In Trace of TR

A Montana Hunter's Journey

Dan Aadland

• Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
• Year: 2010
• Print ISBN: 9780803265172
• eBook ISBN: 9780803268050
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Social Science Biographies
• Index: Social Sciences

As a student of American history, as a hunter, horseman, and former Marine, and as someone passionate about the West, Dan Aadland had long felt a kinship with Theodore Roosevelt. One day, on a single-footing horse, lever-action rifle under his knee, Aadland set out to become acquainted with TR as only those who shared his experiences could. In Trace of TR documents that quest, inviting readers to ride along and get to know Theodore Roosevelt through the western environment that so profoundly influenced him. Accompany Aadland as he rides the broad prairies in search of TR's "prongbuck, " tracks elk through the rugged Big Horn Mountains, and pursues a glimpse of the grizzly in the Absaroka Wilderness. Along the way the author's campfire musings and reflections on Roosevelt's writings further deepen and enrich this unique examination of our twenty-sixth president. With the trill of the western meadowlark and the bugle of the elk, the creak of saddle leather and the scent of sage, Aadland's journey takes readers into TR's beloved Dakota Territory then and now, offering a kindred spirit's moving, deftly drawn portrait of both the land and the man across the space of a century.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• List of Illustrations
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction: A Hunter’s Heart
• Part I. The Big Open
• 1. Pronghorns On The Powder: The cow camp; prongbucks TR style; Powderville, then and now; the young New Yorker and the buffalo bull; a “sadder man but wiser”; hunting in midday; Scooter and Partner; .30-30s and .45-70s; iron sights and eyeglasses; Partner’s initiation; a satisfying single-foot
• 2. The Elkhorn Ranch: On the road with Redstar, Partner, and Emily; Miles City and beyond; Medora and the Maah Daah Hey; Black Gold on TR’s ranch; A pleasant porch on the Little Missouri; meadowlarks and mountain bluebirds
• 3. Horses, Rifles, And A Man Named Magnus: Rosie and Elmer; mule deer in the sage; TR’s arsenal; the New Yorker and the Dane; Partner and Paycheck, Manitou and Muley
• Part II. The Mountains
• 4. The Big Horns: David, Jon, Justin, and TR; a pretty park; alibis; tenderloins in camp; ATV jockeys; ranchers and dudes; compass and GPS; TR’s tally; Old Ephraim; Jedediah Smith; grizzlies through the canvas; a big, big buck
• 5. The Absaroka: Children of the Large Beaked Bird; Buoyer and Leforge, Huskies and Indians; Plenty Coups and Cody; return of a warrior; mi patria chica
• 6. Slough Creek: Fire and wolves; a solo adventure; Xanadu; Little Mack and a flying mule; lady rangers; Bubba the gaited jack; “dinner bell grizzlies”; compatible companions; Orion; a Cheyenne friend; “I am Dutch Reformed”; Stewards of the Garden
• 7. Gardiner, 2008 (And 1903): Memories of Eagle Creek, boys, horses, and elk; TR in Yellowstone; Roosevelt, Burroughs, and Muir; a bull for Jim; a .38 on a .45 frame; spring bear plans
• Part III. The Home Range
• 8. Back At The Ranch, Thanksgiving, 2008: Gobbler on the porch; “It looks good enough to eat”; sportsmen; “real food” and “not real food”; a morning buck; “You got him!”
• 9. The Western Star: Cows and corrals; the end of the Elkhorn; the solitary singer; Hamlet and Fortinbras; the curlew and the thrush
• Notes
• Bibliography