FROM THE WESTERN MOUNTAINS OF MAINE
OFFICIAL BLOG OF THE
BIG WOODS HARE HUNTERS OF THE ALLEGHENY
BIG WOODS HARE HUNTERS RETURN FROM MAINE
Three members of the Big Woods Hare Hunters of the Allegheny made their annual pilgrimage to the western mountains of the great hare hunting state of Maine and have returned none the worse for wear. The week of October 22 through the 27th saw the mountains of western Maine come alive with the sounds of beautiful hound music as the sweet music rang from mountainside to mountainside. Many snowshoe hares were chased during the week but only a few were killed. The 11 beagles endured the 1600-mile round trip and did an outstanding job. The hunters, Andy, Kaz and the High HareMan brought home several
hare which are processed and ready for future consumption.
Truthfully speaking, there was some wear and tear as Kaz’s
little hound, Maggie, suffered a severe wound from some unknown object like a
stick or a “punji stick”** which needed immediate emergency care. Kaz and the
High HareMan made a 150-mile round trip to an emergency veterinary hospital in
Lewiston, Maine.
On another day a local smashed into the back of our dog truck
which suffered only minimal damage. The same couldn’t be said for the offending
driver’s vehicle which required a tow.
**Punji sticks or stakes known by Vietnam veterans are sharpened, often poisoned, bamboo stakes planted in a series as a barricade or planted and concealed in a hole, ditch and intended to cut or impale an enemy. In the forests of Pennsylvania and Maine (I suppose in other places too) workers, sometimes migrant workers, are sent out to cut unwanted saplings and small trees close to the ground. Many times the stumps are not cut very close to the ground, especially in winter, and some are cut with a sharp angle. It is these we have not so lovingly named punji stakes.
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| A stop at Cabela's enroute why of course. |
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| The beagles take a break at Cabelas. |
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| Kaz ties his hounds out at Cabela's. |
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| Kaz points out a moose rub. |
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| Our first day's kill. |
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| Gifting something to the coyotes and verman after a successful kill. |
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| Same as above. |
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| Moose rub. |
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| Another day's kill ready for the freezer. |
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A fresh snow in the western mountains of Mane.
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| The Bingham Wind Project in the western mountains of Maine. |
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| A cold windy day in Maine. |
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| A view of the western mountains of Maine from Johnson Mountain, Maine. |
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| Another view from Johnson Mountain. |
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| On Johnson Mountain, Maine. |
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| Sammie hunts in the western mountains of Maine. |
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| Another kill awaits the hunter's knife. |
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| Big Woods Hare Hunter Andy, hound Emma and harvested snowshoe hare during a hunt in the western mountains of Maine. |
