Junior Maine Guide Program Information
Junior Maine Guide (ages 14-18), Maine Woodsman (ages 12-14), Junior Maine Woodsman (ages 9-12) programs are joint programs of the Maine Youth Camping Association and the Maine Inland Fisheries & Wildlife Department.
Knowing the historical reputation of the "Registered Maine Guide", it is a little unusual, but true, that the testing of hands-on outdoor living skills such as setting up a campsite, fire building, axemanship, building shelters (hanging tarps) properly, (knots!), and cooking over an open fire (to name a few), are not part of the testing of a Registered Maine Guide by the Maine Warden Service. Reality has it that the testing of these skills takes days and with hundreds of Registered Maine Guide applicants each year, the Maine Warden Service does not have the resources to test guide applicants to that level. Therefore, as I described earlier, the core of the Registered Maine Guide testing is on 1. safety and 2. adherence to applicable laws (boating, ATV, snowmobile, fishing, hunting, trapping).
This leads to a description of the excellent programs of Junior Maine Guide (ages 14-18), Maine Woodsman (ages 12-14), and Junior Maine Woodsman (ages 9-12) put on as a joint effort between the Maine Youth Camping Association and the Maine Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Department. These programs teach and test a wide range of hands-on outdoor living skills that will eventually be core competencies of a Registered Maine Guide! For example, after weeks or a whole summer of learning outdoor living skills and taking trips with a Maine Youth Camp that has one or all of these youth programs, there is a testing camp for each program level for interested candidates. The Junior Maine Guide testing camp is five days long with testers who are Registered Maine Guides. These programs focus on the outdoor living skills that are consistent with the Registered Maine Guide "Recreation" license that is mostly involved with outdoor trips. Although fishing is one area covered at a basic level in the Junior Maine Guide program, these programs do not train hunting or trapping skills.
Included below are brief descriptions of each of these youth programs and the outdoor skills that are associated with each level. If you are interested in having a child attend a Maine Youth Camp that has one or all of these programs, check out this website's listings and links to participating Maine Youth Camps. Also, go to the Maine Youth Camping Association website at www.mainecamps.org
In closing here, if you can find a Registered Maine Guide who has passed the Junior Maine Guide testing camp, you know you have a guide with good outdoor living skills!
Junior Maine Guide (JMG) Program (ages 14-18):
The Junior Maine Guide (JMG) program, enacted by the Maine Legislature in 1937, is a joint program between the Maine Youth Camping Association and the Maine Inland Fisheries & Wildlife Dept. For young men and women ages 14-18, the JMG program teaches outdoor living skills considered as fundamental for a Registered Maine Guide. Interestingly, the JMG program which is taught in Maine Youth Camps is not well known amidst the general population of Registered Maine Guides. It is however, a program that teaches the foundational skills that should be common to every Registered Maine Guide. Several youth camps in Maine offer JMG, MW, and JMW programs. See this website for descriptions and links to Maine Youth Camps that run JMG, MW, and JMW programs.
The elements of the JMG program are divided into "Majors" and "Minors" as follows:
| Major | Minor |
|---|---|
| Axe Skills | Backpacking |
| Canoeing | Environmental Awareness |
| Cooking | Equipment Knowledge |
| Encampment | Fires |
| First Aid | Fire Building |
| Individual Fireplace | Fishing |
| Individual Shelter | General Safety/Weather |
| Map of Area | Swimming |
| Map of Maine | Trees |
| Topographical Map | Wilderness Regulations |
| Trip Equipment |
If in the future a JMG goes on to become licensed as a Registered Maine Guide, he or she will have proven skills necessary to confidently take out trips in the great Maine outdoors!
On a historical note, the first consecutive generations of Junior Maine Guides include Norman Saunders Sr. (~1946 Camp Winona), Norm Saunders (~1969 Camp Winona), and Chris Saunders (~1984 Camp Oatka).
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Maine Woodsman (MW) Program (ages 12-14):
The Maine Woodsman (MW) Program is similar to the JMG program, but for youths ages 12-14.
Having gone through this program myself and later taught the program as a camp counselor, I can attest to the powerful and positive influence it can have on ones life later on. My fundamental outdoor skills were learned through this program.
The Maine Woodsman Program is made of the following training modules, at age appropriate levels:
| Tool Craft | Maine Issues & Environmental Concerns |
| Canoeing | Fire Building |
| Individual Shelter and Fireplace | Trees |
| Map & Compass | Hiking & Backpacking |
| Map of Maine | Leave No Trace Camping |
| Trip Equipment | Outdoor Living Skills (General Knowledge) |
| First Aid/Wilderness First Aid | Cooking |
| Group Encampment |
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Junior Maine Woodsman (JMW) Program (ages 9-12):
The Junior Maine Woodsman (JMW) Program is also similar to the JMG program, but for youths ages 9-12.
The Junior Maine Woodsman Program is made of the following training modules, at age appropriate levels:
| Tool Craft | Maine Issues & Environmental Concerns |
| Canoeing | Fire Building |
| Individual Shelter and Fireplace | Trees |
| Map & Compass | Hiking & Backpacking |
| Map of Maine | Leave No Trace Camping |
| Trip Equipment | Outdoor Living Skills (General Knowledge) |
| First Aid/Wilderness First Aid | Cooking |
| Group Encampment |
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