God's Great Outdoors

Adam: It's been said that there's a time when you have to pass the torch. Life is not a sprint, and often, it's not a marathon either. In a family, it's often more of a relay race. This isn't the time for our host Dean Hulce to pass the torch yet, but this week we'll see where he has a chance to bring a co-host to give someone else a try at their hand at recording a radio program and a podcast.

Dean's grandson Micah will join as a co-host and bring a new sound to the program. He's been an encouragement to us, and he's coming alongside to maybe show us a different perspective from a different generation. From the turkey hunting camp in northwest Wisconsin, God has shown a group of men the importance of time together away from the pressures of daily life.

Christian men coming together to grow in their walk with the Lord. That can be the result of these times together. Let's join our co-hosts now, Dean and Micah Hulce, as they head out into God's great outdoors in the turkey woods on the Trail to Adventure.

Micah Hulce: Welcome back to God's Great Outdoors: The Trail to Adventure. This is your fill-in host, Micah Hulce, and we are at our fourth annual turkey camp over in Wisconsin. I am joined here today by Larry Scheidegger and also our normal host, Dean Hulce. We're just getting to the end of our week here at camp. It's been pretty eventful. We had a couple of kills, and a few of our guys had to leave early. Larry, what's been the best part of your week here so far?

Shorty (Larry) Scheidegger: I would think getting out and checking out some new land south of here. We got to drive that a couple of times and got out. I had an eventful morning, a couple of misses, and then straightened it out later on.

Dean Hulce: I think we ought to have Micah share about that second morning's hunt and how that went. I wasn't actually hunting this week, but I was doing some calling and observing the shooting.

Micah Hulce: To set the scene, it was about 3:30 in the morning when we woke up. We drove down about an hour to where we were going to be hunting, and I was still half asleep. Then I pounded about 300 milligrams of caffeine into my system, so I wasn't thinking straight already.

We go and we sit down on the edge of some hardwoods in a cornfield where we had heard birds the previous day. As soon as we sat down and started calling, the birds were hammering right behind us. Before you knew it, you could hear them walking behind us, and we were just waiting for them to come out into view.

It didn't take too long before the first one popped out. By that point, Larry will probably agree with me that I was not in the right mindset. I was hyperventilating a little bit and shaking. As soon as that first bird stepped out into the field, I was going to wait for him to get out to the decoys. That was the original plan, but I ended up just lifting the gun up and trying to take a shot, which blew right past his head.

I don't remember much of this. I've had to hear the story again from Larry, but I put my gun down after taking the shot and missing. Then the second bird that was there with them stepped out, which Larry was supposed to shoot, and I picked my gun back up and missed that one as well. Both of them flew off into the great beyond, and that was about the end of it.

Dean Hulce: I was in the weeds, actually in the blackberry brambles behind the two guys. I didn't know where the birds were. I couldn't see them or hear them walking. I knew they were really close because the last gobble, both gobbled, and you could tell both of them were right there.

They were well within range but behind us. The first thing I saw was Micah pick up his gun. I thought, "This is good." Then I heard one shot, I heard a second shot, and I stepped out and there were no birds on the ground.

As a guide, I would say that's a really discouraging thing, especially after getting up at 3:00 that morning. One of the guys set his alarm, and I got up, got ready, and made coffee. I looked, and it was 3:12. He said we needed extra time to have coffee. It was actually a great morning. The rest of the day was uneventful, but it was a great morning. Larry, you didn't get a shot.

Shorty (Larry) Scheidegger: No, it was just happening. I tried to talk to him a little bit as it was happening to tell him. I had said let the first bird get out so the second bird clears because we were going for a double, which is not an easy thing to do. There has to be a lot of communication when you're doing something like that.

Of course, I didn't know those 300 milligrams of caffeine were kicking in. I could feel him shaking. I almost asked him if he was cold. It was still a great hunt. I still enjoyed it. But when the bird steps out and you're that shook up already and the bird steps out at probably five yards, you've got a pattern that's like a golf ball. You’ve got to be right on.

Dean Hulce: At that time, you're better off pulling down on the base of the neck. Shooting at the head at that distance, especially if you're already excited, your chances of hitting the head aren't great, although you did redeem yourself.

As the co-host today with Micah, I should mention that Larry is actually Shorty from Shorty’s Game Calls and also Shorty’s Barbecue. We had both this week: lots of barbecue and we had a great time. Micah, why don't you talk about your redemption story?

Micah Hulce: The rest of that day was pretty uneventful. We tried probably six or seven different spots and really didn't hear anything or have anything come in close. We came back to camp that night, got up early again the next morning, and went back down there.

Where we originally planned to sit, we didn't hear any gobbles first thing in the morning, so we decided we'd go try a different spot where we had seen some birds the night before. We set up there for probably two hours, and all we heard were two gobbles probably 150 yards from us halfway through the morning.

Nothing ever showed up, so we got out of there and made a game plan for the afternoon. We all gathered back up after a while and started driving around a little bit. We were going to stop one more place, the same place we sat that morning, just to hit a call and see if anything answered. If nothing did, we'd head back to camp.

We got out, and I hit the call. Immediately, up on this ridge behind the field we were at, there was a bird that gobbled. I called a little more, and he gobbled again. I called a third time, and he gobbled right back. We thought that we had a pretty good chance. The other guys had to run into town, so they left me there, which in hindsight, Shorty probably should have stayed with us.

I went in there, and the birds were about 200 yards up the ridge. I didn't know if they were coming in already or not because he gobbled a few times. I ran up to the first spot I could get into some cover and sat down. I was calling to that bird on the ridge, and he would gobble once in a while. He had a hen with him that was talking. After about five minutes of calling, two birds gobbled behind me, quite a ways behind me.

I thought if this doesn't work out with the bird on the ridge, maybe these ones will come in. I kept on calling, and I was calling a little harder to try and get that bird's attention. Probably ten minutes after I heard those gobbles behind me, they gobbled again, and they were about 50 yards behind me. It scared me a little bit and shook me up.

I didn't know what to do because I wasn't set up to shoot those or shoot that direction. I just sat there and waited to see what they were going to do. Pretty soon, I could see them out of the corner of my eye. They were down the field from me quite a ways.

I think when I turned my head to look at them, I don't know if they saw me, but they didn't seem to spook too bad. They just made a beeline up that ridge towards that other turkey. In the meantime, two more birds gobbled behind me. At this point, I felt like I was surrounded.

I just kept calling soft, and pretty soon, those birds were gobbling 50 yards behind me. This time, I like to think I learned a little bit, and I turned and got into a better position so I could see out towards the field and see what was going to come out down the field from me.

It didn't take too long, probably ten minutes, and I could see it was three toms. They came out about 50 yards down the field edge from me. I was ready to go. I had my gun picked up on my knee, and I was resting against the side of a tree there. As soon as these birds stepped out in the field, they were all in full strut.

The hyperventilating started again. I was shaking. I was trying to slow down my thinking process and just remind myself to put my head down on the gun, to look down the barrel, and make sure the beads lined up on them. I tried to do a little bit better than the morning before.

These birds were working real slow. I think they could see my decoy out in front. I had a certain spot picked out where I could shoot when they hit that spot because they were behind some brush and some trees. It seemed like it took an eternity for them to get there, but I just waited. My arm was getting a little tired, but finally, the tom that was in the front stepped out just enough.

I clucked a couple of times on the mouth call, and he stuck his head up. They were probably only five or ten yards away from me, but I shot and he went down. One of the other toms took off flying in the other direction. Then the middle tom, as soon as my bird went down, he was on top of him. He was picking at him and trying to fight him. In the meantime, he's gobbling his head off. I pulled my phone up and got some good video of that. Shortly after that, I called Shorty and I said, "Where are you guys at? You need to get back down here."

Shorty (Larry) Scheidegger: I was probably in there about five minutes with you, and the birds were still gobbling. A bird came down off the ridge to the left out into the field and colored up pretty good to the calling, but he wasn't coming. I don't know what that was, but he was probably 150 yards from us over to that edge.

He colored up good and he'd gobble hard. When he'd gobble, the birds back behind us would gobble. He went to the corner, and two more gobblers came out strutting and gobbling. Then three came out. It ended up with six toms in a line across that end of the field, strutting, gobbling, and one hen.

There's always that one hen. It was very cool to see and hear. Dean and one of the other guys were in a car back up on the road listening, and they said we never quit calling the whole 15 minutes.

Dean Hulce: That was more calling than I ever heard in 15 minutes in my life. But the birds gobbled at every call.

Shorty (Larry) Scheidegger: It seemed like every time we stopped calling, they would lose attention. They'd drop fans, they'd drop their strut, and start to wander, so we just kept calling, hoping one would break. You'd think with six of them out there, one would break, but they didn't. That was about the way the whole weekend went for the most part.

Micah Hulce: All right, we'll come back in just a minute. We need to let Adam tell the listeners about our sponsors, so we'll be back in a couple minutes.

Adam: For the last 26 years, God's Great Outdoors: Trail to Adventure has been broadcast out to win men and women, boys and girls, to Jesus Christ. This is only possible by the generosity of our listeners. Thank you to all who have supported us in the past.

God has blessed us because of you, and we pray that you feel His blessings as well. Additional underwriting support has been provided by: Matthews Archery, the leader in the archery industry. Mission Archery, with revolutionary crossbow technology. Three Rivers Archery, supplying everything you need to make your own traditional archery equipment.

Hunter Safety Systems, saving lives is what we do. And Conviction Game Calls. At Conviction, we don't separate work from our faith. We believe that our faith should be evident in every aspect of our lives, and the outdoors is one of the best places to share that.

God's Great Outdoors has produced many ministry tools, including tracts, DVDs, and books to help you reach others for Jesus Christ. You can access these items, other God's Great Outdoors items, and so much more at our website, godsgreatoutdoors.org. That's godsgreatoutdoors.org.

Micah Hulce: Welcome back to God's Great Outdoors: The Trail to Adventure. Once again, we're here in Ladysmith, Wisconsin, at our fourth annual God's Great Outdoors turkey camp. Dean, would you like to tell us about why we're here this week?

Dean Hulce: We started four years ago doing this. I've actually hunted out of this camp for about 12 years. About four years ago, we decided we had a group of young guys from the church and Shorty that were looking for another place to hunt.

We started doing it and just coming together. When we started, it really was about turkey hunting. That's why we were here. Over the last few years, we've spent a lot of time, partly because we had some rain days, just sitting here.

We would pull out our Bibles and just sit and talk about what God's doing, the importance of being out and spending the time together, and just building relationships with each other and growing each other. There's really an importance to doing that, especially in the turkey woods, sitting next to a tree. We almost always hunt two and two, and there's some real importance to that. Yesterday, Shorty got a chance to sit with Dan for hours out in the woods and here at the camp. There's real importance to that.

It carries beyond the camp. It carries back into everyday life. Shorty and I talk. It's been slow this last year because we've just been so busy, but we actually met in turkey camp originally 21 years ago. Is that possible? In 2005. That goes by fast. It's hard to believe that's 21 years ago.

Micah was just almost a newborn. It's hard to believe that's that long ago. Really, God used the turkey camp in order to call you to Himself, which was amazing. You think about it. You think guys are just going hunting.

For the wives that are listening, if your husband says, "Hey, I'm going with a group of guys, and they're good guys, good Christian men," I would say don't stifle that if you can because there's a brotherhood built. Iron sharpening iron happens without even trying when things are done right, just sitting here in camp, driving in the car, or sitting in the turkey chair. The conversations go a lot deeper than turkey hunting.

Micah Hulce: That's the thing about hunting camps like this. All of us that were here those first couple years didn't really know each other very well. Over the last four years, we've gotten to know each other. The Bible talks about in Proverbs 27:17, "As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another."

That's really what I've seen personally over the last few years. All these guys come together, bonding first of all over a love for Jesus and a love for turkey hunting. Through that, they are able to keep each other accountable and sharpen each other as we've been here.

Dean Hulce: Our camp in Michigan has been doing that for 38 years. Through that, I’ll tell the story on Shorty. Not the day that Shorty came to Christ. Micah was baptized in the mountains as a fairly young boy and put it out on Facebook.

Shorty saw it and said, "Hey Dean, would you baptize me?" His mother was always concerned he wasn't. I said, "I'll tell you what, Shorty, I'll get together with you. I'll show you what baptism is, and then if you want to be baptized." That all came from a relationship started in a hunting camp.

The Holy Spirit already had your heart ready for that. When I came in, I think you were already just looking for what the truth was in it.

Shorty (Larry) Scheidegger: I didn't know what baptism really was, but I knew that I needed something.

Dean Hulce: It was great we got a chance to share. I explained what salvation was, and you said, "That's what I want." A few months later, we did get together and baptize you at a lake. Micah, that was a little cold with him.

I'm trying to stay off from leading this thing, just co-hosting with Micah this week. We're hoping that maybe he would be able to start doing more programs with others that he has connections with. It's a whole new generation, actually two generations back, because Micah is actually my grandson.

Micah Hulce: I think with what we're talking about, it's just a good challenge for anybody that's listening today. If you're part of a hunting camp and you find that all you're focused on when you're there is just the hunting, you're missing out on so much if you're not taking that time and taking that opportunity to really bond with each other and to focus on how the Lord is using that time.

The hunting is just a small part of it, and the best part is really getting to grow in the Lord together. I haven't been able to do a lot of hunting over the last year or so, but I got to take part in a duck hunt that was actually a ministry event down in New Mexico back in February.

It was a similar situation to this where I think there were about ten of us that showed up to that camp. Most of us didn't know each other at all. We had never met. We came in there as strangers, but over the three days that we were there, we left like we were best friends, like we had known each other our whole life.

I think that's just a unique thing when you combine God and hunting where these guys are just able to bond and grow close to each other over such a short period of time. Something that really hit me this week that the listeners probably don't know is my wife and I have been living in Utah for the last year.

We moved down there to actually help out at a church plant that started about ten years ago. We've been helping with the youth group. We're in the city of St. George, and I don't come from the city, so it's been kind of a challenge for me. I've seen how God's been using it to grow me.

One of the things that I've been missing out on is just time like this in the outdoors. Actually, the first morning we were sitting out and when we heard those first gobbles, it almost brought me to tears because I think I take this for granted, or I've taken it for granted in the past.

I grew up getting to hunt and fish whenever I wanted to. I think the time that the Lord has used to take me out of that just reminded me how much of a blessing it is to be able to sit out there in His creation and just be a part of it. Even if I hadn't shot anything, it was just so nice to see everything that He's done and that He's created and that He allows us to use. It really hit me hard this week.

Dean Hulce: It's been hard for us too because you're normally on most of the hunts that we do, but God's got a plan in it. I really believe that there are so many opportunities in the outdoors. We're called God's Great Outdoors, and I think the reason for that is that we're doing these hunts and sharing the stories of others that hunt because there's a bond there.

As you read earlier about iron sharpening iron, that happens without even trying when things are done right, just sitting here in camp, driving in the car, sitting in the turkey chair, or sitting in a duck blind. Micah, a couple of years ago, we basically just sat out on the sand in the ocean and tried to kill ducks as they came by.

We've done that hundreds and hundreds of times now. This just started out this way, and I'm very thankful to Tom Nash. He allows us to come in and use his beautiful camp. There are probably 40 bucks hanging from the walls around us, all local bucks from his camp.

This year, we were invited to hunt some property that ended up being great. This is probably some of the best turkey numbers you'll find in hunting around here, and that was the case. If our shooting had been better, we'd have been done sooner, but we had a great time.

Micah Hulce: All right, well, that's about all the time that we have for the radio portion of this. You can find us on Spotify and Apple and anywhere you listen to your podcasts to listen to the rest of this show. As we wrap up, I would just encourage you guys listening, if you're not part of a hunting camp or if you don't have close relationships with people that like to do this kind of stuff, they're not too hard to find.

You can search just about anywhere and find a good group of guys. I would just challenge you to start doing something like this if you're not part of that camp. Make a camp. You can hunt public land, you can rent out a hotel room—we've done that in the past—and just start doing stuff with people.

It's funny to see how God uses it when you just take that step of faith and start doing that. That's all we have for today. You can join us next week on God's Great Outdoors: The Trail to Adventure. This is your part-time host, Micah Hulce, signing out. Anything else you guys want to add?

Dean Hulce: I would just add that it's good to have Micah here today and co-hosting. He's been the one pushing to make sure we got a podcast in at camp. We've done it a few other years, and it's been a good time and a good experience.

Shorty in the past sat in the background and yelled stuff or made motions at us, usually sleeping on the couch. Join us as Micah said. We're going to go onto the podcast. Join us there and then again join us every week as we head down the Trail to Adventure in God's Great Outdoors.

Adam: In today’s world, life is busier than ever before, and it gets harder and harder to find the places and times to allow God to speak to us in a quiet place. God is always there, ready to speak. Unfortunately, all too often, we fill our minds with things that take away from listening to Him speaking to us. It can’t be overstressed that we all need time to be still and listen.

Today’s program stressed this need: Christian men getting together to share what God is doing in their lives. Micah brought up Proverbs 27:17, where it says, "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." We need to surround ourselves with strong Christian men to sharpen us, men that will tell us the truth about ourselves and build us up.

A fishing boat, a deer stand, a canoe, or a hunting camp, or just sitting against a tree with another man can build us into what God wants. As we bring this week’s program to a close, we would challenge you to find those that will sharpen you. Find the men, then find a quiet place to spend time together in God’s Word. These times will become some of the most important times of your life.

If you’ve enjoyed today’s program and would like to hear the extended podcast version, you can find it by looking for Dean Hulce or Trail to Adventure wherever you listen to your favorite podcast. This program is provided by and can be contacted at God's Great Outdoors, P.O. Box 414, Powers, Michigan 49874 or on the website, godsgreatoutdoors.org. Thank you for joining us here as we share a little wisdom through time in God’s Great Outdoors. Please join us here each week as we travel together on the Trail to Adventure.