Don’t Shoot #72

I’m sure many of you have watched the show, “North Woods Law.” Each episode depicts the Maine Warden Service working tirelessly to protect and preserve our Maine wildlife. Each time it airs, viewers get a better understanding of what a Warden faces each and every day.  Having grown up in a Warden Service family, I am aware of the challenges they face and understand that their job takes a special person. One that has always resonated with me is that Warden’s, some assigned to remote districts, have little to no backup when they need it and face people on a daily basis that carry or have guns. Now, as I write this, a new law goes into effect today allowing anyone to carry a concealed loaded handgun without any background checks or a permit. That new law is for another day’s discussion, but it suffices to say that we just added one more stressful challenge to their job.

Now, I have been fortunate to have met some very good game wardens in my time and know a number of other ones still on the job. I have been checked by wardens while in the woods, but I have never had this happen to me before. I must admit that I have heard about it and seen it on the show, but never have I witnessed it, until now that is.

The story starts on a nice Saturday morning this past weekend. Our youngest son, Ryan had flown in to do a little bird hunting and we were on our third day in the woods. The grouse hunting had been slow, but the scenery was making up for it. TC was in the back seat with us enjoying the day. Ryan was the lone hunter today and I was the driver and TC, the spotter. I had brought my shotgun, just in case, but had not taken it out of the case. We had made a wide loop this day starting on the Pinkham Rd. Our travels had taken us over to the Fish River Checkpoint, onto the Rocky Brook Rd and over the Blanchette Rd to the Musquacook four corners.  The bird population had not been in any danger during our travels, we just were not seeing any. As we approached the four corners, and I must admit, I was driving a bit fast, Ryan yelled out “there is a bird.” I hit the brakes, jammed it into reverse and backup up on a tear. Sure enough, on his side of the truck on a grassy road sat what appeared to be three grouse? Ryan started to get out and turned to me saying, “Dad, I can’t shoot all three, get your gun.” Now to set the stage, remember, we had not seen any birds that day so far and had driven over 80 miles. So, we were a little pumped up. Well, Ryan started to get out and I opened up my door with the intent to open the back door of my truck and get my shotgun. As I got out of the truck and reached for the door handle, I looked over my left shoulder and catching some movement, heard these words. “DON”T SHOOT.” As I turned to see who dared to make that statement, I saw out of the corner of my eye a figure with green clothing coming out of the bushes toward my truck. Yes, it was a Maine Game Warden and yes, he had set out three decoys. The warden, very nice young man I might add, walked up to me and said that he was just checking to see if we had a loaded gun in the truck. Now, being a wardens son and a Registered Maine Guide, I always follow the rules and had taught both of my sons the same. Ryan was out of the truck, but had yet to load his shotgun. The warden looked into the truck, looked at Ryan's gun and seeing nothing out of the ordinary said thank you and wished us a good rest of the day. We all got in the truck and started off. As I looked back, I could see him going back to the side of the road, crouching down and then he was out of sight.  I’ll always remember the comment Ryan made as we continued down the road. He said, I wonder where the cameras were, referring to the show. We all had a good laugh as we drove on our merry way.

Guarding Maine’s game is a tough job, but a very necessary one. It insures that there will be equally as many chances to enjoy our rich Maine hunting and fishing tradition for years to come. I applaud the men and women in green and thank you for the effort you put in every day. And, oh, to those of you who laugh about our episode, and in our defense, they really did look real!