Snapshots of the 76th Eastern Maine Sportsmen’s Show

I’ve been attending the Eastern Maine Sportsmen’s Show in Orono since I was a little girl, and each year, there are certain things I look forward to. The homemade fudge and jerky, the elaborate taxidermy displays, the camo-clad crowd. New exhibitors and presenters show up each year, but for me, the overall flavor of the big event remains the same. It’s a celebration of Maine’s great outdoors, the state’s sporting heritage and natural beauty.

For the past few years, as an outdoor writer for the Bangor Daily News, I’ve been able to attend the show as an exhibitor — which basically means that I stay there a whole lot longer and get see a bit of what happens behind the scenes. While I spend much of my time manning the BDN booth, talking with readers and handing out our free quarterly BDN Outdoors publication, I also take a few hours to wander around the show and purchase a few Maine-made crafts and of course, delicious treats.

This year, in addition to having great conversations with BDN readers … I attended an owl presentation by Grayson Richmond, caretaker of Birdsacre wildlife sanctuary in Ellsworth; bought some maple and chocolate fudge; talked about grouse with graduate students of the University of Maine Department of Wildlife Ecology; learned how to make a paracord bracelet with Boy Scouts Troop 76 (Old Town); chatted with members of the Penobscot Fly Fishers; paddled a pink Necky Looksha kayak provided by Old Town Canoe in the field house pool; purchased a fleece-lined alpaca hair hat from Northern Solstice Alpaca Farm; entered a drawing for a beautiful print of one of Mark McCullough’s wildlife paintings; ate some delicious peanut butter ice cream from Stone Fox Farm Creamery of Monroe; shuddered at creepy tick specimens on display at the UMaine Cooperative Extension booth; and talked about arrows with employees of Old Town Archery.

See you there next year!

 

Aislinn Sarnacki

About Aislinn Sarnacki

Aislinn is a Bangor Daily News reporter for the Outdoors pages, focusing on outdoor recreation and Maine wildlife. Visit her main blog at actoutwithaislinn.bangordailynews.com.