TROPHY GIRL
By: Kim David

I met Bryttni Westlake the day before she went off to her junior year at the University of Wyoming. The 20-year-old Kinnear resident presented me with some impressive hunting photos and in turn I gave Bryttni a long list of interview questions to tackle when she had a few spare moments. She is busy studying Agricultural Communications, which I discovered has nothing to do with engaging cows in conversation, but rather training future broadcasters, editors and writers with an agricultural focus. It sounds like the perfect course of study for Wyoming’s exclusive candidate this year to run for National FFA office. The Future Farmers of America annually elect six national officers and it’s no small feat to be on the ballot. Each nominee must hold a top-level American FFA degree demonstrating a firm dedication to learning about the many aspects of agriculture, not to mention outshining the rest of the competition in their respective states. Bryttni has deep, strong roots in Wyoming heritage, both through lifestyle and education; her rÄsumÄ has her love for the outdoors stamped all over it.

Hunting is a vital part of Bryttni’s family tradition and came as naturally to her as breathing. Her father is Bryce Westlake, owner of Bryce’s Sausage Kitchen in Pavillion and Bryttni’s favorite hunting buddy. An only child, she’s gone on hunting trips since she was big enough to keep up and was thrilled to begin hunting on her own at age 14. Six years later, she’s already an accomplished hunter with two buck antelope, two bull elk, numerous deer and antelope does, and two cow elk under her belt. A rule in Bryttni’s family: “You kill it, you gut it!” Four of these prizes can be found on her wall, including a very decent bull elk she harvested from the Red Desert area, one of Bryttni’s preferred hunting spots.

The other bull elk trophy was acquired three years ago when Bryttni was hunting in area 48 with another favorite partner, Mark Leonhardt. (Apparently she has a knack for drawing great hunting tags.) The day was growing long and Bryttni and Mark had not seen any elk at all. After stopping for an afternoon snack, they began hiking over a ridge that led to an adjacent canyon. As they crested, Bryttni was amazed to see hundreds of elk in the basin below. Staying hidden, the two hunters concluded that the best way to get close was to climb down the ridge and up the rock face of the canyon wall. They slowly made their way to a spot in a tree about halfway up “with a great view of the elk and a good shooting angle.” And then they waited. Bryttni felt like she was watching a hunting show on TV as the elk began bugling and fighting in the late afternoon sun. The smaller bulls didn’t stick around as the bigger ones began to battle, making a lot of noise and running at one another furiously, heads lowered and locking antlers. When the tussle was finally over and the biggest bull was left with his harem of cows, Bryttni knew it was her chance. From a couple hundred yards and using a branch for balance, “I found him in my scope and shot. That was it. He fell to the ground and the cows were gone.”

To Bryttni, hunting is much more than finding ‘the big one’. It’s about enjoying quality time with family and friends and appreciating the great outdoors and the creatures that share it. “Hunt for the experience, not just the trophy reward,” Bryttni urges. “Some of my favorite hunting stories end with us coming home empty-handed.” Sounds like that doesn’t happen to her very often, though. Bryttni Westlake is a very motivated individual who knows exactly what things matter to her and what she wants, and she puts her full effort forward. I think that has much more to do with her successful hunting results than all the advice, shooting practice and sheer luck you can shake a stick at. (Though practicing shooting certainly doesn’t hurt. Unless your aim is really, really bad.) Bryttni is looking to add a bull moose and a caribou hunt in Canada to her list; I have no doubt that every trophy this girl sets her mind to is within her grasp. A big congratulations to Bryttni on her National FFA nomination and we wish her the very best.