Dorian receives promotion Daughter pins lieutenant bars on fellow game warden

Game Warden Sgt. Pat Dorian was promoted to the rank of lieutenant during a brief ceremony on Tuesday.

Dorian received his lieutenant bars and badge from Wdn. Christl Theriault, who is also his daughter.

Dorian has been a game warden for 30 years, and replaces Bill Allen, who retired after 33 years of service. Dorian will oversee the northern division of the Maine Warden Service, which stretches from Fort Kent to Bangor. He will oversee 57 wardens.

Dorian was a lieutenant in the Moosehead region until July of 2003, when the warden service reorganized and five existing divisions were reduced to two divisions.

Dorian oversees the Maine Warden Service Incident Command Team, which conducts search and rescue operations.

“Lieutenant Dorian is well-known for his energy and his enthusiasm. His knowledge and skill in the area of search and rescue is second to none,” said Col. Tom Santaguida, the chief of the Maine Warden Service.

Colonel’s outdoor tip

Col. Tom Santaguida, the chief of the Maine Warden Service, offers a weekly tip as part of the Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife’s weekly report. This week’s tip:

Each year many people go spring fishing for trout or salmon and keep some of their catch with the best intentions of having a fish fry or a wonderful fish meal; unfortunately, each year some of those fish get tossed into a ziploc bag, thrown in the freezer and end up being discarded after getting freezer burned.

If you decide to keep part of your catch, it’s your responsibility as a sportsman or sportswoman to respect your catch and care for it carefully and promptly. So here are a few tips regarding keeping fish:

. Plan ahead. All fish are far better fresh than frozen. So, think carefully and plan so that you can eat the fish fresh without freezing them. If you don’t have some plans for your catch, it might be a good idea to decide ahead of time to catch and release.

. Keep fish moist. If brook fishing, the old practice of placing wet ferns in your creel is an excellent way to keep fish wet and fresh. If in a boat, bring a small cooler with ice. This is far superior to keeping fish in a bucket of water or on a stringer, which can make their flesh mushy.

. Dress your fish promptly. If you decide to keep a fish, regulations require that it must be killed immediately. Afterward, it is a good idea to dress it immediately. Make sure you scrape the blood off of the backbone inside the cavity. This will enhance the quality.

. Again, bring ice. Regardless of the time of year, during open-water fishing season, a small lunch cooler with ice to store your fish while fishing in a boat or on the way home from fishing a stream or lake will greatly enhance the quality of your catch.

. If you do decide to freeze your catch there are a couple of good ways to do this. One way is to wrap the fish or fish fillets tightly in plastic wrap removing all the air. Then, next wrap the fish in good freezer paper and tape it up tight. Last, place the fish in a freezer grade ziploc bag, removing all the air. I still recommend eating the fish sooner than later.

A second method that works well with small fish such as small brook trout: Place the fish in a plastic or cardboard milk carton and fill with water enough to cover the fish completely but leave enough room for ice to expand. Simply place the carton in the freezer. The ice will completely cover the fish and protect them from freezer burn.

Finally, if you do decide to keep some of your catch, make the most out of it and take care of fish properly or consider catch and release.

To submit an item for publication in the Outdoor Notebook, send e-mail to jholyoke@bangordailynews.net, fax to 990-8092 or mail information to Outdoor Notebook, Bangor Daily News, PO Box 1329, Bangor, Maine, 04402-1329.