Discover Smith Mountain Lake
FALL 2016
13
12
“When you’re flown into the Arctic Circle
region by float plane and left there for several
days, you’d better be sure you have all of the
medicine and medical supplies you might
possibly need.” Indeed, Lortscher’s first aid
kit has been the salvation of numerous other
less-prepared camp-mates.
Clothing, footwear, ammunition, and
firearm(s) must be chosen carefully to suit
the expedition. Guns must be cleaned,
lubricated, and sighted in at the shooting
range.As part of his preparations, Dave also
selects gifts to bring along for his outfitter,
guides, cooks, camp staff, and hunting
mates. His thoughtfulness is often returned,
and he still maintains contact with guides
and hunting companions with whom he has
formed special bonds over the years.
Dr. Dave enjoys experiencing the cultures
of new places and meeting the people. He
has hunted on the 80,000-acre ranch of a
wealthyArgentinian family, and was the first
outsider to hunt on the 25,000-acre private
preserve of a retired Christian minister and
hiswife in SouthAfrica.His accommodations
have run the gamut, from the luxury of a
12-bedroom, 16-fireplace hunting lodge
of a wealthy Laird in the remote wilds of
the Western Highlands of Scotland, to the
cramped tiny cabin in Newfoundland’s
wilderness, which he shared with another
hunter, two guides, and the outfitter.
Framed pictures and mounted taxidermy
adorn the walls in both Lortscher’s home
and his hunting lodge near Gretna. Many of
the photos are of sunsets or breath-taking
countryside vistas. “Every picture and every
mounted animal revives memories of the
experiences for me, as if they happened
yesterday,” he notes.
Perhaps the biggest attraction for Dave is
the natural beauty that he encounters in
the wilderness. “Every breath-taking vista
reminds me of God, and God’s goodness.
I meditate and pray a lot when I’m out in
nature, and despite the long, solitary hours
of sitting quietly in the woods, I never get
bored. In fact, I’m constantly intrigued by
the workings of nature around me. Despite
my advancing years (he is 77 years young),
I’ll never get tired of hunting. It’s my passion
and my mistress.”
Dave Lortcher expects his bucket list to take
him to Quebec, South Africa, Oregon and
Arizona. By the time those four hunts are
completed, he fully intends to add several
more destinations to that list.
He credits his passion with helping to
engender a degree of introspection. “It
provides me with the solitude and silence
to continually discover new dimensions of
myself, and to gain useful and otherwise
unavailable insights on how I should proceed
with my life.”
“It keeps me young and enthused,” he says,
“and I’m not going to stop anytime soon.”
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Sitting alone in a gentle rain is a welcome
and necessary respite from the otherwise
hectic and disturbing nature of modern-
day life, and encourages a different, more holistic
and welcome perspective. Without a significant
time in nature, I think my outlook on life would be
significantly less healthy”
~ Dr. Dave Lortscher
Above: A favorite moment: leaving the Roanoke
airport for a distant destination. Below: Float-
plane travel to remote wilderness areas adds to
the adventure.
Weekdays at 1:10 PM
with Dennis Silvers
WSLK
Lake Radio 880
