The 'hump day' of summer

If Wednesday is the “hump day” of the work week, August 1st is the “hump date” of the summer for fishing guides. By then, we have worn the layers of May to fight the bite of 40-degree days, wind and rain. We negotiated the indecisive, unstable weather of June, changing into and out of long underwear, chamois shirts and rain gear. Then came the blistering heat of July, this past July more than most.

Now comes family vacation month. Already, the traffic on Route 9 with cargo carriers has increased. We call it “Thule Traffic.” These folks are looking for the cooler summer weather Maine has always been known for. There are few bugs around, wild berries are ripe or ripening, and lakes are as swimmable as Maine lakes ever get. That’s not to mention the fishing, which remains outstanding all summer.

In the past few weeks, making my guiding rounds on various bodies of water, I’ve seen spotted fawns traveling close behind their mothers; moose, including the drowned one shown here with a velvet antler protruding upward; an assortment of cats including a fisher; and numerous other critters such as beaver, muskrat, pine marten and more. I love it when a sport is a lightning rod for wildlife, eyes scanning in all directions all day long. That way, it’s not just the fishing that makes the day special, it’s everything!

One day two weeks ago, we saw 13 eagles over the same body of water. Once in a while for reasons that remain unclear, an eagle will do a fly-over so close you can count tail feathers. The problem is the lack of warning and people seldom have a camera ready.

I don’t know what killed the moose shown in the photo, floating in the mouth of a local stream where it empties into a lake. There was nothing obvious that gave away the cause. I have found other moose carcasses and sometimes have been able to piece together the cause of death. One had crashed through thin ice on a stream and couldn’t get out. Another stepped into thick, oozing mud and could not extract its legs. It bothers me when an animal so majestic is wasted in this way and when its expiration is not quick.

This week marks another Economic Summit at Leen’s Lodge, to be broadcast live this year on Bloomberg TV, and covered by Bloomberg Radio and Bloomberg print. Nineteen canoes will guide 38 economists on local waters. Noted financial analysts, CFOs, and wealth managers will convene once again to discuss the economy in the coming year in the decompressed environs of Grand Lake Stream. The weekend, known as “Camp Kotok,” owing to its founder, David Kotok of Cumberland Advisors, provides more guiding work for more guides than any single event at any sporting lodge for the entire season. It is somehow fitting that a large group of economists provides the local community with such a significant economic transfusion.

The hump date has come and gone, and the first arctic express blew through, probably turning over the lakes and confusing the fish. I’ve actually seen the first swamp maples turning those colors that send a chill up your spine. Can fall be far behind? Will school start back in a few weeks? Will we be changing into and out of long underwear again as we wear the layers of September? Summer is the short season and it goes by in a blur. For now though, and for as long as it lasts, we’ll just enjoy the lack of bugs, the blueberries and blackberries, the game sightings and the great fishing.

Comments

[hydration backpack]

I really enjoyed from this post and definitely will read the whole blog. Your stories are wonderful it looks like you a good man that loves nature. I love nature to.

[Asics shoes]

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