Coyotes And The Aroostook River...

By Sean Fagan

The early morning sun was already warm as I finished a brief swim and started to dry myself upon a large, flat rock that protruded above the languid waters of the Aroostook river.

While resting on the rock I heard a noise...

Two adult white-tail deer and a fawn emerged from the vegetation and approached the river's edge to slake their wild thirst.

The sun was behind my back and a slight breeze blew across my face, so the deer, even though quite near, were oblivious to my presence.

So near, I could see sunshine glint off their dark, wary eyes.

To cap off the moment - an osprey flew by, its strong talons grasping a large fish that flashed a brilliant silver in the dawning sun.

Moments like these were not that uncommon near my camp - and it's moments like these that can help an individual to tolerate, enjoy even, the simplicity and peace the comes with living in basic conditions in truly wild country.

The Eastern Coyote

Call of the Wild

The banks of wilderness rivers, especially of large rivers such as the Aroostook - with their varied, riparian vegetation, are usually wildlife-rich habitats.

There was one animal which frequented the banks of the Aroostook that particularly intrigued me - the Eastern coyote (Canis latrans var.).

The Eastern coyote is a larger, darker-coloured relative of the Western coyote and is often mistakenly identified as a wolf.

Although I had seen coyotes only once in Maine, I certainly heard them with greater frequency.

During the night, I would often hear their evocative, nocturnal howls while lying in bed.

To hear such iconic, primal sounds emanating from the depths of a wilderness at night, was simply incredible.

And that is one of the great things about dwelling outdoors, living bushcraft…it enables the individual to tap into a way of being that is simple, vivid and dynamic.

It's a way of being I cannot recommend enough - however temporary.

Front (right of photo) and rear coyote tracks on the banks of the Aroostook river, Maine, USA (photo: Sean Fagan).

It's my belief that most of humankind still retains a fascination for wild places - that there is within many of us, a desire to have adventure in wild places - so we can satiate some ancient pull within us for the inspiring freedom of wild places.

Of course, I'm not encouraging a reckless attitude towards the outdoors.

Appropriate training, practise and experience (as well as a cautious attitude) is required for wild places that are rugged and remote.

But these wild regions are there for us to visit - places where we can soak our very being into its reassuring, timeless rhythm.

There is a peace, a solidity, that comes with living close to nature - that simultaneously expands and calms the human spirit.

As John Muir so eloquently expressed...

."you lose consciousness of your own separate existence: you blend with the landscape, and become part and parcel of nature".

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