The spring that never was, at least that's the prediction as of late from the weather prophets. As we dream of warm spring air and fear it may never again appear through the snow drifts, the maple sugar industry is just wishing the sap would run. It’s awful hard to boil sap without any sap.

Deer yards, or deer wintering areas, are a critical component of deer survival in Maine. Nearly 15 years ago, in an article about the status of Maine’s deer yards, I wrote this: As state biologists prepare Maine's next 15-year plan for deer management, which is due to be approved early this year, deer wintering habitat (deer yards) has become the focal point. Over the past decade, there has been a marked decline in deer wintering areas, especially in Northern and Eastern Maine where deer populations are down.

Are we about to see another state tax transfer millions of Maine cigarette smokers’ dollars into government programs said to help Mainers stop, or not start, smoking cigarettes? Maine legislators sponsoring LD 945 "An Act To Reduce the Burden of Tobacco-related Illness by Increasing Revenue from the Cigarette Tax for Use for Tobacco Cessation" want to increase state taxes to $3.50 on each pack of 20 cigarettes, effective November 1, 2017.

On the evening of Sunday, April 2, after an amazing weekend at the District Educational Convention in Springfield Mass., students from Dexter, Foxcroft Academy, Greenville and Penquis Valley Key Clubs were were given a surprise escort by the Dexter Fire Department. Fire trucks met the bus at the town line with sirens blazing escorting the students on buses to Dexter Regional High School.

Join us for a morning birdwalk as we explore springtime birds at the Law Farm. On Saturday, April 22 the Piscataquis County Soil & Water Conservation District (PCSWCD) will be hosting birding expert Bob Duchesne for a free birdwalk starting at 8 a.m.

This week, I’d like to talk about the lake trout fishery on Moosehead Lake. We spend quite a bit of our time working on Maine’s largest lake.

The Thompson Free Library has several events planned for this month, and now more than ever, your local library is a vital resource when it comes to learning, community involvement, personal development and family entertainment.

Trooper Dylan Hall is one of the eight new Maine State Police troopers, who graduated from the Maine Criminal Justice Academy on April 7. Trooper Hall has been assigned to Troop E, Piscataquis and Penobscot counties.

Dexter Dover Area Towns in Transition (DDATT) continues its monthly workshop series with “Repair Café,” on Saturday April 15 at the Abbott Memorial Library from 10 a.m. until noon.

Piscataquis Community High School junior Bryce Gilbert and Greenville High School junior Nick Foley were both recognized by the Bangor Daily News by receiving honorable mention recognition on the 62nd BDN All-Maine Schoolboy Basketball Team.