Celtics ☘️ Sentinel

 I took my usual walk on Corser Brook Road in Errol, New Hampshire this morning, and I found something - if not alarming - then somewhat concerning . The woodland road is gated, but it can be accessed by those having a key to the lock. Roughly 100 yards past the gate I spotted a cell phone a yard or two off the logging road . It did not fall from a vehicle, but probably was thrown . About 50 feet further, I found a number of discarded drink cans (not an unusual sight) and a black bra . The bra definitely was not there on my walk yesterday , but the cell phone may have been - and I missed seeing it. As a former police investigator , it did not sit well . Here is an appraisal via AI : "Throwing a phone from a moving vehicle  typically occurs during intense arguments, as a form of domestic abuse or intense frustration, or accidentally . It is often a deliberate act of destruction to prevent communication, restrict tracking, or cause distress to a partner." I retrieved the phone...

 For those wondering what some folks in Northern New Hampshire do on a Sunday afternoon with temperatures in the single numbers, some northern inhabitants (not me) choose to retreat to their ice fishing shacks on the upper Androscoggin River . Ice shanties on the Androscoggin - photo by Linda Lane Some of thesse shelters are little more than an unheated tent, while the majority of shacks are made of wood - have various heating devices inside - and provide ample protection from the cold and wind. Photo by Linda Lane And if a tiny-but-heated shanty is not enough, some ice fishermen go all out and hit the ice in total comfort. Fish taken on the upper Androscoggin River include brook trout, rainbow trout, brown trout and bass. The ice fishing shacks are out there and very active - a sure sign that winter has taken the area in its grip. The number of shanties on the river north of Berlin, NH seems to have increased over the years. Done right, it is one way to ride out a bitter-cold ...

 The Androscoggin River in Northern New Hampshire has claimed yet another life. My wife, Linda, and I were returning from Massachusetts yesterday afternoon - and were only minutes from our home when we encountered a road block. The edge of the road was packed with emergency vehicles, and we were told that the road had been shut down due to a vehicle being spotted underwater mid-stream . We later found out that the vehicle contained yet another dead body claimed by the picturesque trout stream . As of this writing, the matter is still being investigated. Ironically, my wife and I were also driving on Route 16 in Errol in 2017 when a 19-year old cold case was solved. The truck and remains of a man reported missing 19 years prior was located and  we drove by as it was being pulled from the Androscoggin. Also, as recently was March of this year, a third vehicle and individual had suffered the same fate.  So, what's going on here?  Speed? Inattentiveness? Alcohol? Att...

 Most of us don't get to see the preparation and work that goes into a moose hunt in Northern New Hampshire, but yesterday my wife, Linda, and I ended our morning walk by spending four-and-one-half hours watching and talking to hunting guides and hunters after an 800-poiund moose had been shot and killed at a distance of 117 yards with a .338-caliber rifle.   This hunt was "done by the book", with the out-of-state hunters possessing the moose permit and hunting license . They were guided by a local New Hampshire guiding service that had scouted a vast wilderness close to our home in Errol, New Hampshire . The work getting the huge animal out of the woods was rigorous and required the labor of seven (7) men, tow straps and an all-terrain vehicle. The task required more than four hours clearing a trail, constantly shifting the moose carcass and gaining as little as six inches of progress at each attempt. After the moose was on the trailer, the recovery crew's first...