The True Experience

By Adam Parr –

With thousands of miles traveled and an equal amount of dollars spent, a 13-hour drive home from Iowa on November 10th was a moment of both reflection and realization; I was coming home (yet again) empty-handed. A failure? To some, possibly. But to me, it was another unforgettable adventure to a different part of the world yet known to my existence.

As I grow older, I’ve come to realize that it’s more than just the kill… real original, I know. (Insert eye roll here) But seriously, when I ponder the hunting trips I’ve been on throughout the years, yes, the successful kills and antlers in hand are amazing, but in all honesty, my fondest memories stem from some of the most random shit, forever etched into my mind. Even though I’m a solo hunter at heart and I’m most primal when I’m alone, I believe the best hunting memories are created from experiences with the people you love.

November 2017 – Riding Double

Iowa is the land of giants and is dubbed as a Mecca of sorts for serious whitetail hunters, but it wasn’t the big deer that did it for me this past November. I waited three years to draw that tag, scouted the area the Spring prior, and saw a handful of mature bucks during the hunt, but my favorite moment of the trip was when my buddy Joey and his dad rode double on a QuietKat after a hunt. I laughed until I damn near passed out while they hauled ass down a two-track with me lagging behind. When we arrived at our parking spot, I pulled up behind them and fell off my bike in sheer joy and laughter. Throughout all of the heart-pounding encounters and shots fired during the trip, that moment will live on as the most memorable for me.

Don’t try this at home, kids. Riding dirty double on an ebike is dangerous, but quite hilarious.

October 2013 – Sho-Pom-Bo

Flashback to 2013, my brother, Joey, (why do I hunt with him so much) and I headed to Ohio to test ourselves in the rugged Appalachian foothills within the Wayne National Forest. It would be the first time any of us had left the comforts and confines of Michigan private land to embark into a landscape unknown. We were in pursuit of big bucks and at the same time, had absolutely no clue what we were doing. If I recall correctly, between the three of us we saw a combined total of five deer throughout the entire week, but it didn’t matter.

The most memorable part of that trip was something so dumb but will be forever stuck in my brain. Our hunting camp had the three of us packed into a tiny cabin no bigger than a small camper, where our bunk beds comprised half of the interior and the bathroom/kitchen consumed the rest. To put the bathroom into further perspective, the toilet and shower were combined as one and you could wash your hands at the sink while sitting on the toilet. Because of the tight quarters, Joey came up with the idea of a shower-poop combo prior to heading out for each day’s hunt, hence the name “ShoPombo.” We still laugh about it to this day; Long live the “ShoPombo.”

September 2016 – Elk Tenderloin

After a long week of chasing bugles through the mountains of Colorado, an elk had finally fallen to the tip of my arrow. Walking up to that bull is something that I’ll never forget but it was not the pinnacle of my elk hunting season.

Once we had the mountain monarch back at the cabin, we fired up the stove, cut out a tenderloin and seared it on a cast iron skillet until it was medium rare. It was only then I realized what I had done and a wave of emotions flooded in after the adrenaline rush began to subside. The four of us stood around a campfire, dog-tired, beat up and broken, as we sunk our teeth into an animal that had been walking around the wilderness just hours before. Yes, my first elk kill was an experience like no other but it was the camaraderie at camp with celebratory beers and tenderloin in our stomachs that will carry on forever.

Making the climb up the ladder to cut out a beautiful tenderloin to be pan seared, medium-rare.

Self Reflection

I can honestly say the past 2017 season has taught me a lot about what hunting truly means and arriving home “empty-handed” from three different trips painted a clear perspective of why I do this and where my priorities lie. The pursuit and kill is part of it, no doubt, but that’s not hunting in its entirety. I used to drive myself crazy leading up to a trip worrying that I wouldn’t kill anything like I had something to prove to myself and social media. In 2017, I didn’t come home empty-handed; I came home more fulfilled than ever before with a stronger drive for another year of pursuits in the wild.

Thinking ahead to August when I roll up to elk camp to kick off Colorado’s archery elk season, being present with good friends and a mountain breeze blowing through the aspens is the real trophy I’m after. That is the true experience I’m chasing. Everything else… is just extra.