Visiting our son Josh, daughter-in-law Kelly, and 2 ½ year old granddaughter Ada in Bridgewater, Massachusetts two weekends ago, a story in the Boston Sunday Globe grabbed my attention. In Your Backyard, by Ben Carmichael, a Globe correspondent, had a subtitle: You don’t have to travel to the West to find some great spots for […]
I always enjoy the State-By-State section of USA Today newspaper, which features one story from each state. The November 7 edition featured a lot of fish and wildlife stories. In Idaho, state officials constructed a safer feeding station after 43 elk died there last winter, 11 of them killed by a mountain lion. And in […]
Here’s a great new report on the contributions that hunters make to wildlife conservation all across the country. The following information, as well as the report, is provided by Responsive Management, a terrific national firm that has worked in all 50 states. Led by Mark Duda, Responsive Management has been working with Maine’s Department of […]
I was born a Maine sportsman, raised a Maine sportsman, and will die a Maine sportsman. Thanks to Dad. Just like Dad. My first memories are of pheasants, rabbits, setters, and beagles. Or course, before that, there was the hunter safety course and lots of shooting at […]
Earlier this year I asked the Maine Warden Service for the latest data on how they spend their time. Unfortunately, the most recent report was issued in 2013. Nothing since then. So that’s the report I obtained from them. The 53 page report is interesting and includes information about where their money comes from, trends […]
My book, titled Maine Sporting Camps, was published in May, with my hope that it will encourage readers to visit sporting camps on a regular basis for the very best outdoor experiences. On Wednesday night, November 16, at 6:30 pm, I’ll be talking about the book and the history of our sporting camps at […]
Yes, Linda Tatelbaum loves trees. But the subtitle of her wonderful book, Woman Who Speaks Tree, “Confessions of a Tree Hugger,” tells you even more about her life. I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Linda’s life could be described as a contradiction: she’s a college professor and a back-to-the-land hippie who, […]
This is a preliminary list of bills I am thinking of proposing for the 2017 legislative session. I’d appreciate your reaction to any or all of these. Please email your thoughts to me at georgesmithmaine@gmail.com. Thanks! Exotic Animals: Require permits for all non-native animals and require notification of the Maine Warden Service and any neighbors […]
In response to the federal listing of Lynx as threatened, Maine’s Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife restricted trapping in the Lynx’s region. But animal rights groups have been complaining ever since, especially about the decision by the feds to give Maine an incidental take permit, allowing a few Lynx to be accidentally captured. A […]
I love to hunt ground scrapes that bucks use to mark their territory. Across Route 41 from my house, I found a line of scrapes one season made by a buck after he emerged from the nearby bog. I lugged over a seat and placed it in a fir thicket, about 50 yards from […]
