Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Maine Outdoors

Maine Outdoors Blog Post – Thoughts from a Master Maine Guide

Fishing this afternoon under a cloudy sky was a good as the last few trips have been for bass and pickerel. The fall foliage is fast approaching peak and the colors were exceptional on the still water as you can see in these pictures.

The thing that was really notable though, was that it seemed like all of the animals were out and about. Had not gone too far up the Saint George River when a flock of turkeys crossed the river one at a time with lots of clucking and noise right before each one took off. Dozens of ducks flew by mallards, wood ducks, teal and black ducks. In the distance a big flock of crows was bothering an eagle (who by the way did not look very bothered).

Round Pond FoliageOn the way back down to the launch I saw an animal swimming across the river, my first instinct was beaver, about the right size, right shaped head but it floated too high in the water and appeared black from a distance. On closer inspection it was a porcupine, I had no idea that they could swim. Let alone that one would undertake to cross the river.

As I drove home there were maybe a hundred geese in Seven Tree Pond Foliagethe field below the house sharing it with a large flock of turkeys. Finally as I turned into our road there were four deer standing in the field across the road.

Some days it seems like the entire natural world is out and about and all you need to do is keep your eyes open.

By Don Kleiner, Maine Outdoors