As the Silverado headed onto the interstate last Sunday, my mind and body were very refreshed. The New England Outdoor Writers Association Spring Safari has been a much-needed opportunity to sample hunting and fishing in the Pine Tree State. This writer has been venturing to the Maine seacoast each of the past few summers and last spring the Safari was in Rangeley, Maine, so it is not like my Maine connections are not recent, but this one was “just what the doctor ordered!”
My agenda included some spring turkey hunting and all the fishing that could be crammed into the rest of the day Friday and Saturday. Maine may surprise you by having the largest wild turkey population in New England, currently estimated at 60,000 to 70,000. The 2016 spring gobbler harvest came in at 5,167 and has been as high as 6,500 in 2013. Massachusetts has a harvest of just under 3,000 turkeys and Vermont is similar to Maine, with about 5,000 turkeys killed by hunters each year.
Finding a place to hunt was my challenge and Renee McCafferty, who owns Whisperwood with her husband Cameron, made some calls and found me a public area to hunt. That area did not produce any gobbles, but on my way back to the lodge for breakfast I passed a small farm on what looked like good turkey habitat, so I stopped to ask for permission to hunt there. The owner was very friendly and gave me permission, so I returned later to scout and hunt. It was a great spot with a large clover/grass field and recently selectively harvested hardwoods. Time spent there found lots of deer sign and turkey scratchings. The next morning found me listening in the pre-dawn. Unfortunately, I picked the wrong side of the large field and by the time I made it around, the gobbler was down and moving away before going silent, no doubt in the company of hens.
That was fine with me as fishing guide Mike Marcus had offered to take writers out fishing and we had a mid-morning date. Mike, born the same year as yours truly and a retired educator, was a great guide and we caught every species that swims in Salmon Lake, the 700-acre body of water that Whisperwood is located on. That included largemouth and smallmouth bass, brook trout, black crappie (aka calico bass), white perch, yellow perch and chain pickerel. It was very windy, making fishing a challenge and more than a couple of my casts ended up in the trees as we were fishing the shallows for pre-spawn fish.
The Whisperwood webpage has a picture library of big fish caught and it is impressive! The fishing alone would lead me to strongly recommend Whisperwood to anyone, but the food and genuine hospitality are as good as this writer has experienced in any hunting/fishing camp. The cottages are clean and well-maintained, and they have canoes, kayaks and bass boats for rent. Everything is very reasonably priced. And did I mention the food was good! This is what a Maine fishing experience should be and there are also several other nearby lakes and trout streams to try as well.
Most of the writers at the Safari spent time fishing off the docks and everyone caught fish, although fly fisherman Tom Fuller did spend a fair amount of time snagging the flag. We enjoyed a great buffet Saturday night and had our annual raffle. The good news was that my card was drawn second, giving me the second choice of the table of prizes. The bad news is that Paul Reynolds was drawn first, and he picked the Yeti cooler. Everyone that I speak with, and my experiences with these coolers, indicates that they keep things cold and ice frozen longer than anything else. They are not cheap, but they do the job better than any other cooler!
My prize selection included a Kittery Trading Post gift certificate. That was used quite quickly to acquire a new rangefinder. My experience turkey hunting in Kansas led me to want to replace my rangefinder, which is well more than 10 years old, with new laser range finder with illuminated readings so it can be used in the early morning and poor lighting. The one my research has indicated was the best, the Vortex Ranger 1300, was on sale to boot! It has a number of desirable features including a belt clip, rubber armor, is waterproof and has the line-of-sight option, which provides accurate readings from an elevated position like a tree stand.
My taste of Maine this weekend will no doubt lead to a return for stripers this summer and/or grouse and woodcock this fall. There is a lot of Maine to experience and it has something for every hunter and fisherman!