I don't hear much about Maine, other than there is lots of wilderness and it has moose and other big game.
Anyone have 1st hand experience hunting Maine.
Will it be difficult to find an outfitter?
Is the success per centage for large game over or under 50%.
Is a 6 day hunt the norm?

Bob,

I went for bear in Maine a few years ago.

6 days no Sunday hunting as I recall
easy to find an outfitter
we went 100% on bears
real good chance of harvesting a moose if you draw a tag, chance of drawing a tag about the same as winning the lottery.
deer are scarce from what I understand
cabins were nice, food was good, guides worked hard
I hunted with www.allagashguideservice.com

BigB

Bob,

As I live here perhaps I may be of service. A couple of hard winters have hurt the deer herd. Probably not your best bet for the next 5-10 years assuming normal winters and also assuming the Maine IF&W gets a workable coyote management plan in place.

In 2008 I saw a 540 lb bear tagged during my moose hunt. I think the DownEast section of the state is best right now. And yes, if you get drawn for a moose tag there are some excellent animals out there. Ducks and geese are very good ususally and the sea duck hunting is world class if that is your bowl of soup. Finally, grouse and woodcock are classic hunts here over dog.

And did I mention coyote??

Thanks guys,
My two sons are grown and married with theior own families, but I am hoping that a father-sons hunt might come to be in the not too distant future.

Bob,

I grew up in Maine and lived there until I was 34. I would never say the deer hunting was good there compared to other parts of the country. Hunter sucess even on the best years is quite low and and success on trophy bucks is just bleak. There are some very big deer in Maine. A Deer dressing out 250 lb. is not an anomalie but I would never expect to see one like that or get a shot at one.

Black bear hunting is good but you have to be careful who you book with. Outfitters are not equal in quality and success.

Mosse hunintg if you can draw is excellent. There are more moose in Maine than any other state other than Alaska. If you find an outfitter that is tuned into trophy hunting trhe big bulls are out there also.

Sea duck shooting on the coast is excellent with liberal bag limits.

In my mind I think applying for the moose tag in Maine is a good deal and a great deal if you draw. I honestly think you can find better bear hunting elsewhere and much better deer hunting.

Mark

Bob,

Two years ago I was able to draw a moose tag in Maine as a non-resident. It took 6 years to draw the tag and I feel lucky that it only took that long. The Moose hunting is Maine is wonderful (at least from my experience.) In my camp, there were two moose hunters and two moose taken. Mine was 45" and the other guy in camp shot a 50". I took mine in the first 30 minutes of the season.

From what I heard, the deer hunting is bleak at the moment because of the hard winters. At least that is what I was told from my guide.

Whatever you do, most definitely research your guides. From what I saw, Moose guides differ a lot. Many of the guides just drive around the logging roads looking for any moose to shoot from the road and I guess many clients are happy doing just that. I specifically searched out a guide, prior to applying for tags, that would get out and doing some hunting. I have also seen some buzz here on AR with some people complaining about some bears hunts they have been on in Maine.

Just my two cents into the conversation.

Been putting in for Moose for 14 years.

I spoke to a guide in northern ME a couple of years ago about a bear hunt.....when I asked him about deer he said "any guide that takes your money up here for a deer hunt is ripping you off". A bit of an exaggeration I'd guess but not far off. He also said he put in for moose 12 years in a row as a resident and hadn't been picked yet.

On a personal note, I deer hunted for 7 days with a guide out of Ellsworth with 2 buddies of mine back around 1988......none of us saw so much as a tail running away.

BUT.....great turkey, grouse and woodcock hunting.....good duck hunting inland and great on the coast......bear and moose go without saying.

Deer hunting in Maine is largely a waste of time unless you can get a doe tag, in which case you have a slight chance of getting something, depending on your location. I used to live in Maine, and one of the reasons that deer are so scarce is not the winters, but the people there. In some areas, virtually everyone poaches year round, and I've heard many tales of people shooting the warden's robotic deer, and having to pay the fine. They all seem to think that this is a big joke, yet they all whine about there not being any deer around anymore. That being said, I have seen some real monsters while driving around at night, but have never seen one while actually hunting. If I was a non resident looking to shoot a big deer, I would save my money and look elsewhere.

Much better deer hunting in upstate New York.

I've bird hunted each year for about 4 or so years. Grouse, woodcock are very good. Hunted deer in the North Woods - saw plenty of does but no bucks. The last few winters did great damage to the herd - 30 to 50% loss.

Bear baiting is legal and almost guaranteed. Moose is very good if you can get a tag. I gave up. Birds are great! A guide who can go into the woods and knows where cover is is a great asset.

If you go into the Great North Woods alone be sure you know your woodcraft!

Flies and Mosquitoes