Dude and Bre Kruger hacking the hounds back to the meet. Photo by Traci Duckworth.

A great huntsman impacts not only their hunt but members of other hunts. Sometimes this is through breeding their hounds, inviting guests to hunt, or attending hound shows and performance trials. In the case of Dave “Dude” Kruger, it was the Burwell.

North Hills Hunt has hosted an invitational hunt in Burwell, Nebraska, for something like 50 years. Little more than a slightly larger dot on a map, Burwell is known for three things: Nebraska’s Big Rodeo, the Calamus Reservoir, and foxhunting. It’s centrally located and easy to get to (if you don’t mind section roads through farmland), so the invitational weekends attract members from many hunts across the West. The country is only hunted 3-4 weekends a year so the coyotes are fresh and it’s always a good time. It is breathtakingly beautiful, and the weather is guaranteed to be interesting no matter the time of year.