Being over 1,500 miles away basking in the warmth of the Florida sunshine, I missed out on a weekend retreat to Albany Hunting Camp. The weekend excursion was a belated celebration of Groundhog Day – really any excuse would do – and a chance to get a little spring cleanup done before the mice move into camp for the summer.
All the photographs below were taken by Milt Inman, U.S. Hunting Today’s chief photographer. Captions are the original text by your’s truly.
In this photo, Milt Inman is making every attempt to convince the readers that he knows how to use a rake. You’ll notice a fire has been built in the outdoor fireplace. Those in attendance at camp cleanup want you to believe they are burning the debris that is being collected. It’s really in preparation for eating lunch.
This isn’t at all what it appears. What you have here are two Maine State employees. The one in uniform is obvious. Notice the pose, presenting himself as an authority on “rock placing”. The guy with the shovel, believe it or not, is an employee of the Maine Department of Transportation. The photo is completely staged as we all know no road foreman could ever find a use for a shovel except to lean on. The other guy in the photo is just plain retired. He has every right to stand there and laugh.
It looks to me like a moose must have taken his frustrations out on this fir tree. I would like to say it was one of those trophy Albany bucks that we raise there but even that’s a bit too big for a buck rub no matter how big he was.
One would think these guys in the field may be getting nervous thinking maybe it was hunting season already. Notice the intense staring of the one deer in the middle. He recognized the guy taking the picture and laughed knowing he had nothing to fear. See you next fall, deer!
Tom Remington
