But the pilot didn't pull back on the throttle—he kept it at full speed. I realized then that he intended to take off this way. I could see death staring me right in the face, and I yelled, "We’re doomed!" I drove my feet into the fuselage and my back into the seat. We were no more than fifty feet from shore when we lifted off the water, with nothing but hills and large boulders right in our path. We looked at each other as if to say, "This is it." The pilot tried to get more power out of the engine by using different fuel mixtures, more air, and more fuel, and by manoeuvring the mixture lever back and forth. Dear God, not yet, I thought. I don’t want to die on this beautiful day . . .
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Have a seat by the campfire and listen as Adrian Payne shares stories about his years as an outfitter in Newfoundland and Labrador. While catering to non-resident hunters, most of his clients were from the United States. They say hard work pays off, and Adrian was privileged to be able to enjoy his passion for hunting on the Great Northern Peninsula. Fishing, hunting, and trapping were ways of life for him and his family, and there was no shortage of adventure for them while growing up in the shadow of the Long Range Mountains. So, settle in for some exciting stories of the great outdoors!

Adrian Payne was born in Parson’s Pond on the Great Northern Peninsula on November 11, 1940. His parents were Jack (John H.) Payne and Lucy Keough. He lived there until the age of four when his parents moved the family to Hawke’s Bay, where his father was employed with the Corner Brook Pulp and Paper Company. In the 1950s they moved to his father’s hometown, Cow Head. Except for living in Toronto for just four years, Adrian has resided in Cow Head, where he remains today with his wife, Carol (Darrigan) Payne, of fifty-five years.Adrian Payne entered the workforce as a logger with the Corner Brook Pulp and Paper Company at the tender age of fifteen. Upon his return from Toronto, he engaged in the fishery and spent the next thirty-five years as a commercial fisherman. While he was still a fisherman, he became an outfitter catering to non-resident big game hunters for nearly twenty-five years. In 2009, he and his wife retired.What began as a few stories for the grandchildren, so they could understand what life was like for their pop when he was growing up, has evolved into a collection of short stories of Adrian’s life from the time he was just a small boy. In the Shadow of the Long Range Mountains is his second collection of short stories. His first was Life on the Great Northern Peninsula (St. John’s: Flanker Press, 2017).

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