In the serenity of nature, Brian wieland is in a place he loves.
It's a place he's been his entire life.
"I grew up hunting, and fishing, camping," Wieland said.
So why is a hunt in Florence County something that a lifelong hunter describes as unreal? There was a time that Wieland and other hunters on the property didn't know what their hunting future held.
"November 16, of '03, I ended up falling out of a tree stand, and I ended up breaking my leg pretty bad," Wieland said. "I had numerous surgeries on it."
"I had a hunting accident in 2001," hunter Duane Johnson said. "I fell while tree hunting and actually had to crawl to the road to save my life."
It was a life saved but forever changed.
"I didn't understand all that other health issues that were involved," Johnson said. "I thought, oh you just can't walk - you're going to be in a wheelchair end of story. It's not that way at all."
There are complications - and not just health-related. Johnson and Wieland both lost a leg, and for a while they lost a passion.
"I really had to lose a lot of the love I had for hunting," Wieland said. "I had a hard time getting around, especially after my amputation. I've had to hunt out of my vehicle or not hunt at all."
At Wheelchair Whitetails, they can hunt again.
"Where many of these individuals might have felt like they have lost something they enjoy, hunting for example, we provide a way for them to experience that once again in a very realistic type setting because it's real hunting out here," owner and operator Steve Nooyen said.
At wheelchair Whitetails, Nooyen takes hunters into 500 acres of hunting grounds. There's six miles of trails, 14 wheelchair accessible blinds, and zero fences. It's a real, honest experience.
"The reality is they were hunters to begin with, and now they've had a setback, but I certainly can appreciate the ability to be able to get back out there and do it again, something they enjoy," Nooyen said.
By providing that hunting experience, Wheelchair Whitetails also provides everything that comes with it.
"It makes me feel like I'm back into hunting again, where I can go out into the woods, I can sit in the stand, I can hunt, I can see deer, and I can enjoy myself."
"I have a blast with them," Johnson said. "Joking around, telling hunting stories, and what'd you see, how close were you to trying to hit one. It's just hunting."
It's just hunting - the stillness, the outdoors, and the quest.
"It's always a thrill trying to get that big buck, you know," Johnson said.
All hunts are at no charge to the hunters on property.
You can learn more about Wheelchair Whitetails here.
