The boat life April 18, 2018 by V. Paul Reynolds on Outdoors in Maine The sun-drenched Florida Keys, with cobalt skies, swaying palm fronds and gliding pelicans, got under my skin more than 40 years ago. As a Maine naval reservist, official orders sent me down there more than once for a two-week training tour at the Key West Naval Air Station. Later on my daughter married a Keys-born …
Lefty’s legacy lives on April 11, 2018 by V. Paul Reynolds on Outdoors in Maine What is it about a well-cast fly line that furls out gently across a quiet trout pond or a roiling river? Done properly it is a graceful ballet. There is a rhythm that can mesmerize not only the angler, but the onlooker as well. And when the softly whispering line finishes its furling roll, and …
Reed Pond charr restored April 4, 2018 by V. Paul Reynolds on Outdoors in Maine The American Fisheries Society recently presented the fisheries division of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIF&W) with a national award for cutting-edge work in the restoration of the native Arctic charr to Big Reed Pond in Piscataquis County. Although the project was the work of many biologists and funded by a wide …
Moose lottery open March 28, 2018 by V. Paul Reynolds on Outdoors in Maine The 2018 Maine Moose Lottery application process is officially open to Maine residents and nonresidents alike. No longer are mailed applications acceptable. Applications must be filed online. The deadline for submitting applications for the moose lottery is May 15 and must be postmarked no later than midnight on that date. In 2016, a total of …
Ice fisherman’s bonanza March 21, 2018 by V. Paul Reynolds on Outdoors in Maine Most sport fishermen, if they have some years on them, develop a sixth sense about how big a fish is when it is on the line, even when the fish is still fighting deep. Before fly fishing got a grip on me like a set of Vise-Grips, I used to be a trolling togue man. …
Patrolling the “hump” March 14, 2018 by V. Paul Reynolds on Outdoors in Maine At the T-dock, where Diane and I winter over on a houseboat in the Florida Keys, the word was spreading fast. The black fin tuna were hitting well out on the “hump.” The “hump” is a stretch of water about 15 miles offshore from where we live in Islamorada. It is the edge of the …
“The River King” March 7, 2018 by V. Paul Reynolds on Outdoors in Maine You should know at the outset that any new book that bills itself as a “fly-fishing novel” will get my attention. “The River King,” by Robert Romano Jr., is just such a book. Romano is an old hand at writing fiction with a Maine outdoor theme. Almost as prolific as Paul Doiron, who pens Maine …
The pemmican perspective February 28, 2018 by V. Paul Reynolds on Outdoors in Maine Long-distance hikers and backpackers looking for that elusive silver bullet in selecting a highly nutritional trail food might want to take a closer look at pemmican, long known historically as the ultimate survival food. Insofar as I know, you can’t buy traditional pemmican from trail food manufacturers, but you can make it yourself like your …
The longest paddle February 21, 2018 by V. Paul Reynolds on Outdoors in Maine The Northern Forest Canoe Trail (NFCT) winds from Old Forge, N.Y., to Fort Kent, Maine. Established in 2000, it is the longest mapped inland paddling route in the country: 740 miles. How would you like to paddle that? No thanks. The NFCT is the canoeist’s version of the Appalachian Trail, another intimidating outdoor challenge that …
Grassroots fish management February 14, 2018 by V. Paul Reynolds on Outdoors in Maine Managing Maine’s incredible sport fishery — and its associated regulations — is complex and always subject to second guessing by armchair fisheries “biologists,” who may sincerely believe that they know how better to manage the fish in their favorite angling waters. Dennis Smith of Otter Creek is one of those impassioned anglers who never tires …
