all together. New successional forest is the fuel. Hardwoods, fields, food plots, mast & ag. crops. All are the gas to make it run. Mother Nature is the engine powering the whole thing. The doe permits are the transmission; by shifting their numbers we can change the speed. The car’s owner, the people of the state, are in the back seat.
The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department sits in the driver’s seat, trying to keep the car going down the road full of stormy potholes, cold
rains, frozen temperatures and deep snows. The automotive problems, rusty predation, (coyotes, bears, road traffic) the denting diseases, scratching parasites and the poor economic paint job of bad forestry are not
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always noticed by the passer by. The back seat driving of the Vermont public’s values can stress the scientific reasoning of the driver. Their values causing swerves and over steering. It has been nearly thir-
ty years sense our last tire inspection with many flats in our management future. The nails in the road could easily be called; The Hemlock Wooly Adelgid, Spruce Bud Worm and White Pine Blister Rust. If we pull over for the night and reflect on the past 60 year of driving down this deer management road, the tires are worn nearly bald, wintering areas are made up of older trees at the end of their tread. The rough road has weakened the springs of carrying capacity. The nice glossy finish of an agricultural Vermont has given way to a closed canopy of vast hardwood forests of a medium age that has dulled our paint job and rusted our fuel cap shut, leaving us with low grade fuel. The back seat driver fighting against Mother Nature’s seemingly slow pace while the Department tries to shift gears and advises to responsible driving, the public’s wants and values are at times contradictory. N.H.‘s & Maine’s supplemental
deer feeding, roll’s the window down to CWD, Tuberculosis, Triganosis and other problems from increased road kills to extra winter stress. Most every issue faced is well beyond the people’s control. Let’s take a look at what is in our control. Shifting. Doe permits are our best means of slowing down responsibly. It saves the tires (WINTERING AREAS), burns fuel (browse) slower for better mileage and far less wear & tare. In the end, food plots are only the Bondo patch to make us feel better, as we scramble to fix the dents in our aged, over worked, need for speed. SO let’s do some easy math. If Vermont resident license holder’s number 70,000 and 10,000 fish only, and 2/3rds of the remaining do no habitat work That leaves 20,000 possible chances to do habitat work. If each does 1/4 acre, that’s 5,000 acre’s per year that could be managed! The biologists tell us that Vermont’s winter range is about 17% of the state. That’s close to a million acres. Know anyone working on these big tires? As land owners it’s not much but each bit helps. Let’s face it. We want it to run long and smooth and it takes forethought to drive steady. Our past mistakes and swerves should be lessons learned. Age classes of important trees are missing in many important parts of our habitat! A young hemlock 1’-0’ tall and 30 to 50 year’s old is a big sign in deer over browsing. As our new road to deer management leads us into our future, let’s listen to the science, gage our thoughts, and adjust our values to the whole system. Do your part give more then you take. Share America and preserve the parts you use, for our kids. Rodney Elmer and his wife Theresa own and operate Mountain deer taxidermy in Northfield,Vermont.
Our high quality work can be seen by our many repeat customers that seek out our services. The presentation of your trophy can be head wall mounts or full body depictions. We are also the State of Vermont Dept. of Fish & Wildlife Big Game Reporting Station. A specially designed outdoor scale system with tall vertical clearance is also provided for easy weigh-in of all species.
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Page 10
September 2012
The Outdoor Gazette
Vermont moose hunt auction Nets over $22,000 for wildlife education
Vermont’s sixth annual auction of five moose hunting permits closed on August 21, with $22,094.05 taken in to help fund Fish & Wildlife Department educational programs, such as the Green Mountain Conservation Camps for 12 to 16 year old youths. Bids do not include the cost of a hunting license ($22 for residents and $100 for nonresidents) and a moose hunting permit fee ($100 for residents and $350 for nonresidents).
moose hunting permit winners were drawn from the more than 11,000 people who applied. Hunters are expected to take more than 200 moose during Vermont’s moose hunting seasons. Archery moose season is October 1-7.
Regular moose season is October 20-25. Wildlife biologists estimate Vermont has 3,000 moose statewide. “Our management goal is to keep Vermont’s moose herd in balance with available habitat,” said Cedric Alexander, Vermont’s lead biologist
on moose. “Carefully constructed hunting regulations enable us to enjoy having moose in Vermont on a sustainable basis, while their numbers are maintained at levels that fit habitat capacity and the needs of people.”
Auction winners were as follows: David Wood, NY, $5,101.00
Robert Ashton, NH, $4,687.00 Peggy Davis, NH, $4,500.00
Michael Barry, VT, $4,033.33 Ashlee Leone, VT, $3,772.72
Winning bids in Vermont’s moose hunt permit auction are typically lower than in the auctions in neighboring states. Also, winning bidders can choose to hunt in any one of Vermont’s Wildlife Management Units open for moose hunting. The Fish and Wildlife Department held a lottery on August 2, when 385
The Outdoor Gazette
April Sholan and husband Bobby with April’s “Green Mountain Moose”. The Sholans reside in St. Johnsbury, Vermont.
September 2012
Page 11
Mass Meanderings By David Willette
Catching the Bass Bug
Since I have been four, I have been a trout fisherman, like my Father. We fished for trout in all ways imaginable, from loading up our hook with juicy night-crawlers, to slowly trolling lures behind my cousin Bob Sifton’s, Jon boat. We tried it all. My father’s favorite method was to fish the north branch of the Hoosic with night-crawlers after a rain storm. He waited for the water to turn that “coffee color”, then he would go up there and murder the trout. He would just let the bait slowly, naturally, drift downstream without any sinkers and “wham”, a twelve- inch wild brown trout wouldnail it. We traveled over the mountain to the Deerfield River many times also. This was fun for a while, but stock trout don’t pose the same challenges as wild trout. After you figure it out, stock trout are easier to catch. Some of these trout are still in hatchery mode, and they seem to click on and off their feeding cycles that way. One minute nothing is bit-
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ing, and the next minute, you can catch a half dozen trout on a halfdozen consecutive casts.
Louis Furlon, of Hoosac Tunnel, showed me the technique of changing lures. “Every twenty casts or so, change your lure or bait. Sometimes these fish aren’t hitting the gold Thomas Bouyant, so change to a silver one”. You wouldn’t think that this would make a difference, but it’s amazing how effective this
method is. The next time you’re on the Deerfield, take a page out of Louis’ playbook and change lures often. The biggest drawback to fishing
for trout though, is that unless you are a fly-fisherman, or have a boat, trout can be extremely tough to catch once the water warms up. Even good fishermen have a difficult time during the hot days of summer, when the trout are in deep, colder water, or only feed at night. What’s a fisherman to do when he gets the urge to “wet a line”? Recently, while on vacation in the Adirondacks, I was faced with a similar problem. We were staying at a lake with friends, (none of whom are fishermen), and there wasn’t a trout stream around for miles. Of course I had my fishing gear with me. My only option was to get in the canoe, which is not my favorite watercraft, and try my hand at bass fishing. BASS FISHING! You have to be kidding me. I thought bass fishing was only done on Saturday mornings, from expensive boats, with people who have southern accents. I don’t know the first thing about bass fishing, and I know even lessabout bass fishing from a canoe Thank god bass aren’t the brightestbulbs in the water, and are very accommodating about biting anything that moves, literally. These are stupid fish. And I, for one, am glad for it. My method in the Adirondacks was to anchor the canoe about twenty yards off shore and cast towards shallow water with my rubber worm. I would let it sink to the
September 2012
bottom, slowly “twitch it”, then reel in the slack. It was deadly. I couldn’t believe how easy it was. I would pull up to a dock or some other type of structure, (this is crucial for success), and slowly work my rubber worms for twenty minutes or so, then move on to the next structure. It was peaceful, fun and effective. Especially just before sunrise. At this time of the day, the lake was extremely quiet, with very little, if any waves or breeze. The canoe was much easier to handle, and the fish were more active too. Over the course of a few days, I caught twenty or so bass in the spanof a few hours every morning. Some fish I caught twice on the same lure, on consecutive days. This would never happen with wild trout, but again these are bass, and they aren’t quite as smart as their distant cousins. Another very important ingredient for continued success in any type of fishing is practicing catch and release. There aren’t a million bass out there, and they aren’t stocked by the state. Please release all fish. The three- pound bass that you catch this year, will be four pounds next year. Thankfully, bass area very hardy fish, and have a much better survival rate than trout. The hardest part was handling the canoe and fishing at the same time.This takes some practice and technique. The boat never stops moving, especially in choppy water, or if there is a breeze. At one point I had the canoe anchored, and was all set to cast when the breeze picked up and I did a complete 360 without ever getting my line in the water. Sometimes it’s like being on a carnival ride and fishing at the same time, I couldn’t help but laugh at myself. So for the rest of the summer, if you see a gray- haired guy in a sorry looking red canoe, casting towards shore, it’s me, extending my fishing season. If you look long enough, I may do a 360 for you. David Willette is a free-lance outdoor writer who lives in Western Massachusetts. He can be contacted through www.coyotewars.com
The Outdoor Gazette
“Free Range Kids” author Lenore Skenazy to headline N.H. Children in Nature Conference, October 4, 2012
CONCORD, N.H. – Lenore Skenazy, “America’s Worst Mom” and author of the book, Free-Range Kids: How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Children (Without Going Nuts with Worry) will be the featured speaker at the New Hampshire Children in Nature conference “Discovering Nature Wherever You Are” on October 4, 2012, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., at Castleton Conference Center in Windham, N.H. “Lenore Skenazy is a vivacious, funny and thought-provoking advocate of encouraging parents to lighten up and let their kids … be kids!,” said Marilyn Wyzga, convener of the N.H. Children in Nature Coalition. “Her notion of Free-Range Kids is giving children a little more freedom to take risks, to explore, learn, grow and thrive. Open the door, let them go out and play!” If you’re interested in finding ways to encourage kids and families to get outside and enjoy nature no matter where they are, register for the conference at www.nhchildreninnature.org/eve nts. The registration fee is $50, which includes 3 workshop ses-
The Outdoor Gazette
sions, lunch and refreshments. The day will showcase the many ways children, youth and families can play, learn and grow
Lenore Skenazy with nature in their everyday lives, particularly in our urban communities. Lenore Skenazy was dubbed “America’s Worst Mom” after her April 2008 column in The New York Sun described her making the controversial decision to let her 9-year-old son take the New York City subway home alone. She wore the badge with pride and founded the book and blog, “Free-Range Kids,” which launched the anti-helicop-
ter parenting movement. Her feisty belief that our kids are safer and smarter than our culture gives them credit for has landed her on talk shows from Dr. Phil to The View. She lectures internationally and has written for everyone from The Wall Street Journal to Mad Magazine. As host of the reality TV show, World’s Worst Mom, she helps overprotective parents loosen the reins. A graduate of Yale, she lives in New York City with her husband and two sons, who are half-Free-Range, half-Facebook addicts. One thing she understands: None of us is a perfect parent – and that’s okay. Drawing on facts, statistics, and humor, Skenazy convincingly argues that this is one of the safest periods for children in the history of the world, and reminds us that childhood is supposed to be about discovering the world, not being held captive. The New Hampshire Children in Nature Coalition is dedicated to fostering experiences in nature that improve physical and emotional health, increase
September 2012
understanding of the natural world, and promote stronger connections to community and landscape. The coalition got its start in 2007, when people from health, education, community planning and environmental sectors came together at a series of events to launch a New Hampshire initiative to reconnect children with nature and encourage children and families to get outside and active in the natural world. Find out more about the coalition at www.NHChildrenInNature.org.
Page 13
Riverbank Tales by Bill Thompson
The Ethics of Angling
Like most sports fishing is played by a set of rules. First there are those rules and regulations that are set down by the state. These laws deal with bag limits, seasons, and fishing methods that may be employed and those that are prohibited. Most fishermen are at least acquainted with these regulations and make an attempt to abide by them. There are also unwritten laws as well. Unfortunately many anglers are not as knowledge of these as they should be. The art of angling was not always a sport. Somewhere along the line, in the evolution of mankind, somebody figured out that fish were good to eat. As a result, for countless eons, fishing was simply a means of providing protein. As time passed men begin to develop other ways to make a living and fishing became more recreation than a necessity. I would guess that about the same time that this came about men begin to apply rules to the game. Some of these rules are just plain good old common sense that adds civility to the sport. For example it is
just plain common sense, as well as the civil thing to do, not to impose on someone else’s fishing spot. It should be oblivious to any fool that it
is impolite as well as unwise to wade into a pool where another man is already fishing. This unwritten law is perhaps the number one rule most often violated by fishermen. If two friends are fishing together then there is no harm if they wish to fish within casting distance of each
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Page 14
other. However, to wade into a pool close enough to another angler so that lines may be crossed is not only boorish, but should be punishable by no less than hanging. I will admit that in certain loca-
tions, where the resource is limited and at the same time highly popular, crowding is a fact of life. The Salmon River in New York is one of those places where fishermen stand elbow to elbow with each other. If you wish to impose this kind of punishment on yourself then so be it. Salmon anglers on popular rivers in Canada impose upon themselves very strict rules of ethics. On these rivers in order to insure fairness “strict rotation” is practiced. One angler enters the river and makes several casts and than takes a few steps down river, a second angler enters the water and follows the same procedure. Cast and move on, cast and move on until the end of the pool is reached at which time the first angler leaves the pool and returns to the end of the line to repeat the process. This is an example of what can happen when gentlemen come together and solve a problem that otherwise would result in chaos. There are other rules beyond the written and the unwritten. Those are the laws that we impose upon ourselves. Fly anglers, just by the nature of the fact that they have chosen to fish with flies, are most likely to make personal restrictions. I am sure that there are spin fishermen who do this as well. There are fly-fishermen who will only fish with dry flies and find all other methods deplorable.
Some of these guys will only fish up stream and anyone who does otherwise is a reprobate of the lowest order. Many of us are strict practitioners of “catch and release”. Needless to say we are far more holy than our brothers. For the record I find nothing wrong with killing a fish for the table. Fishing is a blood sport and we should not forget this. I do however include myself in the “catch and release” fraternity and have not killed a fish in many years. At least that I know of. Many will quickly point out that catch and release is not an exact science and on occasion, no matter how hard we try, we will lose a fish and many times we will never even know that it has happened. All of this conjures up a lot of other sticky questions. There are those who feel that the whole idea of fishing is repugnant. I certainly would not agree with this and on the whole find them to be a little off center. They do, however, have a right to their opinion. But, there are times that maybe we should give more thought to what we are doing. For example, how much is enough? There are those rare occasions, and I do mean rare, when we can do no wrong and despite our ineptness can not keep from catching fish. Now I for one believe that every dog should have his day. When this happens we surely know that the fish gods have smiled upon us. There have been a few times in my fishing career when this has happened. At some point you actually start looking through your fly box for flies that the fish won’t take. At what point do we call it a day? Well sometimes Mother Nature does it for us and for what ever reason turned the fish on in the first place ends and they stop biting. But, the question remains how much is enough; when does the sport end and obsession take over. Several years ago I fished with a friend on the Rapid River in Maine. It was early spring and the suckers had come into the river to spawn. The large brook trout that the Rapid is famous for were right behind them feasting on their eggs. One had only to drift a nymph down to them and
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The Outdoor Gazette
Take a Fish and Game Hunting Survey – You Could Win a Firearm!
CONCORD, N.H. — Four new firearms were given away this summer to lucky recipients who took part in Fish and Game’s Small Game and Ruffed Grouse surveys. All this year’s hunters need to do be eligible to win is to take part in a Fish and Game survey during their hunting season! Congratulations to the recent winners: • Linda Tase of New Hampshire won a 10-22 RB Semi-automatic rifle donated by the Sturm Ruger Co. for participation in the Small Game Survey. • James Buchok of Connecticut won a shotgun donated by the Merrimack Chapter of the Ruffed Grouse Society for his participation in the Wing and Tail survey. • Kyle Mack of Vermont won a certificate good for an M77 Ruger Hawkeye rifle donated by Sturm Ruger Co. • Roger Levitz of New Hampshire won a Thompson Center 50 Caliber Impact muzzleloader donated by Thompson Center Firearms. Hunter surveys are an integral component of wildlife management. Knowing what species hunters have seen or taken helps wildlife biologists develop hunting seasons that will maintain or change wildlife populations towards goals developed by the public. Hunters are a good source for this information, as they are well distributed across the landscape, occur in relatively high numbers, and tend to be good observers. The N.H. Fish and Game Department has three different surveys that are vitally important for big and small game season development: The Small Game Survey began in 1999. Small game is big business in the state, with about 60% of New
Hampshire hunters pursing small game (ruffed grouse, woodcock, snowshoe hare, cottontail and grey squirrel). This hunter survey, when coupled with data generated by Fish and Game staff, has proven to be an efficient means of getting a good understanding of the distribution, abundance and trends of small game species. The Ruffed Grouse Wing and Tail Survey dates back to 2005, when a pilot study was introduced to increase knowledge of ruffed grouse, New Hampshire’s most sought-after small game species. Hunters are asked to pick up survey packets at locations throughout the state. Once successful in harvesting a bird, they remove the tail and one of the wings and fill out a short survey. The samples provide Fish and Game with age and sex composition, distribution data, and a juvenileto-adult female ratio. Each year, the sample size grows and the data gathered is increasingly more important. The Deer Hunter Mail Survey was started in 1993. It gathers information on deer, bear, moose and bobcat. Each year, Fish and Game sends out a survey card to all of the previous year’s successful deer hunters and a portion of the successful hunters from two years prior. These hunters are asked to record the number of days and hours hunted, the town and Wildlife Management Unit in which they hunted, the number of deer, bear and bobcat seen during that time, as well as the number of bull, cow and calf moose seen. This gives Fish and Game a great deal of information on relative density patterns and distribution of these species, as well as excellent information on moose population trends over time and adult sex ratio and calf recruitment into the fall pop-
you would hook one. The problem was that just about every one that was hooked was foul hooked. My friend reeled in and said, “Let’s try someplace else”. For a moment I was taken back and reluctant to leave and then I realized he was right. It was too easy and the sporting part had ended. Fishing during the “dog days of summer” can conjure up some sticky issues as well. Any good fisherman that can find the spring holes is likely to have a field day. For many years there was a fellow who fished one of my favorite trout ponds. This guy had fished that pond for over thirty years and knew every inch of it including the deepest parts and where the every spring was located. Armed with a full sinking line he could catch trout at will. He was of the age where keeping fish was expected and often he would show up at my door with several big brook trout. The fact that they went to the table made this more palatable, (no pun intended), then if he had released them. Releasing trout in
warm weather especially if they were caught at any depth is a sure way to kill them. The same holds true when fishing in streams. Warm water and the stress of the fight will more than likely kill the fish even if it is carefully resuscitated before being released. The choices are ours to make, but maybe by applying a strict set of ethics to our fishing will perhaps, in the long run, make the fishing better for everyone. Come to think of it maybe if we all applied these rules to our daily lives the world would be a better place to live in.
The Outdoor Gazette
ulation. “These three surveys are vitally important to successful management of our big and small game species,” said Fish and Game Small Game Project Leader Julie Robinson. If hunters don’t participate in sufficient numbers, the data greatly decreases in its usefulness. To boost hunter participation, Fish and Game holds an annual raffle for survey participants. The winners, one each for the Small Game and Wing and Tail surveys and two for the Deer Hunter Mail survey, receive an appropriate firearm. Several generous firms consistently support the surveys by providing prizes. Thompson Center Firearms has donated a muzzleloading firearm to the Deer Hunter Mail Survey raffle since 1993. The Sturm Ruger Company has supplied a rifle in support of the Deer Hunter Mail Survey since 1994, and one for the Small Game survey since 2004. The Ruffed Grouse Society (National or state chapter), has provided a shotgun for the Wing and Tail survey raffle since 2005. “These generous donors definitely help boost hunter participation in our surveys,” said Robinson. Increased hunter survey participation translates into better data, which results in more effective species management. “If you have not participated in these surveys in the past, we encour-
age you to do so!” said Robinson. “It doesn’t take a lot of time, and you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that you’ve made an important contribution to better species management.” To make the most of your survey, pick up a survey form or packet prior to starting your hunting season and fill the survey out at the end of each hunting day. How to participate: If you would like to participate in the Small Game survey, you can get a copy of the survey at www.huntnh.com/Hunting/small_ga me_survey.htm or call 603-271-2461. Once you’ve participated, surveys will be automatically mailed to you each fall. To take part in the Ruffed Grouse Wing and Tail Survey, pick up a packet at any of the Fish and Game offices or selected locations listed on the Fish and Game website at www.huntnh.com/Hunting/hunt_ruf fed_grouse_survey.html. Hunters are asked to fill out a survey card and submit a wing and tail from each harvested bird. Once your season is completed, turn your packet in where you picked it up. Deer Hunter Mail Surveys are sent out to 16,000 successful hunters prior to the start of the muzzleloader season. If you receive one of these surveys, please fill it out each day that you hunt and send the results back to Fish and Game prior to December 1st.
from previous page
Originally from Maine, Bill Thompson, with his wife Janet, lives in Freedom and owns North Country Angler fly shop in North Conway. He has been fly fishing for more than 30 years and is a licensed NH Fishing Guide. He has fished all over New England, in Canada and out West, but claims the Saco as his “home river.” He also writes a column for a local paper as well as articles in national fly fishing magazines. Bill’s email is bill@northcountryangler.com.
September 2012
Page 15
Lock, Stock and Smoking Barrel Do High Capacity Magazines Kill?
Once again, our country has been hit with a rash of horrendous murders. Movie goers being massacred or police officers being gunned down; the senseless rampage of brutality just doesn’t seem to end. These mind numbing crimes all have one thing in common; they were all committed by individuals using firearms to shoot innocent people who just happened to be opportune targets. It’s hard to understand what motivates any person to inflict such pain and suffering on others. It’s not so hard to understand why these murderers turn to guns when their twisted fantasies turn into reality. Other than explosives, nothing is as destructive and fatal as a gun. Unlike explosives however, guns don’t require much training or skill to use. A few hours on a gun range, and some reading, is all one needs to be able to figure it all out. In most states, buying a gun requires little more than a background check and cash. Since medical records are always protected by HIPA, even
those with a history of severe psychological disorders will be able to pass the background check. Guns are used in criminal acts … that’s a fact of life. In the hundreds
of years that guns have been around, they have always been used in the
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By Stan Holz
commission of crimes. It’s also a fact that none of the countless thousands of laws that have ever been enacted has prevented people from killing other people. In spite of this, every major gun crime in this country inevitably leads to calls for tighter
gun controls. Since this is a highly charged political issue, many antigun legislators are now a bit more careful in how they approach the gun issue. Much of the current anti-gun rhetoric focuses on the now defunct “Assault Weapons Ban.” That law; which for ten years restricted magazine capacity to ten rounds, and also outlawed certain cosmetic features and names for semi-automatic rifles; was deemed a total failure and allowed to expire in 2004. It accomplished absolutely nothing as far as preventing the criminal use of firearms. Although its proponents argued that these “assault rifles” were being used by drug gangs and mass murderers, the actual FBI statistics concluded that the real numbers were between 1% and 3% of all guns recovered in crimes. The mood of this country regarding gun ownership has subtly changed over the last few years. More people now feel the need, and the right, to own a firearm. Women, in particular, are a rapidly growing segment of the firearms owning public. Whereas polls always used to show the majority of Americans were in favor of stricter gun controls, those same polls now show a majority opposed to more controls. On top of the changing public sentiment, the Supreme Court has made two decisions affirming an individual’s right to own guns. This has made things a bit more difficult for the “anti-gunners” to directly attack gun rights in this country. Although it’s always the same
September 2012
group of legislators who lead the charge against our gun rights, the tactics they use have had to change as the political climate has evolved. They are now all great supporters of the second amendment and would never do anything to infringe on it. Of course guns have a legitimate use for hunting … but. But … do we really need automatic rifles and pistols to kill a deer? Why do we need any magazine that holds more than 10 shots? Why do we need military style guns that were only designed to kill people? Why, why, why? Why do we need cars that can go over 65 miles per hour when the speed limits are only 65 miles per hour? Why do we need two pairs of shoes when we can only wear one pair at a time? Why do we need anything other than the bare essentials? I get sick of politicians referring to semi-automatic guns as “automatics.” Real automatics are very tightly regulated and are almost never used in crimes. The guns that are always referred to as automatics are, in fact, semi-automatics … guns which can fire only one shot with each pull of the trigger. Semi-automatics are available in rifles, shotguns, and handguns. They are extremely popular for hunting, target shooting, and personal defense. All those intimidating looking military style guns you see out there are nothing more than semi-automatic replicas of the original military guns. Many of them take the military cartridges, but an increasing number are now being produced in the .22LR, which is much cheaper to shoot. Even in the original military chambering, these are not the “powerful military cartridges” that are described in the media. Most are in the same power class as the old 30-30 … good enough for deer at 100 yards, but not much more. They are far less potent than the 30/06, .308, or even the .243 cartridges commonly used for hunting. The current public enemy is the high capacity magazine. The logic goes like this: if the shooter has fewer rounds in his magazine, he will shoot fewer people. This logic only makes sense if you’ve never actually fired a gun that uses magazines. In almost all cases of multiple homicides, the shooter has planned out his approach and is carrying several loaded magazines. It makes little difference if he has four 15 round magazines, or six 10 round magazines. The total is still 60; any way you look at it. The claim is that smaller magazines would require the shooter to reload more often, giving the victims a chance to disarm him. The Outdoor Gazette
Maine’s Moose Population Estimated at 76,000 After New Survey
Augusta, Maine - The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife now has its most accurate estimation of the state’s moose population thanks to a new aerial survey. The Department currently estimates a population of 76,000 moose after using a double count technique the last two winters where two observers independently reported the number of moose observed while flying in a helicopter over northern and eastern Maine. During the winter of 2010-2011, the Department used the technique, adapted from Quebec and New Brunswick where it was utilized to count deer, to survey Wild Management Districts (WMDs) 2,
3 and 6 with the help of the Maine Forest Service and funds from the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund. It was then decided that the aerial survey was far more accurate and efficient than previously used methods, including transect counts from fixed wing, line-track intercept techniques, a modified Gasaway survey and Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR). “This new technique turned out to be a good and accurate way to look at moose across a big part of Maine, which we’ve never had the opportunity to do before,” said IFW Wildlife Biologist Lee Kantar. “It’s exciting to finally have the techniques to get so much information on moose in the state because the more we know about
moose, the better able the department is to manage this magnificent resource for the people of Maine.” Due to the right resources, equipment, help from the Maine Forest Service and funding from the federal Pittman-Robertson Fund, the Department was able to use the technique again this past winter and surveyed WMDs 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 11, and 19, all of which are in the core moose range of the state. The Department did not survey southern Maine because the low moose population numbers in that area would likely add little to the total statewide population. During the aerial survey, one observer sits in the front of the helicopter while the other sits in the
back on the same side. The area being surveyed is broken down into a grid and transects are flown through the grid with both observers reporting numbers of moose seen on a transect line to a data recorder. The data recorder tells the observers when the transect starts and stops so they are counting the same area at the same time. Density estimates are calculated for each area based on markresight techniques. To view a video of another aerial survey technique in use to count the number of bulls, cows, and calves in a management unit, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=WVqyRu6i16M. For more information, visit www.mefishwildlife.com.
Although that is certainly possible, it is also a highly unlikely scenario. First, in the panic of being shot at, most people will either seek cover or try to flee. They will not stand by waiting for the shooter to reload. Secondly, it only takes a matter of seconds to drop an empty magazine and insert a fresh one. Even with little training, this should take from 5 to 10 seconds. That’s not much time to attack and disarm a shooter, and no time at all if he’s carrying a second gun. The deranged man who killed all
those people in the Colorado movie theater was carrying a semi-automatic rifle with a 100 round magazine. While all the anti-gunners went nuts over this fact, none of them mentioned the fact that this magazine didn’t work and the shooter actually had to change to a lower capacity one. He also carried several guns, lots of loaded magazines, and explosives. This nut was intent on killing as many people as he could, and no law or magazine restriction could have minimized or prevented the ensuing
mayhem. I can only hope that the fallacy of these “why do you need…?” arguments is apparent to the majority of the public. Probably something like 99.9% of gun owners use their guns responsibly and would never use those firearms for anything but sport. That tiny percentage of legally owned guns that are used for criminal activity do not justify sweeping restrictions that would impact all the law abiding gun owners in this country. Further restrictions will have no effect on the crime rate, and will do
nothing to improve the safety of our citizens. As horrible and gut wrenching as these mass murders are, there is little anyone can do to prevent them.
FEELIN’ LUCKY?
from previous page
Stan Holz lives in Whitefield, NH and, with his wife Sandy, has owned and operated Village Gun Store there since 1974. He invites everyone to stop and visit. Aside from his interest in firearms and shooting, Stan is also involved in amateur astronomy, photo-graphy, ham radio and scuba diving. He can be contacted by emailing him at saholz@myfairpoint.net.
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FISH & WILDLIFE DEPARTMENT www.vtfishandwildlife.com / 802-241-3700 The Outdoor Gazette
September 2012
Page 17
Family Tracks By Brian Lang
From the Car Window
The car cruised through the early morning mist down the rural road, fields on one side and woods on the other. I automatically scan the edges of the woods and peek through holes in the brush looking for wildlife, as I have for as long as I can remember. At this spot, I immediately saw two deer, close to the road. “There’s deer!” I exclaimed, and slowed the car to almost a stop. The kids perked up in the back, their heads popping up to attention like a couple of turkeys, swiveling to look for the deer. I pointed them out and was able to line up our view from the car through a gap in the trees for a better look. The deer were both bucks, young ones that would probably be 4 pointers this year. Their fuzzy, velvet covered headgear poked up a little above their ears. They looked almost exactly the same, probably twins. I didn’t get a chance to snap a picture, but they were right there next to the car and we got a great look.
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“They’re daddies” said Ben. “No,” argued his sister, “They’re
them bolting for cover as long as you stay in the car. When I was a kid my dad would take us on “deer rides”, where we would
Hand painted sign warning motorists, but you better be quiet!"
teenagers”. It’s amazing how comfortable deer are with the presence of a vehicle on the road. You can watch them pretty closely without
drive a certain route down the back roads near home checking out fields for deer, and we usually saw quite a few. I would even take my deer calls with me, a bleat or a grunt, to blow out the window. I never called any deer; it’s just not natural for those deer sounds to come from a red Chevy S-10. On the car trips with the kids to school or daycare, as well as other family trips, we frequently spot wildlife from the road. Sometimes I stop if I can do so safely, but other times we have to cruise right by. Of course, I still announce, “There’s a deer! (Or turkey, fox, etc)”. Meg and Ben pick up their heads and start swiveling them around fast looking for the critter, all the time yelling “where, where?” If we are moving along pretty good, like on the highway, they usually can’t find it before it’s out of sight. Other times, there is plenty of time for them to see, but they are busy with a book or coloring or something, and 5 minutes after I spotted the animal and made the announcement, they lazily look up and say “So where is it?” There is a spot in our area that is popular for people to sit in their vehicle on the side of the road at a frequent moose crossing. It was getting so busy there the town built a special pull off at the spot to safely accommodate the cars. There is a hand painted “Moose Crossing” sign announcing the spot from both directions. It is along a large swampy area near the road at the top of a large ridge running north to south. We have
September 2012
tried just sitting here in the car a few times, but it seems like the only time we ever see a moose is when we are just driving through with no plans to stop. One time that we did try sitting there “on stand” there was a large group of people in a few vehicles next to each other. They all climbed into the open back of a pickup truck and were hollering and yelling and horsing around. It seemed pretty unlikely that a moose would approach within 10 miles of us. So we left. That was when Megan was a baby, probably sleeping peacefully in the car seat. Now when we try and go sit there…..yup, yelling and hollering and horsing around. We are not in the open bed of a pickup truck, but there is banging on the glass, and no matter how often we say sit down there is a constant shifting and moving in the back seat. I don’t know how two little kids can make a car bounce around on its suspension like a blow up bouncy house, but they do. So we left. When Megan was three or four, we were riding by this spot and there was a big cow moose right next to the road, twenty yards away, and it just stood there as I brought the car to a stop and rolled down the window. We whispered excitedly to Megan “See the moose, look! Wow, it’s so big!” The moose just stared back at us, unfazed, with bits of leaves hanging from its mouth as it chewed its breakfast in slow motion, and then swung its head into the bushes for another bite. We watched only a few moments before Megan piped up from the back seat. “I want to go,” she said. “What, honey? What do you mean? The moose is right there; don’t you want to watch it?” “Yes, I see it” she said quietly, “It’s making me scared.” So we left, leaving the moose peacefully chewing on the shrubbery in the swamp. Brian Lang lives with his wife, Michelle and two children Megan and Ben in Reading, VT. Brian grew up in VT and started enjoying his outdoor pursuits at a very young age. He is an avid hunter, fisherman, camper, and hiker and hopes to give his kids the same wholesome upbringing he enjoyed in the New England outdoors. When he's not outside, he works as an MRI Technologist. He can be reached at Bclang78@gmail.com. The Outdoor Gazette
A Waterfowler's Perspective By Brian Bouchard
Dust off those shotguns
Well August means we again have a reason to dust off the shotguns. No, I'm not saying to shoot at flying clay discs. We should have done plenty of that this spring and summer. We can now shoot at birds again. That's because crow season in Vermont opens up August 16th and runs into October. By the time this article hits the Outdoor Gazette web site it will be September and I hope to have been out already canceling a few flights of the local crow. If you are reading this on my web site in August and it’s after the 16th, then get your gun and get out there. Crow season offers a great opportunity to get out and scout the fields and toss some steel into the sky at a moving object that changes speed and direction. Crow hunting isn't an easy sport and sometimes can be difficult. The crow is by no means a dumb bird. They can usually only be fooled once and rarely will give you a second look. I have discovered that hunting the edges in uncut corn works best for early season. The tricky part is finding the birds after they go down. Most farmers won't be thrilled to have you walking around in their uncut corn or to leave dead birds in the corn. You really want to be sure to ask first. You should do your best to find the birds after they are down. It's good practice for waterfowl hunting too for finding downed birds in standing corn. Remember to always pick up your spent shells as best you can. Nothing is worse than coming into a field to find 25 spent shells scattered around. Green fields will work well also. Set out a few decoys in a group. If hunting from the edges you could place a few in the trees at a height you can safely get to. After the corn is cut you can set up in those fields with a few decoys hunting them the
The Outdoor Gazette
same way as the green fields. Most corn is being cut during waterfowl season so most of us are chasing the ducks & geese not the crow.
However, when the waterfowl season closes for a bit crow is still open. So this gives you a chance to stay out there. You don't need to spend crazy money for crow hunting. A few decoys and a simple mouth crow call works well. Again these birds aren't dummies so the same ones aren't going to keep coming into your set up once you touch off the 12 gauge. Because of this you might need to move your set up, you might even move to different fields during your hunt. Crows seem to be most active in early morning and late afternoon. These times will be most productive. There isn't much you can do with the birds once you're done. They are more of a nuisance bird than a delicacy. I have heard of folks cooking them but you won't find a recipe from me on my web site for crow. Like anything I'm sure you can Google it and find a way to cook them. For me I simply dispose of
them or offer them up as bait for a predator hunt. The wings work well as an attractant when coyote and fox hunting. Hang a wing on a string off an old arrow in the ground and with a little
wind you will have a nice dark moving object. That coupled with a good sequence of calling will usually do the trick. This same decoy trick can be used when crow hunting. Put a
September 2012
few together and it looks like a few crows are fighting over something in the field. If you have never crow hunted before give it some consideration. Farmers hate crows so you might make a few friends by telling them you hunt crow. Its fun, it's fast, it's a reason to get out in the fields and scout in August & September. There is also a spring season check my site for a link to the VT Fish & Wildlife site for dates. There you will find the upcoming dates for all hunting seasons. If you really enjoy bird hunting you will have lots of opportunities during the year to get out and have some fun. If you have questions on crow hunting or are interested in booking a hunt with Fields Bay Outfitters send me an email. Until then be safe and have a great hunt. I have been hunting deer and predators for over 30 years. Turkey for 15 years. Waterfowl for the past 10 years. Owner of Fields Bay Outfitters. I Live in St Albans VT with my wife Michele and our 2 sons Dillon & Kyle and our 2 labs Tyson & Remi.
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Anchor Points Preparing for Fall Archery Hunts
It’s August already and the beginning of archery season in many states across North America is just around the corner. Many of you booked your trips last fall while on a hunt, while others of you might have booked during one of the many outdoor shows across New England during the winter months. It doesn’t matter how the plans were made, now that the trip is within sight. Late August finds many people headed to Canada to hunt caribou. As September rolls in many others will head west to try their luck at elk hunting. In order to hunt these animals with a bow many things must be taken into consideration. The probability of shooting longer distances increases while hunting these animals. The elk are often found in steep, alpine meadows, while the caribou spend much of their time crossing open tundra. A good sight is something that should be considered. I’ve always preferred a sight with multiple pins that I could also move. If I sight in three pins at 10, 20 and 30 yards, I can then draw lines on my sight to move it for 40 and 50 yards. This
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method has worked well for me since the beginning of my bowhunting career. I especially like this type of set-up while elk hunt-
By Todd Mead
I prefer. You’ll have to try a few well made sights before you decide which one will work the best for you. I would recommend getting a sight that is built out of machined
There's nothing better than your preparations leading to a successful hunt. ing. It enables me to quickly move aluminum. I try to avoid products my sight to shoot at animals that that are made with plastic. I also are grazing at longer distances in try to avoid sights with a lot of meadows. Although the moveable moving parts or other things that sight isn’t necessary, it’s something could become loose while I’m in the field. There are numerous places on the internet that you can find reasonable evaluations of different products. One of my favorite places to go for this information is www.archerytalk .com. Deciding on a quiver is one of the most important decisions an archer has to make. Some people prefer the older, larger 6 arrow quivers, while many others choose the 3 or 4 arrow quivers. I prefer the smaller quivers. I use a Bohning Lynx quiver which holds 4 arrows and a 3 arrow Kwikee quiver. The smaller quivers weigh less which is beneficial if you’re going to be covering a lot of ground on your hunt. Although a few ounces don’t seem like much, the little bit of extra weight over the course of a week can create a lot of arm fatigue while carrying your bow. I have also used hip quivers and cat-quivers. These quivers are great alternatives if you prefer to hunt without a bow quiver. The cat-quiver offers a full backpack to store anything you might need for your day’s hunt. When I use mine I usually fill it with a bottle of water, snacks, some first aid stuff and a few extra clothes. Although the cat-quiver has always worked well for me, I don’t like the extra time that it takes to retrieve an arrow September 2012
and get it on the bowstring for a shot. I’ve used hip quivers many times over the years. Something I don’t like about them is all of the motion they create while you are walking. Since the quiver is attached to your hip, the quiver moves back and forth with every step. I have had this alert a few animals to my presence. Arrow retrieval is very good with a hip quiver, but keeping arrows in the quiver is sometimes tough when going through any type of brush. The last thing I’ll touch on is arrow rests. There are a variety to choose from, but I always try to make is simple. I like arrow rests with very few moving parts. I either use a standard shoot through launcher with spring tension or a drop away. There are a lot of great drop away rests on the market right now. I would recommend the new VaporTrail Limbdriver arrow rest. This rest can easily be set up without the use of any tools except a small hex wrench. To learn more about this rest you can go to www.vaportrailarchery .com. I also like drop away arrow rests that attach to the cable slide. This type of rest can easily be set up without the help of a pro-shop. All you have to do is read the directions and take your time getting it in the right location. You don’t need to tie a cord between the strands of your cable or anything else that might be difficult to do without the proper training or equipment. As you prepare for your upcoming hunting adventures take the time out to find the right sight, quiver and arrow rest for you. Most archery shops have a variety of products to choose from. If you’re going on a hunting trip someplace, it’s worth the time and money to try out numerous things in order to find the one that best suits your needs. I have tried giving you a basic guideline as to what works for me. However, what works for me, might not work for you. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, do research and sample the equipment before deciding on something that has caught your eye. Good luck on your upcoming trips and shoot your arrows in the middle -----------> Todd is the author of Backcountry Bucks and A Lifetime of Big Woods Hunting Memories. You can catch up with him on his website: www.toddmead.com He resides in Queensbury, NY. The Outdoor Gazette
The Gazette’s Book Review
By Colonel J.C. Allard
I’VE NEVER MET AN IDIOT ON THE RIVER By Henry Winkler Insight Editions, 2011 143 pages, $21.95 ISBN: 978-1-60887-020-2 Every so often a new bit of sporting writing appears from an unexpected quarter. Such is the case with last year’s book, I’ve Never Met an Idiot on the River by actor, director, and film producer Henry Winkler. Most famous for his iconic character Arthur Fonzarelli, a.k.a. “The Fonz,” on TV’s Happy Days, Winkler has played such varied roles as a version of Ebenezer Scrooge, and Neil Simon’s Broadway play The Dinner Party. A native New Yorker raised on the corner of 78th Street and Broadway in Manhattan, and who has lived in Los Angeles for nearly 40 years, Winkler is perhaps among the last anyone would think of as a dedicated and passionate fly fisher man. Yet his passion for the sport and its impact on his family are two of the strongest themes to flow through the often humorous currents of I’ve Never Met an Idiot on the River. With 17 novels for young people to his credit, Winkler’s latest book is more of a long essay than a memoire or conventional fly-fishing book. It is about the effect of fly fishing on the Winklers and their three children. It is also about one man’s self discoveries and a search for self esteem. Fishing, nature photography, and the natural world of the Rocky Mountain West are
catalysts for Winkler’s explorations of the inner man. As Winkler says, “I am most at peace on a river in Montana. I liken the experience to a washing machine for my brain. Being there is transforming.” Anyone who fishes knows something of what Winkler feels. Written in an easy, flowing style not unlike a trout stream, I‘ve Never Met an Idiot on the River is more like a conversation than a narrative. It is Henry
Winkler being Henry Winkler with an audience of readers instead of a stage character talking to a theater audience. The result is a likeable, sometimes poignant glimpse into the inner Winkler. Illustrated with several dozen of the author’s photographs of family, fishing, and the vast landscape of Montana and Idaho, the photos serve as further clues to the character and thinking of the Henry Winkler we know and the Henry Winkler most know nothing about. This is the man away from the public eye doing those things that bring a deep satisfaction and a sense of exhilaration to life. For anyone who fishes – especially trout fishing with a fly rod – Winkler’s zest for the sport rings true. His unbounded enthusiasm that spills over from the river to other areas of life reminds us of those things about fishing that captivate us as well. What better context for think-
ing about family, friends, work, the past, or the future than when standing in a river, fishing rod in hand? What better context, indeed. In just 143 pages, Winkler says much about why we fish without ever saying how to fish. For him, trout fishing adds joy to life and provides a framework for all other aspects of life. Can there be a finer frame for one’s life? I think not. Time spent on a wild river surrounded by nature’s beauty, watching family and friends enjoy the magnificence of free-ranging fish most certainly adds dimension to any life. Winkler’s sharing of this look inside his life and his family’s will enrich any reader. Col. J.C. Allard lives in Pittsfield, NH about 20 miles north by east of Concord. “We're in the shadow of the Belknap mountains here, but we can see Mt. Washington on a clear day”.
The Gazette’s Hunting and Fishing Solunar Tables
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Email jpg’s to fred@the outdoorgazette.com Don’t forget to write down your names and ages, where you were fishing, hunting etc... and where you live. Thank You.. Fred The Outdoor Gazette
September 2012
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Guided by the Light or is That a Train Coming? Imitation or Attractor?
No topic - not religion, politics, or even American Idol competitors causes more shouting matches among my friends than the debate over the superiority of imitation versus attractor patterns for trout. Sometimes the arguing goes on at streamside and frightens the bears away. It may not be a productive use of our time but we seldom run into any bears. It’s not like this is an either-or situation. Both forms of flies work and often either will work equally well. I think my friends just like to argue. It’s the gun play that worries me. Consider the earliest fly fishers, the Egyptians (or Macedonians, depending on whose account of history you prefer). Their lure was simply a piece of red cloth on a hook. Clearly, this argues for the attractor school theory. I’ll bet it was not long before some started arguing for the superiority of green cloth over red. I’ll also bet it didn’t make a difference as far as the fish were concerned. I don’t know what the bears thought.
Run ahead many years and you’ll see that the earliest flies used materials shaped into forms that looked like a natural food source. These were attempts at imitative patterns but still were more suggestive than
By Tony Lolli
terns looking exactly like naturals, right down to eyeballs, antennae and genitals. While I admire the technical expertise involved, they’re not for me. I have better things to do, like recycling newspapers and tin cans. I’ve watched tiers who specialize
Realistic Hopper imitative. They were more a crossover between imitative and attractor. The same holds true for most patterns we use today. Not even a wily brown trout thinks a Black Ghost looks exactly like a forage fish. But, close enough is close enough. Out on the fringes, you’ll find pat-
in exact replications. Their creations look like they’ll crawl, fly or swim off the tying table. In addition to normal tools, they employ calipers, micrometers, and millimeter rulers and assorted other gauges. Some of these tiers advocate counting the tail fibers to match the naturals. Fish can’t count. But, if it makes the tiers happy, let the good times roll! At the opposite end of the spectrum are the more traditional tiers. They fall into two camps, those who tie attractors and those who tie amorphous things that “suggest” the essence of something alive. An attractor looks like nothing in nature while a minimalist looks like something (anything) alive. Attractors rely on the fish’s sense of curiosity to fool them. I don’t know how else to explain why some attractors work so well. What else can explain why a fish will take a cigarette butt, an orange strike indicator, a twig or anything else not nailed down? Other attractors work because of the fish’s sense of humor. Show
them something they’ve never seen before and they’ll take it. Maybe they just want to taste it to decide if it’s edible. I don’t know. All I know is that novelty sometimes wins the day when educated trout are involved. Walter Manch, a long-time Catskill guide, insisted the only important part of a dry fly was the body. He argued only the body color and size mattered. His were tied with nothing but a fur body and a white poly wing to support the fly in the surface film. Nothing else was necessary to fool the crafty Beaverkill browns; no tails, no throats, no hackle, no trailing shucks, no ribs, no testis, no nothing. His dry fly box was filled with the same pattern tied in many colors and many sizes. So, which is best, imitations or attractors? I don’t know and I don’t care. All I know is either type will work equally well so use whatever trips your trigger. Life is too short to worry about such questions.
Impressionistic Hopper Remember, fly fishing is NOT a life or death proposition. Bears, however, might be a different story. When the boys next start arguing which kind of pattern is superior, I’ll just sit back, stay out of it and watch the fun. However, one thing I learned early in life is never bring a knife to a gun fight. Tony Lolli is from Cabot, VT. His book, Go-To Flies: 101 Pattern the Pros Use When All Else Fails is available online from Amazon and Barnes&Noble.
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The New Hampshire Vermont Outdoor Gazette
September 2012
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This “Bone Collection” is located in Hanover, New Hampshire
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September 2012
Page 23
The Captain’s Corner The transition month of September!
We have been fishing the waters of the eastern basin of Ontario for the last few weeks now, as usual for the east end the Salmon fishing has had its ok days & it’s off the hook days. When the wind blows we have picked away at them any where from 150 to 600 feet of water. Out of Oswego that means going as far out as six or seven miles off shore. The first week of August I had a day & half trip that I did with a group from CT, set up through the Safari Club International spring banquet. When I left the harbor, the radio chatter reported most boats working between 350 to 500 feet of water. A tip from the day before told me that some fish had been found west of the harbor closer to shore. We set up in 150 feet & did a troll south west. 20 min into our trip we had our first hit on a green Dipsie & King #1 of the 2012 season was off to the races! Now this group was on their first trip to Lake Ontario so we had a little schooling on how these kings can run, plus how important boat control can be in keeping on fish & lure presentation. We ended
up 2 for 7 that evening with our first 3 fish coming unbuttoned, proving how critical it is to keep the rod loaded & not let the fish have any
Scott with his 24lb King Salmon
slack at all! We did end up boating a 15 pounder & a nice 23 pounder off of a down rigger by the end of the evening. We went right back to the same way points the next morning, this time increasing our batting average as we ended the day 4 for 9 with 3 really nice Kings coming to the net along with a Lake trout. Working a
By Matthew Trombley very - small contour change in the bottom structure was key to staying on these fish, most importantly the bait that I found on the screen which lead me to these toothy predators! Each day that the weather stays stable for a bit the fish creep closer to shore as they fight the urge to head for the local tributaries and the annual fall spawning ritual. Some of the big males we have caught are beginning to darken up, as a sign they are feeling the mating urge. Another sign of late summer is the number of Coho’s that have begun to move in. We have picked up at least one on each of the last 3 trips we have done, a couple of them really nice in the 12 to 15 pound mark! Coho’s run a bit smaller then their cousin the Chinook (aka KING). What they lack in size they make up for in attitude! I like to compare them to Smallmouth Bass as any one who has caught smallmouth’s knows pound for pound they are some of the hardest fighters in fresh water! Coho’s love to make streaking runs
appearing. The Coho’s will have the same but a more pronounced Kype; they will also darken up but with a reddish hue. As the day light shortens & the nights grow cooler, these fish will pod up and begin their runs to the fall spawning grounds. Many of these Salmon will stage up outside the Oswego River, and attempt to spawn up the Oswego, but be halted only shy of two miles up stream by the Varick Hydro electric dam. This causes the Salmon to stack up by the hundreds, beckoning both shore fisherman & drift boat guides to target these monsters before they complete their spawning ritual & perish. Drifting bright colored flies, large spawn sacks or “skein” (large hunks of Salmon roe) or back trolling lures usually keeps the action fast & furious. The famously known Salmon River lies up the lake Northeast of Oswego, dumping into the lake in Port Ontario. BY mid September the Salmon will school up outside of the river in some of the largest pods of
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Page 24
The CT crew with thier first catch of Lake Ontario Salmon! & the occasional jump just like steel- any of the tributaries of the lake! head will do! They tend to hit at Hence the calling of this river and baits much quicker then Kings do as the Salmon River fish Hatchery kings like baits to twitch & roll a bit (where a vast majority of these fish slower. Last Sunday we had two false were hatched from) at the head trips, one on a Dipsie the other on a waters of the Salmon River in rigger; I looked at my buddy & said Altmar, some 14 miles upstream of “Coho’s?” Five minutes later the Port Ontario. Thousands of anglers will fall 450 Copper line took a rip & this time the fish stayed hooked up. Our upon the area & the Village of suspicions were confirmed as a nice Pulaski by the end of the month as 12 pound Coho hit the deck! We Columbus Day is the traditional were fishing out over 320 feet of peak of the run. Great fishing can be water in some pretty bumpy condi- had through out the month of tions, with an occasional 6 footer September as there are both public thrown in for good measure. The & private fishing areas all up down copper lines were our saving grace the length of the river. Runs of both this day as they put the only 3 fish in King & Coho Salmon followed closely by Brown Trout & Steelhead the boat for us. As Labor Day nears and the fish will fill the river through out the fall, stage in tight to shore the Males will making this a truly world class fishbecome more aggressive, with the ery that can’t be compared any Kings getting very Dark colored where else on the East Coast! with a nice hooked jaw or “Kype” Continued next page
September 2012
The Outdoor Gazette
Warning to New Hampshire Hunters: Do Not Transport New York killed Deer through Massachusetts or Vermont
CONCORD, N.H. — New Hampshire hunters hunting in New York this fall should be aware that it is illegal to transport the carcasses through Ver mont or Massachusetts. While New York has been removed from New Hampshire’s list of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD)-positive jurisdictions, Massachusetts and Ver mont have not done so. New Hampshire hunters are warned that simply crossing these states with a deer carcass from New York remains a violation and could result in legal prosecution. As a consequence, the New Hampshire Fish and
Game Department recommends that hunters continue past practices of deboning New York deer. The background on this issue is as follows: In April of 2005, New York found its first wild CWD-positive deer in the Onieda County town of Verona. Sampling of additional local deer began and a second positive wild deer was also found nearby. New York established a CWD Containment Area in the Oneida/Madison County area surrounding the location where the positive deer were found and began intensive sampling for CWD.
Soon we will be putting away the lake tackle, preparing the boat for winter storage, digging out the fly, spinning & center pin rods that will be our main stay through the fall & winter months! It we will be a tough time of the year to find a balance between the awesome tributary fishing to be had, some frosty mornings in a duck blind & a few peaceful evenings spent in a tree stand! So many things to do & so few days & hours!
A true struggle to decide which past time tugs on the heart strings more, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world…..as I truly believe the best months of the year are a head of us!
The Outdoor Gazette
from previous page
Matt Trombley is a career firefighter, residing with his wife & son in Florence Vermont. He is a U.S.C.G licensed Master captain, guiding & chartering fishing trips through out Vermont & New York. His charter business, 3rd Alarm Charters can be viewed at www.3rdalarmcharters.com
This included all deer killed by hunters within the containment area between 2005 and 2010. Over that period, a total of 7,300 deer were tested and none were positive. Additionally, beginning in 2002, New York tested 32,000 deer statewide as part of their routine monitoring and surveillance program; again no CWD-positive deer were found. With no additional positive deer found after five years of intensive sampling, in July of 2010, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation officially decommissioned the CWD Containment Area. In light of the New York’s extensive sampling efforts and their decision to decommission the CWD Containment Area, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department determined that there was minimal remaining risk that CWD was still present and proposed that New York be removed from New Hampshire’s list of CWD-positive jurisdictions. This change again allowed New Hampshire hunters who hunt in New York to bring their deer home as a
September 2012
field-dressed carcass without the requirement that only the deboned meat, hide and antlers could be brought back. This rule change was approved early this year and is now in effect for the fall of 2012. HOWEVER, while New Hampshire now permits importation of whole deer from New York, the regulations in Massachusetts and Vermont still prohibit the importation of deer carcasses from New York. Their regulations include the transport of New York killed deer carcasses through these states. Given the current regulations in Massachusetts and Ver mont, New Hampshire hunters are warned that simply crossing these states with a deer carcass from New York remains a violation and could result in legal prosecution. As a consequence, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department recommends that hunters continue past practices of deboning New York deer. For more infor mation on Chronic Wasting Disease, visit www.wildnh.com/Wildlife/CW D_QandA.htm.
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The Trap Line By Randy Barrows
Muskrats Part 1
Muskrats are found everywhere in water. The annual catch of rats far exceeds any other harvested animal in quantity and total dollar value. Part of this fact is due to the simplicity of trapping them. Muskrats or plain rats as known to trappers are just what they are called, a water living rodent. Each comes equipped with a long, scaly tail, thick body, weighing one to three pounds average, with short ears and beady black eyes. Don’t let this description fool you though; pound for pound a rate can be vicious. Rats have two coats of fur, the under being soft and thick, covered by longer guard hairs. Un-prime skins will have a bluish hue to them, and are not worth a lot on the fur market. Pelts prime up after a real cold weather arrives and lasts through spring warm up. Rats breed in the spring, usually around March or April in Vermont. One month later litters of up to fifteen are possible. The
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sad part of this fact is that if three of the newborn make it, it is a miracle. Rats are the favorite
food of mink, fox, turtles, and all flying predators. Rats will fight with each other during mating season actually biting each other, leaving holes in the hide making the pelts worthless.
Rats live in streams, rivers, lakes, swamps, and ponds, ditches; anywhere food and habitat are plentiful. Rats dwellings consist of burrows dug into banks or
more commonly in “push-ups” constructed of swamp weeds and mud. Rats live on sweetflag, cattails, and many types of water grasses and roots. They also will dine on garden vegetables, applies, and corn. Once you decide to trap rats you will need to find suitable habitat, and get permission to trap. Trapping season for rats in Vermont5 in the past started the fourth Saturday in October through April nineteenth the following spring. This year the proposal is to end the season the last weekend in March. It is your responsibility to know the correct dates. A call to Fish and Wildlife headquarters will give you the answers to these questions. Being friends with your local warden is beneficial too, they know where problems exist. Any farmer who has lost a cow or horse with a broken leg or
September 2012
damaged farm equipment will gladly have you trap for rats. I have had them give me a tour of the farm so I could maximize my efforts to get rid of these burrowing critters. Even a bunny hugger will let you trap when their prize trout die because of the pond went dry over night. NEVER, NEVER set traps without permission. Advise the landowner where you will set the traps and how many you will use. This info helps in not catching his cat or dog. Northing will get you kicked off land faster than catching a domestic pet. All attempts should be made to avoid this situation. Accidents will happen though, but you as a trapper can make sets that minimize these incidents. Once you have permission, you are good to go. I usually travel the area looking for road kill, and inspect it to be sure it is prime. Explain to landowner that you practice sound management and it is much better to take animals when they are prime, versus taking them when they are a little or no value. I start by walking the area where the majority of the sign is. I look for feed beds, home sites, droppings, etc., and then decide the sets I will use. Next time, all the sets you can use to catch a muskrat! Randy lives in Milton, Vermont, has trapped in Vermont for 43 years, is a hunter Ed Instructor and an Advanced Trapper Instructor for the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department. Randy and wife, Diane & their family, own and operate Arrowhead Trapping Supply. Randy is also a Vermont State Licensed Fur Dealer. They can be reached at Critrgitr@msn.com or 802355-7496, on facebook or at www.arrowheadtrappingsupply.com.
The Outdoor Gazette
KID’S KORNER
Two year old Brogan Covey - Getting ready for future bow seasons. Brogan’s dad and and grandpa are well known central Vermont deer hunters. Looks like the Covey “Deer hunting tradition” will continue for another generation.
Lewis Clapp, 7 (left) landed this 3 pound, 17 inch large mouth bass at the Waterbury Reservoir in Waterbury, Vermont on Sunday, June 10th. To the right is Adrian, age 9, helping his brother hold up the bass.
Opening day of lower fly fishing area on Salmon River postponed due to low water levels
An emergency regulation will postpone the opening of the Lower Fly Fishing Area on the Salmon River from September 15th until October 31st the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced today. The intent of the emergency regulation is to ensure that adequate numbers of salmon enter DEC’s Salmon River Hatchery in order to provide eggs for salmon stocking that supports Lake Ontario and tributary fisheries. Due to unusually warm water temperatures and low water flow, DEC is concerned that unintentional fishing mortality of Pacific salmon could impact egg take operations and result in fewer fish for anglers in future years. The quarter mile section of the Salmon River that comprises the Lower Fly Fishing Area is located immediately downstream of the Salmon River Hatchery and upstream of the County Rt. 52 Bridge in Altmar. The upper boundary of the area is just downstream from Beaverdam Brook. This location
is a staging area for various species of fish, including Chinook and coho salmon, as they prepare to enter the hatchery via Beaverdam Brook. Flows in the Salmon River are partially maintained through controlled releases from the Salmon River Reservoir. Under normal conditions, water releases from the reservoir are regulated through a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) license intended to provide yearround minimum or “base” flows to the lower 18 miles of the Salmon River accessible to trout and salmon returning from Lake Ontario to spawn. In a typical year, base flows are increased on September 1 from summer level (185 cubic feet per second (cfs)) to fall level (335 cfs). However, the recent drought conditions have left the reservoir at a near historic low level (14 feet below dam crest on September 5, 2012) with no significant rain in the forecast. As a result, the executive committee of the Salmon River Flow Management Team agreed to conserve water in the reservoir by eliminating several high
volume whitewater releases and delaying the transition from summer to fall base flow. Without these actions, there was a strong potential to deplete reservoir water by midOctober, based on current precipitation levels. Should salmon returns to the hatchery be inadequate, DEC has devel-
oped a contingency plan to secure additional salmon eggs from other Lake Ontario tributaries, including the Black River and Orwell Brook. Further information on this regulation can be obtained by contacting the DEC’s at Cape Vincent Fisheries Station by email or call 315-6542147.
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The Outdoor Gazette
Box 162 RR#1 Doyles, NL A0N 1J0
September 2012
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Behind the Sights By Charlie Chalk
The Veteran
For some of us, the season’s preparations are well underway. The old muzzleloader has been relegated from a position of being in the case to a place of importance with all the care and preparations that come with planning a blackpowder hunt. Remember last year? Shopping for accessories, cleaning and polishing the gun ‘till she shined. Fondly we looked at the scars and scratches of hunts of years past. We might clean the old scars and polish over them, but never cover the wounds. These are battle scars, worn with pride as mementos of hard won trophy deer. But, now the veteran of another battle with the elements and the intelligence of a wild creature, has set alone in the corner. The hunter was the hero. He talks with friends sitting around the living room, of a hunt successful. Little mention of the gun; for it is covered with dirt and no longer shines. It has per-
formed a task required to be done, and will not speak again
until this year. However, my friend, that veteran needs a complete overhaul,”lock, stock and bar-
Pop’s Kitchen
Rancher's Rave Barbecue
Baked French Toast Deer Camp Breakfast A ranch style barbecue recipe, cooked in the crockpot. Ingredients Ingredients 1 1/2 lbs. stew venison/bear/moose cubes
1 1/2 lbs. pork cubes
88 slices day-old bread bread slices day-old 2 cups chopped onions 22 eggs, lightly beaten eggs, lightly beaten 3 small green bell peppers, seeded and chopped Sliced Sliced strawberries strawberries or or blueberries, blueberries, or or aa mix. mix. 1 can (6 oz.)sugar tomato paste 22 tablespoons tablespoons sugar 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 1/2 cup cup milk milk 1/4 cup vinegar 22 to vanilla extract vanilla extract to 33 drops dropscider 1 tsp chili powder melted 88 tablespoons butter tablespoons melted butter
2 teaspoons salt
Remove crusts from bread 1 teaspoon mustard Remove crustsdry from bread slices; slices; discard discard or or reserve reserve for for aside. Set bread another use. another use. Set bread aside. 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce In milk, and and vanilvanilwith sugar, sugar, milk, In aa small small bowl, bowl, beat beat the the eggs eggs with la. Pour into flat bottomed glass dish. Put bread slices slices into dish. Put bread into flat bottomed glass la. Pour Combine ingredients in slow cooker. Cover and cook into with a spatula and Turn the dish to soak, a few at a time. the dish soak, a few or at until a time. Turn with aShred spatula and on high for to 6 to 8 hours, very tender. but not too long, or they allow to soak on the other side, allow to soak on the other side, but not too long, they will will meat with a potato masher or forks; serve overor buns, be be difficult difficult to to turn. turn. Lightly Lightly butter butter aa baking baking sheet; sheet; gently gently or any pasta.slices to the baking sheet, cover rice,soaked potatoes, remove the soaked bread bread slices to the baking sheet, cover remove the with with strawberries, strawberries, blueberries, blueberries, or or mix, mix, and and continue continue with with the bread slices. slices. Spoon Spoon any any remaining remaining egg egg mixmixthe remaining remaining bread ture ture over over the the slices. slices. Place Place the the baking baking sheet sheet in in aa preheated preheated 400 degree oven; bake for 30 minutes, turning after the first first 400 degree oven; bake for 30 minutes, turning after the 15 15 minutes minutes to to brown brown on on both both sides. sides. Bill Bill "Pop" "Pop" Burke, Burke, resides resides in in Claremont, Claremont, NH. NH. If If you you would would like like to contact Pop send an email to: pops-kitchen@hotmail.com to contact Pop send an email to: pops-kitchen@hotmail.com
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rel”. Preparing to clean a blackpowder gun is easy, if you know the little tricks. Three or four chem-
icals, and a little time will put the gun in a state of condition for ready use.. Start by checking for an unfired load. Simple, but often overlooked. CO2 dischargers will clear a load quickly and conveniently in the shop. Dispose of your old powder charge and any unused Speed Loaders in a safe place. I suggest burying the charge. Now, break the gun into its parts. Halfstock and inline rifles usually come apart and you have the stock, action and barrel. Fullstocks may only allow the removal of the lock, as the barrel is often pinned onto the stock and I do not suggest removing the pins. In all cases as parts are removed, proceed gently. Forcing parts only causes breakage; trust me I am almost an “expert” in this procedure. With the stock as a starting point, clean it with a product like “Murphy’s Oil Soap” This mild cleaner works on wood and synthetic stocks and cleans away a lot of crud. Scrub the barrel channel and any area around the lock that has powder residue. Dry the stock well before installation. Check the surface for cracks in the wrist and breech flat that might indicate a replacement is needed. Moving on to the barrel, we will need some tools. A proper size jag and a long cleaning rod are vital. No short cuts here. Don’t try to use the rod for the .22 rifle or the jag that is the
September 2012
kind that holds the patch in the little ring. A tight jag fits well and scrubs the wall of the bore is the only way to properly clean a muzzleloader. Bore deposits from Blackpowder or substitutes both contain salts that must be neutralized and cooked-on carbon. Since the salts are watersoluble, make a simple solution of a product that will emulsify the dirt and water to dilute the salt. Many types of commercial products are convenient and ready to use straight from the bottle. Another option is to make your own using a common household degreaser and water. Mix up your own “home brew” and go to work. Afterwards, dry the bore well with isopropyl “dry gas” and oil with a good nonpetroleum grease. Always check the bore after a few days to be sure that no rust is forming from residual moisture. Finally, we come to the lock. A complicated part, consisting of springs, screws and other things easily lost or broken. The lock often is neglected in the cleaning process. Inline or sidelock, both need a little TLC. Clean away the old grease and fouling completely at least once a year. A good solvent, that is available in aerosol form, will work the best. Spray liberally, scrub with a toothbrush and spray again. A word of caution; do not work the lock after all the lubricant is removed. You will force a metal to metal contact that will scar polished surfaces on the tumbler. To properly lubricate a lock, you should oil sparingly all friction surfaces that are too small for grease to penetrate and grease all surfaces that are used for sliding parts. This is all you need to do until your next trip afield. The oil in the lock will be good for about 3 months before it dries up. Remember this as a general rule for all firearms. In other words, oil before you begin shooting. Last of all, replace broken sights, damaged breechplugs, battered nipples, screws with bad slots and any other parts that may affect your gun. Doing it now, rather than waiting until hunting season; it is soon here. Charlie Chalk is an outdoor writer and has a background as a professional Firefighter and is a member of the American Mountain Men, an organization that emulates the life of the fur trappers of the 1800's and their survival on the land. The Outdoor Gazette
Forest Forward Celebrating the Ordinary
The Northeast’s varied seasons offer something for everyone, but summer may rightfully claim the most fanfare. This August has delivered favorable weather to the region, and plenty of opportunities to get out the camera. Free time is arguably best spent on the water these days, and many of the migratory birds tend to agree. The Connecticut River has been running low in my neck of the woods, making entry to some of my favorite swampy stomping grounds a bit tedious. Nonetheless, wrestling a kayak through the mud is well worth the effort when there’s a busy marsh waiting on the other side. The low water has created added shoreline, and the local herons have taken notice. I’ve been spotting great blues, greens, and black-crowned night herons wading about upon each and every launch. The newcomer for me however, is the doublecrested cormorant. While these guys have a strong grip in other parts of the state (noteably Lake Champlain) I spotted my first local in a Connecticut River tributary in Bradford, Vermont. This youngster posed for a few shots on a log I’ve grown quite familiar with. It’s a spot I keep a close eye on, as it has hosted snappers, muskrats, herons, and more during my frequent visits. This month I’ve found myself paddling a bit further down river, which has provided more than just good exercise. The extra effort has exposed some beautiful settings for photography just waiting for the right model to shape the scene. Of course, all wildlife and nature photographers seek that threecourse helping of perfect light, a
pristine setting, and a trophy specimen, but it’s a tough hat trick to pull off. I’m often content with two out of three, and any willing participant to play understudy for the day. Even the common Canada Goose will suffice. I used a large aperture to soften the scene in this photo, maximizing the drama and focus on the fleeting bird. I carry this same philosophy into the woods as well. While I’ve been keeping an eye open for bull moose this summer, I must first find photogenic scenery and flattering light. Now I just need a nice pair of antlers to step out on stage. Luckily moose habitat tends to have natural beauty and interest, and the
crepuscular habits of moose place them under the soft light of dawn and dusk. My last brief attempt turned up plenty of cow moose, but not a single bull. Nonetheless, I was able to capture some nice close-ups in the flor-abundant August forest. I see about five cow moose for every bull, and the ratio of doe to buck sightings is even higher.
By Chris Mazzarella
Against these odds, I spotted a massive buck sporting a beautiful velvet rack up in Dixville, NH last weekend. Unfortunately, this guy bolted out of sight faster than my shutter finger leaving
exciting and memorable experience. It restored my patience. These are the creatures that keep my imagination stirring as I hear the twig-snapping approach of an unknown visitor. The next morning I was paddling through a long narrow hallway of cattails on the Androscoggin when this very circumstance unfolded: the crackle of hooves on the forest floor grabbed my attention. My imagination filled-in the mysterious scene with a large bull moose just around the corner. I drifted into view to uncover the less-than-spectacular group of does, exchanging their careful tip-toing for a high-tailed retreat. Still no trophy, but beautiful creatures no less and another moment to remember from the woods.
behind an eyewitness account but no evidence. While you might think this would leave an eager photographer deflated, it actually had the opposite effect. The wildlife experience is the real reward for the time I put in scanning the woods and water. The impressive buck turned a dull, bug-bitten evening into an
Forest Forward is an online wildlife photo digest focusing on northern New England. Check us out at www.forestforward.com to view our latest wildlife sightings and informative commentary. You’ll also find our new interview series, featuring guests such as environmentalist Bill McKibben, world-renowned photographer Scott Bourne, and Vermont Edition’s Jane Lindholm, just to name a few.
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The Outdoor Gazette
Dean Vanier • PO Box 1327 • Lebanon, NH 03766 • 603 523-9206
September 2012
Page 29
From the back of a canoe Alder Hex
It was late afternoon; one of those overcast grey end of November days. Evening was settling in and Hank was working on holiday cards for his clients. The cards contained a brief handwritten note about the client’s trip; the season and a fly; this year an Olive Heron. Looking out the window at the West Branch of the Magalloway it was easy to visualize the trips as he thumbed through the journal. The name on the mailing label was Matt Patterson; it didn’t seem like nine years ago that Matt had called the last week of June asking if there was an opening for the weekend. The weekend coincided with the Alderfly hatch; a zebra caddis and the most prolific hatch in the state. Hank had received a call earlier in the day canceling the weekend; the weather didn’t look promising. Matt said he’d fish in any weather and was in Boston for the weekend and had never fished in the east. Saturday was overcast, windy, cold and raw. Hank had left his jeep and trailer at the take out and walked two miles back to Magalloway Junction. Matt arrived early; they stopped at the cabin to get Matt outfitted and drove to the put in on North River Road. The hatch had not started and fishing dries with the wind was impossible; Alternated between streams and nymphs it was a slow morning; a half dozen hits and four trout. Matt didn’t say much; casting from the front of the boat was as difficult as Hank ever encountered. The wind was blowing up river and the gusts rocked the boat and blew it sideways when the anchor was out. It was the only time
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By Jim Norton
Hank had seen the wind strong enough to blow the boat up river. Normally in the riffs Hank rowed up river to hold the boat back and position it. It was every thing Hank could do to push the boat down river and he was on the oars all day. In the slower sections Hank turned the
was an excellent angler who relished being on the water. At noon they stopped for lunch under the route 16 bridge as another torrent of rain pelted down. Around 1:30 it started getting dark as another front blew in. This time it was hail with the wind whipping white caps up the river. Hank pulled the boat in under a stand of hemlock; tied the bow off
boat around and rowed backwards making casting easier as the wind carried the line up river. Around 10 the first of several rainstorms blew through; the rain was coming up river in sheets. They had only made two miles and were just about to Hanks Cabin. Hank never stopped at the cabin for a break but he decided getting out of the rain would be a good move. Over coffee Matt related how he had started fly fishing in Oregon as a youngster and had fished all over the west and now lived in Houston. It was easy to see even with miserable conditions he
and dropped the anchor. They huddled under a tarp as the sound of marble size hail pounded down; when the hail ended the wind intensified. Getting down river was going to be impossible. Hank walked the boat about 100 yards down river where the road was close enough to winch it out; and was lucky enough to hitch a ride to the Jeep. A half hour later they had picked up Matt’s car and were back at the cabin. It was the worst weather Hank had experienced in ten years on the river. By 4pm the wind died down and the sun broke through.
September 2012
Hank asked Matt if he would be interested in trying a pond for the Hex hatch in the evening. Hank grilled steaks on the deck and they talked about fishing. Matt had a preference for Montana and Hank related how he had learned to fly fish while working for Waltham Technologies on a project in Montana. One of the employee’s parents had a ranch on the Big Hole. That was before the McGregor ranch became a fly fishing destination. Hank told how Kevin McGregor had taken him under his wing for a few years. Matt had stayed at the ranch and used Kevin as a guide. Fly fishing has a way of making the world a pretty small place; maybe it’s because the fly fishing population isn’t that large and eventually you’re likely to run into someone who knows a friend or acquaintance or has fished someplace you have. When they launched the canoe the pond was like a mirror. A few Hex’s were starting to show as Hank worked the canoe around the pond. Look for a natural and cast the fly as close as possible; simulate the twitching motion and keep a tight line. Differentiate between splashes and slurps; cast to the slurps, the larger brookies feed without expending as much energy. Matt landed a few and became enthralled as the hatch intensified; just after sunset a 16” brookie capped off the evening. The hatch slowed and they listened to the sounds of the night; a moose walking on the other side of the pond and coyotes in the distance. It was a day to remember; the worst and best. Sunday morning; what a difference a day makes. In the 50’s, no wind, sunshine and the hatch was on. It was one of those days every angler should have once in a lifetime. Matt had a brookie on his first cast followed by browns, rainbows and salmon all on dries. The flies were active in the shade under the alders and when clouds drifted by the hatch would swarm over the bushes and river. Silent the day before Matt started talking; he worked in finance and was the company treasurer at thirty five when he met his wife just out of collage. He described himself as a company man; a workaholic to be precise. She was bright, well educated and attractive. He wanted to move up the corporate ladder; she wanted a family and kids. They were married six months later and in five years had three kids; a boy the oldest and two girls. She was everything he ever
Continued next page
The Outdoor Gazette
imagined in a wife taking care of things on the home front as he worked his way up to CEO at 44. Matt was then 61 and the company was in the Forbes top 100. When the youngest enrolled in a collage summer program he talked to his wife about retiring. She stunned him by asking for a divorce. He had never seen it coming; he was looking forward to retirement. His wife was in her late forties; she had raised her family said she didn’t want to spend her life in a retirement community with what she described as an aging older man. Matt said he could never comprehend how he was successful in business and so dense about women. He had found out a few days before the trip to Boston. Matt left a generous tip; he said it was peanuts compared to what a shrink would cost with better results. That was the start of a life long friendship. In October of 2005 Matt returned the favor of listening. That summer Mary Foster’s body was found on the West Branch; her husband had tried to frame Hank for the murder. Eventually things worked out but the loss of Mary was a black cloud that wouldn’t go away. There was never a romantic relationship but they had become good friends. Matt had done his home work after learning Hank had worked for Waltham Technologies; it was the software his corporation used and he thought maybe someday he could hire Hank. A friend of Matt’s from collage was the CEO of the company that purchased Technologies. Hank had started out as a Systems Engineer and worked his way up to manager of customer services at thirty three. Seven years later he was the Director of Software Development and married to one of the company’s top sales representatives. In the summer of 2000 the company was sold. Between the company stock plan and stock options which became fully vested as a result of the sale Hank cashed in a substantial amount and resigned. Hanks wife had been working in Houston for a year before the sale and had an opportunity to move to Paris with the new company; she eventually became the VP of European sales. She suggested a divorce after realizing Hank was content with his life but would never move on as long as they were married. Hanks world was operating West Branch Outfitters in the town of Magalloway Junction where the West Branch entered the Magalloway River. A general store, garage and a population of 67 people comprised the Junction, the last town in New Hampshire before the Maine line. Matt’s corporation had bought out another large company that was close to bankruptcy. He needed to get the company integrated as quickly as possible and knew Hank had The Outdoor Gazette
managed similar projects. Matt convinced Hank to run the project as a consultant saying he needed a change; surprisingly Hank agreed. Hank has several shows and presentations scheduled over the winter and he persuaded Pat Rivers; a young guide who lived in the Junction to take over. Pat was in his early thirties was a jack of all trades who could do about anything; you had to be to make a living in the hardscrabble North Country. Pat’s wife Mary also a native of the area was a teacher in Rangeley Maine. Hank had been using Pat whenever he could and they had become good friends. Mary’s sole purpose in life other than raising their two children seemed to be playing matchmaker. She was constantly on the prowl and seemed to know every available female north of the notches. As good as he was at guiding Pat had no confidence speaking in front of a group and was very apprehensive about doing the presentations but he finally agreed. Hank and Pat were at the Berlin airport at 10am on January 2nd when a corporate jet from Matt’s company landed. Pat had been amazed to see Hank in a suit; and more so when he was invited to take a look at the inside of the plane, he had never flown. Setting in the Jeep with Duchess, Hank’s setter Pat watched as the plane vanished in the overcast sky. The headquarters for the company that was being acquired was in Phoenix; seven hours later Hank walked back in the corporate world. From the moment he walked through the door it seemed like he never left. The project coordinator for Matt’s company was Susan Davis; a striking brunette that reminded Hank of his former wife; sharp, aggressive and driven. For the next three months Hank worked ten to sixteen hours a day; six days a week. Hank has a few rules; one was don’t mix business with pleasure; he had only broken the rule once when he dated his wife. Reality was that very few women could live in a remote area like Magalloway Junction; he occasionally dated but they were few and far between even with Mary’s matchmaking efforts. Occasional flings when he was a ski instructor decreased over the years although there was a lawyer he met skiing from Portland Maine. She was not particularly looking for marriage but wanted someone who in her words was successful and goal orientated; guiding didn’t quite fit into that category. Still they remained close friends and sometimes a little more. The end of March the project was completed. During the three months they worked together Susan was all business. Matt flew in to have dinner with Susan and Hank and to express his thanks for bringing the project in
a month ahead of schedule. Reviewing the project Hank made sure to credit Susan for doing an outstanding job. Matt said she always does and said if she could fly fish he’d marry her. Susan smiled and laughed and said he’s been saying that since I went to work for him twenty years ago. Camaraderie is a gift shared between friends and it was apparent both had a lot of respect for each other. Back in New Hampshire Hank still thought of Mary and knew nothing would ever change that but he was looking forward to the season with a renewed vigor and knew he would never enter the corporate world again. Hank picked up a used year old drift boat from Ardvark Outfitters in Maine on his way home from skiing Sugarloaf and dropped it off for Pat and said thanks for doing the presentations and taking care of Duchess. Duchess and the kids got along so well they wanted to keep her; Hank said OK but only until bird season. In the middle of April Hank received a call from Susan; she wanted to learn to fly fish before the middle of June and asked if Hank would help; there was one condition; he couldn’t tell Matt. Susan asked for books and CD’s on fishing; Hank recommended Thomas Ames “Hatch Guide for New England Streams” and a few others. Susan looked different in jeans and a sweat shirt and was a little more relaxed. Hank asked about her fishing experience; she had never fished. She had grown up on a farm in Nebraska and football was the family passion. She related how when she was small her father told her she would be the first female quarterback for Nebraska; she believed him until she was twelve. Hank thought he would get started casting at one of the local ponds and demonstrated a basic cast. Her cast was flawless; almost perfection. She blushed and said the Joan Wulff casting class she took in April must have helped; that and practicing two hours a day. Hank thought they would use the boat the first day and wade the next day. A few small mayflies were hatching and she asked if they were blue wing olives size 16. She must have memorized the book; in two days she identified every insect and turned over more rocks looking for nymphs than Hank did in a season. She almost dropped the rod the first time she had a strike and it was late in the afternoon before she got the handle on playing a fish; but once she did it was like she was born with a rod in her hand. Wading was a bit more difficult, it took her a while to get the handle of walking in the river. Around sunset they were on the meadows on the West Branch; a small caddis hatch was on and trout were starting to rise. Susan stopped fishing looked at the sunset and said it’s phenomenal.
September 2012
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The tension seemed to drain from her face and Hank thought it was the first time he had ever seen her relax. On June 15th there was a phone message from Matt. Matt picked up the phone on the first ring and was laughing so hard it took him a while to get the story out. At the stockholders meeting Susan did a PowerPoint presentation of the project and financial benefits. Matt had congratulated her on an outstanding effort and ended by saying “if you could fly fish I’d marry you”. She proceeded to flash up several pictures of her on the West Branch with trout; the last an 18 inch brookie and a quote underneath “Susan, you’re one hell of an angler - Hank”; those in attendance laughed so hard it almost broke up the meeting. Hank asked Matt what he was going to do. Matt said; I have a trip to Missoula the last week in July; I’m going to invite her and get the last laugh. The evening of July 28th Matt called. Hank you’re never going to believe this. My son, Matt Jr. one of my daughters Jill, Susan and I spent four days drifting the Clark’s Fork and the Blackfoot. Susan and my daughter Jill roomed together and got along great. Today we fished the Bitterroot. We pulled in for lunch where there was a ranch for sale. We walked up to the house after lunch. It’s a huge log cabin with an open porch facing up river. You can see the mountains with snow on the peaks. It’s an unbelievable setting. We were all admiring the view and Susan said it would be a phenomenal place to live. I thought I’d get even with her and said; marry me and I’ll buy it for you as a wedding present and we’ll move here. She said yes; I thought she was kidding but she wasn’t. We’re doing it. I won’t be out in September but we’ll both be there next year. We want you to come out next July. The following July Hank arrived at the ranch, it was everything they said and more. Matt looked ten years younger; Susan’s hair was several inches longer with a slight touch of gray. For a week they drifted different sections of the rivers from mid morning to late afternoon. Hank visited the ranch in 07, 08, and 09. During that time he had the chance to meet and fish with all of Matt’s kids; Matt Jr. had married and had a young son, the apple of Matt’s eye. Hank made the trip again in 2010; he knew the kids had been at the ranch and would be leaving the day before he arrived; he wished that he could have gotten away a few days earlier to spend a few days with them. When Hank pulled into the ranch the first thing he noticed was several vehicles in the yard. Matt Jr. was walking towards him; as soon as he saw his face he knew something was terribly wrong. They had been toss-
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Fish & Wildlife Management By Wayne A. Laroche
Deer Numbers: On the Rebound
Deer hunting prospects look to improve this fall across New England’s northern tier thanks to the mild winter of 2012. In fact, deer survival last winter may have been about as good as it gets with current habitat conditions. State fish and wildlife agencies routinely monitor winter severity by taking daily measurements of snow depth and temperature. This data is used to calculate Winter Severity Index (WSI) points. Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife recorded only 11 WSI points last winter compared to a long term average of about 45 WSI points. This small number of points was a major improvement over the harsh winter of 2011 during which a total of 70 WSI points accrued. As a result, Vermont’s deer buck harvest declined by about 12%. New Hampshire and Maine fared better. Although winter severity was somewhat above average, the winter was not severe enough to reduce the 2011 harvest. New Hampshire’s buck harvest ended up about 14% from 2010 while Maine’s ticked
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upwards just slightly from the harvest of 2010. In fact, New Hampshire’s 2011 harvest was the highest deer harvest the state has had since 2007 www.wildlife.state.nh.us/Hunting/de
taken during youth season) of 7,408 for 2011. The actual harvest turned out to be 7,111. With just 11 WSI points last winter, the model is predicting the Vermont legal buck harvest to be in the vicinity of 8,350 in 2012. This suggests around a 17% improve-
Table 1
er_hunt_take_by_County.htm" http://www.wildlife.state.nh.us/Hunt ing/deer_hunt_take_by_County.htm) Prior to putting Vermont’s antler restriction into effect in 2005, I developed a spreadsheet model to predict Vermont’s legal buck harvest (total of all seasons) based upon previous buck harvest data and the winter severity index. The model predicted a legal buck harvest (not counting spike bucks
ment in the harvest over Vermont’s legal buck harvest of 2011. Since New Hampshire and Maine’s harvests increased instead of declining last year, I do not expect this fall’s harvests to increase as much in those states as the Vermont harvest will this fall. I do expect increased buck harvests in all three states this fall. I can say that what looks good on paper also looks good in the field this year. I have been able to spend a good bit of time in the woods this summer in northern Vermont and the mountains of northeastern Maine. I have been seeing more deer sign than last year in the areas I hunt. I have seen a good number of twin fawns which is another sign that deer wintered well. Indeed, fawn survival from my observations looks great. An increase in the size of buck groups is another good sign before the upcoming season. Buck groups with up to six bucks have been seen near my home in Franklin County. I went out for a ride the other night and saw seven different bucks. When I was a growing up in Vermont, I can’t remember ever seeing more than two bucks together. Since the introduction of the antler restriction in 2005, bachelor groups have become common occurrence in Vermont Even though Vermont’s buck har-
September 2012
vest was down in 2011 to about what it was in 2004 (the year before the antler restriction took effect), the size of Vermont bucks is much improved from the days when spike bucks ruled the harvest. Compare differences in Vermont buck weights in Table 1. Table 1. Number of “legal bucks” harvested in 2004 (year before antler restriction) by weight class compared to the 2011 Vermont buck harvest. The odds of taking a buck weighting more than 160 lbs in Vermont are now more than 2 ? times better than what they were before the antler restriction. Early season scouting is a good way to get in shape and get a feel for what is coming this fall. I have been walking 7 miles most every day since spring. Along with a little diet control, I have managed to lose close to 25 pounds. My scouting excursions have been a whole lot more fun since I have become lighter on my feet. My excursions across northern VT, NH and into western Maine this summer suggest that there are fewer apples this year than last year, but there still appears to be a fair apple crop across the region. A logger working along the New Hampshire/Maine border claims that there are beech nuts this year in that area. However, the beech stands that I checked in northern Vermont do not appear to have many nuts. There is still some time left before season to do some scouting. The time is worth the effort. Wayne Laroche directed Vermont’s Department of Fish and Wildlife from 2003 until 2011 serving as the Commissioner. He holds degrees in both fisheries and wildlife management from the Univ. of Maine and California State Univ. Wayne is a native Vermonter and currently resides in Franklin, VT. He enjoys tracking whitetails in the big woods of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. Wayne can be reached by emailing deerwayne@franklinvt.net.
The Outdoor Gazette
Public Archery Ranges Available at Bear Brook State Park and Owl Brook Hunter Education Center CONCORD, N.H. – New Hampshire archers and bowhunters warming up for the fall deer and turkey archery seasons can practice their shooting skills at New Hampshire Fish and Game Department archery facilities at Bear Brook State Park in Allenstown and the Owl Brook Hunter Education Center in Holderness. Both are open to the public. The archery ranges at Bear Brook State Park in Allenstown are managed by New Hampshire Fish and Game. The woodland archery range was outfitted with new targets last
year. Bear Brook also features a 4target practice range that is universally accessible. For more information on day use at Bear Brook State Park, visit the website at www.nhstateparks.org/explore/state -parks/bear-brook-state-park.aspx), or call 603- 485-9874. Fish and Game’s Owl Brook Hunter Education Center in Holderness offers another practice opportunity for archers. A woodland archery course features 14 game targets placed in a variety of challenging situations at varying angles and distances. The first target is wheel-
chair accessible with signed parking nearby. The woodland course is free and open daily from dawn to dusk unless otherwise posted. Broadheads are not allowed for safety and maintenance reasons. The center also offers a 4-target archery practice range that is open to the public Monday through Saturday from 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. For directions, visit www.huntnh.com /Hunting/hunter_ed_center.htm. Fish and Game’s archery ranges are maintained by its Hunter Education Program, which is funded by Federal Aid in Wildlife
Restoration, a user-pay, user-benefit program supported by an excise tax on firearms, ammunition and archery equipment. Learn more at www.wildnh.com/SFWR_program/sfwr_program.htm.
ing a football around the afternoon before and Matt had gone up on the porch to get a glass of ice tea. He didn’t return and it looked like Matt was asleep in the rocker; he had died of a stroke. The funeral was the next day; Matt’s ashes were scattered on the river in front of the ranch. That evening at dinner everyone was depressed. Hank told the story of the first time he had fished with Matt and how terrible the conditions were; about the great evening and the next day. Hank said that was a low point in Matt’s life but he had gone fishing because he knew it was the best thing for him to do. Hank told them your Matt would want you to celebrate his life and get on with your own and that’s what we’re going to do; everyone is going to fish tomorrow. They fished a few days and at dinner Hank told stories about the trips they had taken which got the kids and Susan talking about other trips with Matt. There’s no replacement for a father or husband; Hank knew it
would be a long process. The last weekend in September Susan returned to New Hampshire; a trip she had made with Matt for years. The sadness was still in her eyes but the arm that was going to throw touchdowns for Nebraska had the rod laying out beautiful casts. The last evening they went to the Balsams for dinner. At the end of the evening Susan said; the only thing I was successful at in life was my work. I had a few failed marriages. I respected Matt and I ended up loving him; he was a great person who loved his kids. They became part of my life and hope they always will be. I think of his grandson as my own. I love the ranch plan on living there the rest of my life. I worked with you for three months and know more about you than you think. I’ll marry you if you’ll move to Montana; let me know by January. January was a month away. Hank loved guiding and thought he could do it for a lot of years; but he could always guide in Montana. Pat could take over the business; they had a
few young guides coming along. There was no one to talk it over with. Duchess had taken up residence at Pat’s house except when he picked her up to go hunting. It was the story of his life with females, none around. In hindsight he should have moved to Paris with his wife. What were the chances of
meeting another woman like Susan in a lifetime?
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Jim a native of New Hampshire enjoys fly-fishing & tying, bird hunting and a variety of other outdoor activities and is a NH fishing Guide registered www.nhriversguide.com and author of the book Granite Lines.
Attention Attention New New Hampshire Hunters Hunters
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The Outdoor Gazette
September 2012
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Please allow 2 - 4 weeks for delivery. Mail or photocopy this form and send to: NHASTC Record Book Roscoe Blaisdell, President 22 Schribner Road Raymond, NH 03077
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Trophy Spotlight- Vermonter, Russ Baker takes monster Granite State Moose.
Friday morning met with my buddy, and we rode up to camp. Stopped on the way for groceries. Got to camp in the afternoon (about a 4 hour drive for me). We sighted in our rifles between the raindrops, and went for a ride. When we got back, my buddy decided to go fishing, since it was the last day of trout season. He brought his shotgun, and was going to take a walk in the woods looking for grouse. I stayed at camp, got dinner ready and read a book. After dinner we sorted out our gear, and made plans in where we wanted to start hunting. We went to bed right around 10:00. Just a little background: As I had mentioned, I have been applying since NH started issuing moose permits. My dream was to walk out my camp door in zone A1 and hunt and I wanted to shoot a nice bull. There are only 15 either sex permits offered for zone A1. Being from Vt, and applying for only 2 zones (A1 & A2). I knew my odds were low that I would be drawn. With 9 preference points, I
was the 9th name drawn out of the hat in 2011. To say the least I was friggen excited! I shot a decent bull in Vt. in 2004
Vermont resident Russ Baker and his 2011 Granite State Monster Moose
My buddy who owns the camp with me has been applying to VT and NH for the same amount of time, so I called him soon after being drawn and asked him to be my second
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shooter, but actually I told him I wanted him to shoot the moose, and if the situation presented itself, perhaps we could shoot it together. October 15th 2011 (Opening
Day) Rain! I know it’s good hunting in the rain, but being out hunting for hours when it’s pouring is the one thing I don’t enjoy. After a good breakfast we suited up in our rain gear, walked out the door and loaded our rifles. It wasn’t raining too hard, so it was bearable. We decided to start with the “4 point rd” and walked into the woods. We saw some very fresh sign, with droppings and browsing, but after walking further down the tote road, the less sign we saw. We set up and called, with no response. We walked across some old cuts, and through some hard woods, still not a lot of fresh sign. We then headed up towards the top of a ridge. In my mind I kept thinking we are getting further and further from any good road, If we dropped something, it was going to be a long hard days worth of work to get it out. We had planned on quartering up the moose and hauling it out. I had brought a pack frame, and my buddy had a deer cart. Up near the top we jumped a cow from her bed, my buddy pulled up quick, but this wasn’t what we were looking for. He mentioned that after day 4 of hunting, this might look a little more tempting. The weather all day was hard rain, then blue sky and sunshine. We saw a couple other hunters, and decided to stay clear, so we swung around and headed back to camp for a bowl of soup and a sandwich. On the way back through a cut we found a small hornets nest about the size of a softball. With the sun out,
September 2012
I decided to take a picture. After lunch, we decided to take a drive past the camp to the end of the road. My buddy wanted to try hunting up there, but when we got there, someone was already parked, and we could see them sitting about 50 yards from their truck watching a trail. So we went back towards the camp and tried another tote road. About a quarter mile up the road we rounded a curve and came up on a big cow browsing. I thought a got a good picture of her, but my camera was focused on the branch 5 yards in front of me. After she finally made us, she turned around and slowly walked away. We continued on the road, and after turning a corner about 200 yards further up the road, we came across a smaller bull feeding. Guns were up and there was a lot of whispering about if this was what we wanted to shoot. He had brow tines, but not much for palms, maybe a 3-4 year old. After a little persuasion to my buddy that this was below our standards for the first day, we decided to pass. The bull finally got wind of us, and walked away. We followed him out into the cut after him to see if there were any of his bigger buddies feeding. The skies opened up and it started pouring. Then I saw a flash of lighting, and a huge rumble of thunder. I was thinking that it might not be a good idea to be standing out in a cut, with an rifle in my hand. Soon after the rain picked up with a small amount of hail mixed in. Luckily, that was the only lighting we saw. Within 10 minutes the rain stopped, and the sun came out. As the first day of NH moose season came to a close, we were privileged to a beautiful rainbow. October 16th (Second Day of the Season) I woke up a couple of times in the night to hear the rain pouring down, but it slowed to just sprinkles as it started getting light out. My buddy wanted to try the spot at the end of the road, so we took a drive up only to find the same guy sitting 50 yards from his truck. We decided to go back to the road where we saw the cow and bull Saturday afternoon. We parked and walked up the tote road. We walked out to one of the cuts where we saw the bull the previous day. Just on the edge in a small birch was a big grouse picking buds. I snapped a couple of shots as he was doing his high wire balancing act, pecking away Nothing was in the cut, so we
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The Outdoor Gazette
backed out and headed up the road further. As we were about to cross a stream, I looked up through the woods, and spotted a big black body. My buddy is hard of hearing and I was trying to get his attention. “Dave, psst, Dave, psst, psst, DAVE!!” He finally looked at me, and I pointed up, “Moose!” We looked through the scopes, and soon determined it was a cow. I kept scanning the woods for other moose, and picked up another black form in front of her. “Dave there’s another one in front of her, we need to cross the stream and get about 30 yards further to see it”. So now in stealth mode we work our way across the rocks to get the 10 feet to the other side. As soon as we got the 30 yards further, a road branched off in the direction of the moose. I looked up and all I could see was antlers. “Big Bull!” I whisper to my buddy. “Shoot it!” he says. “No we need to get closer, and get into position”. The big bull is facing away from us, and browsing on everything in sight. All I can see is antlers sticking out on either side of his head. At that point it was about 150 yards between us and the bull. We slowly worked our way to a water-bar about 40 yards in front of us. My buddy sat down and got a good solid position. I was to his right leaning up against a yellow birch. About that time we spot the cow at about 60 yards staring at us. She had us made, but wasn’t real sure of what we were. The bull was still facing away, and the cow was starting to get nervous and turned and slowly walked towards the bull, then disapeared in another water-bar. By now the bull had turned a little and was slightly quartering away from us. My buddy says “I’ve got a clear shot, how about you?” About halfway between me an the bull were a couple of small trees, leaving only about a 4 inch hole to place a shot at the bull’s shoulder. “No”, I said “Not a good shot yet” We waited another minute or two and he finally took a couple steps to the left. “I’ve got a good shot now” I tell my buddy. “You shoot first, then I’ll shoot”. He holds tight,and squeezes the trigger. As soon as he shoots, the bull takes two more steps, and then I shot. We saw him go forward off the road and then we lost sight. There was actually two cows with him, and we saw them run off, but he wasn’t with them. We walked up to where he was standing. There was no blood, no hair, no sign of a hit. Not even tracks of him running off. We looked and looked all over. Nothing! Our shots were at 8:30, and now it’s 9:30 and we still The Outdoor Gazette
haven’t found a thing. At one point it started pouring. Now I’m thinking “Great, if there was any blood, it washed away now.” I go back once again to where he was standing, and I can see his tacks from where he walked off. He walked straight away, and up on to a trail. I know my buddy had already gone to the left on the trail looking, and I had looked to the right. I couldn’t find any more fresh tracks. My only conclusion was that he went straight up the hill. I took a couple of steps , all of a sudden I
could see tines sticking out of the black berry bushes. A couple more steps confirm it’s our bull. “Dave, Dave, I found him!!” What a beauty. 5 brow tines on one side, 8 on the other. 64 1/2 inch spread. 795 lbs. At that point we decide there was no friggen way we were going to quarter up this big boy. So we ended up getting a guy with a chain saw winch and slowly dragged him back to the truck. So once we finally found our moose, my buddy and I decided we sure as hell weren’t going to quarter and pack it out. After the pictures and the long process of gutting it out, we headed out to find someone to pull the moose out for us. The other problem was, by buddy has a Toyota Tacoma with a cap. There was no way we were going to be able to load this moose whole into his truck, but one thing at a time. We needed to get it out of the woods first. We drove out to route 3, and were planning on getting someone with a horse. At the turn to Magalloway Rd. there was a guy (John) parked and a sandwich board advertising moose pulling. We pulled onto pull off and told him we had a moose down about a half mile into the woods. He said he had a tool similar to a chainsaw winch and was up to the task. He asked to hold for a minute, as he wanted to put a note on his sandwich board where he was going, just in case anyone else came looking for him. We get to the tote road, he loads up a bucket, and his winch, and off we go. We get to the Moose around noon. One side of the antlers has a drop tine off the brow, John sug-
gests that we tie a pole across his antlers, so we can lift up the head enough so the drop time doesn’t get caught on anything during the drag. We cut a yellow birch that’s about 6 foot long, and when we tied it to the antlers, we realized just how wide they were. About this time, we look down the road, and here comes a guide named Toby Owen. He knows John and uses him to pull moose for his clients. He already successfully guided a client on Saturday and decided to go visit John. When he read John’s note and saw where he was headed, he had an idea that maybe someone shot the “big one”. As soon as he got to the moose, he said, “that’s him”. I’m glad someone finally got him”. Turns out that over the years there was a big competition to find our bull’s sheds. He started listing off who had matched sheds, including himself, as he had last years set. He took one look at our bull and said it was over 60 inches wide. He had nothing to do, and was glad to lend a hand. We started the slow process of dragging the moose out. John had 200 feet of rope, and as long as there was a solid anchor to hook to, and a straight shot down the road, we would move the moose about 200 feet at a time. I was a little nervous, as the moose would dig a pretty good trench in the road with his nose. As we neared the brook we had to cross, it has a good 5 foot high bank on the opposite side. I suggested to John that we get the black plastic toboggan sled he had in the back of his truck and get it under the front shoulder of the moose. He thought that was a good idea, so off I go to get the sled. As I get back down to his truck, I noticed another truck there. A guy gets out and asked if we got a moose. I told him we had a nice bull down. He asks if we want any help, and I say sure. He was just out riding around, saw John’s note and came up to see. I get back to the moose, we slide the toboggan under his shoulder, and without much hassle get him across the stream. With the pole to keep his head up we are crawling right along. Here’s a picture right after we crossed the stream. So far we have probably traveled 300 yards from ground zero. Pretty soon another guy walks up the trail. He’s a 77-year-old man from Mass. who shot a moose off another road, and would like John to pull it out when he’s done. He was supposed to be hunting with his son, but his son came down with kidney stones and was at a hospital back home. John asks how far off the road and how big. The guy says a little over a hundred yards and about as big as our bull. So now this guy pitches in too. What started out as just the three of us, has now doubled to six.
September 2012
from previous page
I mention to my buddy that maybe we should start selling tickets. A couple hundred yards further, and here comes two game wardens. The asked my name, and immediately knew what my permit was for, and where our camp is. They chatted for a while and left. Now we’re down to the home stretch. The road is in sight. Pretty soon another truck pulls up and a couple guys start snapping pictures. At 5:30 we finally got the moose out. John had a trailer, and offered to take the moose to the weigh station the next morning. He left the trailer at the camp, and headed with Toby, and the old guy to get his moose. My buddy and I head into town to call home and get some ice to cool the moose off. When we get back to camp there’s another guide (Paul) there checking out the moose. Come to find out he has two sets of sheds from this moose. He too is glad we shot the moose, as it will put an end to the competition looking for his sheds in the winter. He offers to let us use his game pole to hang, skin and quarter up the moose for taking home, and we gladly accept. Monday morning John shows up to get the trailer and head down to the weigh-in station. He got out of the woods at 10:30 the night before, after loading up the moose the 77-
year-old guy shot. While we’re having a cup of coffee, another guide shows up to look at the moose. He too has a set of sheds. Soon after we load up and head down to the town shed to check our moose in. There was a pretty good size crowd waiting to see “the moose”. John said it was all over the scanner, and truckers were talking about it. The 77-year-old guy pulled in right after us. Our moose weighed in at 795 lbs, and an official 64-5/8 inch spread. The biologist pulled a tooth to be sent to Minnesota for aging. The 77-year-old guy’s moose weighed in at 930lbs, and it had a great rack.
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Southern Side Up By Alex Cote
Hunters do care...
HUNTER: N, gatherer, to hunt, pursue game for food or sport. Type of horse used for jumping, popular in England. Interesting what the dictionary has to say about a “Hunter” isn’t it? I had to look it up on my own because just the other day, I heard a woman calling hunters slobs, drunks, aholes among other adjectives’. Funny, maybe my dictionary is out dated or the meaning of the word has been changed, mine doesn’t use any of those words to describe a hunter. But, it is fact, that in certain circles, we are perceived as beer bellied, liquor drinking, gun toting nut bag, slobs! We need to change that. It wasn’t to many years back that in New Hampshire, while transporting a deer to and from the checking station, part of the animal needed to be exposed. Part of the deer is a long way from draping the animal on the trunk of the car or lashed to the roof ! One Sunday morning, as I was putting gas into my wife’s car, a full size Chevy wagon pulled into the pumps. Strapped to the roof was a
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decent doe and what I would guess to be her spring fawn. The side of the tan station wagon was covered in blood as was the driver. Not to sure
about the passenger, he never stepped out of the car. I hadn’t really noticed them but in front of me, was a young mother with her daughter, I would put at 6 or 7 dressed for church or a visit to grand ma’s house. When she saw the deer on the station wagon, she had a melt
down. She was crying, her daughter was wailing at the top of her lungs, it wasn’t a pleasant experience for anyone around her. That is except for the idiot driving the station wagon. His response, “what’s the matter
girly, haven’t you seen a dead deer before”? My only saving grace that day was the fact that I had already taken my deer and wasn’t wearing hunting cloths myself. I was able to somewhat calm the situation down. I can tell you this, that woman was not against hunting prior to that encounter. In fact she really knew nothing about it, she still doesn’t. But the short but negative encounter that she got that Sunday morning certainly engrained a certain picture in her and her daughters mind about hunting! The next day, I got on the phone to several of my State reps. I got them to sponsor a bill to change the law requiring that part of an animal need to be in plain sight. I thought that this would fly through with little or no objection at all. Boy was I mistaken. I couldn’t imagine why people would fight a law change to make things better for successful hunters. The root of the issue? Stubborn Yankees! It was felt that we as hunters were giving in to the do gooders! After several Fish and Game committee hearings and several testimonies, the bill went through the legislative process and became law. I recently saw some new nation wide statistics that I had first seen some 20 plus years ago. It isn’t surprising that stats change, but in this case at least for me, it was a reality check. The first set of statistics 20 some odd years ago said that 18% of the country’s population supported hunting. 5% were opposed to hunting. Not to bad I guess. Doing the math, that left 77% of the population non committed, fence sitters, they could go either way. Well, the latest stats show that an alarming number of that 77% has gone either way, and it’s the wrong way! The
September 2012
18% that supported hunting has increased to 22%. The opposition has increased to 12%! The statistics were found in an article that was done by the National Shooting Sports Foundation. It clearly says that the number of anti hunters has more than DOUBLED! What can we do? We simply need to police our own. Keep an eye on each other. Not to be abrasive, and overpowering about our belief in a public forum. Then do the little things right. Pick up the trash you stumble across in the woods. If you can’t pick it up for some reason, at least bury it, doesn’t take to much effort. Wash up and change out of blood stained cloths BEFORE checking in game. Conceal harvested game as much as possible, don’t put an animal in the back of your truck and ride all over with the tail gate down! If you have your wife’s SUV, carry plastic in the back to put the animal on. It’s these little things that we can do better to ensure our passion for generations’ to come. It is said that we are a dying group, hunters that is. If that is the case, why should we kill ourselves? My middle son (still in college) works for the town parks and rec summer program. Just recently, he was put in charge of an outdoor camp program for a week. He went over the meat and potatoes of camp site preparation, building a fire ect ect. He wanted to do a morning on animal behavior, tracks, conservation and rap it up with map and compass reading. So he called on “Dad “to help out. I agreed, after all how tough could that be, hand full of kids, what the heck. The night before I was to make some sort of presentation to the kiddo’s, I asked my youngest who was in the program, how many kids were going to be there. When he told me 50, in the eyes of a twelve year old, I figured that meant 20! Trying to put together hand outs, I thought it wish to check with my instructor son! When he ever told my there were 40 kids in the group that ranged from 6 to 13, I damn near fell over! I showed up as promised, a few butterflies, not to bad, not enough to call out sick! I eyed the room as my young audience arrived. I had brought in hand outs from fish and game and the ice breaker, STICKERS! I also had a pair of shed deer antlers and one moose shed. Things were progressing very well, much better than I expected. We talked about deer, bear, moose turkey and even a little on trapping. I allowed questions and used some of the
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It could be that these will be the largest and heaviest of the season, being checked in back to back. While we are there, another game warden (Chris) shows up, and guess what? He has two sets of sheds from
handouts as prizes. I was fielding all of the questions and all was well until! The until, was a little blond haired blue eyed little girl who asked me if it was hunters that killed Bambi’s mother! Well, then I seized the moment. I explained to the I entire group about poachers! even went on to explain that when Bambi’s mother was shot, it was spring time and deer season was in the fall! I answered her question and she went away with a smile. The next afternoon, I went to the program to pick up my youngest son. As I was walking in, that little blond haired blue eyed girl was walking out with her father. I said hello to her and she smiled and said hello. Her father said” Excuse me sir but are you the one that talked about ani-
The Outdoor Gazette
this moose as well. He shows me some pictures from 2009. What an awesome set. He takes a bunch of pictures and also comments that he’s glad he was shot. After lots of talk and pictures, we
headed to Paul’s to hang up the moose. Soon after Paul say’s come take a look at this. He takes us to his man cave where he has two sets of sheds from our bull mounted. It is very
from previous page
obvious they are from the same moose. He pulls out the mounts and set them on either side of our
mals at the outdoor camp yesterday?” I told him that I was. He went on to say that he has never heard his daughter go on so much about the outdoors, he said that she absolutely loved it! She even told her mother and father that it wasn’t hunters that shot Bambi’s mother, it was poachers! Hunters care about wildlife, poachers only care about themselves! He smiled and said, “Thank You!” Alex Cote resides in Deerfield New Hampshire. He is on the Pro Staff for Northwood's Common Scents! He is also a scorer for the NHASTC. Alex and his son spend as much time outdoors as possible and he only works when he has to.
September 2012
Continued from page 35
moose. While we are snapping more pictures, more people pull up, along with the guy who found the first shed from our bull. It is now apparent why over the last 5 years we haven’t found hardly any sheds around the camp during our Memorial Day shed hunt. These guys have cleaned the place out!!! Paul is one heck of a nice guy. He helps us skin and quarter the moose. Actually he did about 60% of the work. We got the meat loaded in the back of the truck and we tied the head down to the roof. We went back to camp and packed up and loaded what gear we could fit in the truck. One last picture at camp before we took off The guides we talked with were all surprised that we didn’t know this bull hung out around our camp. They figured he was about 11 years old based on the number of shed they found. As my buddy and I were driving home we started thinking about some of the moose we had pictures of. And it started to dawn on us that we had pictures of this guy from three different years. As a matter of fact, he is in this post I did back in 2008 http://www.huntingchat.net/foru m/showthread.php?t=21013 I went back and blew up the picture and sure enough it’s same bull Last years sheds were the largest scoring set from this bull. Our bull had lost a considerable amount of mass. At first a couple of the guides said it would be a new state record, but after Paul green scored it, it looks like it will miss the mark by a few inches. But it’s still large enough to make the record book. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine we would get such a trophy. I am just glad it happened as it did. It was a fantastic hunt for my buddy and I and one we will never forget and probably never come close to matching again. 5:30 pm, we were finally loaded up.
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Fish Tales and other Drivel
By Dick Baker
Tiny critters in tiny streams -Volunteers help NHF&G biologists study small stream life
Art Greene and Mike Didio cautiously waded the tiny brook, each carrying a small long handled fish net and a white pail partially filled with water. Ahead of them was a N.H. Fish & Game biologist loaded down with an electro fishing power unit and long handled wand. “There has to be one under that big boulder,” said Art, pointing to a foot deep pool in the shade of a 5’ tall rock. The biologist poked the metal hoop into the high potential hiding place and immediately two small fish splashed to the surface and floated downstream to be scooped up in Art’s net. Art dropped them into one of the buckets and asked “brook trout?” “No, Atlantic salmon” responded the biologist. As part of the former Atlantic Salmon Restoration Project thousands of these salmon had been stocked in the tributaries of the Connecticut River. Next spring they would migrate south toward the Atlantic Ocean at Narragansit Bay. We had been hoping to find brook trout in these tiny, but clear and cold brooks. We would be more successful at some of the other Ammonoosuc River tributaries. A short distance downstream from the electro fishing party, were two more volunteers. One seemed to be doing Chubby Checkers famous “Twist” in the middle of the stream while the other held, what
looked like a butterfly net, on the stream bottom just downstream. After a minute of so the dancer began to pull rocks from the stream bottom and rub them with her hands. The protocol was that they should do this for about two minutes in
of Trout Unlimited was in charge of finding and scheduling volunteers and Daine Timmins, Region 1 biologist was to be the coordinator and in charge of the F&G staff. Whenever the weather forecast predicted reasonable weather we were to gather at a parking area in
three equidistant locations along the 300 ft. of stream that was being inventoried. All the netted material and stream life went into a bucket that would be inspected later. N.H. Fish and Game biologists had planned the weeklong project months before. Art Greene, representing the Ammonoosuc Chapter
Littleton. Diane would decide who would travel with one of the two project groups to inventory selected tributaries. Hopefully the sixteen targeted brooks would be inventoried in three days. At each location a biologist would lay out a 300 ft. section of stream. Working upstream the electro fishing team would search every nook and cranny to capture tiny brook trout. The collection most often included dozens or hundred of minnows and small Atlantic salmon. Three spots along each section were scoured by the macro invertebrate team or as I previously mentioned the “dance group”! After each collection session the
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September 2012
whole crew gathered around the truck tailgate for an intensive identification and measurement hour. While F&G staff carefully measured and weighed tiny fish three volunteers would sort through the bucket of water and bottom detritus looking for any sign of aquatic life. Some of the TU volunteers had done homework and could identify such common stream insects as mayflies, stoneflies, crane flies and dragonflies. Since the tiny fish and insects are indicative of the water quality in each brook the data would be used to point out streams that have unique fish communities especially wild brook trout. Although most trout fishers hope to find brook trout of trophy size or at lease edible size I was amazed at the fun we had collecting these pint size stream fish. The trophy brook trout of the week was an astounding 10” long while most of the trout were a third that size. Some of the streams had dwindled to a summertime trickle and one wide stream had a warm temperature but produced a mass of dace and chubs and has become my favorite source of live bait for bass, pike and walleye. Anyone interested in the results of this stream survey as well as those completed along many other rivers can contact Diane Timmins at 7883164 or Art Greene (Ammonoosuc Trout Unlimited Chapter) at 4444892. Dick Baker is a forester working in northern NH and Vt with an office in Littleton, NH. Writing for several New England sporting magazines is just an excuse to get his wife, Mary, to let him go fishing or hunting. At the Baker house the lawn grows tall and the house needs painting. Dick can be reached at bigfishrcb@yahoo.com
The Outdoor Gazette
The Outdoor Gazette
September 2012
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The Coastal Zone Captian John Curry By Captain
September’s Variety
By the time you are ready this hopefully August will be over. While the fishing here on Cape Cod is generally good from April to November, August can be a very challenging month for many reasons. The water temps are at their highest, the young of the year bait fish aren’t quite ready to migrate out of their summer sanctuaries and the boating traffic has many fish feeling edgy. I have consistently caught fish all through August, but working for them is a bit harder. The striper bite has been slow this year on the Cape and the word is if you find fish they will be big, but good luck finding them. This is why I love September. The water temps start to cool from the highs near 80 degrees to a perfect 75-65 degrees. The bait fish have grown larger and the larger game fish are zoning in on predictable locations to fatten up for their annual southerly migrations. September also means
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many of the tourists and seasonal residents are calling it a season. It’s the time us serious fisherman have the waters mainly to
ourselves. What I like the most about September is that it brings a variety of species to our waters. Not only do the typical inland sport fish like stripers,
blues, fluke and tuna start to feed heavily, but we get the influx of what we call funny-fish. If you hear this term thrown around we are referring to atlantic bonito, false albacore
and even spanish mackerel. They are called funny fish for the way they crash at bait with reckless abandon and for the fact
that they can be the most finicky feeders around. My favorite of these tuna and mackerel sub species is the false albacore. These fish will change your life once you feel the absolute brute power and long reel screaming runs ripping most if not all of your line to your backing. We use light tackle on my boat and a 9wt fly set up or a 7ft medium to heavy action spinning outfit will make it feel like you have a giant bluefin tuna on the end of your offering. Most of the fun with catching these fish is in the chase. They can cover a football field in 10 seconds and are scattered around Buzzards Bay in small schools. We look for birds working the surface and fire up the Evinrude on my Andros
September 2012
Cuda 23 custom made for this exact style of fishing. Now you can’t just run and gun right up to the school or they will blow out and be gone in a flash. I look at the tide and wind direction to see if there is a distinct “line” that they are following. After a quick run we will set up a drift pattern that will bring the fish up to us. This is a great way to position you for a chance to cross that fly rod caught “albie” of your fishing bucket list. They are named “false” albacore for a very good reason. While they look very similar to the albacore tuna we all love to eat on our tuna melt sandwiches, they are smaller in size and are basically unfit to eat. While some have told me they taste good if you instantly bleed them and serve them sashimi style I have yet to try it. On the opposite side of the taste scale is the summer flounder or fluke as they are called. These flounder relatives are aggressive and come into our waters around mid May, but they
really put on a the feed when the water hits its high temp mark and starts to slowly drop with each night’s cool temps. The style of fishing is also as opposite as it gets. We drift with strips of squid and mackerel on spinner style rigs similar to drifting for walleye. While fluke are bottom feeders in general in September they start to get real aggressive. I have caught fluke on poppers and slugo’s targeting stripers, but mainly we look for their ambush points between drop-offs and sand flats while drifting baits. Fluke are as about as good as it gets for eating and rolling their sweet white fillets in lobster or crab meat stuffing is a great reward for a day on the
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The Outdoor Gazette
Missisquoi River Muskie Restoration Gets a Boost
The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department gave its recentlyestablished Lake Champlain muskellunge restoration effort a boost when it stocked 8,800 fivemonth old fish in the Missisquoi River and Missisquoi Bay in August. The muskie is native to this area of Lake Champlain, but the population that last existed upstream of the Swanton Dam was apparently lost in the late 1970s following a chemical spill. “The muskie has a unique role as Lake Champlain’s apex aquatic predator,” said Fish & Wildlife Commissioner Patrick Berry. “On the lower Missisquoi River muskies were historically important as a large mythical fish that was present but very difficult to catch. Successful anglers are members of a very small and fortunate club.” The six-inch fish stocked in the river were donated by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, which also stocks the Great Chazy River on the New York side of the lake with the same strain of muskie. The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department has done a genetic assessment of a very small number of muskellunge caught since 2005 in the Lake Champlain Basin. “In recent years, anglers have reported catching and releasing
an occasional muskie in the lower Missisquoi River and Missisquoi Bay,” said Shawn Good, Chair of the department’s Muskie Team and the fisheries biologist leading the restoration efforts. “Through a very successful outreach effort, we were able to work with anglers
water chasing those funny fish. I could go on about how the stripers and big chopper blues start to invade the shallow flats in September, but I will leave that for another month. September like May is a magical month down here on the Cape. So instead of endless practice with your bow, come to the Cape and experience the best it has to offer in variety and beautiful weather. Maybe I’ll even put a
squeeze tube of wasabi on the boat and we can try some false albacore sushi style. Well maybe.
The Outdoor Gazette
Genetic analysis of these tissue samples reveals the muskellunge anglers have been catching in the area are not from the original native strain.” “The muskie that anglers have been catching in the Missisquoi came from the Great Chazy River
Photo from Vermont Fish & Wildlife--Vermont State Fisheries Biologist Shawn Good is shown here with a net full of the 8,800 young muskellunge released in the Missisquoi River and Bay on August.
in New York, as their genetic makeup is identical to the Lake Chautauqua-strain muskie the New York DEC have stocked there for many years,” said Good. Good says they now know some of those fish make their way down the Chazy and out into Lake Champlain to the Missisquoi Bay and River. The department’s genetic work also showed that the state record muskellunge, a 38.22 lb. fish caught in the Missisquoi River in September of 2005 by Chris Beebe, came from fish stocked by the State of New York in the Chazy River. Vermont regulations allow fishing for muskie with artificial lures or flies, and any muskie caught must be immediately released where it was caught. Vermont has stocked nearly 25,000 muskie into the Missisquoi River and Missisquoi Bay in the last four years. “I have high hopes for these little guys,” said Good. “With pretty much unlimited habitat and food resources, I expect these fish to grow fast and get pretty big. It’s not unreasonable to think that in the next few years, anglers could be frequently catching muskie in the 50-inch range from Lake Champlain.”
in the Swanton area to obtain tissue samples from a number of these muskie that were released.
from previous page
Capt. John Curry grew up in Rehobeth, MA and summered on the Cape mainly in the Bass River area. He has over 30 years of fishing and boating on Cape Cod and Rhode Island waters. Currently living in W. Yarmouth and summers in Bourne. He runs a sportfishing business on tha Cape, visit his website www.capefishing.net.
September 2012
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2012 Trail Camera Photo Contest Sponsored by ChadwicksTrailcams.com Send in your trail camera pics, and for every picture that is published in The Outdoor Gazette you will get one chance to win one of three Trail Cameras.
Two (2) Winners will be drawn randomly and announced in the January 2013 issue. Plus One (1) Winner/Owner of “The Trail Camera Picture of the Year”, will be chosen by the Outdoor Gazette staff and folks on our Facebook page. The “Pic of the Year” will be on the cover of the Jan. 2013 issue!
Are you worried by sending in your pic of that trophy buck or huge bull moose, will give away your secret location? No need to worry! We will post your pics anonymously, with as little info as you like. Your secret is safe with us!
2011 Trail Camera Photo Contest Winners ; Trail Camera Picture of the Year is Dan Green from Lyme, NH Random Winners - Thomas Flynn from Holderness, NH and Mary Emery from Enfield, NH
It’s a Granite State Sweep!
Send photos to: fred@theoutdoorgazette.com with the subject line “TC Photo Contest 2012” Page 42
September 2012
The Outdoor Gazette
Trail Camera Photo Contest
Alan Barrows captured this pair
of Ver mont bucks in the Killington
the Killin s pair of Vermont bucks in Alan Barrows captured thi
VT area.
the Killin s pair of Vermont bucks in thi ed tur cap ws rro Ba an Al
gton VT area.
gton VT area.
Ken Monte - Arlington, Ver mon t
Ken Monte - Arlington, Ver mon t
rmont Ken Monte - Arlington, Ve
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September 2012
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The Maine Hunter Social Networking Vs. Websites
At MaineHunters.com a trophy is in the eye of the beholder! Somewhere along the way we sportsmen decided to hop on the information highway and bring hunting into homes via the Internet. Although I am not really sure who did this first, I am certain I was not far behind them with this new found innovation for the sporting industry. I was using computers long before I ever stepped onto the Internet Super Highway, with my first custom built business PC, using only DOS for an operating system and Microsoft Works 2.0 for my business database in 1991! By 1997 many people didn’t know too much about the Internet, myself included. My brother Alan, lived on Seneca Lake, one of the Finger Lakes, in Dresden, NY, he contacted me and told me I should get online so we could chat longer about hunting and share hunting photos from his family in New York, with mine here in Maine, so we could keep better in touch, using a now archaic device called, ICQ , to chat and we used FTP to upload photos to each other on a free website hosting service called Geocities! (I know I am dating myself here!) ICQ was at the time the coolest new gadget out there, you could send an instant message and do voice over a computer, it was very unreliable, more like talking on a bad walkie talkie connection, with a long delay and the voice you heard was not recognizable. Alan was an IT Technician for Gould Pumps, in NY and taught me how to create websites, using ICQ as our tool to communicate! We used to call each other on a
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phone first, then we would hang up and both fire up our modems and get online to save toll call charges on our phone bills! Alan could write code or HTML and I used a short cut called Netscape Communicator 4.8 (browser) it had built into it, one of the first HTML code converters for websites. Back then Internet connec-
tions were dial up, High Speed Internet was not heard of. Those day’s have certainly come and gone and unfortunately so has my brother Alan, he was only 6 years older then myself but suffered a heart attack early in his life, Oct 2, 2002. Alan is greatly missed, but the many hours we shared online between 1997 and 2002 and the many years we shared hunting together will always be impacted into my brain. I find myself reflecting on his guidance as I continue online today creating websites for clients and continuing with MaineHunters.com and several other websites in the hunting
By Steve Beckwith
industry I own! In1998 an idea was born and in 1999 I created MaineHunters .com, so that my family and friends could view hunting photos and stories via a website. Back then most people did not know how to send an email, never mind attach a JPEG photo to one! In the beginning of MaineHunters.com, friends and family would send me actual pho-
tographs by US mail or drop them by my house in person, so that I could scan them into my computer and create a .bmp, .gif, or .jpg digital image and upload them to the website using FTP software and HTML coding to display their photos on the website. We told the world we don’t care if your trophy is big or small. At MaineHunters.com a trophy is in the eye of the beholder! That’s when MaineHunters.com caught on like wildfire and soon I was receiving photos and images from all over New England and eventually anywhere game was shot in the world! Sportsmen wanted the world to share with them the excitement of success and to show their photos and stories to all! MaineHunters.com shocked the online world too, the hate mail and soon hate e-mails I was receiving for showing dead animals with blood on them was beyond tolerable. It forced me to purchase Adobe Photoshop 6.0 in 2000, so that I could remove the blood from images sent in. This seemed to slow down the hate mail I received greatly! Until anti-hunting activists found photos of trapped animals in leg hold traps on my website and it started up again! To this day, we do not allow any photos of animals dead or alive photographed in any traps on our
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website. The hate mail has become practically non-existent in the past few years, it appears that people have finally adapted to the fact hunting & fishing is here to stay, on and off line! As time evolved, so has the ease of photo management online! With this evolution came many days, weeks and nights learning new website development tools and software to what is now currently MaineHunters.com! Users can now submit photos directly on the website along with their stories and descriptions. An old Virginia Slim commercial use to say, “You’ve come a long way baby”, seems quite fitting for MaineHunters.com online! Then around 2007 a new sensation hit the internet and has exploded, called social networking, where individual users can create there own internet page and write stories and information as well as upload photos to their own personal page. Although many people try to use these “pages” as if they are a website, they lack so much! These develas Facebook, such opers MySpace, CamoSpace and others, have done a good job making personal webpages easy! But, what many users of these sites don’t realize is that although social networking sites are good to connect with your high school, college friends, they really do not show that many people your hunting and fishing photos! You see if you have 500 friends on Facebook, you are only reaching out to them and possibly a few of their friends. Many of your friends are not interested in your hunting & fishing photos and although they do not “un-friend” you, they do block your postings from appearing on their walls when they have seen enough of your hunting and fishing photos! If I am not your friend on Facebook, I will never see your hunting photo and that is a shame to me! There is a big difference between a website, like MaineHunters.com, that posts your hunting & fishing photos for you, and Facebook, and that is that hundreds of thousands of people online, use Google and other search engines to locate hunting & fishing photos! Anyone that searches for hunting or fishing opportunities in the US and New England easily locates MaineHunters.com in that search, outdoor enthusiasts then
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The Outdoor Gazette
Pictures Gone Wild Our reader submitted photos
Karen Lester captured these two moose in Springfield, Vermont.
Donna Tyler, of Grantham New Hampshire, has been out and about with her camera. She captured this family of Loons on Grafton Pond and the fox, close to her home. find and enjoy your submitted photos and stories and in a strange sort of way can relate to your experience that you submitted to our website. Unless a person searches for you specifically on the social networking website they will never see your trophy that you posted and you really want the world to see it You can by posting it online! easily represent your total viewers on Facebook, by a simple “postage stamp” versus a “football field” when it comes to an actual website’s exposure to other sports enthusiasts that enjoy seeing your hunting & fishing trophy! This also rings true to any
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advertisers out there looking for better exposure of your product, business or any sporting related concept! Advertising on a website, like MaineHunters.com will put you in front of more hunting, fishing and outdoor enthusiasts then any social networking page! Anyone that has invested in advertising using, Google Adwords or Facebook Ads, understands a small business can go broke in a short time! But, advertising with a website like MaineHunters.com or one of it’s sister websites, like MoosePermitSwap.com or CoyoteCrosshairs.com will save you money and target your audience!
If you are interested in having a sports related website created, check out my portfolio at MultitaskWebsites.com or if you would like to get onboard with us with your advertising on one of my websites, I have many creative advertising options all at affordable prices! Contact me anytime to bring more attention to your business! I would also like to mention using advertising with The Outdoor Gazette and or it’s website will bring more bang for your buck then any social networking page online as well! So don’t get caught in the social network trap and remember there is nothing better to promote your business, then your own website
September 2012
from previous page
and advertising directly on websites that target your businesses audience! Contact me anytime by email steve@mainehunters.com Steve Beckwith is a Registered Maine Guide, ThermaCELL Pro Staff, and owns these owns these websites: • MaineGuideCourse.com • MaineHunters.com • CoyoteCrosshairs.com • MoosePermit.com • MaineGuidedHunts.com He is a life member, editor and webmaster of the North Berwick Rod and Gun Club. A videographer, website designer and internet entrepreneur with his online portfolio located at MultitaskWebsites.com, Steve can be reached through any of his websites. Page 45
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September 2012
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