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

When the Army sent me to Alaska, I had no intention building a life here. They say, "If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans." I had no desire to go to Alaska and no desire to stay, but decades later here I am. I had 3 critically important meetings in Alaska that changed my life. First, I met Jesus. He began to change me for the better immediately. Though it was more than a year before ...  Read More

If you've read or watched "The Hobbit," you are familiar with 'second breakfast.' Here in Alaska, I refer to March and April as 'second winter.' Our 'first winter' starts in mid-October and runs through the end of February. It's our cold, dark winter. Our second winter has long sunshiny days and warmer weather. When I have the opportunity to get outdoors, I actually enjoy all of it. After winter w...  Read More

While food, clothing, and shelter (even money) are life's necessities, the richness of life is found only in RELATIONSHIPS. We were created to LOVE and BE LOVED. People who sacrifice relationships on the altars of fame, talent, adventure or wealth always wind up empty. The Reverend Billy Graham once spoke about meeting with one of the world's wealthiest men on an island paradise. The man spoke of ...  Read More

Years ago our dear friend Lana offered to do an outdoor family portrait for us. The night before the photo, the skies cleared and the temperature plummeted to well below zero. In order to get the photo she (and we) wanted, we had to race outside, smile, and then race back in to warm up. Then we would do it again and again. Originally we tried to stay longer, but our faces, fingers and toes were so...  Read More

As non-residents, my dad, John Rud, and his hunting partner, Roger Stevens, could only get 'over the counter' doe tags. They had driven over 800 miles to hunt pheasant and grouse, but decided to go after deer as well. When they walked down to the creek behind my house, they were carrying fishing rods in one hand, shotguns in the other, and had their rifles on a sling. They were fishing Brook Trout...  Read More

Six cows bedded together during the rut- that has to be a good sign. The next morning, there WAS a bull with them right where my hunting partner, Ray, had been standing the day before. But... once again, not a legal bull. Life is filled with 'near misses.' At times that leaves us disappointed, while at other times we are very thankful! I have had numerous 'near misses' over the years while driving...  Read More

Back in those days, central Montana was largely undiscovered and the hunting was the best I'd ever seen. You didn't even need permission to hunt small game on property that wasn't posted, and the upland game birds were so abundant that success was certain for anyone who could shoot straight and didn't mind walking for miles. So when Brad Griebenow's brother Mike and his friend came to visit us, we...  Read More

It was the day before the archery elk season opened in Montana's Little Belt Mountains. My friend Brad Griebenow and I had grown up together in Minnesota, and he was living with me in Montana (he's still there). We found the perfect valley. The bulls were bugling from all directions. We only had to wait one more day. Just before dark, two men walked into our valley, stood in the middle of an open ...  Read More

As a young school teacher in rural Montana, I rented a house from a local rancher. In the front yard was a pond with large rainbow trout, and in the back yard was Ross Fork creek bottom, filled with Brooke Trout, pheasant, duck, whitetail and mule deer. This was the rancher's 'second' place, and consisted of 1,100 acres of mostly wheat and barley. He told me that he was going to sell the place (fo...  Read More

They say that even a blind squirrel finds an acorn every now and then. Many years ago, that was my experience, along with my Children's Pastor and good friend, Joshua Tiner. After 9 days of horrible weather, the skies finally cleared and the temperature plummeted. I called until dark as the raindrops froze solid on our tent. At the break of day, I was calling again, and soon, we heard the splash s...  Read More

I have a love/hate relationship with climbing mountains. When the sun is shining and I can set my own pace, it's mostly love. In wet weather, when my feet are slipping, it's mostly NOT love. But here's the thing- every single climb has a moment on the summit of 100% joy, and a moment of 100% satisfaction at the bottom when the climb is done. You see, the experience isn't always pleasant, but the g...  Read More