There are good reasons for those who care about such things to fret about the future sustainability of our American hunting heritage. Recently, in an address to the members of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) – an iconic leader in modern wildlife conservation- — well-known conservationist, Shane Mahoney, talked about the future. Some of […]
V. Paul Reynolds
Posted inLocal Sports, sj-web
Outdoors in Maine: Even pilots are humbled by flying
Grandiose delusions are not unknown to me. As a young man, the challenges of a Navy carrier pilot appealed to me — until I joined the Navy and saw how inherently dangerous it is to land a jet aircraft on the pitching deck of an aircraft carrier on a dark and stormy night. No thank […]
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Posted inLocal Sports, sj-web
Outdoors in Maine: 20 years of fly fishing mentorship
This month the Penobscot Fly Fishers (PFF) celebrated its 20th anniversary. The Bangor-area fishing club held a banquet for members and guests at a local events center. Following dinner and a social hour, PFF President Ed Dailide offered some opening remarks. Charter members of the organization were recognized as well as past presidents. The anniversary […]
Posted inLocal Sports, sj-web
Outdoors in Maine: Outlook is good for fall game bird hunting
Truth be known, the bloom is off the rose for me when it comes to upland bird hunting. It just isn’t the same when your favorite gun dog is no longer of this earth. But my memory still works, and the intense pleasure of breathing cool fall air against a color-coated autumn backdrop, while watching […]
Posted inLocal Sports, sj-web
Outdoors in Maine: Even hunters find joy in birdwatching
For some reason, there is a popular misconception that anyone who hunts — say a grouse hunter who kills and eats a game bird — would not also be a bird watcher. Not necessarily so. Hunting and bird watching are not mutually exclusive. Take me, for example. Like most dedicated hunters, I hunt partly because I am […]
Posted inLocal Sports, sj-web
Outdoors in Maine: Fishing during Hex hatches is a special experience
This article first appeared in “The Maine Angler’s Logbook” by the author. A Hex, or if your Latin is good, a Hexagenia limbata, is a bomber-size Mayfly that shows up on Maine trout ponds in mid-summer, usually early July. For a trout, they are a turkey dinner with all the fixin’s — a chance to […]
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Outdoors in Maine: Only so many does to go around
This is the time of year when Maine’s whitetail deer population begins to recover from a long hard winter. After surviving on reserve fats, twigs and lichen, and whatever else they can find in their wintering areas, the spring “greenup” is the deer’s salvation. Not far from where we live on the lake, the rain-soaked […]
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Outdoors in Maine: Hodgepodge Hornberg produces heavenly results
In case you didn’t know, a Hornberg is a commonplace artificial fly used by some trout addicts to seduce their prey. Once a “go-to” fly in any fly box, it is less used today by upscale fly fishers — especially the elite sophisticates of the fly fishing community. Some that I have shared a stream […]
Posted inLocal Sports, SJVarsity
Outdoors in Maine: Celebrating those who patrol the outdoors
For years now, the Bucks Mills Rod & Gun Club near Bucksport has put on a sumptuous prime rib dinner for Maine Game Wardens, active or retired. It’s quite a hoedown. The wardens get to eat for free. It is the club’s way of showing its appreciation for the hard work and personal sacrifice that […]
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Outdoors in Maine: As the grey retreats, time to again explore the outdoors
Those of us who winter over in the South get spoiled in a lot of ways. For one thing, we tend to take the sun for granted. Day after day, that big bright orb comes up in the eastern sky in the morning and then drops below the western horizon late in the day. When […]