Uplander's Choice Kennels

09/23/2026

Truth

Ruffed grouse are disappearing because of habitat loss, but the problem is we aren’t cutting enough trees. Grouse thrive in thick young forests created by logging, fire and other disturbance. As those areas mature and fewer forests are cut, that dense new growth disappears. Eastern grouse populations have fallen dramatically as a result.

That young growth also gives grouse protection from predators. Without thick cover, they’re more exposed to hawks, owls and predators such as foxes, coyotes and raccoons. Protecting wildlife doesn’t mean leaving a forest untouched, it means actively cutting and managing it so new habitat can grow.

— Stephen Ziegler
Outdoor writer | Rack Junkies Podcast

09/20/2026

09/17/2026

I feel like there’s a few people that need to hear this from a few things I’ve witnessed lately!!

That Maine Guide sticker is an accomplishment, not a badge of authority.

Just because we are licensed guides doesn’t mean we own the woods or the water. It doesn’t give us more rights than anyone else out there enjoying the outdoors. My guide license allows me to get paid to take people hunting, fishing, and recreating. That’s it.

It doesn’t give me the right to push people around on the water because I feel like my “privileges” as a guide make me more important. It doesn’t give me the right to yell at someone because they are in my way, especially when they were there first. And it certainly doesn’t give me ownership of any woods, lake, river, or piece of public land.

For me, that sticker represents something completely different. It represents years of work, a dream I was fortunate enough to turn into a career, and the opportunity to make a living doing what I love in the outdoors.

There are plenty of guides out there who understand this, and I’m proud to be one of them. We need to respect one another, whether we are guides, locals, visitors, or someone simply out enjoying a day on the water.

We all have the same right to enjoy the outdoors. Let’s treat each other with respect and band together instead of tearing each other apart.

That sticker is an accomplishment. It’s not a badge.

09/04/2026

There’s no excuse for this. Total of 9 five gallon buckets of spent shells, 23 empty water bottles, 18 energy drinks cans, countless ammo boxes, McDonald’s bags, pop tart wrappers and more. We only did 1/10th of the area. Can’t even imaging how much more is out there.

We come out here because we love wild places. We love the birds, the sunrises, the dogs working, the smell of gunpowder, and the memories made with friends and family.

So why leave our trash behind?

Every one of these empty shells was picked up off the ground after someone else was done hunting. It took me a few hours to grab them. It would’ve taken the person who fired them a few seconds.

Being a hunter means more than pulling a trigger. It means being a steward of the places that give us the opportunity to hunt.

Pick up your shells. Pick up your water bottles. Pick up your food wrappers. Heck, if you see someone else’s trash, grab that too.

Leave the field cleaner than you found it.

Because when a landowner, farmer, wildlife manager, or non-hunter comes through after us, this shouldn’t be what they remember about hunters.

We’re better than this.

Pack it in. Pack it out. Pick up your damn shells.

The future of hunting isn’t only determined by what happens when we pull the trigger. It’s determined by what we leave behind when we drive away.

08/26/2026

I have food for sale

08/21/2026

Never forget your mentor or how you, like everyone, started out on the bottom 🙌🏽

08/16/2026

The ultimate goal.