As a young boy watching Dad go off into the woods, I would wait by the window dreaming of the days that I would be old enough to venture off with him. He would always come back with exhilarating stories and often have a Whitetail or turkey in tow.
Growing up in upstate New York, dad and I would watch the stars of the outdoor world make their trips around the globe but to us, and many like us I'm sure, nothing stood greater than the Yukon moose and the wilds in which they live. The giants and their vast landscapes embodied the pinnacle of hunting and it was always dad's dream to one day have the chance to chase his own Yukon adventure.
Fast forward, and as soon as I was able, even before I could pull the trigger, I was trapsing around our small oasis with dad learning the ins and outs of the woods and growing ever more obsessed with what mother nature had to offer. Sharing memories and encounters with black bear, Whitetail and coyotes my love for the outdoors and sitting in a tree with dad grew at an uncontrollable pace and before I knew it, we were standing over my first Whitetail doe together.
For as long as I can remember, my father always put his family first and it was no different when we were in the woods together, always setting me up in the better spot and giving me the green light to pull the trigger. I can't count how many Whitetail hunts we shared or the black bears we spot and stalked together that ended in big hugs and heavy drags.
My father was always a humble man and most don't know it but he is an American hero. He prefers not to talk about it, but it deserves to be known. Dad was a lieutenant in the FDNY and was at ground zero on 9/11 when the towers came down. There's no greater man I look up to in this world than him so when he told me "We're going to the Yukon. Find the best camp and set it up." , I was determined to make this the trip of his life.
Growing up in upstate New York, dad and I would watch the stars of the outdoor world make their trips around the globe but to us, and many like us I'm sure, nothing stood greater than the Yukon moose and the wilds in which they live. The giants and their vast landscapes embodied the pinnacle of hunting and it was always dad's dream to one day have the chance to chase his own Yukon adventure.
Fast forward, and as soon as I was able, even before I could pull the trigger, I was trapsing around our small oasis with dad learning the ins and outs of the woods and growing ever more obsessed with what mother nature had to offer. Sharing memories and encounters with black bear, Whitetail and coyotes my love for the outdoors and sitting in a tree with dad grew at an uncontrollable pace and before I knew it, we were standing over my first Whitetail doe together.
For as long as I can remember, my father always put his family first and it was no different when we were in the woods together, always setting me up in the better spot and giving me the green light to pull the trigger. I can't count how many Whitetail hunts we shared or the black bears we spot and stalked together that ended in big hugs and heavy drags.
My father was always a humble man and most don't know it but he is an American hero. He prefers not to talk about it, but it deserves to be known. Dad was a lieutenant in the FDNY and was at ground zero on 9/11 when the towers came down. There's no greater man I look up to in this world than him so when he told me "We're going to the Yukon. Find the best camp and set it up." , I was determined to make this the trip of his life.
