A Story must be told or there’ll be no story, yet it is the untold stories that are most moving.
J.R.R. Tolkien
Bryan and Brad, long time friends, dreamed up “The Storied Outdoors” in the spring of 2020 on a fly fishing trip to Blue Ridge, Ga. Inspired by listening to a fly fishing audiobook on the way by essayist, John Gierach, they realized they too had stories to tell of the great outdoors. After fleshing out the details, the result was the birth of a podcast that included reading essays about faith, life, and adventures outdoors—a combination of Bryan’s experience as a writer and Brad’s experience with all things audio and both of their loves for the outdoors. In addition to reading essays, they will interview like-minded men and women who have great stories of being outdoors.
The tagline, “A podcast that is somewhere between Lewis and Tolkien and Lewis and Clark,” is not a claim to be the masters of writing like Lewis and Tolkien or experienced explorers like Lewis and Clark. But the influence of these men is evident in Bryan and Brad’s life with their love of literature and their desire to find clarity through adventures.
Dr. Bryan Gill
Bryan is an administrator and instructor at Samford University in Birmingham, Ala. At home, Bryan is the husband to Sarah and daddy to two young children. At church, he is the men’s ministry director. He can also be found fly fishing, watercolor painting trout, or woodworking. But having authored several books, including How to Be a Man: Learning from Real Men of the Bible, his favorite pastime is writing.
Brad Hill
Brad is a Family Discipleship and missions pastor for Mars Hill Church in Mobile, Ala. When he's not serving in those capacities, you can find him outdoors, on a hike, or wading a river with a fly rod in his hand. Brad is married to Paige Hill, and they have two children Stella and Liam.