Ready, Aim, Fire #97

Every year, we cherish when our boys come back to Maine to either hunt or fish. They enjoy all aspects of the woods, including fishing, hunting and camping. I do think that our youngest enjoys hunting a bit more, but his recent visits have not been that productive, until 2017.

So, Ryan and Amanda notified us that they were going to come for a visit in October. They both enjoy being in the woods and Ryan really had an itch to do some partridge hunting. As I said earlier, his timing had been off in the past because he had not seen many birds when he came. We hoped that this trip would be different.

They arrived on a Thursday evening and we made plans to strike out early Friday and then again on Saturday. TC had planned some meals that we could warm up on the old Coleman stove, so that we would be well fed.

We awoke bright and early on Friday morning to a stiff wind, but bright skies. We loaded up the truck and made our way toward Ashland and then the Six Mile gate. Once through that, we headed up the Reality Road and soon transitioned into hunting mode with Ryan holding his gun by his side. The wind blew mightily but I was soon amazed at the number of birds we saw. They were not very cooperative though. Many of them had their track shoes on and would get out of dodge before Ryan could get off a shot. We logged about 125 miles that day.  Our official bird count for the day was 25 with Ryan taking home 4 and I took home 2. I can still see Ryan’s eyes lighting up as he told me that this was the best day he had ever seen from a bird sitting standpoint. I have to mention our two point people in the back seat that kept telling us “there’s a bird.” Yup, Amanda and TC were enjoying the ride and were also doing an excellent job of sighting them and letting us know. We returned home late that afternoon, satisfied with the day’s results. That evening, we made our plans for the following day and we fried up a few partridge with our special recipe for the guests.

Saturday morning rolled around and once again, we headed out to the North Maine Woods. I was more excited than the day before because of the weather. The morning brought us calm winds and plenty of sunshine. I could feel it was going to be a great day. We passed through the Six Mile gate and headed up the Pinkham Road. The woods offered its beauty with the trees sparkling from the bright sun and the temperatures were again cooperating. We made our way to the Jack Mountain Rd and from there worked across to the Reality Road. There are several roads that connect the two and that is what we really focused on. Then for good measure, we drove over to the Chase Brook Rd which is one of my favorite bird roads. The day started much slower than the preceding one, but we were all enjoying our time together. Ryan was sitting in the front passenger seat poised for a quick pounce out of the truck if need be. He had it down packed, see a bird, jump out of the truck with the gun, load, aim and fire. If need be he would chase them up and over the bank until he had a clear shot. The sightings were a bit down that day. We only saw thirteen but Ryan did get 3 and I got 2.

We have found over the years that time goes far too fast when it comes to visits by our sons. Your instinct is to want them to stay a little bit longer, but understand when they can’t. So, Sunday morning came around and we watched them pack up to meet their plane at eight AM. Our drive to the airport was way too short and they unloaded their gear and headed to the ticket counter. Soon, they called for TSA screening and we said our goodbyes. As we walked out of the terminal, I could not help but think that this trip had been a real productive one. Not for many years had we seen so many birds on their visits. TC and I were truly thankful that they had done so well. We know that this will be the last time Ryan will come during the 2017 hunting season, but we were grateful to have had time with them both. When the plane landed in Boston, we got a text thanking us, and telling us how much they really enjoyed their trip. The pleasure was really ours!

I love a good find #96

I have always prided myself on being tenacious when it comes to finding something I really want to find. So, when I heard about a pond in Northern Maine that had big fish in it, I was all in. Now, I also have to say that I am a bit of a tight lip. I make that statement because I don’t like to share my findings until I have tried them out. There is quite a process that goes into finding a point on a map. First, you have to locate the place you want to go to, and then get the coordinates. I initially use the Delorme gazetteer to first find the place and from there can get some sort of coordinates of the location. Then I take those coordinates and load them into Google Earth. That is where I can really pinpoint the actual location and latitude and longitude that will help me get there. Once I have those, I load them into either my Delorme PN-60 or my Garmin Oregon and then it’s off to the races.

This particular target that TC and I was looking for was in Northwestern Maine accessed through the Saint Francis, North Maine Woods gate. You can also come from the other side through the Six Mile or Fish River checkpoints, but it is longer. I had gotten some good recon from a friend of mine who fished this location and Tom said it was a good bet. So, one morning during fishing season, TC and I set out to find this pond. Miraculously, we almost made it that day, however, an impediment stopped us in our tracks. We drove up the road and could see the pond on our right side down in the woods.

We came to the road that we thought was going to take us there only to find a logging operation had parked their crane smack dab in the middle of the road, effectively blocking our progress. We looked and looked but there was no way of getting around it so we abandoned our search that day. I told TC that hunting season would bring me back there and I would do some further scouting at that time.

Hunting season came and I was out doing a little bird hunting with my friend Roger. I told him about it and we decided to take a ride. As we got to the road where the crane was parked, I was happy to see it was gone and the road was open. We parked the truck, loaded our shotguns and began walking. We walked until we came to the end of the road and although I knew the pond was not far away, the trail went cold. I mentioned to Roger that I had seen a road off to the left when we were walking in and wanted to go back and see where that took us. We strolled back and found the dirt track and walked down it until blue water came into sight from behind the tree cover. We continued to walk and just as we got to what looked like a path, we were greeted with a major ruckus. In our quest to find the pond, we neglected to watch out for any partridge we might come upon. Well, one on the left side of the trail saw us before we saw him and he took off. By the time we got our guns up, he was in the next county.

So, putting that out of our minds, we followed the path that brought us to the pond I had been searching for. Immediately, I noticed two boats tied up on the shore and one of them had a motor still attached. We made our way down to the water and I could see that it was crystal clear and the pond was very long and narrow. I could see much of the pond but the remaining part was out of sight. Regardless, it was beautiful!

I had finally found it from map to water. Roger commented that he would like to try it in the spring and you can bet that TC will be there as well. For now, let’s just keep this our little secret, until of course I try it. Then maybe, just maybe, I’ll spill the beans. Remember, that’s maybe I said……..

Oh, and by the way, we ran into this guy in our travels....

Sorry, we been fishing #95

For the last couple of weeks, I have to admit that the blogs or any notion of writing a blog has been thin. I’ve had some questions about when the next one would come out, and one person actually told me that he lives vicariously through my fishing adventures. Having that on my conscious, I sat down and pounded out this blog. This one’s for you Tim.

TC and I have been spending our time in the northern part of Aroostook County taking advantage of the excellent fishing we have had, as well as bumming a place to stay at her brother’s home. We’ve had the travel down to a science, generally leaving home either Friday or Saturday and fishing the weekend and coming back home on Sunday afternoon or evening.  For a couple of the weekends, I felt like I had a new name, “Net Boy”. Please allow me to explain. TC has had an incredible run on fish these past several weeks. Most of the fish she is catching are 12-16” and nice and fat to boot. I recall being on a pond several weeks ago and her brother and her Uncle Phil were in another boat, and she was catching fish and they were not. I have to admit that I did well that day and we both brought our limit home. They watched us with open mouths and eventually asked what we were using. Being the good hearted folks that we are, we paddled over and TC offered them one of our flies.  

Her uncle reciprocated the next day by taking us behind a locked gate to a pond I have not fished since I left Fort Kent 36 years ago. There we enjoyed a nice day and did catch a few fish. The next day, we went back to the pond we had been fishing and TC used a wet fly she had tied. Almost immediately, she got one fish and then hooked another, but lost it and then another which measured 16”. I did catch a salmon and did not have any other bites, but it was fun to see TC catch those fish on a fly she had tied.  But I have to admit, the highlight of the past four weeks was this past weekend when we went to a lake that I again had not fished in some time. This lake was frequented by TC’s father and brother Andre and she had a real desire to see it and fish it. So, on went the aluminum boat, in went the motor and we were off like a herd of turtles crossing the road. My memory of the lake was still quite vivid and I was sure I was still able to navigate the truck to its location. I was, however, not sure how the road would be. When we turned left off the hot top, I didn’t think it was too bad, until we got part way in and the potholes appeared to be bigger than the truck itself. There was one right after the other which made for a very slow ride in. As we got to the final intersection and turned right the road began to get more grown in with alders. Thanks to the size of my little Tacoma, we were able to move through it quite well. Finally we got to the road that would take us to the lake and we turned and backed down to the water. We unloaded the boat, cranked down the motor and loaded it with our gear. This day, we would be trolling and had planned that we would use our 8 weight rods, sink lines and streamers. The day was nice with little to no breeze and just enough clouds to make it overcast. TC took it all in remembering that the lake was often frequented by her brother and father. It was not long before we started having bites and before long, TC had her first fish on. I stopped the motor and she reeled it in like a pro. She got the nice looking trout to the boat and “Net Boy” brought it aboard. It was a beautiful colored 9” brook trout. Immediately, I removed the hook and lowered it back into the water moving it back and forth until it jetted out of my hand and off into the dark. We continued with a few bites until roughly 11am and then as we were on a pass where she had caught the first fish, my rod came to life. I began to reel in and just knew this was a good fish.  As I got it to the boat, “NET GIRL” J came to life and she got the net into the water. BUT the fish was not done. It took a deep dive away from the net and the boat, pulling my rod down with it. Now, I had to say that this made my heart beat faster than normal as I had seen this trick before. Two weeks before that, while on a different pond, I hooked a fish that was probably the biggest one I had ever caught in Aroostook County. That one had some fight in it. TC and I saw it roll a few times and knew it was big. Well, that fish did the same thing, I got it near the boat and it darted off and when it did, it went down hard. At that moment, my pole went down with it and snap went my line. Yes, it was gone and so to was much of my leader. It had taken the hook and leader and left me with a small portion of leader and my fly line. So, when this fish started down I had shades of the other one. Thankfully, the same did not happen and I got control again and brought it to the boat where TC netted it and brought it aboard. It was beautiful with a dark color and red belly to boot. This brook trout measured at 16+ inches. It was so big, it almost did not fit in our creel. This was a keeper. We finished up the morning and before landing, noticed that we had company. TC’s Uncle Phil and Uncle Joel and her brothers Paul and Raymond had shown up. Yup, it was a good time to leave….. We have to keep an eye on that Joel guy!  We packed up and headed home once again satisfied with our adventure and our catch.

As September begins to wind down and fishing season comes to a close at the end of the month, TC and I plan to do as much fishing as we can. This coming weekend is already being planned and with one more week of fishing after that, we are going to make the most of it. If the fishing and the big fish we have been catching continue, we just might have to take a few days off before the end of the season. See next year is a long way off. 

The Guide Gets a Teaching

Some time back, one of my friends and I had a conversation about taking his family up in the North Maine Woods on a fishing/camping trip. We agreed to look at the calendar and set a date. So, when he sent me a text asking if the weekend of July 28^th was ok, I gave him the thumbs up.

Now a little bit of information might help. Many years back, he spent some time in a particular area of the NMW and wanted to go back there. We identified that area as Upper McNally Pond and he also wanted to fish Horseshoe Pond. He told me that he had fond memories of him and his buddies going there. I explained to him that we could camp at Upper McNally and they could fish that as well.  Horseshoe Pond was also not far away. He told me that he was going to bring his son, his daughter and her boyfriend, and a friend of his son.

The planning was very quick, as both he and his son were Eagle Scouts and they wanted to take care of all the food. That’s where this blog gets very interesting. They were bringing their Dutch ovens.  Now, I had heard a lot about Dutch oven cooking, but had never done any, so I was very interested in learning all that I could. As they say, food always tastes better in the outdoors and especially when you use cast iron!

We agreed to meet in Ashland at an appointed time and he would follow me in. We made our way to the six mile gate, got checked in and drove onto the Reality Road to reach our destination. Once we made it to Upper McNally campsite, we unpacked and out came the two Dutch ovens and all of the accessories.  After taking them down to the Musquacook Stream to do some trout fishing, we returned and they went to work cooking the evening meal. The menu was to be chili cooked in one Dutch oven and apple cobbler in the other. I watched intently as they filled one of the ovens with the chili ingredients and lined the other with aluminum foil in preparation for the cobbler. Once the foil was in, they added the fruit, dry yellow cake mix and some pads of butter on the top. They pulled out the charcoal and the chimney starter, poured the charcoal in the starter and lit it. Once that was ready, they put some of the coals on the ground, placed the chili oven on top and added some coals to the lid. They did the same with the cobbler oven. I was taking this all in, snapping photos and taking video so I could study it later. I learned that there was a method to adding coals. If you are baking, you add more coals to the top and less at the bottom and vice versa for the chili. The rule of thumb is this, you take the size of the oven, multiply by 2 and that is the amount of coals you use. In this case for the chili, a 12 inch Dutch oven uses 24 coals, 16 on the bottom and 8 on the top.

I continued to watch as they let the coals and oven do their magic, only opening it a couple of times so as not to lose the heat. The ovens worked to perfection and in no time, the chili was done, but they were not. They pulled out two tubes of biscuits, opened the oven up and laid those biscuits on top of the chili and put the lid back down. After a short time, they checked both ovens, announced they were done and then pulled the lids off. WOW, they both looked mouthwatering! I have had a lot of meals in the woods, but this was amazing. We polished off both the chili and apple cobbler in no time.

The next day, we ventured into Horseshoe Pond and put our boats in. My friend was in the front of my canoe and I watched as he looked at the pond, its surroundings, and the big fire tower on the top of the mountain. He told me of some of his memories and that not much had changed since the last time he was there. As I was paddling him around, we heard a yelp and looking over, saw his son fighting a fish he had hooked. When he finally got it in the boat, it was a beauty and he was all smiles.

We spent much of the morning on the pond and then decided it was time to pack up and head home. My mind was still processing the Dutch oven dinner we had the night before, and I knew I had to have one for myself. We made our way back to camp, took down our tents, packed our gear and headed out. The trip had been very enjoyable for all.

I got home and told TC about our adventure and the Dutch oven they had cooked the meal in. TC knows me very well in that if I see something that I would like to have, I research it and then go buy it. So, Sunday morning came around and I headed off to Walmart. I immediately went to the Dutch oven isle and looked over the ones they had. After a little thought, I decided to do some more research before I pulled the trigger. I was sitting at home that afternoon when I got a text from my friend asking if I was home. I responded by saying yes, what’s up? He said that he had found something that belonged to me and just so happened to be in town and wanted to drop it off. A little while later, he drove in the dooryard with his daughter. He opened up the back door of his truck and pulled out a brand-new Dutch oven. It was the same one I had looked at that morning at Walmart. Then, he pulled out a bag of charcoal, cake mix, aluminum foil and canned blueberries. He said he knew that I would try to master Dutch oven cooking, so he wanted to buy me those items as a thank you for the trip. I was without words. I thanked both him and his daughter and promised to keep him up to date on my cooking skills.

Next Saturday came and TC and I decided to give it a try. We pulled out the oven, and TC and I filled it with a homemade chicken and barley soup, and then I set the driveway up with the needed items. About an hour later, we sat down to one of the best soups we had ever eaten. I snapped a few photos and sent them off to him for his approval. My next adventure is to do a cobbler and a stew. Thanks to Tim, Bryce and Caitlyn, I was now fully involved in Dutch oven cooking and as they said, I would not stop until I had it mastered. It just might take me some time, but think about the food I can make trying!