Room rates are $95 per night including tax, single or double. It is up to you to make room reservations. For reservations at The Bethel Inn Resort call 1-800-654-0125 or 1-207-824-2175. Let the reservationists know you are with the New England Outdoor Writers Association. Deadline for room registration is May 1. To learn more about The Bethel Inn Resort, visit www.bethelinn.com. Also, dogs are welcome at $10 per dog, per night.
   Check-in time is anytime after noon. You can bring your own boat, canoe or kayak if you wish. Bring a bathing suit for use at the pool and spa and golf clubs if you would like to play a round. Check-out time is 1 p.m. If you need a late check-out let the front desk know. The Bethel Inn Resort will honor the room rate if you want to arrive early to attend Friday’s Upper Androscoggin Float Stocking or stay after the safari.
   For those who are interested in participating in the float stocking, please contact Wende Gray at fish@upperandro.com or 1-207-824-3694 to reserve your spot. Any writers interested in guided drift-boat trips on the Androscoggin or in need of a guide for other activities on Saturday should also contact Wende. Please make arrangements by May 1.
  
LICENSES
   Hunting and fishing licenses will be available for purchase at the conference from Sun Valley Sports at the established Maine Inland Fisheries & Wildlife fee.
   NEOWA Active Members who are nonresidents of Maine should contact the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife for information on complimentary license guidelines. Call Deborah Turcotte at Public Information and Education, (207) 287-6008, or  e-mail deborah.turcotte@maine.gov. To be sure you receive your license through the mail before the conference, please send your license request by April 1.
  
   Bethel borders New Hampshire and members who are planning to fish or turkey hunt there should contact New Hampshire Fish and Wildlife for license information.

Friday, May 21
7:30-8:30 a.m.: Breakfast for those attending the float stocking (cost is included for those staying Thursday night, $12 for others)
9 a.m.: Float Stocking Upper Andro; put-in at Gilead. Bag lunch compliments of the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance.
4 p.m.: Gibson Room, Briefing by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife on its float-stocking program.
6 p.m.: Mill Brook Terrace, Outdoor BBQ with chicken and ribs, coleslaw, assorted salads, breads and dessert; sponsored by the Maine Office of Tourism.
7:30 pm: Gibson Room,  Premier of Gray Ghost Productions’ latest fly-fishing movie, “The Good Life.”

Saturday May 22    Activities: Turkey hunting, fishing, hiking, canoeing, kayaking
7 a.m.-9 a.m.: Full country breakfast in Bethel Inn dining room ($12)
6 a.m.-9 a.m: Breakfast at Bethel’s Best in West Bethel: complimentary coffee and refill to go.
Lunch: On your own
4 p.m.: Gibson Room, Scholarship Reception. This is an opportunity to meet and talk with our scholarship winners.
5-6 p.m.: Gibson Room, Social Hour and cash bar.
6 p.m.: South Dining Room, Scholarship Awards Banquet. Four-course meal of soup, salad, entrée (Top Sirloin, Seafood Stuffed Sole or Baked Stuffed Chicken) and chef’s choice of dessert, sponsored in part by Maine’s Lakes and Mountains Tourism Region. ($35 per person including tax and tip).

Announcement of the annual Rocky Freda Award for published or broadcast stories about the outdoors in Maine.

Sunday, May 23    Activities: fishing, canoeing, kayaking, hiking, golf, sightseeing.
7 a.m.: Complimentary full breakfast at Bryant Pond 4-H Camp followed by a tour of the  camp, fishing on the pond and use of the clay shooting range. Bring your own shotgun.
1 p.m.: Check-out time.

Name(s) _____________________________________________________

Address _____________________________________________________

Telephone _____________________  E-mail _______________________

Spring Safari registration fee: $15 per person.
Friday night barbeque (no charge). Number attending:   ________
Saturday Banquet cost: $35 per person (includes tax and tip)
Banquet, number attending:     ____ @ $50 (total) per person = ________

***Saturday Banquet food choice:
Top Sirloin _____ Seafood Stuffed Sole _____ or Baked Stuffed Chicken ______

Sunday complimentary breakfast at Bryant Pond 4-H Camp:     ________
                                                                                            (Number attending)

Make checks payable to NEOWA. Send to: NEOWA Executive Secretary Mary Julius, 487 Central St., East Bridgewater, MA 02333. For more information call Randy or Mary at 508-378-2290.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Complimentary post-trip invitations for NEOWA Active Members include the following. Please contact the innkeeper directly if making a reservation and introduce yourself as a NEOWA member.

Wilson Lake Inn, 183 Lake Road, Wilton (207) 645-3721 www.wilsonlakeinn.com.
Two nights lodging, a breakfast and dinner, scenic air flight valid May 23-27; two packages for two available, based on double occupancy.

Country Club Inn, 56 Country Club Road, Rangeley (207) 864-3831 www.countryclubinnrangeley.com
Margery Jamison, Innkeeper
One night’s lodging and breakfast (discount available at Mingo Springs Golf Course) includes a 1 hour cruise aboard the “Oquossuc Lady.”

Green Farm Guide Service, 1026 Rangeley Road, Coplin Plt. (207) 246-5604
Add-on guide service to above package for a day moose watching, canoeing, hiking or photography adventure.

Hilton Garden Inn & Bed and Breakfast, Auburn
Two-night stay with breakfast and golf at Fox Ridge Golf Club
Contact: Chip Morrison, Androscoggin Chamber of Commerce (207) 783-2249

   The Upper Andro Anglers Alliance, www.upperandro.com, Bethel Inn Resort, www.bethelinn.com and Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce, www.bethelmaine.com are excited to have been chosen to host the NEOWA Spring Safari this coming May.
   Bethel, a town of 2,500 residents, has both a variety of outdoor recreation as well as a wealth of visitor services: inns and lodges, restaurants, two golf courses, retails shops, and a vibrant historical society.
   Along with fishing in the Upper Andro (artificial lures only), there are some wonderful feeder streams like the Wild and Sunday rivers as well as remote ponds in the nearby White Mountain National Forest. The Upper Andro doesn’t stop at the New Hampshire border either, and many writers may wish to fish the Upper, Upper regions of the river and its famous tributary, the Rapid River. If the wild turkey population in my back field is any indication, there should be some good hunting, too.
   We encourage writers, if possible, to come a day early and help UAAA and the Mollyockett Chapter of Trout Unlimited to help float stock the Andro from Gilead to Bethel. You’ll take comfort in knowing that the fish will have a better chance of survival, but also have the inside track on where to cast the next few days.
   As the membership is aware, one of UAAA’s founding fathers and local Master Maine Guide, Rocky Freda, passed away this past summer. To honor his memory, UAAA is establishing a prize for the best article or story written about Western Maine’s abundant outdoor recreation. The prize and submission guidelines will be announced at the Scholarship Awards Banquet.

Portland, ME: Take Maine Turnpike to Exit 63 (formerly exit 11) then Route 26 North to Bethel.
Boston, MA: Take I-95 North to the Maine Turnpike. Exit 63 (formerly exit 11) to 26 North to Bethel.
Manchester, NH: Take I-93 North to exit 35. Route 3 North to Twin Mountain. Route 115 North to Jefferson to Route 2, East to Bethel.
New York City, Hartford, CT & Springfield, MA: Take I-84 North to I-90 East to I-495 North to I-95 North (follow above directions).
   From the West, arriving to Bethel on Route 2, turn right at the Bethel exit. At the bottom of the ramp take an immediate right on to Church Street. Follow Broad Street for less than a mile. The Inn is on your right after the Village Common.
   From the South, on Route 26, follow signs to the historic district and cross the train tracks on to Main Street. Continue straight up Main Street to 4-way intersection at top, then turn left on Broad Street. The Inn is on your right, just beyond the Village Common.