As a Registered Maine Guide for 35 years, Jim Stepp didn’t set out to change the way people hunt, but if the inquiries coming from Scotland and England are any indication, his newest invention could do just that.

Stepp said the simple joint he created in the past year to improve the performance of a traditional bow that can be taken apart will make those bows more stable.

With these bows, performance depends upon them being tightly strung, and even when they are, they still are apt to make noise, which is a problem in hunting. Stepp said his joint, which connects the two pieces of the bow, makes no noise and remains secure even when the bow is unstrung.

“I have a take-down bow, but it requires a tool. There is always the possibility that you will lose a tool or a screw. I thought this would be a nifty idea,” said the South Casco hunter.

Stepp used to spend most of his time guiding on Sebago Lake before lake trout were introduced there, during a time when the salmon were more plentiful. But as the ecology of the lake changed, his interests changed, and he began to work full time as an inventor of hunting products. His new business has proven more volatile than tourism, but Stepp isn’t sorry for the switch.

During the past five years, his Steppladder, the tree stand he made to allow hunters an advantage in stalking big game in the woods, has sold well at retailers such as L.L. Bean and Kittery Trading Post, and in stores as far away as Michigan. But Stepp believes his new invention, which is little more than a stainless steel bolt, will do better, because it could revolutionize the way take-down bows are made and used.

Stepp, who doesn’t yet have a patent, brought a prototype bow to show at sportsmen’s shows in Maryland and Pennsylvania last spring. Since then, he has had the manufacturers of traditional take-down bows calling him to purchase his joints, companies such as Selway Archery in Montana, and more specialized bow makers.

“I think there is a resurgence in traditional equipment. It’s always been there. But in recent years, I think more people are shooting recurve bows,” Stepp said of the movement away from the more modern compound bows. “The simplicity of the gear is appealing.”

Youth club begins in Old Town

At an outdoor sports forum held a year ago at the Old Town Public Library, Rep. Matt Dunlap, D-Old Town, asked those in attendance what they thought about starting a rod and gun club for the area, after years of hearing sportsmen suggest the idea. What came out of the query was a project far beyond what Dunlap expected.

“People had talked about youth programs. [Warden] Dave [Georgia] had the idea to focus on a youth club,” Dunlap said. “The idea caught fire. It’s been hard to keep up with it.”

Dunlap said International Paper donated a perpetual free lease around Pickerel Pond in Township 32 near Milford. Northern Log Home has donated a building, and Army National Guard engineers have offered to build a shooting range, although Dunlap said that with the nation’s current military efforts concentrated on Afghanistan, he didn’t expect that volunteer effort to be made any time soon.

However, he expects the building to be built by next June. Before it is, details on the structure of the club, its membership, and the obvious need for adult leadership will need to be worked out. Dunlap said the Youth and Gun Club would be open to all youth, not just those around Old Town.

A public meeting on the fledgling club will be held at 6 p.m. Sunday in the very place where the idea for it was born: the Old Town Public Library.

No smelt dipping at East Grand

Smelt dipping was a favorite pastime at East Grand Lake in Washington and Aroostook counties until a recently passed regulation made it illegal. The rule was passed to protect the population, which is a primary food source for landlocked salmon. However, DIF&W fisheries biologist Mike Smith said he will replace that lost opportunity with other smelt dipping options on other bodies of water.

This time of year, Smith is busy trap netting live fish to inspect them, and the 70 or so landlocked salmon he caught in East Grand are in excellent shape. He said one reason why the fish are doing well is because of the landlocked alewives there. Another is the smelts. Both are food for salmon.

Since the landlocked alewives are prone to population declines and the smelt population has dropped so severely, Smith said something needed to be done to assure the salmon continue to do well. Improving the ailing smelt population was a good way.

“It only makes sense,” Smith said of the regulation passed in September. “You can’t catch them anyway. Now I’m wondering what can I do to replace the smelt fishery [for the public].”

Smith said his fear is that smelt dippers will flock to other popular lakes and in other places hurt the population of smelts, a favorite forage of salmon. He said this was the only reason he didn’t recommend a regulation doing away with smelt dipping in East Grand sooner.

Landowners lauded

The DIF&W landowner relations program has named several landowners of the year, including local entities and businesses such as the town of Bucksport, Hancock Lumber Co., Penobscot Forest Service, and Irving Woodlands LLC.

Nominations were made by local snowmobile, ATV, and sporting clubs, which enjoy access to their land.

The state makes a point of thanking landowners because that is the crux of its campaign to open new lands. Lack of access is often called the state’s biggest problem facing the sporting public.

Deirdre Fleming’s outdoor notebook appears every Saturday in the NEWS. She can be reached at dfleming@bangordailynews.net or at 990-8250.