There's a hidden lake a short walk away from my house in Parsonfield, Maine. I've been

going fishing there for as long as I've lived here. It's hidden away from any roads or houses, offering

perfect privacy, and I'm usually the only one out on the lake fishing. In fact, I leave my kayak

in the same spot by the lake

whenever I'm not using it. It's easier than lugging the thing back and forth from my house

to the lake. I leave it leaning up against a huge tree every time. The kayak is heavy enough

not to fall over from a windstorm or anything, and I also keep it covered to prevent

critters from

taking refuge inside. It was a warm summer evening. I had been out on the lake for about an hour

and had already caught a few trout, which I'd thrown into the cooler. It was dusk at this point,

and the little bit of light left in the sky was disappearing behind the trees. I was planning to bring

it in soon, but just then I heard sounds from the edge of the lake. I turned and saw someone standing

at the edge of the water, tipping a barrel of some kind over, pouring its contents into the lake.

It looked like they were polluting the lake with something. I took it upon

myself to yell out, excuse me, what are you doing? The person looked up at me and then ran into the

woods, with the contents of the barrel still pouring into the water. I looked more closely at the

liquid being poured out. It looked like a dark red liquid, though it was

dark out, so I can't say with 100% certainty that it was red, but it was very dark. I felt a sense of

unease creep up throughout my body. I decided I wanted to leave. As a big nature guy, seeing people littering or polluting the environment makes me sick.

I genuinely couldn't resist shouting something at that person, but I didn't feel comfortable here any longer.

I planned on reporting this to the Department of Environmental Protection.

I paddled the kayak back to my usual spot, took all of my gear off the

...