Pleasant Mountain in Bridgton holds a very special place in my heart, and I’ve taken great joy in watching its metamorphosis at Shawnee Peak under the careful and inspired guidance of Chet Homer and Ed Rock.

In the fall, I had high hopes for a winter with tons of northern finches. Red spruce, balsam fir, tamarack and eastern hemlock trees were producing bumper crops of cones. These so-called mast years occur sporadically, and different tree species do not necessarily have mast years in the same years. The winter was shaping up as a marvelous smorgasbord for the finches that depend on conifer cones for their main food.

My family’s first-aid kit has seen plenty of action over the years. The tweezers have regularly removed ticks and the baby wipes have saved us from poison ivy outbreaks. The plastic card has earned a permanent place in our kit since we discovered its leech removal abilities, and we always carry small bottles of meat tenderizer and Benadryl after our run-in with yellow jackets.

March in Maine can be maddening for those who enjoy the outdoors. It can be spectacular, or just as easily, downright miserable. As we have already experienced this March, you can have sunny days in the 50s, a foot of snow, deluges of rain and these can all come in the same week.

Like a lot of weekend skiers, my quiver of skis is only one pair deep. The idea of a single “all mountain” ski is a tough one to nail down — especially here on the weather-variable East Coast — but it’s a more affordable option than different skis for every condition.

The Maine Snowmobile Association is supporting L.D. 1613, “An Act To Strengthen the Relationship between Land Users and Landowners,” sponsored by Rep. Andre Cushing, (R- Hampden), as initiated by the Small Woodlot Owners Association of Maine (SWOAM).

Spring sounds start in earnest this month and pick up momentum in April, and the angle of the sun’s rays dictate the timing of nature’s canorous and at times cacophonous timetable.

It’s thrilling to see an unusual bird. Who is not excited about the chance to see a snowy owl or an American oystercatcher in Maine? Yet there is the potential to experience wonder in watching our common birds.

Just last week, skiers and riders could have used a reminder that although their lawns were bare, Maine’s ski areas were still well covered with snow.