Our little section of Maine has become a hot bed for oyster beds. I’m sure there is a scientific reason for that, but that’s above my pay grade. All I know is that everywhere you look, there’s another oyster farm and retail outlet. As such, oyster prices are very reasonable. That seems to be the case most places, because the oyster industry’s main outlet for sales, restaurants, has, understandably, seriously shrunk. While I feel bad for the oysterers, we, the consumers, benefit from lower prices. Sam Sifton in The New York Times wrote about that phenomenon this week in his article, Know Your Food. Among other things, Sam encourages you…

Six years ago, my friend Shellie and I followed through on a promise to hike the entire New Jersey section of the Appalachian Trail (“AT”), thinking that it would be a simple endeavor. We soon learned that New Jersey is longer than wider; the trail measured 72 miles, and when done, in single day hikes of 7-10 miles, would take us four years to complete. A feat that we finally accomplished two summers ago! Happily, the journey gave us many gifts. First of all, we both fell in love with the AT. We quickly learned to trust and treasure the perfectly placed white blazes and the carefully crafted footholds through…

Rippers have to learn to be flexible when weather conditions interfere with plans.  So when monsoon rains prevented me from teeing off one morning with my friends, I headed for the pond, rod in hand. One of my goals has been to catch a fish with a fly.  Ever since I saw the film, A River Runs Through It, I have longed to recreate the river scenes with me as the leading actor. Luckily, I have access to prime trout streams both in Utah and the Pocono Mountains.  A while back, pre-Covid, I took advantage of a three-day clinic for women given by the High Country Fly Fishers, a chapter of Trout Unlimited. Patient…