Meat Matters Most

I’ve had a few unsuccessful elk hunting seasons over the years here in Colorado.  I used to try to make myself feel better by uttering slogans such as “at least I got out there and saw elk” or  “that’s why they call it hunting and not killing.”  A few years ago, I realized that I adopted this mindset to simply make myself feel better for not being successful.  After all, I’m a meat hunter.  Meat matters most.  Try as I might, I just couldn’t eat good memories.  What ate me up, however, was living for the next year knowing that I could have done everything in my power to bring home the proverbial bacon. 

I tend to go the extra mile in the field when I know that the freezer at home is empty.  Let’s take this year’s elk season(s) as an example.  I did not get an elk during the antlerless archery season in September and I wasn’t very happy about it.  I had my chances but couldn’t seal the deal to harvest an elk.  I drew an either-sex tag for the 1^st rifle season in mid-October.  The 3 weeks between archery and rifle seasons seemed to crawl by.  If there is such a thing as a biological hunting clock, mine was ticking and before long I would be out of time.  To make matters worse, I fractured or badly bruised some ribs in a furniture moving accident with some guys from my church. 

Rifle season rolled around and I was already thinking about the edible trophy that was at stake.  We only had 10 lbs. of elk meat left in the freezer from the previous year.  The pressure was on.  After hunting for 1 day, I came down with a scary stomach sickness, fever, and chills.  I emptied my stomach on the mountain that night, a blizzard moved in, and the situation seemed grim at best.  Praise God that my friend Ed went hunting with me.  He didn’t hunt, he came just to take video & photos and because he likes to camp.  Ed helped me off the mountain that day and I drove home literally falling asleep at the wheel and stopping at many a convenience store to visit the bathroom.

In my early days of elk hunting, I would have given up after the rib injury.  If I was trying to act tough, I would have made it to rifle season only to give up when I started throwing up and came down with the 102 temperature.  I would have spent the next year in regret that I waved the white flag and because my freezer was empty.  I finally realized that the memories of the quaking aspen, the bugling bulls, or the smell of elk weren’t enough to sustain me throughout the off-season.  Meat matters Most!

I got better just in time for the last day of the 5-day season.  Ed agreed to accompany me once again as we went in on stealthy one day mission to get meat.  We met at 3:30 am, hiked up the mountain in the dark, and proceeded to hunt.  The bulls were screaming and I almost got a shot at a cow at 120 yards around 7:00 am.  I was down but not out.  We hunted all day.  I knew that God was the champion of the down and out and could provide an elk at any time.  Sure enough, God provided the elk in the middle of the afternoon.  I made the shot(s) at 183 yards, harvested a mid-size bull with a small rack, and got meat to feed my family for the next year.  I had harvested my 4^th elk in the past 5 years in the same forest, all on public property.

The years of having an empty freezer finally taught me a lesson…Meat matters most.  I thank God for this lesson, for the ability to not give up regardless of the situation I’m in, and for the protein provision.  Friends, don’t give up.  If you value meat over antlers or fuzzy feelings, don’t throw the towel in at the first sign of adversity.  Pull yourself up and get back out there and give God all the glory knowing full well that while you are weak, he is strong!  Praise the Lord and pass the elk!

The Taboo Of The Hunter In The Suburbs

I live along Colorado's highly-populated Front Range.  There are over 20 Natural Grocers stores, 10 Whole Foods Markets, and 6 Sprouts Farmers Markets within an hour of our home.  Fitness Centers that are literally the size of small shopping mall are now springing up in the area.  If I see another 24 Hour Fitness, I think I'll throw up. 

So am I opposed to a more natural or organic way of life?  Am I opposed to fitness?  No, siree Bob!  My family eats natural, organic, hormone-free, and delicious wild game meat almost every day.  I lift free weights in my garage and do cardio several times a week. 

I've come to notice that I stand out like a sore thumb living here in the suburbs.  Absolutely every friend I have in the area buys meat at the local natural grocer and doesn't have a clue where meat comes from.  When they see the Rocky Mountain Meat Hunter logo on our vehicle, they are perplexed.  When I tell them I lift weights in my garage, they look at me like I am a dork.  Then they continue on their way to the fancy fitness center complete with swimming pool, climbing wall, and everything else you could ever want. 

I try explaining the health benefits of eating wild game.  Some tell me, "all that hunting and getting your own meat just seems like a lot of work."  Yes, it is a lot of work!  You better believe it, sister.  Please don't start hunting.  Please continue to feed your family the cancer-causing meat our stores sell.  Please continue to waste money on the local fitness center and paying to walk/run in 5Ks to make yourself feel better.  I'll offer for you to come lift weights with me in my garage.  Sometimes I wear camo overalls when I lift and snack on protein rich elk summer sausage afterward.  You'd probably think that's weird though, huh?  Yeah, I guess I'm a dork.

How to hunt big game with an 8 month old baby

So you want to go huntin' for big game but you're busy taking care of your precious baby?  Don't think you can stalk deer, elk, or moose while you're babysitting?  Not getting sleep at night because you're precious little one is up crying and refuses to go to bed?  Lullabies not working?

Take your little one afield and let the call of the wild lull that sweet sugar to sleep!  Deer, elk, and other large game animals are often active in the middle of the night.  Get your motor runnin', head out on the highway and satisfy both your little one's need for sleep and your need for adventure at the same time. 

Our 8 month old baby girl refused to sleep during the night a few times while we were on vacation in Whitefish, Montana in early September this year.  It was 4:00 am.  We were staying at Great Grandma's house.  I decided to grab coffee and take Natalie out for a drive instead of allowing her to wake up everybody in the house.  She fell asleep almost as soon as I started the vehicle.  I had the camera with me so I decided to see if I could find any wildlife on the streets. 

Enjoy the video:

Give your turkey the year off!

Ok, so we all serve turkey for our Thanksgiving meal.  It's what our Mom did, it's what her Mom did. You get the point.  Since we're big game hunters, why not serve up a Thanksgiving feast that shows our true colors?  That's why the Thanksgiving dinner table at our house this year will feature...drum roll please: elk roast!

Just because the cardboard cutout pilgrims you paste on your walls show paper turkeys, that doesn't mean you have to follow suit.  If you're a hunter and have delicious elk, deer, antelope, moose or any large game roast in your freezer then you are already half way to the best Thanksgiving meal you've ever had. 


We typically use anywhere from a 2-4 lb. roast.  Thaw your roast in the refrigerator for a day or two, and put it in your crock pot 5 or 6 hours prior to dinner time.  We recommend keeping it simple like they did in colonial times.  Exact measurements are not necessary.  Turn the crock pot heat level to "high."  Pour a few cups of hot water in the crock pot as a start for your stew base.  Next we like to add a few tablespoons of Wishishere sauce along with garlic powder, salt and black pepper.  Finally, we add a few diced yellow or white onions, put the lid on the crock pot and walk away for 60-90 minutes.

Remove the lid about 60-90 minutes into the cooking time.  At this time, it's probably a good idea to add a cup or more hot water to continue building the stew/gravy base.  Add several washed, peeled, and chopped potatoes.  We like to make them decent sized...about the size of Jell-o jigglers.  We're talking big bites, not pathetic morsels like they give you in the cans of Chunky at the store!  Next, add several washed, peeled, and chopped carrots.  Sprinkle on some more of the spices to account for the fact that you now have all the veggies in the pot and put the lid back on.  Continue cooking on high heat checking on it once ever hour or so.  Make sure you add more water every time you check on the roast.  The more gravy the better. 

You can use a meat thermometer if you wish, but we recommend cooking the roast until it's the right tenderness for you.  If your roast is done and your guests aren't arriving for another 2 hours, simple turn the crock pot to "warm" and let it sit until they arrive.  Worse case scenario, if your guests have arrived and the roast seems to be an hour away from being done, pour the contents of the crock into a roasting pan and pop it into your oven at a temp greater than 400 degrees for 20 minutes or more until the roast is finished. 

Serve the roast on a platter, meat in the middle, veggies piled high in a circle around the outside and pour the gravy on top.  Make sure you have plenty of crusty bread (French bread, Sourdough rolls, etc.) on hand for gravy dipping.   Enjoy the best Thanksgiving feast you've ever had.  Let other people eat those water-filled, hormone pumped, steroid infected store turkeys.  As Uncle Ted would say, you've got the original Whole Foods in your freezer.  Use them and enjoy them!

God bless!

-Todd