Category Archives: The Outdoors

How to live peacefully with a killer bobcat

killer bobcat

Note: My circumstances are not like those of the folks who live in Orono and had a bobcat problem. I live in the woods and own enough land to try a different approach. The blanket “don’t feed the wildlife” statement does not fit all situations. This is Part One of our experience in living in […]

Women and Our Woods: Tree ID and FIG Plot Workshop

Women and Our Woods Tree ID and FIG Plot Workshop Saturday, March 7, 2015 – 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM Lee Academy, Winn Rd, Lee Have you ever wondered what kinds of trees are in your woodland and how they are measured? In this half-day workshop, we will learn how Forest Inventory Growth (FIG) plots […]

Live nature cameras to watch while you’re stuck indoors

whitetail bucks

Are you running out of things to do indoors while it snows again? It’s harder than usual to get outdoors this winter but we can at least watch what’s happening outdoors while staying warm in our homes. I’m a live camera fanatic. I almost always have one running in the background while I’m writing. If […]

Ten things I plan to do in 2015

tomah stream

Thanks to my fellow BDN bloggers and their support during my time of healing (end drama here) I have ideas of what to write here. It’s hard to blog about what I’m doing outdoors when I’m not doing anything – including indoors. Here are ten things I want to do this year as scribbled on […]

Stocking trout in the Stillwater Branch of the Penobscot River

brookie, brook trout, Eric Sappier, Penobscot River

Steve Morin has an idea to expand recreational trout fishing opportunities and he’d like you help. He said, “Last year I contacted our regional fisheries biologist to ask if it would be possible to stock the area below the new “Bottom Release” Hydro Power station recently completed on the Stillwater Branch of the Penobscot River […]

Review: neither Mountain nor River by Mike Freeman

neither Mountain nor River, Mike Freeman

Reluctantly, I’ve settled into winter activities like reading and knitting. The stack of books I’ll read over the winter is tall but it looks like there’s going to be plenty of time to read. I’ll share my reviews for outdoors related books here. Let’s start with this one. neither Mountain nor River By Mike Freeman […]

Your Maine Kitchen – Educational Programs

Making Sourdough Bread

Educational Programs – From Scratch: Your Maine Kitchen Oh how I wish this were available at the Cooperative Extension in Machias! I’m a little bit very jealous. I’d love to take these classes. If you attend any of them I’d love to hear about them. A description of each coarse is available at the University […]

Cooking tasty bear chops is simple – Cooking Wild Game

It took five years but I finally did it. I finally shot a bear. We are enjoying the meat. Last night we had chops for supper and this time, I remembered to take pictures so I can write about our meal. Bears can carry the parasites that cause trichinosis and toxoplasmosis. You must cook the […]

Veterans, House in the Woods, and a Camp on a Lake

Partridge, ruffed grouse

About six years ago George and Terry Gallagher drove to Lee and knocked on a door. That knock helped improve many lives. The Gallaghers were looking for someone to share their beautiful camp on Upper Sysladobsis (Dobsis) lake in Lakeville Plantation. They were specifically hoping to open their camp and hearts to veterans. At House […]

Getting Reacquainted & Outdoors Fitness

Hi! Remember me? “How vain it is to sit down to write, when you have not stood up to live.” Henry David Thoreau I’ve been away from this blog for a while. I have been living so much I’ve barely written a word in months. We fished a lot this summer. I caught the biggest […]

Downeast Lakes Land Trust honors local conservationist

The Downeast Lakes Land Trust’s (DLLT) President and Vermont Poet Laureate, Sydney Lea bestowed the Downeast Lakes Conservation Award on long-time supporter Pete Borden in acknowledgment of his key role in the initiation and continued growth of the Land Trust. “Downeast Lakes Land Trust would never have developed as it has without the able counsel […]

A testy bull moose at Sandy Stream Pond

Bull moose at Sandy Stream Pond, Baxter State Park

My sister Melissa called to invite me to hike in Baxter State Park. The weather was going to be perfect so we made a date to meet early Thursday morning. Snapping turtles are on the move. We saw five or six along the way, none willing to move out of the road at anything other […]

Maine Maple Sunday recipe – grilled dirty maple shrimp

It was so cold the sap wasn’t running but that didn’t stop Chandler’s Sugar Shack from opening up on Maine Maple Sunday. The sap did run briefly but it was just enough to flush the lines between 3,100 taps. They aren’t too discouraged because it’s going to warm up later this week and when it […]

Life in the woods: Blood on the snow

Fresh blood on granular snow

Life in the woods is never dull. There’s always something to do and see. Activities change with the seasons as does the view. It’s easier in a snowy winter to see what happened when you weren’t looking, when you weren’t there. Most of the time it’s beautiful. The snow hangs in the trees after a […]

Reader Story: Wildlife in The Basin

I enjoy being able to share readers’ stories. This is one I’d love to see myself. Lifelong friends Dave and Barb Shaw of Glenburn were out for a ride recently. Hi Robin, Barb and I saw something unusual while nosing around Veazie and Orono to see the effects of the removal of the dam. That […]

Finally! A bear!

I’m getting comfortable in my own stand. I don’t like it much but I’m adjusting. Today was a big improvement. I didn’t check the bait barrel yesterday. Ava had three harsh seizures and it took her a while to come out of it. I went up this afternoon. I watch the road closely for scat […]