Because You’ll Never Get There Without It
It’s there. Just above the treeline on the northern edge of Colorado’s 2.4 million-acre White River National Forest. Flat, smooth and almost nine feet long, this natural rock bench has been carved by glacial erosion over millions of years. Weather and time have shaped it into the perfect resting spot for the weary hunter who’s been at elevation for days. If backcountry hunting is your church, this is your pew.
From there, you can see everything. Distant ridgelines. The lush green valley below. With a little luck, you’ll even glass a few of the estimated 50,000 elk that make up the White River herd (Colorado’s largest). The best thing you’ll see from this spot? Perspective, for this is where you can find yourself, and lose yourself, at the same time.
But you’ll never get there until you Find It. And we’re not talking about a rock.
Truly devoted hunters are a rare breed. We often live on the fringes of our sport; if we’re not training or planning, we’re hunting. If we’re not hunting, we’re eating what we hunted earlier. The cycle then repeats. Season after season. Opening weekend after opening weekend. Just as it should.
It’s not easy, for the road is long and the load is heavy. Especially if you also carry a career, a family or an old injury along your journey. In fact, any passion that demands commitment can be a challenge; the rock climber, the soccer player, the high country angler and the trail runner all question the lifestyle at some point. “Do I really need to run two more laps, do one more set of crunches, wake up at 4:30 a.m. to be on the river by first light or hit the gym on Tursday?” you quietly ask. But still you persist.
Why do we do it? Why do we physically and mentally challenge ourselves? Because we find freedom on the other side of adversity; a sense of independence, of confidence, that few experience. In a world that too often pushes against us, this is where we find our true selves. Because when we strive, we push back.
And that’s when you Find It.
You find the Frogman Mentality that whispers “you can do this”. You find the tenacity to fight through that extra mile of altitude training. You find the time to spend an extra 20 minutes shooting at the 3D target in the backyard. You find the willpower to finish six weeks of painful physical therapy for your wrecked knee so you can get back in the game. You find the strength to haul 200 pounds of caribou meat back to camp.
Whatever “it” needs to be, you have it. Deep down inside.
When you Find It, you’ll do things you didn’t think were possible. Go places you didn’t think you’d go. See things you never thought you’d see. Weather and gear and preparation and luck all play a part in any successful adventure, but the only way you’ll ever sit on that rock bench above the treeline in the White River National Forest is by pushing yourself.
So let’s go.
Let’s go Find It together.
