I had the pleasure of taking a couple from the United Kingdom on a day trip last week. The day started with rain showers but they were soon over and the day improved to a crystal clear afternoon with only a few clouds. We visited a list of sights that I was able to choose to provide a sampling of the Maine coast.
I enjoyed being able to show these folks around and having nearly perfect weather made it easy to show off what I thought were the most interesting sights. As we stood on the top of Cadillac Mountain in the afternoon the woman said to me "Your countryside delivers all that it promises".
I have to say that I agree and it is nice to have someone with fresh eyes confirm it. After returning home they wrote a review of Maine Outdoors and Abigails in Camden where they spent their "holiday". See what they said here. It is a great fun to hear the great things clients have to say about the services I provide.
We are in the middle of the very best time of year, make every effort to get out and enjoy the Maine Outdoors.
Wildlife sightings
In the last two weeks clients have had more to see than just great weather and beautiful scenery. The critters have been showing up more than usual and in unusual ways. One afternoon on a perch fishing trip we were anchored in a cove out of the breeze. I heard a splash and looked up to see a young osprey about twenty yards away, nothing unusual here. Except the young bird was floating on the surface of the pond, wings outstretched, rather than launching himself (or herself) back into the air. We watched for several minutes as the bird floated on the surface with its wings outstretched looking dazed. I finally decided to pull anchor and go help. Of course as soon as the boat began to move toward it the osprey organized itself and flew off.
Another morning I was on Megunticook Lake in Camden fishing along shore with a couple. The lake has been drawn down and there is a strip of dry land along the shore that was underwater not long ago. This strip is an easy pathway and one getting littered with fresh acorns under the overhanging oak trees. I look down the shore I can see a doe and two fawns feeding towards us maybe fifty yards away. This is unusual for Maine and I make sort of a big deal out of it. After a few minutes the deer walk off into the woods and we continue to fish.
We move to another stretch of shoreline and begin to work our way along; there are three more deer. Only this time they are close and let us get to within twenty or so yards (picture here). As we are watching the deer there is a pair of loons maybe fifty yards away calling loudly. Loons always make a lot of noise when there is an eagle in the air so I look up and sure enough there is an eagle at treetop level overhead closely followed by an osprey. Almost like a television show.
These are supposedly fishing trips but the wildlife watching is an excellent bonus.
Pickerel Panic!
One of my early memories of fishing was a trip to a small pond in October that was loaded with pickerel eager to bite on our lures. I have no idea how many we caught or even what lure we used so long ago but I clearly remember catching lots of them. Over the last few days the number of pickerel clients have been bringing to the boat has been on the rise. But yesterday was a day like I remember from (dare I say) forty years ago.
My client was a fly fisherman who can cast well and also understands where fish are likely to be. Making my job a little easier. The morning was very foggy and still with the trees just starting to change colors. I had him start with small streamer flies in our search for bass. Before too long though it became apparent that pickerel were dominating the game.
Because they possess a mouthful of razor sharp teeth my light tippet on the fly line needed to be upgraded to 12 pound test. The flies became large and bulky first a large muddler minnow and then a mouse pattern that I have had for years and never really used. Eventually large streamers that I have for striper fishing were the flies of choice.
The strikes are lighting fast and often come with a big splash making for some exciting fishing. One especially showy take had the fish clearing the water a couple of feet away and grabbing the fly as he came down on top of it. Needless to say a very enjoyable trip. I am looking forward to a few more exciting trips with great fall scenery before I put the boat away at the end of November.
Newsletter sent monthly until spring!
From now until early spring the Maine Outdoors newsletter will come to you once a month. I still post blog updates twice a week and daily updates are available on
Facebook (Don Kleiner) or become a fan of Maine Outdoors there as well. I am also on Linkedin and Twitter (DonKleiner) I am available to chat on AIM when I am at my desk, more time there as the slower season starts.
You can also visit the Maine Outdoors web site and submit a contact form. Of course I still use e-mail and the telephone still rings in the office if you would like to plan your next trip or just say hello.
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Best regards,
Don Kleiner
Master Maine Guide
Maine Outdoors
(207) 785-4496
