I descended as far as I could and found myself about six feet above a basketball-sized ledge covered with a little pyramid of fine gravel. It was barely big enough for both of my feet, but I had to jump and land perfectly on that ledge in order to begin to descend again. Bracing my body against the cliff wall was sapping my strength, so with very little mental preparation I had to jump. My landing...  Read More

As I descended into the gorge the cliff walls closed in on me. What had started as a seep of water had turned into a trickle and now was a stream that I did my best to straddle.  When I reached the choke point, I discovered that I was standing on top of a ten to twelve foot waterfall with the stream flowing between my legs. Fortunately, I had a rope in my pack. After securing everything and tighte...  Read More

I was in a bind. The grassy patch I was resting on played out a short distance beneath me. From there I had no choice but to step onto a steep granite slope covered with little rocks ranging from bb to marble size. This funneled me into an unknown gorge, but I had no other option. My only possible route was down. Between trying to keep my balance and also keep from sliding out of control, every si...  Read More

I made it through the first impossible spot only to run into another... and then another. I was just under the mountain's jagged peak at the foot of a cliff face, standing in deep, vertical shale. My right foot was in the soft shale about two feet lower than my left, and was the only thing bracing me from falling down the mountain. This is why I couldn't turn around. I was finally in shooting rang...  Read More

I learn from my mistakes. Honestly, I do. My problem is that I keep making different ones. I was traversing an extremely dangerous cliff face with a backpack and a rifle. I wrapped bandanas around my hands because I was getting cut clinging to the sharp shale. I was after a legal ram, but at this point I just wanted to make it out alive. How did I get there? It wasn't intentional. Well... it WAS i...  Read More

Our last day of August and last day of September snows have all melted from my yard, but the fresh snow on the mountains keeps getting closer. Strange as it may seem, I honestly love the snow- l love being outside in winter. Don't get me wrong, I would also love two more months of fall. But hey- we get what we get, don't we? Every season has its advantages. In the winter we don't have to deal with...  Read More

It was my first extended hunt in Alaska's wilderness. I didn't have a single piece of high quality gear and carried in everything but the kitchen sink. I had the large arctic army pack, which to this day has far more volume (and less comfort) than any pack on the market. I was pleased to get my pack down to just over 70 pounds, and I, of course, had a rifle that weighed 10 more. I hiked in more th...  Read More

What is a kingdom? We usually think in terms of a geographic area, but that isn't exactly right. A kingdom is comprised of those who live under the rule of a king. When Jesus began his ministry by saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand," he was uttering a profound truth. Jesus is King. To repent is to turn from the sin of a self-ruled life, and to embrace Christ as, not 'THE' King, ...  Read More

The problem with a 'walk in' hunt is not the walking in, if you are successful it's the walking out. The moment the animal is down everything gets hard- really hard. This is also true of bad life choices. Whether we're talking about abusing alcohol or drugs, immorality, or dishonesty- 'walking in' is easy. Walking OUT, on the other hand, can be incredibly painful. Sin always takes you farther than...  Read More

One of the great rewards of climbing a mountain is being 'on top of the world.' After the non-stop grind of the climb, there is suddenly this RELEASE- this FREEDOM- that is hard to describe if you've never been there. The young people I take climbing are like calves released from a stall. They go bounding in every direction and forget that only moments beneath the summit they were in pain and mayb...  Read More

Snow draws kids like a magnet. In central Alaska we have a full six months of winter, and often a bit more. In early June, with the snow finally gone, we treasure our long, sunny days. For years I have taken a group of teenagers to climb a mountain. With our snow gone for barely a month, where do those kids race when we reach the top of the mountain? To the snow, of course! There are some things i...  Read More

I was officially bowhunting for elk or a nice whitetail or mule deer in Montana's Little Belt Mountains. The country I was in seemed absolutely desolate with no sign of game. An early snow and cold temperatures completely changed the hunt- from 'pleasant' to 'not so much.' Suddenly I came on bear tracks in the fresh snow. At this point in my life I had never shot a bear, and don't remember ever ev...  Read More