There seems to be an ever widening chasm between hunters, trappers and fishermen to some degree, and the non-sportsman populace of the American public. Is this deepening rift caused by simple ignorance of wildlife management, hyper sensitivity or is it something more sinister?
Hunting started the hard way for me. For my first deer hunt, Dad took me out to a friend’s house. I was 12, and I wanted to get one badly. It didn’t happen that day. Tears rolled down my face quietly as the December sun set and I tried not to let my dad see. […]
I have three words for the Maine Legislature’s Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife – shame on you. By bowing to anti-hunting activists and out of state interests, you have sold your own constituents down the river. And for what good cause?
For most anglers, ice fishing preparations are still under way. Shacks are being readied; tip ups are being checked and ice augers are being uncovered from a mountain of gear stowed in the shed. Most of the state’s waters open to ice fishing are still thickening and anticipation runs high. If you are one of […]
This question on the survey really got my attention – “Currently you can harvest 2 bears, one while hunting and one while trapping. If the law allowed you to harvest two bears while hunting, would you attempt to harvest two bears?” I had no choice but to answer ‘yes’. There simply wasn’t an option for […]
The first thought that may cross your mind when you hear the report of a rifle in the still of the night next week could be ‘Poachers!’ – But that may be jumping the gun. Maine’s night hunting season on coyote opens Saturday December 16th at 12:01 a.m.
When Maine Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Regional Biologist Mark Caron pulled into my dooryard, I was processing the front quarters of the buck I had taken a few days earlier. As he got out of his truck and grabbed his gear, I jokingly remarked that it sure took him long enough. I ribbed him because […]
For many hunters, taking a mature 200 pound plus whitetail buck is a lifetime achievement. Big mature bucks are wily and love to prove it to you all season long. If you know there is a bruiser cruising the woods near your stand but can never put eyes on him, take a few tips from […]
When I first began studying in earnest to become a Registered Maine Guide, my mentor probed my knowledge of the outdoors and experience level. He knew I was an Army veteran with a lot of time logged in the field but noted that guiding clients in the big woods of Maine had its own set […]
You have been out at dawn and dusk for days, using a locator call to make the big toms gobble and give away their roosting trees. Countless miles have been logged walking field edges and tote roads looking for turkey sign like scratches, dusting sites and tracks. You may even be lucky enough to have […]
