Outdoors

Published
March 16, 2013

North Cairn: A little dirt on hands helps cultivate crops and calmness

Last week, when the weather warmed and an hour slipped through our sleep like sand through an hour glass — too quickly, so softly, it seemed a tenderness unfolding — I turned once again to the happily irrational acts of welcoming spring early. My principal jump-start on a season a good ways off was to […]
Published
March 16, 2013

Birding: Female birds rule the family roost, so they can make the males dance

Have you been awakened this March by a loud con-ka-ree? The song of the male red-winged blackbirds is ringing through the air again. Male redwings have been arriving back in Maine since the first of March. Females will not appear for a month or more. The reason for this striking difference in arrival between males […]
Published
March 16, 2013

Allen Afield: No stats on how well Hank Aaron rode a bike

Professional team sports often generate intense opinions about player skills, and myriad statistical tables about pro ballplayers can support a claim one way or the other. Here’s an example in major league baseball that most people know: A fan might say, “Hank Aaron ranks as pro baseball’s best home-run hitter of all time, and to […]
Published
March 16, 2013

Skiing in Maine: Snowstorms showed great timing this year, for skiers and resorts

We’ve reached the point in the 2012-13 season when we’re able to assess just how good it has been, both from the standpoint of skiers and boarders and the ski area operators. With some areas closing down, setting closing dates in the near future, or curtailing and limiting operations, the end is in sight … […]
Published
March 16, 2013

When maturity makes the musher matchless

Mitch Seavey might be an old dog himself, but he knew enough old tricks to win the Iditarod.

Published
March 16, 2013

Best Bets

MONDAY Spotlight on Maine / 6 to 8 p.m. in Portland The Visionaries documentary series for public television is featuring two Maine conservation organizations in a film that will be shown at SPACE. It also will be shown on Maine Public Broadcasting Network at 10 a.m. March 21 and at 11 a.m. March 23. “Forests […]
Published
March 9, 2013

Kid Tracks: Whether you’re on on skis or on foot, Portland offers delights

One day it’s snowing, another day it’s raining and just to keep things interesting, a warm day is thrown into the mix. That’s what March in Maine is all about, which makes planning an outdoor adventure a lesson in weather watching and taking advantage of every condition when family time is available. With flexibility in […]
Published
March 9, 2013

Deirdre Fleming: Sometimes even moose will answer the call of a champion caller

Each year the Alaska State Fair holds a moose calling contest, dubbed the “Moose Calling & Tall Tail Contest.” But across the Lower 48 states, nowhere but Maine appears to hold an annual moose calling contest. The Registered Maine Guides who run the calling contest here call it the “World Championship Invitational,” but then, there […]
Published
March 9, 2013

Not just chasing rainbows

Committed anglers remember when the Upper Androscoggin offered big trout, and they're intent on making the river a destination fishing ground.
Published
March 9, 2013

Skiing in Maine: Sugarloaf shows another exciting side to adventurers

Back in the day, there were two types of skiing — on-piste and backcountry. You were either skiing on lift-serviced trails at a resort, or you were hiking for your own turns on unpatrolled, often unmaintained slopes. In recent years a third option — sidecountry, or “slackcountry” — has been growing in popularity. Generally speaking, […]

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