George Smith Wednesday, May 23, 2007

It is critically important that you ask permission to access private lands and thank the landowners afterwards for that privilege.

Did you put your kayak in the water at a privately owned waterfront site? Many kayakers and canoeists access Hopkins Stream in Mount Vernon at a site owned by my neighbors Ron and Nancy Larue. Very few ask permission and even fewer return to say thanks. Others leave their trash behind for us to pick up.

Although Mainers have the right to cross unimproved private land to access lakes and ponds, we don't have that same right of access to rivers, streams, and brooks. Ask first!

Did you cross my lawn to fish the brook behind the house? How about picking up some of the trash left by your fellow anglers? That would be appreciated, as well as stopping by to ask permission. I've never refused anyone but I like to know who is out there behind my house.

Two weeks ago, I found a potato chip bag alongside the brook, and left it there to see if anyone else would pick it up. Although dozens have fished the brook since then, not a one has stooped down to pick up and properly dispose of that bag. Unbelievable!

Did you stop somewhere to pick wildflowers, mushrooms or fiddleheads? Someone owns them! Find out who and ask permission. Imagine the frustration of a landowner who approaches his favorite patch of fiddleheads only to find someone has trespassed and stolen them.

I once saw a friend stopped beside my woodlot, picking my lilies that grew wild there. Never asked. And I never mentioned it. But it wasn't right.

Did you ride the mountain bike on a forest tote road? Find out who owns it and ask permission. Did you exercise the dogs on someone's camp road? How about thanking the road owner?

Did you hike up through someone's high field to look for warblers in a patch of pines and spruce? Wouldn't it be nice to stop by and let the landowner know what a splendid array of birds are living on his back forty?

This in fact happened to us when a neighbor, Dona Seegers, stopped in a couple of years ago to alert us to an amazing array of warblers that she was enjoying in the woods surrounding our home. Dona turned us into avid bird watchers, greatly enriching our lives.

Now, I look forward to seeing Dona walking along and through our woods, because I know it's time to get out there myself with the binoculars.

Unfortunately, the Maine tradition of land sharing is rapidly disappearing, for many reasons. Some landowners are fed up with the abuse of slobs who misuse that neighborly tradition of access.

Others -- especially folks who move here from areas where they don't have this tradition of sharing -- aren't comfortable with people walking around on their property. And some flat out don't like what we do out there.

It's disheartening to see these neighborly traditions falling by the wayside, and to ride for miles and see so much posted land, but I know this trend will not be reversed.

It's up to each of us to practice good landowner relations so that our favorite areas will remain accessible. Building a relationship with those who own land that you regularly access and enjoy is critical to keeping that land available to you -- especially if that land belongs to your own neighbors. Don't take their land for granted!

I have found that a lot of posted land can be accessed by asking the landowner politely for permission to access his or her land, explaining thoroughly what you plan to do and how and when you plan to do it, and thanking those landowners after enjoying that land. A thank you card and small gift is often appreciated.

As the neighborly tradition of sharing land continues to erode, the pleasures we find in other people's land can only be maintained by those magic words: please and thank you.

Try them out this weekend on some private landowner who blesses you with access to his or her land. Trust me. You'll be glad you took the time to do that.

George Smith is executive director of the Sportsman's Alliance of Maine. He lives in Mount Vernon and can be reached at george@samcef.org.