The Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) chapter held their 15th Annual Rendezvous in the San Isabel National Forest west of Salida/Poncha Springs during June. A dozen hunters and anglers from around the state set up camp in a high-mountain meadow (known locally as the “goat wadi”) at 9,000-plus feet in the Sawatch Range.

BHA has always been a “quality over quantity” outfit and this Rendezvous served to prove the point. Attendees included (in part): a former Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) Commission Chairman; a retired CPW District Wildlife Manager (DWM); a retired U.S. Forest Service biologist; a Physical Scientist at U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), two former Air Force officers; a master falconer; a judge; etc.

We camped next to the Colorado Trail south of the 167,414-acre Collegiate Peaks Wilderness with easy access to a number of hiking and fishing locales. This was the seventh Rendezvous we’ve held at the goat wadi (2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2022, and 2024). The site was initially recommended by a local BHA Life Member, Bill Sustrich, a World War II/U.S. Navy veteran.[1]

Bill served aboard the minesweeper YMS Yancy in the Pacific theater.[2] Following the war he moved to Denver (in 1949), where he became an explosives engineer. He developed the explosive designs to initiate stage separation on the space program’s Titan rockets and later worked on explosive designs for other advanced military projects.[3]

In 1968 Bill and his wife Frances moved to Salida and purchased the Wagon Wheel Guest Ranch. During 2018 they celebrated their 50th year owning and operating the Ranch. Bill was an avid hunter-angler and a champion of wilderness and wildlife.[4] He led the charge for Colorado BHA, along with many others, to get Browns Canyon (north of Salida) designated as a national monument.[5]

During 2015 we recognized Bill with an award for his “unwavering commitment, spanning ten-plus years, to helping protect low-elevation big game habitat in the Browns Canyon area near Salida, which was designated a national monument in 2015.”[6] In Bill’s words: “In the simplest terms, without suitable habitat we will have no game; without game, we will have no hunting; without hunting, a precious heritage of our past will be lost forever.”[7]

We made a silent toast to Bill’s memory around the campfire Friday evening and on Saturday morning dispersed to go hiking and fishing, returning mid-afternoon for an informative Q&A session with Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) Area Wildlife Manager Sean Shepherd (Area 13-Salida) and District Wildlife Manager Tyler Kersey.[8]

After the CPW Q&A session we started the wild game feed, which included (in part): elk chili; smoked pheasant soup; mule deer brats; and mule deer meatballs. As one attendee opined: “That was really great and I enjoyed getting a deeper understanding of the Colorado Chapter. Plus, fishing was good and the food on Saturday night was awesome!” Another attendee added: “A great crew, food, fishing, conversation, and weather!”

This wild game smorgasbord is an example/indicator of the breadth and depth of hunting (and angling) opportunities BHA is working to protect and perpetuate across Colorado and the continent, none of which would be possible without the dedication of our boots on the ground members. Because BHA has been a “quality over quantity” outfit form the start we punch well above our weight class.[9]

The Colorado BHA chapter was founded by David “Elkheart” Petersen (a former U.S. Marine Corps helicopter pilot) in 2005 (the first official BHA chapter). “For me, it was always super simple,” David said. “If you want to hunt, first you have to have animals to hunt. And if you want animals, first they’ve got to have habitat to live in. So, if you’re not trying to protect habitat and improve it and increase it, then you’re working against yourself as a hunter. It doesn’t have to be any spiritual, tree-hugging thing. It’s a very practical way to take care of yourself.”[10]

Another renowned hunter-conservationist, Medal of Honor recipient Theodore Roosevelt, would agree. “Theodore Roosevelt fell in love with the West hunting in the backcountry,” explains Land Tawney, BHA’s former President & CEO. “What he fell in love with was the challenge and the thirst for life that you only get in the backcountry. I take solace in the fact that we are protecting the backcountry much like he did.”[11]

“Roosevelt was not only speaking to hunters, of course, but to all members of society,” Sports Afield contributor Shane Mahoney said. “Wildlife, in his view, was to be protected by a fortress of the concerned—an army of men and women who would resist the destruction of wild nature and preserve it.”[12] Because of Teddy’s Roosevelt’s leadership, America’s public lands truly became the “estate” of the average American.[13]

And as BHA founder Mike Beagle (a former U.S. Army field artillery officer) said: “We will continue to be a voice for core values of solitude, challenge, freedom and tradition so badly needed in the world where outdoor pursuits risk becoming more about selling products and technology instead of exercising skill and woodcraft. BHA is getting better and better. The best is yet to come.”[14]

Bill Sustrich lived those values and took point in organizing five Colorado BHA Rendezvous (2010, 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2016) at the goat wadi site. During the 2016 Rendezvous we celebrated Bill’s upcoming 90^th birthday. Then, during 2017 Bill invited my wife, Melinda, and I to stay at his Wagon Wheel Guest Ranch. Sadly, that was the last time we saw him before he passed away in 2018.[15]

Thank you Bill, Sean, Tyler, David, Land, Teddy, Shane, and Mike for taking the initiative and working tirelessly to protect our wild public lands, waters, and wildlife for future generations of hunters, anglers, and other outdoorsmen and women. We’ll close with an appropriate quote from Bill Sustrich: “The fact is, nothing yet created by mankind can offer the degree of wildlife refuge as that provided by wilderness designation.”[16] Wildlands and wildlife need many more like you Bill. Rest in peace my friend.

Additional/Related Information

-Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) 15th Annual Rendezvous west of Salida (June 21–23, 2024) (photos).

-“Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers 15th Annual Rendezvous (June 21-23, 2024).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 5/14/24.

-“Colorado BHA Remembers Chapter Patriarch (& U.S. Navy/World War II veteran) Bill Sustrich.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 8/6/18.

Chapter News/Events

What Has BHA/CO BHA Done For Me?

-“CO BHA Chapter Newsletter Spring 2024.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 5/8/24.

-“CO BHA Winter Newsletter.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 12/21/23.

-“CO Chapter Newsletter Fall 2023.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 10/9/23.

-“Colorado Chapter Newsletter Summer 2023.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 7/8/23.

-“Colorado BHA Q1 2024 Update.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 2/16/24.

-“Colorado BHA Q4 2023 Update.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 10/27/23.

-“Colorado BHA Q3 2023 Update.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 8/3/23.

-“Colorado BHA Q2 2023 Update.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 4/24/23.

What Can I Do For Wildlands And Wildlife?

-Upcoming CO BHA Events: https://www.backcountryhunters.org/co_upcoming_events

-Upcoming BHA Armed Forces Initiative (AFI) Events.

https://www.backcountryhunters.org/events_afi

-Gift a BHA membership.

-BHA Membership Specials: https://www.backcountryhunters.org/free

-All Things Colorado BHA: https://www.backcountryhunters.org/colorado

Additional/Related Resources

-Ben Long’s Hunter & Angler Field Guide to Raising Hell: https://www.scottpublishingcompany.com/fieldguide

-David “Elkheart” Petersen (founder of the first BHA state chapter, here in Colorado, and a former U.S. Marine Corps helicopter pilot) books. Also see this Elkheart documentary, “On the Wild Edge,” at: https://youtu.be/-IE58L4bqEA 

-“Hunting For Experience: Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Oral History Project.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 3/28/24.

-“The Patron Saints of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 3/12/24.

-“Stalking Wildness: BHA’s Wilderness Warriors.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 2/13/24.

-“Public Lands (& Freedom) Unite Our Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Tribe.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 1/5/24. 

-“A Hunter-Angler (Hell-Raisin’ & Habitat Savin’) Guide To Winning: Colorado BHA Examples (Browns Canyon & Camp Hale).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 10/23/23.

-“Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: Mission, Issues & Actions (Triads).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 8/17/23.

-“Minnesota BHA North Country Icebreaker (‘Stoke The Fire,’ But Don’t Burn Out!).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 3/11/23.

-“Armed Forces Initiative Helps Veterans Hunt … And More.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 8/17/22.

-“It’s All About The Meat.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 2/17/22.

-“Conservation (& Conciliation).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 9/15/21.

-“Colorado BHA State Chapter Leadership (Triad) Structure.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 7/26/21.

-“Hunting For Experience: At BHA’s North American Rendezvous.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 7/9/21.

-“BHA State Chapter Development (Recruiting/Retaining Leaders & Avoiding Burnout).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 6/1/21.

-“The ABCs Of LTEs: Writing Letters To The Editor.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 2/5/21.

-“Empowering Leaders: It’s In BHA’s DNA.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 1/7/21.

-“A Letter from CO Co-Chair David Lien.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 12/18/20.

-“Where Hope Lives: A Brief BHA History.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 11/30/20.

-“Looking back, looking forward: A brief history of BHA.” https://www.backcountryhunters.org/about

BHA Issues Triad (PAF)[17]

1. Public Lands & Waters (Public Lands = Freedom). Our public lands make each of us land-rich. Protecting and perpetuating public lands and waters is paramount. “Public lands personify this idea we call America—which is freedom. The human animal—the human spirit—is not intended to be confined to a cage.”[18] We are, “The voice for our wild public lands, waters and wildlife.” Former BHA Armed Forces Initiative (AFI) Coordinator Trevor Hubbs adds, “The BHA mission is all of ours.”[19] And as explained by BHA Podcast & Blast host Hal Herring, “The future of the American public lands is as important to our nation as the Bill of Rights or the Constitution itself.”[20]
2. Access & Opportunity. We are intent on keeping public lands in public hands.[21] “Working every day to make sure you have access to public lands and waters and the quality fish and wildlife habitat when you get there.”[22] Access has emerged as a priority issue for North American hunters and anglers, and lack of access is cited by sportsmen and women as the No. 1 reason why we stop pursuing our passions. Access to the more than 600 million acres of public land is part of being American. However, opportunity is diminished when “access becomes excess.”[23]
3. Fair Chase & Restraint. “We must ensure that the ethical pursuit of fish and game is upheld as dearly as our own obligation to morality and citizenship,” BHA explains in its fair chase statement.[24] As Jim Posewitz wrote in Beyond Fair Chase, “The ethics of hunting deteriorate as machinery and modern technology are substituted for hunter stamina, skill, knowledge, and patience.”[25] Conservation derives from the Latin conservare, meaning “to keep guard.”[26] As America’s first conservationists, hunters have a century-old tradition of protecting habitat and policing our own ranks.[27]

Founded by Mike Beagle, a former U.S. Army field artillery officer, and formed around an Oregon campfire, in 2004, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers is the voice for our nation’s wild public lands, waters and wildlife. With members spread out across all 50 states and Canada—including chapters in 48 states, two Canadian provinces and one territory, and Washington, D.C.—BHA brings an authentic, informed, boots-on-the-ground voice to the conservation of public lands. The Colorado BHA chapter was founded by David Petersen (a former U.S. Marine Corps helicopter pilot) in 2005 (the first official BHA chapter)

[1] “Colorado BHA Remembers Chapter Patriarch (& U.S. Navy/World War II veteran) Bill Sustrich.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 8/6/18.

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/YMS-1-class_minesweeper

[3] Editor(s). “William ‘Bill’ Henry Sustrich.” The Mountain Mail (Salida, Colo.): 7/27/18.

[4] Ibid.

[5] https://www.blm.gov/programs/national-conservation-lands/colorado/browns-canyon

[6] “Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Recognize Members (Bill Sustrich and Paul Vertrees) for Browns Canyon Contributions.” AmmoLand.com: 6/9/15.

[7] Bill Sustrich. “Browns Canyon Editorial.” Email: 11/23/07.

[8] Brian McCabe. “CPW promotes Sean Shepherd.” The Mountain Mail: 10/5/21.

[9] “Colorado BHA Q2 2024 Update.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 6/21/24.

[10] Scott Willoughby. “David ‘Elkheart’ Petersen aims to protect outdoor resources.” The Denver Post: 6/12/13.

[11] Daniel Xu. “Leaders of Conservation: BHA Executive Director Land Tawney.” OutdoorHub: 6/18/14.

[12] Shane Mahoney. “Pursuit Of The Common Good.” Sports Afield: May/June 2013, p. 36.

[13] Joe Kasper. “[Congressman Duncan] Hunter [R-CA] Introduces Teddy Roosevelt Bring Back Our Public Lands Act.” Press Release/Statement: 7/31/07.

[14] “Where Hope Lives: A Brief BHA History.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 11/30/20.

[15] Editor(s). “William ‘Bill’ Henry Sustrich.” The Mountain Mail (Salida, Colo.): 7/27/18.

[16] Bill Sustrich. “Browns Canyon.” Landscapes: December 2009, p. 5.

[17] https://www.backcountryhunters.org/our_issues

[18] Ron Spomer is a hunting writer, conservationist, and photographer.

[19] Trevor Hubbs, BHA Armed Forces Initiative (AFI) Coordinator. “Lethal Minds Journal Volume 13.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 8/17/23. https://www.backcountryhunters.org/lethal_minds_journal_volume_13

[20] Will Bostwick. “The New Documentary ‘Public Trust’ Is a Call to Action: By highlighting three potent public-lands battles, the film asks audiences to take a stand in a political moment that threatens the future of American conservation.” Outside: 2/19/20.

[21] David A. Lien. “Fighting to keep public lands in public hands.” Grand Junction (Colo.) Daily Sentinel: 1/26/23.

[22] Land Tawney, BHA President and CEO. “Thank You.” Backcountry Journal: Fall 2023, p. 3.

[23] David A. Lien. “Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Increase Reward For Illegal Trail Construction (Help Stop Trail Building ‘Free-For-All’).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 4/10/23; Kris Hess/Brien Webster. “CO BHA Publishes Memo on Illegal Trails.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 8/24/22; David A. Lien. “More trails a slippery slope to less hunting.” Grand Junction (Colo.) Daily Sentinel: 12/9/21.

[24] https://www.backcountryhunters.org/fair_chase

[25] Jim Posewitz. Beyond Fair Chase. Helena, Montana: Falcon Publishing, Inc., 1994, p. 40.

[26] Douglas S. Barasch. “Saying the ‘C-Word’: Conservation, finally, comes into vogue.” Onearth: Spring 2006, p. 3.

[27] Colorado BHA Co-Chair David A. Lien quoted in/by: Dennis Anderson. “Opinions vary on using drones for hunting.” Minneapolis-St. Paul (Minn.) StarTribune: 3/17/14.