Deer season begins in earnest next week

Where to tag your deer, plus how ‘Big Bucks for Big Trucks’ aims to raise money for Penobscot fire truck purchase

Oct. 27, 2026

By Maizy Weirich

Brian Wells weighed a buck he shot with a crossbow at Northern Bay Market’s new weigh-in station. Photo courtesy of Jamie MacNair.

Maine’s firearms hunting season begins Nov. 2, and businesses, hunters, and local preserves are preparing for the action.

For everyone’s safety this hunting season, individuals and pets should be wearing blaze orange while in the woods and preserves. Extensive firearm and general safety tips from Maine’s Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife can be found here.

While 94% of Maine’s forested land is privately owned, over half of that is open for public use under an implied permission structure, according to the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. That means that if a land owner does not post the property with “no hunting” signs, it is legal to access the land for “non-destructive recreational activity,” including hunting.

However, the department also strongly urges people to obey the “unwritten rule.”

“Always ask permission. Hunting, fishing, or otherwise using private land without the owner's permission is a careless move that puts everyone's future access at risk,” the department says on its website.

Local land trusts have preserves open for hunting under state guidelines. 

Island Heritage Trust’s preserves allow hunting, with the exception of the Lisa Tolman Wotton Nature Preserve on Little Deer Isle. The trust asks that anyone planning to hunt on any of its properties email iht@islandheritagetrust.org. 

“The biggest thing we hope for people who are hunting is that they understand that the property is still open to other recreational activities, so safety is our biggest concern,” said Alex Drenga, IHT’s conservation director, in an email to The Rising Tide.

Hunting is allowed on Blue Hill Heritage Trust properties except for the Carter Nature Preserve and the Furth, Talalay and Roberson Sanctuaries. The trust asks that hunters read their hunting and trapping policy, as well as complete an online registration found on its website. 

Great Pond Mountain Conservation Trust has its conservation and recreational land open for hunting, secured by the Land For Maine’s Future grant program. Hunters must walk into the preserve, as ATVs and vehicles are prohibited. Hunting is not permitted within 100 feet of maintained gravel roads, campsites, or parking lots. For more guidelines, read the trust’s policy and fill out an application on this form.

Maine Coast Heritage Trust allows hunting on nearly all preserves in accordance with state and local laws. However, the website does say to check in with specific reserve guidelines before hunting because some are "limited to specific species, manner of hunting, or are restricted to by-permission only.”

Interested in sharing some hunting stories at the break of dawn? The Brooksville Community Center is hosting their 2026 Hunters Breakfast on Saturday, Nov. 14 from 7:30 to 11 a.m. Buck's Mills Rod & Gun Club in Bucksport will also be hosting their annual Hunters Breakfast on Halloween, from 4 to 9 a.m. 

New weigh station and Big Bucks Contest 

State law requires hunters to register their deer at a designated tagging station. 

The market’s first youth weigh-in by London (left) and Sean Danforth on Friday, Oct. 23. Photo courtesy of Jamie MacNair.

There are three tagging stations on the Blue Hill Peninsula: Northern Bay Market in Penobscot, which exclusively tags deer, the Surry Market in Surry, and Bay Shakers Bakery in Brooklin. 

New this year, Northern Bay Market has installed a weighing station for deer, which is part of a fundraising effort called “Big Bucks for Big Trucks” to benefit the Penobscot Fire Department. 

“The fire department reached out. They’re trying to earn money for the new fire truck, so we decided to partner with them to do a weigh-in contest. So the biggest buck wins,” said Jamie MacNair, owner of Northern Bay Market. 

There is a $25 entry fee for adults and a $20 fee for the youth contest, as well as an additional $5 to actually tag the deer per state regulations. The $5 tagging fee will go to the market, while the rest of the proceeds will go to the fire department, MacNair said. 

Prizes for the “Big Buck Contest” adult winner include a hunting blind and hunting gear. The youth winner will receive a game camera and hunting gear.