Lisa's Determination

One Hunter’s Quest for a Public Land Bull.

- Jack Ballard

A pattern emerges among people with a history of accomplishment. Successes are celebrated, but each achievement forms the groundwork for a greater goal. It’s not enough to simply maintain one’s performance. “Can I do better?” is the perpetual question self-posed to achievers from every walk of life. The same dynamic holds for the ambitious among elk hunters and is fittingly illustrated in the experience of my wife.

When we met a decade ago, she was intimidatingly skilled with a shotgun, competent with a fly rod and internationally traveled as a backpacker and trekker. The opportunity to hunt big game was embraced with her typical enthusiasm and personal skill as an athlete and adventurer. Shooting a rifle with the requisite ability for hunting was quickly mastered. Hiking the hills in search of deer or scouring the prairie for antelope was just another reason to be outdoors, and within a few, short years she had downed several antelope, whitetail deer and a fine mule deer buck.

Lisa yearned to kill an elk. Like countless other big game neophytes, she found elk hunting reminiscent of lyrics to a classic Larry Gatlin tune. In it, the singer asserts that musical success in California is the consummation of a crooner’s career and not so easily attained. “If you go dreamin’ about California, it don’t matter at all where you played before, California’s a brand new game.” Substitute “elk hunting” for “California” (who wouldn’t?) and the refrain is equally fitting.