Doc and the RoadDoc and the Road
Brad Orsted - Take It Outside
Brad Orsted talks about Doc’s recovery, leaving the Jardine home and cabin where he both drank and got sober, and how his writing turned into *Through the Wilderness*. He reflects on the meaning of the book’s publication and why he decides to buy an RV and set out on a personal book tour across the Mountain West.
13:04•15 Oct 2026
Boots, Bad Elbows and a Book Tour: Brad Orsted Leaves Jardine Behind
Episode Overview
- Choosing a physical outlet, like walking or tracking wildlife, can help break the immediate grip of a craving.
- Spaces tied to drinking can be reclaimed as places of healing and reflection over time.
- Writing down events and feelings may offer clarity about how grief and addiction have shaped a life.
- Accepting unexpected opportunities, such as a book deal or tour, can open new paths in recovery.
- Meeting others face to face who relate to your story can confirm that sharing pain and healing is worthwhile.
“My strategy, such as it was when the urge hit, became that I grabbed my boots instead of the bottle and went out to track mountain lions.”
What drives someone to seek a life without alcohol? This episode of "Doc and the Road" drops you right into Brad Orsted’s world as he balances pet recovery, personal sobriety, and a big life move in the middle of a Montana winter. Six weeks after Doc’s surgery, the main challenge isn’t healing, it’s keeping an over-eager dog from “blowing it.” Brad jokes about spending those early weeks talking Doc off figurative ledges while squirrels tempt him at the window.
As Doc slowly returns to himself, another major shift hits: the Jardine house finally sells, giving Brad thirty days to leave the place where his drinking spiralled and his sobriety began. You’ll hear Brad talk frankly about the writing cabin that “had like two lives.” First, it was where he went to get drunk and fall apart unseen.
Then, starting in the brutal sober winter of 2018, it became a sanctuary where he grabbed his boots instead of the bottle and tracked mountain lions through the snow to outrun his demons. Back in the cabin, he started writing simply to understand his own story: losing Marley, leaving Michigan, living a “slow emergency” in Yellowstone. Those pages turned into his book, *Through the Wilderness: My Journey of Redemption and Healing in the American West*.
Brad shares the surreal experience of that deeply honest story landing with a major publisher and being reviewed by big outlets, then explains why that wasn’t enough. He wanted to meet actual readers, the ones who picked up his book in “an airport or a library or a bookstore” and maybe saw themselves in his grief and recovery. So, he buys an RV, gets Doc ready, and sets his sights on a book tour through the Mountain West.
If you’re carrying something heavy, this episode offers a quiet reminder that healing can start with one small choice—boots instead of a bottle—and grow into a journey you never expected. Where might your next small choice lead?
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