Guide seminar

I will be presenting two sessions at the Maine Becoming an Outdoors Woman introductory skills weekend in September. The program will be held September 18, 19, 20 at Camp Caribou in Winslow. I have been fortunate to have been involved with this program off and on since it was started in Maine in the early 1990’s and always enjoy the positive attitude and curiosity that the participants bring to each session. Not to mention lunch is usually worth the trip.

The sessions I will be offering are.

One of my basic beliefs has been challenged. I have firmly believed that good design really matters to business. This spring Maine Outdoors went from using brochures that I designed and had an almost homemade look to a four color version done by someone that I consider a very good designer. The images were critical so I also used a professional photographer.

I received a letter today from Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Deputy Commissioner Paul Jacques asking me to serve on a working group on Guides formed by the Department to recommend any changes that are needed to the definition of a Registered Maine Guide. We will review the outdoor recreational activities that currently are offered for a fee in Maine. Then determine if any that do not currently require a guides license should.

Just returned from the University of Rhode Island where I attended new student orientation with my youngest son. The overall experience was excellent. They did a great job of building a bond with the students and the families. On the parent end they did a great job of explaining the realities of having a child go away to school.

Over the years I have developed some great relationships with my clients. We both enjoy each other’s company and look forward to spending time together each summer or fall. Sometimes I have gone the extra mile for them to make a trip truly memorable or special, a birthday cake, a visit to an out of the way place that I know they will appreciate or something as simple as driving to their hotel with a forgotten jacket or pair of sunglasses.

Saturday was the most recent guide small business seminar. Attendance we light and there were several last minute cancellations. I prefer a bigger group as it generates a wider range of discussions and topics. Still I enjoyed the day very much and am certain that the folks attending learned more than enough to justify spending a cold winter day indoors and paying the registration fee. As always the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine Conference center was perfect for the seminar.

As you may remember I was appointed by Governor Baldacci to the task force to on Maine’s Natural Resource Agencies. We met throughout the summer and fall and completed a variety of tasks outside of meetings. At the end of the process there was only one proposal with much support. The proposal put forward by the Natural Resource Network had the support of more than half of the task force members. But because we were operating under consensus rules voting on various proposals was not done.

I was interested to read that a legislative committee has held hearings on whether it is difficult for Maine small businesses to get loans in the current environment. Here is the article in Tuesday’s Portland Press Herald.  

Over the years I have worked alongside a number of other guides and during the last couple of seasons I have hired a few to help with large groups or when Maine Outdoors has multiple trips going. Most of them are great folks to work with and understand that the primary goal is for clients to have a good time while being safe. Some of them do not understand that being a guide is actually work and that being successful takes more than a license from the state.

Sometimes I have a few odd minutes to fill and am always on the lookout for something fun and useful to do with the time. I was sent a link to a lecture on TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) that I found interesting. So I spent some time checking it out and discovered that the talks can be downloaded as Podcasts and loaded onto my iPod. I had to wait for the Yukon to be repaired yesterday and the casts were a perfect way to fill the hour or so that the repair took.