A Truly Rare Opportunity: Renowned North Woods Guides to Lead Winter Programs for Maine Audubon

At Borestone Mountain Audubon Sanctuary, Garrett and Alexandra Conover Will Teach Traditional Outdoor Skills They’ve Learned Over 30 Years

ELLIOTSVILLE, Maine, November 17, 2008—How often does anyone have the chance to spend a winter weekend in the largest undeveloped woodlands east of the Mississippi, guided by two internationally renowned Registered Maine Guides, and sleeping in an historic forest uncut for more than a century?

The answer? Not often.

In a first-time collaboration with Maine Audubon, Registered Maine Guides Garrett and Alexandra Conover will lead three residential programs in January and February, teaching traditional outdoor skills at 1,600-acre Borestone Mountain Audubon Sanctuary. Just south of Moosehead Lake and Greenville, Maine, the sanctuary is a North Woods gem with woods, water, wildlife, and mountain-summit views that have awed people for generations.

Highlights from the three programs—January 9-11, January 16-18, and February 13-15—include snowshoe treks, making mukluk moccasins, baking the trailside bread bannock, learning to recognize bird song and other signs of animals in winter, and spending the night on Onawa Lake in the shadow of Borestone Mountain.

REPORTERS/EDITORS: Full descriptions for these programs are listed at the end of this release.

As owner-operators of North Woods Ways guiding service, the Conovers have gained international renown by devoting 30 years to learning and practicing traditional outdoor skills, and sharing their love of nature through traditional outdoor treks in the wildest areas remaining in the Northeast.

Stories about them have been featured frequently on television and in more than 40 publications, including books and national and international magazines. Together, they have written the definitive winter camping guide Snow Walker’s Companion. Garrett also has written the canoeing guide Beyond the Paddle, and the award-winning children’s book Kristin’s Wilderness.

Those guided by the Conovers observe and learn what Garrett and Alexandra describe as “the finer skills of comfortable outdoor living and travel.” In winter, the two teach participants the sub-arctic travel methods of native people—snowshoeing on frozen waterways while hauling equipment by sled and camping in canvas wall tents. In summer, they lead group canoe trips, paddling rivers and lakes and baking bread each day by the campfire.

“We’re very excited to work with Maine Audubon to provide new programs designed for the beautiful mountainside sanctuary of Borestone,” said Alexandra Conover. “Borestone Mountain has always been a special place for us, and it’s the perfect setting for the outdoor skills and knowledge we want to share.”

To register for these programs or for more information, please call Maine Audubon’s registrar at (207) 781-2330, ext. 215.

BORESTONE MOUNTAIN AUDUBON SANCTUARY encompasses more than 1,600 acres of forest uncut for more than a century, exposed mountain summits and three ponds, as well as a seasonal nature center and Adirondack-style lodges. It is located in Elliotsville, Maine, a 30-minute drive south of Moosehead Lake in Greenville.

MAINE AUDUBON works to conserve Maine’s wildlife and wildlife habitat by engaging people of all ages in education, conservation and action.

TRIP DESCRIPTIONS:

Mukluk Madness Weekend
Friday, January 9-Sunday, January 11
Join traditional Registered Maine Guides Alexandra and Garrett Conover for winter fun, snowshoeing, and making the warmest winter footgear there is—the breathable leather and canvas mukluk moccasin. We’ll be comfortably based in a cozy log camp and heated wall tent on pristine Sunset Pond at the 1,600-acre Borestone Mountain Audubon Sanctuary, just south of Greenville, Maine. Saturday night features homegrown music and chocolate fondue a la Borestone. Price includes meals beginning Friday night, camping gear (not personal gear), mukluk materials, and leadership fee, but participants should bring felt liners for their moccasins.

$395/Maine Audubon member; $425/nonmember
Limited to 10 participants
Advance registration necessary; please call (207) 781-2330, ext. 215.

Borestone Bannock Bake-off
Friday, January 16 to Sunday, January 18
Take part in a real Maine North Woods adventure! You’ll snowshoe into the heart of a stunning forest uncut for more than a century, where Registered Maine Guides Alexandra and Garrett Conover will help you hone your ability to recognize North Woods trees and bird song and other winter signs of animals. You’ll spend the night in a wood-heated traditional wall tent or authentic log cabin, and learn to bake bannock, a nutritious, easy-to-make trail bread. (Hot out of the fry pan and slathered with butter, you’ll understand why snowshoers-in-the-know eat well on the trail.) We’ll supply the snowshoes and flour; you provide your curiosity and cooking enthusiasm for this fun-filled weekend in the 1,600-acre Borestone Mountain Audubon Sanctuary, just south of Greenville, Maine. Price includes all meals beginning Friday night, accommodations, equipment, and leadership fee.

$375/Maine Audubon member; $395/nonmember
Limited to 10 participants
Advance registration necessary; please call (207) 781-2330, ext. 215

Winter Camping the North Woods Way
Friday, February 13 to Sunday, February 15
Don’t be left out in the cold! Join Registered Maine Guides Garrett and Alexandra Conover for this fun-filled weekend in the heart of the North Woods. Come to Borestone Mountain Audubon Sanctuary to learn warm winter camping skills using traditional wood-heated canvas wall tents, woodstoves, and toboggans. Highlights of your introduction to winter camping include learning or improving your snowshoeing techniques, making nourishing and gourmet trail foods, learning to tell time by the stars, finding tracks and other signs of animals in winter, and spending the night in a heated wall tent on Onawa Lake. Price includes meals beginning Friday night, camping equipment (not personal gear), and leadership fee.

$375/Maine Audubon member; $395/nonmember
Limited to 10 participants
Advance registration necessary; please call (207) 781-2330, ext. 215

MAINE AUDUBON works to conserve Maine’s wildlife and wildlife habitat by engaging people of all ages in education, conservation and action. For more than 160 years, Maine Audubon has been connecting people with nature and leading science-based conservation in major projects across the state. An independent affiliate of Audubon’s national organization, Maine Audubon has seven local chapters, 11 nature centers and sanctuaries, and 11,000 members and supporters.

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