Moose Lottery June 11, Fishing for Smallmouth Bass, and new Saltwater Trophy Patch Club!
With great anticipation and optimism, moose hunters and their families will gather on Saturday, June 11 in Jackman, Maine for the 2022 Moose Lottery Drawing. The event, which is being staged at the Jackman Town Office fields (461 Main Street), will also feature axe-throwing, rides in a monster truck, face-painting and a bounce house for kids, and a beer garden for grown-ups.
Can’t make it in person? The list of the more than 2,800 winners will be posted on the state’s website, MeFishWildlife.com, by 6 p.m. the same day.
With the June, 2022 issue of The Maine Sportsman, we celebrate the Moose Lottery event with a special section by Steve Carpenteri, as well as with a second feature by Auburn resident Michael Penney that explores the question for moose hunters: “Should you self-guide, or hire a guide service?” Michael and his wife have tried both approaches, and he provides insightful information and recommendations.
And now, on to fish – specifically, the hard-fighting smallmouth bass, aka “bronzebacks” or “smallies.” Small in name only, these fish are among the hardest-fighting fish in fresh water, especially those caught in one of Maine’s rivers – including the Penobscot, Sebasticook, St. Croix, Piscataquis and the Androscoggin – where they stay in shape by constantly swimming against the current.
In the June issue, William Clunie (“Freshwater Fly Fishing”) reveals what floatant to use to keep bass bugs on the water’s surface; Tom Roth (“Sebago Region’) tells readers how and where to find smallmouth bass in regional lakes; and Bill Sheldon (in “Katahdin Country”) describes the 13 boat ramps found along the Penobscot River, from Mattawamkeag to Bangor, allowing anglers to access the river’s scrappy smallmouth populations.
And while we’re on the subject of public launches, Capt. Ron Dupuis covers a sometimes-rare aspect of Maine’s performance art – the skill of offloading your boat quickly and then making way for the next boat and trailer, in his special feature, “Etiquette at the Boat Ramp.”
In the Almanac, we introduce our newest trophy patch club, the “Saltwater Anglers Club,” for folks who catch, or catch and release, extraordinary saltwater game fish. See the proposed rules starting on page 14, and give us your feedback by June 30.
We’ve got ATVs, peep sights, rattlesnakes, wolves, turkey hunts and Muddler Minnows.
All this, plus much more, including regional and special-interest columns, cartoons, and the best jokes above Upper Dam and below Lower Shirley Corner.
Questions? Contact the editor at Will@MaineSportsman.com or the office manager at Carol@MaineSportsman.com. See you outside!
Will Lund, Editor
The Maine Sportsman magazine
