Two years ago, it was small. Just a glimmer of an idea. Nothing more than a flicker of movement, caught out of the corner of my mind’s eye. Bold one moment, it would dash into full view like a blustery red squirrel. Furtive the next moment, it would skitter off into the mental underbrush. (I … Read more
The photographs, projected onto a screen in front of the room, were astonishing. A bobcat crouching in thick cover. A cougar staring intently, its head dusted in snow. A black bear on its hind feet, marking a white birch. And the words that went with them—spoken by wildlife biologist, conservationist, photographer, and tracker Sue Morse—were … Read more
Seeing a neighbor coming down the woods trail, I winced. There I was, dressed in camo with a bow in hand, headed home after a morning hunt. And here he came, walking his dog. I suspected that he, like most of my friends and acquaintances, wasn’t keen on hunting. I could hardly blame him. I … Read more
Kneeling beside my first deer, I had no words. I just sat there stunned, my hand on his shoulder, uncertain whether I would ever hunt again. Finally, I whispered something clumsy: half gratitude, half apology. The next year, when my second deer dropped in his tracks, I was shaken but less shocked. I spoke my … Read more
He loved the woods, the animals, and the hunt. What he didn’t count on were the hunters. Following his boyhood dream, he earned his license as a Registered Maine Guide and landed a job with an outfitter. Then came the group of hunters who returned to camp bragging about how they had chased a moose … Read more
Looking back over this blog’s first six months, I notice three items that need tending. First, a postscript to the loss of my friend Steve’s French Brittany, Kate: He brought home her two-month-old niece this past Friday. Cath and I got to meet her yesterday. Yes, she is as sweet and silky soft as she … Read more
Was that the faint sound of steps? Of hooves crunching dry leaves under the thin blanket of snow? Seated on the ground, I shifted to the right and half-raised my .54 caliber caplock. Moments later, I saw deer some forty yards off, walking toward me among the pines. Two, three, four of them. I brought … Read more