Since 1981
A lot of outfitters have come and gone since we started over 45 years ago. You don't make it this long without doing a few things right.
Frank, Cal and Ray Stukel (all brothers) started the business on family land back in 1981. Ray was a farmer/rancher who took care of the food plots and could fix anything. Cal was a restaurant owner who provided the best food in the business. Frank was (and still is) the businessman who goes in a million different directions to make it all come together.
The primary property we hunt was originally owned by Frank's in-laws, Arnold and Grace Henrecy, purveyors of Henrecy's Herefords. Their very successful livestock operation included a sale barn that packed with people during annual bull sales.
Frank's wife, Carol, grew up on this land. That's her riding a horse during a bull sale in the Sale Barn in the late 50's and again with two of her granddaughters on the farm in 2025.
That same barn is a cornerstone of our operation today. It sure has come a long way in terms of amenities over 45 years!
The business started out as Stukel's Birds and Bucks, owing to the fact that we offered both pheasant and mule deer hunts.
A photo from 1982. That's Sam and Ben on the bottom left. Carrying BB guns on the hunt was a blast!
In the early days the guides cleaned birds and sometimes helped with the shooting!
Sam and Ben were in the field going all the way back to the beginning in 1981. There were no bird dogs those first several years, resulting in these two sprinting after many wounded pheasants!
Nate came along a little later. That's him on the left (1996) helping Sam and Ben prep pine logs still used as staircase spindles in the lodge today.
Frank and Cal laying the ground work on the road in the mid-1990's. Many of the long-time guests that still come today have ties back to those Dallas Safari Club shows the brothers exhibited at in the 90's and 2000's.
As the business moved into its third decade (the 2000's), Frank and Ray handled the field duties and Cal churned out meals that long-time hunters still mention today.
We were lucky enough to hire Veronica Frasch in 2003. She has served as our hard-working lodge manager ever since. Veronica can do it all and she's been a big part of this business's success.
Nate, Sam, and Ben got more involved as the years went on, first primarily guiding and then taking on other duties. (Photo from 2008).
Ben's wife, Sky (seen above in 2009 and 2024), joined the guide crew in the late 2000's and has been going strong ever since.
Michael, the English brother-in-law to Ray, Cal and Frank, dropped in to see what all the fuss over bird hunting was about in 2011. He's now a fixture and favorite of all the hunters (and staff). Photos from 2012 and 2023.
Ray's legacy lives on in the business. His daughter-in-law Dawn (left) has helped out in the kitchen multiple years since 2012. RaeAnne (daughter) has been our evening cook since 2022 and Tina (daughter) is our kitchen manager (started in 2024). They're an amazing team and a lot of fun!
Sam and Ben's elementary school friend Justin Johnson (seen here in 2007 and 2025) started working as a guide in the early 2000's and still drives in from WY for several hunts each year.
Ben's boys Pierce (left - 2012) and Dawson (right - 2015) are getting immersed in the action early.
The two of them (seen here in 2025) are regulars in the field these days.
If you made it this far, you can see that our roots run deep here at Stukel's Upland Adventures. We take pride in our tradition and strive to carry on the things that made that have made this place special for nearly half a century.