Moving back to a 1900s log lodge after a long winter in a
tiny cabin comes only after lots of cleaning, weeding out, dusting, and
scrubbing of the remnants of a season which has passed. After enjoying
the cozy warmth of cabin life in winter I longed for the airy spaciousness of the
historic lodge. The ritual of spring cleaning and moving always signifies
new beginnings – a new season on the calendar; a new season of anglers,
hunters, and vacationers; the anniversary of another year as a sporting camp
operator and guide; and this year learning how to go it alone.
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| Ice going out on Eagle Lake. |
May is the most hectic month at northern sporting camps and tackling spring opening alone had it's challenges. All the tasks required
to open must be squeezed through a very small window framed by snow melting,
mud drying up, ice going out, and fishermen arriving. In addition to
moving back to the lodge and all that goes with reopening it, there are also
cabins to clean, bedding to wash, beds to make, windows to shine, leaves to
rake, docks and boats to put in the water, repairs and maintenance to complete,
and nothing gets finished until the water is turned on. Come hell or high
water, it all must be completed before the first guests arrive at Fish River
Lodge and that is always soon after ice-out. This year ice-out was May 10th.
Life “got real” on May 7th, when my dad called to tell me my mom had been
diagnosed with stomach cancer and had two weeks to two months to live.
That she would be released from the hospital the next day – Mother’s Day and
that a hospital bed would be set up at their home for her and that he and a nurse
would be caring for her. That she would be on morphine to ease her
physical pain and mental anguish and that my sister was flying in from Colorado to help.
Being so far from “home” and family when I needed them most during my busiest
time of the year was one of the greatest challenges I have ever faced. The news
was sudden and shocking. I wanted to run to the coast but the
responsibility of the business rested heavily on my shoulders with no one to
carry the burden for me. Getting the work load prioritized and accomplished
kept my mind too busy to worry while I worked my way through the long list of
chores and the fear of losing my mom. I set a course that would allow me to
leave and see her the following week.
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Dock is in, water is on,
open for the season. |
They say "time and tide wait for no one"; up here it is "time
and ice-out" and I didn’t make it home in time. Mom left us the morning
of May 14th, the same day the water was turned on and the dock put out. The
following day I went south as planned. I like to think mom was watching
over me while I worked and traveled. She always felt I worked too hard.
One of my favorite quotes is by Robert Frost, “The only way out is through.” It
has gotten me through many difficult situations because it reminds me of the importance
of facing challenges with chin up and shoulders squared, by persevering, by
grinding it out, by enduring mental and physical pain. The only way I was going to
get “out” of spring opening, my grief, and fear of running Fish River Lodge alone was to go
through it. This year May became a month of introspection, of wiping
away the dust where seeds of my past were planted and fear and self-doubt grew, of learning
how to “alone”, and grieving. I miss my mom and embrace all the emotions that go
with losing her.
I found solace in the woods, in the tradition of being a guide and sporting
camp operator, and in a tight network of kinship here in the north-country.
Time ticked on…
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Suhn & Mike Lewis with
a landlocked salmon from
Eagle Lake. |
Mike Lewis and his wife Suhn were my first guests of the season, arriving on
May 17th. Mike landed the first fish of the season, a beautiful
landlocked salmon. Others who made spring fishing season especially special
this year were the return of Robert Giroux and his family for their annual
fishing trip, my high school friend Gary Baribeau and his nephews' first visit,
and my dear friend and fellow guide Mike Duni. Ed Swift and Joe Dumont,
and Joe Decker and Mike Phillips are loyal members of the Fish River Lodge
family; their presence this spring was comforting.
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Dr. Andre - Freancois Bourbeau
and James Deraps. |
Operating a sporting camp is all about the people we meet, stories we share,
and memories made. On the 19th I had the pleasure of meeting two fascinating
adventurers: Dr. Andre - Francois Bourbeau and James Deraps. They were sailing
and paddling the Fish River in their tiny homemade sail
boats. They started on Portage Lake in the morning and arrived
at Fish River Lodge late in the afternoon, walked to town for pizza, and
arrived back at t he lodge for a visit and showers before departing to make
camp at nightfall. They completed an Everglades trip earlier this
spring - 15 days IN their boats - there's no dry place to set up camp
in the Everglades! Andre has completed a
40-day reconstruction of a trip along the fur trade route used by traders in
the late 1830s. All the materials used were authentic reproductions of the
period's gear, including real birch bark canoes and even hand-sewn
underwear! Andre holds a Guinness Book of World Records longest voluntary
wilderness survival trip of of 31 days. James holds the world record for
sailing in a small boat: 32 days without stepping foot on land. We could have
talked all night but they had places to go so I bid them farewell with the hope
our paths cross again!
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| Moose Watching. |
Memorial weekend was wet but that didn’t dampen the spirits of the Olah family. No
rain shower was going to keep Emma, Hannah, and Patrick Olah in camp. They
fished and hung around the camp fire all weekend despite the weather. Bill
is a guide in Hungary – red deer, boar, rabbits, and
pheasants. So when life hands a guide lemons - like when the steering cable broke on my boat - guides make lemonade! Bill rigged a PVC pipe for manual steering
to get through the weekend. The last night of their stay we went on a moose safari and saw
several moose and two bears!
Spring fishing was excellent this year. With very liberal salmon bag
limits on Eagle Lake fishermen were able to freeze
their catch here at camp for transport home to share with friends and family. Ed Swift wrote, "Bringing home the catch from Fish River
Lodge. Always the best spring Salmon fishing in New
England. Best from ice out to early June. Never disappointed."
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| My mom, Rachel Skolfield. |
The weekend of June 4th I headed south to attend my grand daughter Nellie’s ballet
performance and my mom’s memorial service. I am blessed the clients I had in camp know the drill - they've been coming for years and could fend for themselves until I returned. There was a common theme running
through Mom's memorial service ...that she was always humble and kind. Although
the grief shared among family and friends as we remembered her was profound, I
left the church feeling so incredibly blessed and proud. I was proud to be
Rachel Skolfield's daughter and to see her through the eyes of others. It was a
beautiful gathering of souls united by my mother. In honor of her, always strive to be humble and kind.
Maine’s
annual moose lottery was held on June 11th and resulted in a flurry of calls that evening.
In the days following I labeled and stamped my moose brochures that got mailed
to each permit winner in WMDs 2 and 3. Jared Ashley will be guiding at Fish River Lodge this fall and helped me
complete that tedious task! I appreciate Larry White and Jean Wilson booking
with Fish River Lodge for another moose hunt after both enjoyed success with us
in the past. They will be hunting bulls in September. Oh, and congrats to me! I drew an October cow tag!
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| Sunset from "page 63" of the Maine Atlas & Gazeteer. |
June’s unsettled weather made for some amazing sunsets as I ventured in to the
woods in the evening for a little “dirt road therapy” and to
"inventory" moose. Dad shared some of these adventures with me when he
came for a visit on June 16th. We took to the woods one day to check a trail camera for
moose photos in WMD3 then went in to WMD2 to look around. We saw two bulls, three cows, two deer, a woodcock, and about a hundred rabbits! Another day we went all the way up to the top of Maine - we started the day with a hearty breakfast at Two Rivers Lunch in
Allagash and a visit with Papa Tylor Kelly followed by quick visit to the Kelly's beautiful family camp - built by Tylor from logs he cut off the property. We enjoyed a visit with Darlene Kelly
Dumond at the Little Black gate to the North Maine Woods and drove on to Estcourt Station. We took a break stream-side for lunch. When we returned to Eagle Lake dad and I went horseback riding. That night for dinner we had moose steaks,
parsley boiled potatoes, and sauteed zucchini. What a perfect Father’s Day weekend with
my dad!
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| Trout and eggs for dinner. |
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| "Cow Pony", my project horse. |
June 20th was one of those rare 90 degree days in northern Maine. When temperatures cooled
that evening I took the little "cow pony" I've been training out for a trail ride. After, I beat the heat with a sunset cruise on Eagle Lake before a relaxing dinner of
native brook trout and eggs. I rubbed Wildcheff's Ginger Citrus
seasoning in the trout and pan-fried them. The subtle flavors paired perfectly
with the trout.
When an unexpected guest checks in for the night and tells you he is from Utah, now living in Boston, and has never seen a moose...well,
you invite him on one of your nightly backwoods adventures. We saw seven moose, an amazing
sunset, and a sunset lit rainbow. Thank you Matt for riding shotgun and keeping
me company. Another epic night at the top of Maine!
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Bonnie Holding and King Montgomery photographing a young
bull moose during a fishing trip on a remote trout pond. |
June 26th Maine Guide Bonnie Holding and outdoors and travel writer King
Montgomery (http://www.kingmontgomery.com/)
arrived for a few days of brook trout and salmon fishing. After dinner we hit Eagle Lake for a couple hours of trolling
- lots of fish were marked when finally Bonnie landed a pretty little
landlocked from a depth of 14 feet on leadcore line trolling a DB Smelt. King was looking forward to salmon and
eggs for breakfast! The next day we fished a remote pond for brook trout from a
canoe in the morning and photographed a young moose, went sight seeing then
river fishing with a fly rod in the afternoon, followed by a moose safari in
the back country until dark. We spent the next morning fishing a remote pond
and on the way in saw a pretty doe and on the way out a bear foraging and a
young bull trotting up the road and in to the woods. Lots of wildflowers were
in bloom too. Summer is such a wonderful time to enjoy northern Maine!
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| Lily helping dust logs in the lodge. |
On the 29th, my young friend Lily, daughter of Ben and Danielle Valcourt,
dusted logs and washed chairs in the lodge for me so she could earn money to help pay for
her trip to North Woods Law Camp at Bryant Pond in July. Thank you for the help
Lily! I can't wait to hear stories of your adventures at camp!
So it ends as it began...cleaning and cleansing became a
metaphor for my spring season - whether it was cleaning logs in the lodge,
being washed by the cleansing rains of June, or the healing that comes from
cleansing one's soul for new beginnings. Spring cleaning is behind me at
Fish River Lodge as I look forward to all the opportunity and treasures to be
discovered in a northern Maine
summer!
