Thomas Belluscio, registered Maine guide

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

Thomas Belluccio is a registered main guy guide and certified wilderness first responder. He is also the founder of Northeast Wilderness Company, an outdoors company that offers workshops, studies and guided trips. Thanks for coming in today.

Tom Belluscio:

Thanks for having me.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

So does it feel weird coming in out of the outdoors where it's beautiful out there and like.

Tom Belluscio:

And yeah.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

And instead hanging out with all us, like, desk jockey types?

Tom Belluscio:

I do feel like the country mouse visiting the city for sure.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

Country mouse.

Tom Belluscio:

But aren't you from New Jersey originally? Yeah, though I grew up in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey. So tell me about that.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

I don't know what Pine Barrens of New Jersey are.

Tom Belluscio:

The Pine Barrens of New Jersey, Its own little wilderness. It seems absurd to think of anything like that existing in New Jersey. Most people think of the Sopranos or the infamous Jersey Shore, but it's a beautiful, beautiful state. There's a lot of great wild places there.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

Now, did that influence your decision to become a main guide and do the type of work that you do?

Tom Belluscio:

For sure, yeah. So my childhood was spent. I grew up on dirt roads and literally could just walk out of my house and run through the woods, fishing and camping and whatnot. So probably for as long as I can remember. I don't want to say. At the age of five, I started camping on my own out in the backyard kind of a thing. And then I just. I don't know, it just grew and grew. Right. Sort of became a passion.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

Did your parents camp?

Tom Belluscio:

Yeah, my father took us camping. My father Took me camping for the first time when I was 2, which I don't remember much of that other than wetting my sleeping bag, I think. But, yeah, that was sort of. The vacation was always camping. And actually when I was really young, we started taking trips up to Acadia, and that was when I really sort of fell in love with New England and the state of Maine in particular always just kind of had a hold there.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

But you're describing growing up in a really beautiful place.

Tom Belluscio:

Yeah.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

So moving from where, someplace that was already pretty beautiful to Maine, that must have been an interesting decision.

Tom Belluscio:

It's true. I think. I don't want to say I had enough of it, but I spent a good, you know, the first half of my life anyway exploring that particular ecology. And it's not to say that pine barrens are exclusive to New Jersey. There are pine barrens in Maine and New Hampshire. But, yeah, I guess I was just ready to explore other places. I'd taken a couple of cross. Cross country road trips and saw a lot of beautiful states and I don't know, always came, always sort of gravitated back to New England. So I love the. I love the spruce forest. The coastline here is incredible. And probably worth mentioning is it's the most forested state in the Union. It's about 90% forested, the state of Maine. So for someone that likes to explore wild spaces, this offers a wide playground for me.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

And you seem to like trees.

Tom Belluscio:

I love trees. Trees are awesome. I can nerd out about trees all day, really. Knowing. Knowing the trees sort of enhances my experience being in the woods. And as somebody that practices. The popular buzzword is bushcraft or woodcraft. Knowing different types of trees and what you can use them for is extremely beneficial as an outdoorsman. Knowing what you can use to reliably and consistently get a fire going despite the weather conditions, or the types of woods that make great canoe paddles, even which softwoods offer ideal resin for making adhesives for repairing canoes. So it benefits you. Benefits me personally, to have that awareness of the ecology that I'm in or moving through.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

I can relate to this because I thought a lot about homogenization. So you go to the grocery store and you have an orange, a watermelon, a kale. And so growing up, we have this idea that everything is one thing, but the deeper you look into something, you realize there's actually multiples of whatever that something was. Yeah, right.

Tom Belluscio:

Yeah.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

So it's not like there's a tree. It's. There's one particular type of tree. Of many, many different types of trees that are out there in the world.

Tom Belluscio:

Yeah.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

Which is very different than the way we sometimes think about trees.

Tom Belluscio:

Sure. Yeah. I think a lot of people even that, that enjoy recreating outdoors, hiking in particular. You know, I've taken out groups that spend a lot of time. Most of the people that I work with spend a considerable amount of time outdoors. And you take them out and you start showing them the diversity of what's around them. And I don't know, it unlocks something. You're no longer just hiking that trail. Like you're engaging with the environment that you're in. And so it becomes like, I don't know, on one level it's just fun. Like it becomes kind of this Where's Waldo game where, you know, things that you would have walked right past all of a sudden have new meaning and significance. And that's a really enjoyable aspect.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

That's so true because I know that I, I enjoy plants and the healing properties of plants. So the more I've studied it, the more I find myself out even just taking a run on a trail. And I'll say, oh, look, there's some yarrow, there's some chicory, there's. You know, and I, I think it really does. It's like, it's almost like you walk in the world in a different way because everything starts to become more alive. It's like when you buy a red car, you see all the other red cars.

Tom Belluscio:

Exactly that. Yeah. Yeah, for sure. Yeah. And I don't know, it's hard. It's hard to articulate without. Without sounding a bit nerdy, honestly.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

Well, I think we should put this to rest here because honestly, it's. You're just talking to me and I love this stuff, so don't feel nerdy. And anybody who's list if you think this is nerdy, you don't have to listen. It's totally fine. But we're having a conversation saying you could be as nerdy as you want,

Tom Belluscio:

you know, moving away from just sort of the sport, if you will, of being able to identify the different plants around you. Moving towards self reliance. You know, you mentioned medicines like the resin of balsam fir, Avis balsamia is medicinal. It's actually incredible for burns. And I've used it and I've seen people use it. Someone that was on a trip with me a few years ago scalded their hand while cooking over a fire, just immediately covered it and first app and well, I couldn't break down the science behind it here now, but it just kind of created a second skin and there's antiseptic properties in, in the pitch that. I mean, I won't say it healed overnight, but there was no blistering. It got rid of the pain. So having these things at your disposal at any given time, like having that knowledge and awareness of what you can use, even probably one of the more notable medicinal fungi, the chaga mushroom, Inonotus obliquis is the Latin, knowing where to find that. And you know that it is a prolific mushroom and you don't have to be shy about harvesting it really and what it's good for. It's praised the world over. So, yeah, I mean, the more the tagline, the saying often goes with woodcraft or bushcraft is the more, you know, the less that you have to carry. And I think just in general, it takes people from a place of moving through a foreign landscape that they're not terribly comfortable in. And it unlocks that. It gives you this confidence, even if, you know, not to say that anything bad would happen. Right. Barring the sort of overly dramatized survival scenario that's thrown around, it's just having a greater understanding of where you are gives you a greater level of confidence to move through the landscape. And I think that's the most important thing, the most tangible, if you will, take away from it all.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

Talk to me about being a registered main guide. That's actually a pretty significant process and it's multi leveled, from what I understand.

Tom Belluscio:

Yeah, in a way. So with regards to becoming a guide, first of all, it's sort of renown. The main guide exam is the most difficult to pass in the US and so people come from all over to become registered main guides. I have a great friend who is a guide we tested at the same time. He's from Texas. I think the people, the guys that were interviewing him were sort of scratching their heads a little bit. Why is a guy from Texas coming up here to be a main guy? But it is, it's an achievement. So there's a point of pride there with the history and tradition. And they don't, you know, their job is to fail you really, because they want to make sure that if you're going to be taking people out into a potentially dangerous situation that you've, you've got it covered. They don't want the liability. So the process is there's a written exam that covers a lot of laws and then you actually have to stand in front of a board, usually just two seasoned guides that have been guiding for 30 to 40 years. There's absolutely no pulling a fast one on these. On these dudes. And they drill you with questions and they just deadpan stare at you, give you no feedback. Different things like with regards to identifying wildlife and plants. And from there you have to demonstrate proficiency with a map and compass, which seems to get a lot of people. And then the last phase is arguably the most difficult. There's a lost person scenario or catastrophic event where they present you with the hypothetical situation of being in a backcountry setting and. And something goes wrong and. And you basically have to ask all the right questions and walk them through everything you would do in order to pass. So it's intense, for sure. I don't think it's the hardest thing in the world, but it's one of those. You either know the material or you don't. And they don't really cut you any slack for not knowing it. I got a little. I got scolded. I. I rushed part of my map and compass, and they give you like 20 minutes. I think it took me five to get. To get all my bearings. And I just sort of blurted them out. And I knew in my head that the numbers didn't add up. So I stopped. I just said, wait, can I double check my math? They were like, yeah, you still have 15 minutes. So, yeah, I don't know where I was going with that. And so it's like an achievement. Yeah, it's a point of pride. It's something I'm certainly proud of. The actual guiding of people can be a bit trying at times, too. I think one of the things people don't often factor in is that you kind of also have to be a guidance counselor because you're, you know, you're dealing with people that are sort of in love with the romance of wilderness travel, but maybe don't fully grasp the weight of the situations that they. They end up in, just, you know, with regards to being out of their element. And so you have to be able to just be an ear for people, talk people down from breakdowns, which I've done a number of times. So there's that soft skills aspect, too, that interpersonal stuff that you deal with routinely, which I honestly find rewarding. It's draining, but it's a rewarding aspect of the gig, for sure.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

And do they test you on that? Do they actually say, well, how would you deal with someone who's in the middle of the wilderness for sure, is having a breakdown?

Tom Belluscio:

Yeah. Within the catastrophic Event or lost person scenario. Usually there's an element of that. For mine, I had a. The hypothetical was that I had a group of four on a river trip, and we were two days in and another canoe paddled into our camp in the morning screaming something about his wife. His wife. And then they basically just gave me the floor and said, go, you know, like, handle this. And so you do. You kind of have to just feel it out and ask the right questions and. And they want to see. I almost feel like it's not as much what your answer is, but how you answer that they're looking at. Also. They want to hear that you're direct. They want to hear that you're sort of in charge of the situation and not panicking, which admittedly is easier to do in the woods than with a microphone in my face.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

So you actually are more comfortable in the dark and the quiet and all by yourself.

Tom Belluscio:

I do appreciate the fact that there's a tree in the corner.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

I do. I like having this tree right behind me. It also is very centering. I'm sure it's good for you as well.

Tom Belluscio:

It is.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

Well, it's an interesting. It's an interesting thing that you are doing these days, especially because you are helping people to understand this environment that we're being told we must save. Right. We're saving. We need to save our planet, as if the planet didn't exist before us. But this has become really important to the type of work that you do.

Tom Belluscio:

It's imperative to the type of work that I do. Yeah. I think. I mean, even just from an economic standpoint, the state of Maine relies on these wild spaces. And so to have no regard for them is just counterintuitive. It doesn't add up to me at all. So. And it's not about. I don't think, maybe it sounds cliche, but it's not about saving the planet. Like you said, it'll be here after we're gone. It was here before we were here. So. But for us to have it and enjoy it, once it's gone, it's gone. You know, we won't get these. These places back in our lifetime. So preserving that for future generations, it just makes sense to me anyway. I don't know.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

Well, and I think that I just finished reading a book called Breeding Sweetgrass by a woman named Robin Kimmerer, and she is a botanist, and she does a lot with plants. So she brings up the idea that sweet grass, which is used for basket making by Native Americans, that the sweetgrass Actually does better when people are harvesting it for use by humans. And. And I think there are actually some cases where if we can interact with the environment in a way that's beneficial, really, it doesn't always have to be about us over harvesting things or us overusing things and having it be a negative, but there are sometimes a relationship that's more symbiotic.

Tom Belluscio:

Sure. Yeah. I think even with regards to logging, which can be a point of contention for some, if it's done responsibly, if it's done sustainably, it's great for the environment. It's great for the wildlife in particular. Moose populations tend to bounce back in areas that have been cut because you're basically opening up this dense, densely forested landscape and all of this young new growth sprouts up really succulent, rich plants that animals like moose, all the way down to snowshoe hare and even. Even grouse benefit from. So, yeah, interacting with the landscape in a responsible and sustainable way is beneficial for. For not only us, but. But also the land, for sure. I totally agree.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

You have an interest in mushrooms.

Tom Belluscio:

I do.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

You talked about chaga, which I find interesting myself. I. I use chaga every morning and.

Tom Belluscio:

Cool.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

We have the North Spore Mushroom Company here in Portland.

Tom Belluscio:

Yeah, right on.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

So that's like. They're actually like kind of growing mushrooms. But we have. We have really wonderful fungus in our woods, for sure. And to know about that and to be utilizing it, I find very interesting.

Tom Belluscio:

Yeah. God, there's. Mycology is one of those. It's sort of a rabbit hole. I mean, when you start getting into it, it's so intriguing. It's kind of like ratchets, things up from. From the tree identification that we were talking about. Because every little clue that you gather about a particular mushroom points you in the direction of being able to identify it, you know, right down to the smell. Oftentimes will be a distinguishing characteristic. And actually worked for a mushroom farm, the New Hampshire Mushroom Company for a time. I still pal around with. With that crew. There are just some species, though, that can't be cultivated. And so a lot of these places, I'm sure North Spore does as well, will buy wilds from people, which sort of. It's another fun aspect of. Of woods wandering, if you will. You can stumble upon a handsome reward growing on the side of a tree. Species like morels have been tried. They've tried to cultivate those, and I think one person came close to doing it. But the end result, the actual fruiting body was Just didn't have any of the flavor. You know, they're so temperamental. Yeah. Really fascinating from, you know, the medicinal properties, just the ones that are delicious. Knowing and understanding the, the deadly ones is certainly beneficial and also fascinating. We found. I was out with a class a couple of weeks ago and we found a particular species of amanita, that's the common name for it is the Destroying angel, which is such an appropriate name because it's absolutely beautiful. It's this pristine white, just perfectly shaped mushroom that it almost. It catches the light and it kind of glows and calls you in. And if you eat one of those over the course of about a week, five days, you're basically. Your body shuts down and you feel it the whole time. So, I mean, it's a fascinating field. It's certainly, I mean, it's endless. I think I really enjoy it, but I'm just, I'm confident in what I know, but. And I've been doing it for years, but I'm just scratching the surface. And even the field of mycology in general is really just starting to scratch the surface.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

But when it comes to knowing the outdoors, isn't that always the case? I mean, whether you're somebody who's a. Just say, a gardener with your tomato plant in your pot on your back porch, or if you're out in the woods wandering around looking at various species of mushrooms, there's just not going to ever be a way to know everything.

Tom Belluscio:

No, it's endless. It is. I think that's sort of another aspect of having my guide license and wearing the guide patch is. It's a reminder to me. It's humbling. Some people see it and assume that you're an expert in all things regarding the outdoors. And there's no way to ever say that. There's no way to ever be that. You're always just a student of it. And that's the fun of it, really. How boring would it be if you, if you could have it all figured out? There'd be no, there'd be no wonder left to it. So, yeah, that's, that's part of the magic for sure, that there's always. There's always another rock to turn over. There's always another thing to look at and ponder about and sort of pick apart, grow to understand. So it's endlessly exciting.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

It's not that dissimilar to medicine really that we get qualified as doctors, we get an MD behind our name, we do our residency program, and then patients will come see Us, and they expect us to know everything. And we're like, well, see, I know some things about a lot of things, but I don't know everything. So we're gonna have to work through this a little bit, right? Because it's still. You're talking about not only biology, as you talked, as you mentioned, but also

Tom Belluscio:

the soft stuff, right?

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

You're talking about people's personalities. You're talking about how they react in different environments. So I find it just as humbling as what you're describing.

Tom Belluscio:

You find yourself feeling it is and it will always be. I think they're certainly within the guide field. There's propensity for this bravado, this. You know, I've been around people that tend to posture and try to present themselves as, you know, I've done this and this and the other thing, and until you've done. And I just don't have any time for that. I don't think it makes me shake my head when anybody has information or an understanding of something and withholds it, you know, and that's not to say I think that you should give it away for free because we all have to eat, we have bills to pay. But, yeah, that sort of hubris that some people fall into can be a real turn off. I think for a lot. A lot of people that want to. Want to break in and participate, especially with regards to wilderness skills, it seems to be a dynamic of people that want to put themselves up on a pedestal. I don't. I just don't. It doesn't seem enjoyable to me. You know, if somebody's passionate about learning something that you know about, then that's the most exciting. That's the most exciting interaction you can have with regards to whatever it is you're studying. Because until you teach something how you can understand it in your head, but until you've explained it to someone else, you don't fully understand it yourself. I feel like,

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

Well, this conversation has been a lot of fun for me, and I know we could keep talking. We could definitely nerd out when it comes to things like healing plants and tree SAP and mushrooms and such. I guess people who would like to get more of your wisdom will need to look you up and maybe have you guide them through the wilderness.

Tom Belluscio:

That'd be awesome.

Dr. Lisa Belisle:

I've been speaking with Thomas Tom Belluccio, who is a registered Maine guide and certified wilderness first responder. He's also the founder of Northeast Wilderness Company, an outdoor company that offers workshop studies and guided trips. Thank you for coming into the studio and being the country mouse in the city.

Tom Belluscio:

Thank you so much.