When the fun ends, the work begins.

Well it is Wednesday of the first week of moose season. Big E and Chet went scouting Sunday and saw only a cow and a calf. Monday they road for almost 200 miles in Wildlife Management district 4, which is the Telos road and connecting woods roads all the way to Canada. For those who have watched the "American Loggers" on the Discovery channel, you may know the road system as the "Golden Road", named for the millions of acres of prime woodlands once owned by Great Northern Paper Company. We have taken 2 nice bulls out of the area in 03 and 09, mine and Big Es. However this is day three of the hunt and they have not even seen a bull. Mother Nature continues to screw with us as the temps have gone back to warm and muggy for the week. As most know, the fun is so over when the trigger is pulled; these are very large animals and they don't load themselves! With these temperatures they need to be taken care of quickly so not to have any spoilage of meat. I have not been going along with Big E and the Crosbys this week as there is much to do here as well. I have been going out to the bear bait sites that are out and away picking up treestands and barrels, cleaning up any debris. We have had trouble in the past with treestand thieves therefore because we have primarily purchased stands versus the wooden home made ones which weigh a ton it can get extremely costly. There is not much folks will not steal in these hard economic times, whether they try to resell them, or scrap them for the metal. I also have been trying to get the canning from the garden done bit by bit inbetween everything else going on.
Yesterday I picked up three sites that still had cameras on them, one being the site I sat out on for 2 nights only to discover from the camera directly after that it was being bogarted by a big mean porcupine! The critter held off 7 raccoons all at once and there was one picture where a bear just simply moseyed on by without any challenge. Therefore much to my surprise when we went in, the barrel was turned away from us and I thought well maybe a bear had finally come into the bait. I began taking the camera down when Jeremy jumped back and yelled. I turned to see into the barrel as he had turned in around and low and behold, my porcupine!! Well he didn't want to give up residency and was acting quite perturbed with us. Unfortunately for him, I didn't have time to just let him hold squatters rights. Might I have possibly been revengeful considering the time I spent in vain? Maybe. However it is what it is and the porcupines that we have seen this year will not be effected much by the loss of this one as we have seen more porcupines this year than in many previous years. When I checked the camera photos, no bears had come back, only this mean porcupine and the raccoons. In fact the site I sat out on the last night with great hopes that the big bear would make one more appearance was also dominated by other critters, ravens. The one other site with a camera had a bear come in once just after midnight, then 2 days later a repeat, however they didn't stay at the site. This only adds more to the frustrations we incurred as to where did all the bears go? Each site had several bear visiting and baits were getting absolutely hammered prior to the point we were baiting twice a much as we usually do to keep the sites well fed. I have continued to compile information from other guides and services, as well as just some local hunters and more experienced the same as we did with only a scattered few doing much better. However I have yet to hear of anyone having a banner year of it. Of course there are those that will lie too. Well must be off to gather more stands...work,work,work!

Ktaadn Guide Service: As one season ends, another begins

Ktaadn Guide Service: As one season ends, another begins: "Well the bears won this year. Yesterday was the last chance for hunting bear over bait. I went out to the site where the big bear was cleanl..."

As one season ends, another begins

Well the bears won this year. Yesterday was the last chance for hunting bear over bait. I went out to the site where the big bear was cleanly missed in hopes that he would emerge from the black growth one more time, however that was not to be. Therefore he will most likely live to get even bigger which is almost mind blowing as he must weigh close to 500 pounds right now. Of course there is still 2 more weeks of hunting with hounds for bear and Nelson Cole, the famous "Catman" himself will be coming up for the last week of hound hunting bringing along his world class pack of Treeing Walkers. So one never knows we may still be able to take down the VW bear. If he lives through this Big E will put in the last attempt by setting out a cable trap. We have known for years that the big bears are out there, however technology has changed the game to actually show us pictures and we were very surprised to see just how many big bear we have out there and any one of them would be a trophy; possibly one of a lifetime. I have also come to one other conclusion; game cameras are like fish finders. They will show you what is out there, but that doesn't mean you can catch or kill them. So be it......
Big E and Chet "The other Fly Rod " Crosby heading to Telos to scout moose for Chet's wife Linda who has a bull permit for that zone. The Crosbys have been good friends for all of 23 years. We have hunted and fished with them that long. Linda's health is not the best and has been on kidney dialysis for several months now and we have watched her fade from the vibrant lady she used to be which makes this moose hunt quite special as it will probably be her last for certain. Monday morning we'll be on the road bright and early. She can only hunt Monday, Wednesday and Friday due to her treatments, so we will keep the fingers crossed that she has the opportunity for a true trophy Maine moose. We will have it mounted and it will live on on the wall of the new lodge if successful.
I have to load up here soon and head out to Webster Plantation to pick up barrels and tree stands. If we leave the stands out much past the closing of baiting season we tend to have them stolen, which is quite costly. Sometimes one wonders where honor has gone amongst people, but it seems to be the way now a days. Tuesday we will collect the stands from the International Paper lot in Grindstone which will only leave Woodville to be collected. I need to do some scouting myself on our new lot for deer trails so that I can place a couple stands in hopes of taking a buck this year. Maine's deer herd is not in the best shape in Northern Maine. We have some really nice deer, but one has to put in the time and effort to find them. Deer season is generally cold here and that adds another factor in the game to deal with. Of course snow on the ground is excellent for tracking!!!

Surrounded by coyotes!

The lack of bears is still the game here, and still also extremely frustrating. The game cameras are showing that the few bait sites that continue working are after dark. I have always said big bear do not get big from being stupid and it seems they have patterned us and gone completely nocturnal. We haven't given up as one just never knows. It is just the Browns and myself going out onto the baits as of tonight. Big E gave up after Monday due to being frustrated and exhausted. Peter "Coyote" Cote spent his last night on a site, well...last night. He will be leaving this afternoon for Georgia to work a construction job that came through. He had not planned on leaving until November, however the opportunity came and for his family we understand it is something he has to do. We will miss him and his wonderful sense of humor.
Last night while sitting out on yet another one of our sites I experienced something awesome! I had been out for about 2 hours, having left the house at 2:00pm when a coyote yodeled off in the distance to my far left. Immediately I heard one off to the far right even further off and then one opened up just behind the bait, one to my left and one to my right, close! The first loud screech jumped me as I didn't expect it to be so close. The site that I was sitting on has a road to the rear of the site which was where I parked "Baby Blue", my little blue Ford Ranger, and then a road out about a quarter of a mile off to the right. Out on the road I heard a deep long howl indicating most likely an old dog, then one out by the truck. It was interesting to listen to the different sounds and levels of their voices. I then heard something running to my left, foot steps off to the right scurrying quickly before they opened up once again. This continued for almost 2 hours as they continued to come in closer and closer, yet I never got even a glimpse of fur through the thick trees. The site I was at is one of our most concealed in balsams and spruce trees. When the began to leave my site they congregated off to my right until they had a pack howl most likely out on the road, yodeling together for about a minute and a half before going silent. I never heard them again after that. This brings to light the fact that I simply love Mother Nature. I do not always have to see the game I'm hunting to enjoy just being in the outdoors. It helps with the fact that I truly believe that I live in the most beautiful place on Earth. I flourish in the shadow of Katahdin and the shores of the mighty Penobscot. I smile with complete appreciation at the changing of the leaves and the coming of the changing seasons. I have said it before, and I will say it again even considering that things have not worked out exactly as I would have liked with the bears.......Life is good!

I saw BEARS!!

Well it has been one very frustrating and depressing bear season for this guide. Last week the only bears to even be seen, were the two that the hunters successfully took Monday night. It is mind boggling to try to figure out what happened or why, and then what more could possibly be done to change the situation. I thought long and hard as to what the variable could be that was in common at all of the sites and locations. Acorns? No, there are no Oak in one area at all. Beech nuts? They didn't develop very well, and no beech ridges in one area either. Apples? Although the apple trees even considering the small amount of rain we received this summer are laden heavy, no apple trees in two areas. What then......Mushrooms! The middle of the second week after steady rain, the mushrooms came out everywhere. Maybe we have some addicted bears out there tripping??? I also decided to do a little research after hearing one tagging station say they were hearing the same thing from the other guides in the area I contacted two other tagging stations and numbers were down with the same complaint. Then Peter got online and looked around to find guides and hunters all over the State with the same question...."what is happening,baits are going dead?" Although it doesn't make me feel one hundred percent better, I do feel a little better.......a little.
Fourth week and final week of bait season for bear is here. We only have two guests who are so very much more like family, Larry and Kathy Brown from Pennsylvania. I had planned on taking my daughter out onto a bait to hunt, however she has now come down with the cold that made it's travels around everyone. Therefore I ventured into the Maine woods and sat on a site myself. I will not take a bear that is not phenomenal as I have taken three bears thus far in my hunting career; my last being a 350 pound boar. We have several sites that were and are still being worked by that very kind of animal and being a good judge of bears, they weigh over 300 and up to 500 pounds plus. We put Kathy out on one of the baits, Peter sat out on one and Big E and I sat on two others. Larry works very hard and needed another day to relax and get ready so he stayed back at camp with Ozwald. I got settled into my stand with my rifle sitting across my legs and waited.... I have no idea how long I sat as I forgot my watch before I saw movement to my left. A lone small mangy coyote was eating and chewing away contentedly for about 15 minutes before slowly walking off. I watched an osprey dropping down limb to limb to check out what was for dinner along with a half dozen gray jays also known as gobbie birds. Of course squirrels!!! Lots of squirrels!!! Then low and behold black movement coming in from the left!! A sow that weighs about 230-250 pounds came around the back side of the barrel, reached in got a donut, jumped back and took off. About 8 minutes she came again with a repeat performance and off again. Once more she came and went again. About 10 minutes later black movement from the trail behind that bait. I thought it was the same bear, but after it finally ventured to the barrel I could see it was a bit larger than the first, shaped different; a young boar most likely came in very leery. He didn't hang around too long before bolting off as I watched through my scope as light was fading fast and I was loosing site. When he veered off to the right of the trail, even though I suspected the big boy was around, I did not have time, light or site to wait him out and took my opportunity to sneak out without disturbing anything and slipped away quietly, but happy. One does not have to take an animal to feel successful. I was so happy to have just watched these beautiful animals in their habitat; their living room. However it seems I was the only one to have seen any bears, but it did not damper my mood. I saw BEARS!!!!!!

Bears are winning....

Well this is the one thing we have no control over, Mother Nature. It is very frustrating as a guide and a guide service to not have the animals coming into camp. Thus far we have had 19 hunters and only 3 bear into camp. 2 bear were cleanly missed and 1 wounded that we tracked and could not recover from a bad shot. So had these come in, it would still only be 6 out of 19; these are not good numbers. The first questions people ask at the sports shows are, " how many bear did you get last year?", "how many hunters?", "what was your percentage?" I believe in honesty as the very best policy, however people will look at you, here bad numbers and think "well, they can't be very good guides then". This is a very unfair opinion, but I know how it all works. We have no idea exactly why this is happening. The bait sites were being hammered and the game cameras were showing us 5 to 7 bears on each bait site with some awesome trophy sized bears. We have several different areas as we usually hunt a different area for each week so that the sites are always fresh when the new hunters come in for the week. After that we may move around to what is being worked and hit. We have done everything we can think of; pulled out all the bags of tricks and still no bears.....
This can make or break a business like ours and it has me very worried. On top of all this we have dealt with the crew all getting colds and not feeling as well as we would like, which only adds to the frustration. I do feel fortunate that folks do understand hunting is hunting and not killing; however there is still that part of me that says as my alias "Blackcloud", always does, "it is not enough..."
So we tried honey burns on all the baits that were being hunted....no bears. We put out new anise scent which we use regularly....no bears. We moved onto fresh bait sites....no bears. So here I sit, wondering what else can we do? Big E and Peter are thinking, what else can we do? No quick answers; only hope that tonight will be the night!
We have just 2 hunters coming in for the last week of baiting season who they have been coming for 8 years now and are much more like family. It will be a much more relaxed week which will be welcomed after such big busy weeks and hopefully will heal some of our wounded feelings. Hopefully my next post with be much more light hearted and upbeat!!

Week 3 of bear season

Well the third week started off with a bang; 2 bears Monday night. Therefore 5 out of 7 hunters are still out on the bait sites. The temperatures have been excellent and the bears should be moving, however seems they are still moving after dark. This is a very frustrating situation being a guide as I believe my success lies within my hunters success. The first questions asked when someone inquires about a hunt is "how did you do last year?", "How many hunters did you have?", and "What was your percentage?". I also know I have no control of my hunters actions or behavior when they are out on the stands when I'm not there. Never the less, it all reflects on me and the business. I'm very appreciative of my hunters attitudes about seeing or not seeing bears, as they know hunting is hunting, not killing. It is a game and it depends on how good of a player you are. Patience is one skill that must be mastered. Most hunters simply enjoy just being out in Mother Nature; listening to the sounds of the woods and watching all of the woodland creatures.
Another aspect of the business that I enjoy is the people you meet. For the most part they are awesome and interesting; living such different lives than myself and in different environments. So many are return guests and have become more like family. I always say, "you're a stranger only once." Even with the differences we all seem to share things in common as well which provides for great conversations and lots of story telling.
I'm getting tired out, and just getting over a bad cold which has really drug me down. Big E is just now coming down with it which makes me feel worse than having it myself. I can deal with me, but it's hard to take care of everything else that I need to, plus someone not feeling well at a time like this. My days start at 6:30am and do not end often until after midnight especially when we have a large group as we do this week. We max out at 8 to 10 hunters. However we will keep plugging away and hopefully the hunters will bag their bears tonight and we can sit back and relax for a while. Next week we have a couple coming who have been returning for 7 years. They will be our only guests so it will be a much easier week. I count my lucky stars that Peter "Coyote" Cote has been back with us this year. Peter is a fellow guide, super friend and classmate. His son Nick worked with us most of the summer as well before returning to the boat builders school in Eastport. He is a young man with a very bright future and the one who gave us all the cold, but we still love him anyway. Peter has taken a lot of pressure off of Big E, being a great help. We will miss him terribly when he heads back out on the road working construction for the winter months.
Therefore it all comes down to this: we will keep on keeping on.........

Week 2 and I'm getting tired

It is Friday of the second week of bear season, and it has been extremely frustrating. I had a hunter attempt a head shot on a really big bear, and clean missed, shooting to the right. I asked her why she took a head shot as we never instruct a hunter to attempt this, and she relied, "he was looking at me". Dam!! Other than that the weather has cooled down nicely, with quite a bit of rain and drizzle which should make the bears move and hungry. Everyone tells me, " thats why it is called hunting and not killing", which I realize, however it does not do much to suppress the stress I put myself under to try to do more. All in all 14 bears have been seen, which is good, however when it comes to numbers for a guide service, I just simply feel, it doesn't count. It is so hard when we go to the sports shows and folks ask, "how did you do last year?" I often don't know what to say, but have always believed that the truth is best, and honesty the best policy. However when it is so important to book hunters which make or break this business, such truths can hurt as folks will simply think, "well, they can't be very good guides and outfitters if the numbers are not there." This upsets me as we work so very hard and try our very best. Although, I also say that if you try your very best you can never really fail and must think of that and just keep going with fingers crossed that tonight will be the night, and the hunters will all be successful.
The first week we had 8 hunters and we were extremely busy, using our further sites out as we had the longest hunting time to take advantage of. This week we have 4 hunters, and have lost 15 minutes of hunting time. We are working with basically a skeleton crew of 2 guides, me and Mr. Coyote, 2 workers, Big E and Jeremy, and my Mom helping out in the kitchen. There is a lot to do and I think more than what folks think. I'm starting to slow down and feeling quite fatigued with still 2 more weeks to go. I hope we book full for next year so that I can hire some more help, and make further achievements and progress on the new lot for the future lodge. I really believe that a lodge will change the game and attract a larger clientele as well as opening new avenues to become a year round full service resort. We could keep going as we are, but one must decide what one wants, and to actually make money, one must go up the ladder so to speak. Therefore, we made that decision when we went into contract on a 100 acre parcel with full view of the mountain and range. The picture attached is the view we will enjoy.

Well must get busy once again, getting things ready for the evening lunch, then hopefully picking up some hunters with bears!!

One down, 3 to go...

Well the first week of bear season is passed, and the beginning of a new week has begun with guests arriving with excitement. I'm disappointed that we did not bring more bear in the first week, however the strange weather and unreal heat and humidity worked against us. However hunters saw bears!!! Some good shooters but would not present a shot or was too late coming in. Thursday Jill, my lady hunter who I sat out with had an opportunity of a lifetime. Jill is an archer and that is a much different game than a rifle hunter. Rifle scopes gather light and allow for hunting right up to the last minutes, however when using a bow, time works against them and darkness takes over. About 5 minutes before end of hunting time, the biggest bear that I have ever seen on a site came in. He had to go well over 400 pounds!! I took a 350 pound bear myself in 2008, and I thought he was big; this bear that came in made him look very small and literally took our breath away!! I asked her, "can you see your pins?", she said yes she still could and therefore I told her take the shot. First arrow flew...missed..under shot. The bear jumped and went just a little ways, turned and came back. We got another arrow out and she attempted another shot. The bear jumped and lunged, I thought she had hit him! I said to her, "lets get out of here, give him some time and we'll come back after every one gets in". Bear hunting is and can be a dangerous game and not one to take risks with. A guides number one priority isn't to have success, but safety. Leaving I kept listening intently, but did not hear any crashing or the death moan known for bear down, however I have taken 3 bears over the years and only one death moaned, therefore  I still thought she might have hit him good. With pure excitement we left. We had to pick up one other hunter before heading back to camp which was her boyfriend, and he had some excitement of his own. He had been charged by a bear waiting for me to come and pick him up. Bear will do what is called a false charge; woofing and snorting and jumping forward a few steps. Usually this is all it comes too, however she did actually charge and we figured it was a sow which we had seen on the cameras with 2 cubs in the area as they had been seen on this bait site. Well we regrouped and went back in only to find the second arrow had clearly missed also. Looking around, I heard a grumble from the woods; the bear was still there and not to happy that we were back disturbing his supper. I said, " lets get out of here and hope he was not jumped so badly that he would come back another night. However much to our disappointment, we did not see another bear the rest of the week. All in all, about 13 bear were seen last week, with only one coming into camp from our new youth hunter, Jake. Jake has never hunted before and was a very happy young man.
I have never witnessed nor experienced a week of heat in bear season as we had last week. The water literally run off us the whole time in the stands with no breaks and no relief. A very strange weather pattern that I blame for the big bears coming in too late. Saturday the hurricane clipped us bringing is wind and about 6 to 7 inches of rain. Last night was much cooler and even nippy at the end of hunting time; more of what we are used to this time of year. Therefore, we are looking forward to a much better week, with much more success. We only have 4 hunters in camp this coming week, so we can relax a bit and take a breath to recuperate for the 3rd week which we will have 8 hunters and 1 non  hunter in camp.

Hot, Hot, Hot!!!!!

Wow folks this is most certainly the hottest bear season start I have ever experienced. The temperatures have been in the high 80s and low 90s with humidity. The only thing is, people are seeing bears, however they are either not shooters or they are not presenting a clear shot. Last night one hunter attempted a bad shot, and we couldn't find anything last night, therefore the guys are back out this morning to see if they can find anything more. My other alias "Grace" took a flip last night, fell into a hole, twisted my bad ankle and am limping a bit, but we Maine women are strong and I'll be just fine; it will not slow me down. My lady hunter and I sat on a different bait site last night and it was so hot, water was running off us and between places it should not have been. I have seen seasons when the first half hour was miserable, but would cool down quickly and even have the shivers before it was over. However it was still hot when we left the stands; clothes sticking to us and trying to wear the camo garb and bug nets are miserable.
Yesterday morning I took the Maryland couple, Eric and Jill, my lady hunter out kayaking on the river. Eric had never been kayaking before and I now think I have him hooked; he loved it. We saw 3 eagles, one just a young one, and a big loon that as usual never cooperate when I get my camera ready.
Last evening at the luncheon we always have after everyone is back in from hunting was a total hoot!!  Everyone is getting to know each other and when that happens the fun really begins. We all laughed and joked enjoying the fun. This helps to smooth over nerves a bit as I always take so much upon myself when things don't seem to be working as I would like, which is hunters getting their bears and our success rates being high. I always really work myself up, and try so hard to think of what ever else can I do. However, I do realize I have no control over such things and I also know everything possible has been done. Although that does not help my nemesis "Blackcloud", who tends to be much harder on me and unfortunately is part of my personality that I have a hard time controlling. Big E is always reminding me, " None of that Blackcloud"!!!

So lets keep the faith and fingers crossed that tonight be the night, the hurricane coming up the coast not be a problem, and the temperatures fall!!!!!!