Over the years, I have been fortunate enough to hunt and fish with some amazing people. I have spent time with some of the biggest names in the outdoors industry as well as some lesser-known folks that have stories that just need to be told.
This week I would like to tell you about a couple of individuals that have captivated outdoorsmen from all over with their tales of adventure and mishap.
I first came to know Denny Spann and his son, William "Spook" Spann, from a duck hunting trip to Paducah, Kentucky. The national sales manager from Strike King Lure Company loves to chase waterfowl and he arranged this trip.
Denny had just opened up a new lodge that catered to the avid waterfowler. We were to spend a few days with him shooting ducks, filming the lodge, promoting his business and just having a grand time.
As it turns out, Denny was one of the nicest folks I had ever met. He didn't know me from Adam, but I just had the sense that this guy would do anything for anyone. He also had an aura about him that put people at ease. Not to mention, he also made the best homemade cinnamon ice cream.
During this outing, I started to talk with his son Spook. (How he got his nickname is a story for another time.) The father and son team had spent considerable time chasing big game animals all over the country. Spook was especially excited because this time they were going to fly to a former Soviet Union territory, now called Kyrgyzstan, to go on a sheep hunt.
This just wasn't any sheep they were after, it was the famed Marco Polo sheep. It is one of the most coveted and reclusive of all the big horns. Not only was this trip expensive, it would be challenging both physically and mentally. Little did Denny and Spook realize how challenging.
The hunt itself was exciting and lived up to everything that was promised, but their story really gets interesting when they were leaving for home.
They were traveling at 10,000 feet in some of the most mountainous terrain they had ever seen. Shortly after leaving base camp, a horrendous blizzard enveloped them to the point where they were trapped in minus-40 degree weather. Survival, instantly, was at the forefront of their minds.
Denny and Spook's hunting partner and friend from Canada, Clay Lancaster, used his satellite phone to try and call for help. His battery was nearly dead, and the outfitter that arranged this trip hung up on him saying, "It wasn't that bad." Ultimately, he didn't believe that the storm was anything to worry about.
Clay then used the last bit of power he had in his phone to call his brother and tried to recite the GPS coordinates to him. In mid-sentence the phone died. Did the call get through? Time would tell.
The next day a local helicopter arrived. The hunters and their guides were ecstatic. Rescued, finally! This is where the story just turns from bad to worse.
To sum things up, the rescue helicopter crashed. The pilot died and one of the guides perished. Spook was severely injured, his father suffered numerous broken ribs and Clay lost sight in his left eye. Not to mention the blizzard was picking up again.
If you are the slightest bit intrigued by this misadventure, you can watch the whole thing on Animal Planet's show, I Shouldn't Be Alive: Blizzard of Death. The show originally aired this last spring, but if you log on to YouTube and type in that exact episode title, it will come up.
Their story is amazing, terrifying, and very personal. It will touch you in many ways.
Whenever we venture into the outdoors anything can happen. It doesn't matter if we are traveling into a vast wilderness like the Spann family, or if we are traversing our own backyards. Bad things happen. Weather is unforgiving and doesn't distinguish between the unprepared and the prepared.
Always plan for the worst scenario you can think of and finding your way back to your loved ones will most likely be the end result. Take nature for granted and we might not be so fortunate.
I talked with Denny shortly after their ordeal. He was a wonderful and caring person before this experience, but now he doesn't take anything for granted. I hope you enjoy watching their story and take the time to think about how we can all be better prepared for the unexpected.