SkyLines

#6 2017 Rut Report Ch 5- "Shipwreck"

Have you ever been lost in the wild? I mean to the point where you come to a realization that makes your heart literally skip a beat- and then begin to race- and you can't slow it down. Truly scared. It's certainly happened to me a few times. Each time I've regained the comfort of resolve in one form or another, before it got too far into the night. And each time it instilled a sense of respect that is visceral to me- a sense of appreciation every single time I make it back to the truck. If you haven't been in situations like that before   you might not be able to instantly whip up vivid imagination of being trapped in the wild. What it would feel like to be drowning in the black of night, or lost and clinging to a tree or rock, shaking with terror as hypothermia, sickness or injury had your existence firmly locked int it's jaws. Likelihood of these kinds of circumstances are rare and to some degree preventable, but the hunter like myself who prefers to go in alone is exposed to such risks at a higher level.

#5 Introducing your host Bryan Huskey

Hi there! I'm Bryan Huskey, a photographer, filmmaker, and general outdoor ding dong in Boise Idaho. At this point- many of you who are listening are probably my buddies, but for the new folks that have stumbled in here, here's a little intro to get a feel for who I am and what to expect from this podcast. 
First off- seriously thanks for listening! The response to this first series will have a lot to do with if, or how much effort I put into this podcasting endeavor. I mean lets be honest, people have to like this to make it worth continuing! So if something accidentally ends up actually being worth your time - please, pass it along to anyone who may also dig what we're doing here. Thanks!
K- so my earliest memories are with my dad as he fished for salmon and steelhead along the coastal rivers of the Oregon. From Tillamook, we moved to Bend in 1985, and that's where I lived till 2000. After high school in Bend I went to COCC, worked construction, then eventually got into the cottage industry of composite aircraft that boomed out of Redmond in the 90's.  
SO- During my childhood and teen years I fell into three main passions- Hunting, Fishing, and riding & racing anything with two wheels.

#4 2017 Rut Report Ch 4- "Another Bowhunter"

I'm not sure how others think of the time between a shot and recovery, but to me it's the most golden and cherished period of a hunt. It's the part my mind races & fast forwards to in daydreams. I like to take my time and savor this part of the hunting experience. Others I know are totally opposite of me, putting little interest in understanding the details between the shot and the prize at the end of the trail. Just get to the animal as quickly and directly as possible. But to me the tracking is the best part. It's the imagination's opportunity to soak in the minutia, to tease into existence the enviability of such hard earned and tangible success. Taking very slow and careful steps I'd made it around ten yards from where the bull was standing when my arrow connected with him. He was lunging straight uphill at this point, and I was parsing the ground in front of me when a few glints of crimson finally caught my eye. Several dime sized drops of rich, heavy-looking blood draped over the rocky ground. First blood. Game on.

#3 2017 Rut Report Ch 3- "Twist in the Wind"

It was a long shot, but upgrading to a high-end 2016 bow and respectable effort and results in my shooting preparation since summer, I felt confident in the release of my arrow. The bull was totally broadside and looking right at me as I shot. I could hear the impact of a hard hit, but it was tough to see exactly where. It didn't have the tell tale sound of open ribs pass-through. And I couldn't see anything on the light tan canvas of the 6x6 bull's mid-section. But I certainly heard my arrow hit something solid. He lunged forward and immediately hooked uphill. He charged away through a group of massive wind-swept doug firs. He was a good hundred yards out before I really got a look at him. Per usual, I tore out my camera as I visually tracked him fleeing the area. Looking through and straining to hold the camera steady, my eyes finally confirmed what I'd been desperate to see- the green and white fletchings of my arrow were there, just behind his shoulder, deep into the dark brown patch in the bulls armpit.

#2 2017 Rut Report Ch 2- "With this Arrow"

I set out of camp on the second and final morning, aware but not intimidated by the fact it was my last day to hunt. My step had a decent bounce to it and I was still gleefully taking in all this new country. I admired the evidence of an elaborate beaver complex that had years ago flooded what was once was a good sized aspen grove. All the trees had died and since fallen into what nature had transformed into a meadow. The dam had long ago blown out and no beavers had since undergone reconstruction efforts. Just portions of the old dam remained in the deforested creek bottom. I was pondering the timeline of these events as I made my way up the finger I'd planned to climb to survey the larger network of feeder canyons and folds. I'd barely made it out of the trees and into the "dead head" phase of the climb when in the distance off to my right a figure caught my eye. Three or so hundred yards to my right a large bull elk strolled along the neighboring ridge line. 

#1 2017 Rut Report Ch1- "Gone with the Wind"

Bryan Huskey's 2017 Rut Report Ch1- "Gone with the Wind"
The 2017 archery season approached in a state of tremendous confidence and optimism. I'd begun a respectable training regimen in July that consisted of trail running with weights three days a week. For the first time in 9 years my long time hunting buddy Adam from Oregon was again going to ante up to hunt with me in Idaho. Another first since 2004, I'd finally upgraded to a bow with current technology, and we were setting our sights on an entirely new area that appeared to have great potential. Most importantly, as a new father, my wife Ali had secured a full week off work to allow a 9 day venture into the backcountry. And finally, my great friend Ian from 2014 and 2015 Rut Reports cleared his week- and the three of us planned a luxurious RV base camp to shoulder both sides of wilderness spike camp elk hunt. The table was set for epic results.