For the past four years, Logan Swallow of Oakfield has spent Youth Deer Day with his uncle, Jeff Swallow. And for the past four years, they’ve returned at the end of the day without a deer. That all changed on Oct. 22, when the duo teamed up on the hunt of a lifetime. Jeff Swallow, […]
Each year, I’m happy to share several deer hunting stories with BDN readers. This year, that tradition will continue … with an exciting twist. Starting today, we’re encouraging successful hunters to enter their deer in the BDN Biggest Buck Contest. The rules are quite simple: Your deer has to have been shot in Maine. Deer […]
Before first light on Saturday morning, thousands of Mainers will roll out of bed, gather up their gear, and head for the woods, where yet another epic opening day of deer season awaits. At least, that’s the plan. It might be snowy, or wet, or windy, or cold. And it just won’t matter. We’ll be […]
On Saturday, young hunters across the state took part in the state’s Youth Deer Day, an event designed to encourage children to head into the woods with their parents or other qualified adults on their own “opening day” of deer season. I headed to Bob’s Kozy Korner in Orrington to gather a few stories, and […]
A week ago, I told you about a large boat that had joined the list of odd things I’ve found discarded in the woods. The boat was about 18 feet long, and it had been tucked into a turnout in woods that my buddies and I are lucky enough to hunt each year. We regularly […]
Last week, I shared an email from a reader who was sure she’d seen a huge black cat lurking in the woods in the coastal village of Corea. The BDN reader had no photos to back her claim, so I put the question to a Maine wildlife biologist, who explained what the woman may have […]
First off, let’s clear one thing up: I have not posted 400 photos of odd things I’ve found dumped in the woods. It only seems that way. Rare is a day, in fact, that I head into the (supposedly) pristine forests of Maine when I don’t find something that’s not supposed to be there. Like […]
TAUNTON AND RAYNHAM ACADEMY GRANT, Maine — As he trotted through the leaf-littered forest floor, Teddy — an English cocker spaniel — put his nose to the ground, weaved around blowdowns, hopped over branches, and did exactly what we hoped he’d do. He hunted. The bell attached to his collar tracked his progress and provided […]
Why did Donn Fendler spend the last 30 years of his life visiting Maine school children, reliving what may well have been the most embarrassing event of his life? “I did it because I owed Maine,” Fendler told me two years ago, as we sat outside his camp on Newport’s Sebasticook Lake. That’s one way […]
If you missed out on the tagging-station excitement at the end of September, don’t fret: You can still participate — vicariously, at least — in this year’s moose hunt over the coming days. After a week-long break during which bird hunters had the woods essentially to themselves, the second group of moose hunters headed afield […]
