Smell us now, lady, Welcome to Meet Eater Trivia podcast.
All right, we're on. Welcome to the June twenty sixth episode of Media to Radio Live. It's eleven o'clock here in Bozeman, Montana. It's eight o'clock eight pm for Steve, who's currently in Tanzania, Africa. My kid's got a MOA's lawn tomorrow for him. I'm your host, Brody Henderson, and I'm joined by Seth Morris and Corey Calkins. Today we're gonna chat with a Vermont Forrester about logging and shooting.
Wait till doze. Then we're gonna do a little public lands throwback Thursday, and we're gonna follow that up with some regional fishing reports and a first ever meat Eater live at fishing tournament between Seth and Corey. You guys nervous?
Oh yeah, I'm not at all.
You shouldn't be. No, it's just gonna this is like like just trail breaking stuff here. That what you guys are gonna do today.
Someone's ever done.
I'd be nervous if I was a fish in that pond right now.
Yep.
They don't know what's coming.
Unlass. We're gonna finish everything up with a funny trailcam photo contest, which should be really really cool to look at. Uh. Before we get get to all that, we're gonna do a little chit chat like we usually do. What do you guys went up to?
Well?
I got a quick question, how well does Steve pay your kids for mowing this lawn?
That was unclear? I asked, asked my kid, like, what did he tell you were getting? He's like, he didn't say anything. Mmmm, so it might be based, it might be performance based pay.
We'll see, well naturally, Yeah, what he's gone for a while.
But then I found out he's got to bag up a bunch of grass because Steve needs to like mulch his potatoes or something.
Oh that's I hope he charges extra for that.
Yeah, we'll see. So, yeah, we got to go over there and do that.
See what your what your boy needs to do is just give him an invoice. I know, don't don't like, let Steve set the price.
You know, that's a good idea.
Yeah, that's great on that.
Yeah, Seth, you're about to go on a really long plane ride.
Yeah, I'm heading to where Steve's at right now Tanzania tomorrow morning.
Yeah.
Yeah, I don't know how many hours exactly, like thirty thirty some hours to travel.
Where's it? Where are your stopovers?
Minneapolis, Amsterdam, kil Minjaro.
That's not so bad.
It's like, uh whatever, from here to Minneapolis is what to and some change. Then it's eight hours, nine hours, and then I think there's some little type of bush plane flight we take into where we're going to be.
Wow, I can We'll see you at the end of the summer.
I'll yeah, yeah, gone all summer.
That'll be an adventure.
Man.
You guys have to do some fishing for me.
Oh, we're heading out this week and we're going after some walleye purchase.
We just don't send me any photos because I don't. I'll be jealous.
Seth would rather see a picture of a big walleye than like a lion or a dram Yeah, that's true story. Corey been doing anything.
Fun, lots of fishing and camping, trying to get my seven year old kid into the lifestyle.
I saw that video of him hauling in a trout. Yeah, not too long ago. That's pretty cool.
Yep, he's pretty hooked.
Now we got him echos Gecko. It's this little kid's flyer out. It's got a little fighting butt, fiberglass, four weight, super easy for the kids to cast. High recommend it if anybody wants to get their kids into fly fish. And it just makes anybody a professional angler.
You can.
I was shocked that it could land these super heavy, stout, healthy fish on the Missouri.
Bendy fiberglass rod.
Yeah, very easy to fight.
You can use it today in the tournament.
You should, I should, But no, I got my kid's other rod. Actually, I'm just a little seven foot seven and a half foot four weight cool should do the.
Trick, Philt. We got our interviewee ready to go.
He is in the waiting room. Yeah, he's ready to go.
Let's let's talk. Uh, let's talk logging and stuff.
Let's bring him in.
Okay. Today we're joined by a former met Eater podcast guest, Mike's Mike Snyder. Mike served twelve years as the commissioner of Vermont's Department of Forest, Parks and Recreation and also as State for Forrester. Today is the owner of Green Fire Enterprises, which is an operation that consults on forrest conservation, forestry and outdoor recreation. And he's also a writer who wrote woods Wise, an expiration of forest and forestry. So, Mike, thanks for joining us.
Man, happy to be here.
Like your shirt.
Yeah, apport shirt for here.
We had to wrap today for that, chefs. Good to see you again. Last time we chatted we were comparing notes on the old dendrology class.
Yes, sir, good to see you again.
Thank you.
Right on, Mike, Just in case anyone missed the podcast that you were on, can you give us just a brief rundown of your experience in the field of forestry and then we'll move on to some current events stuff.
Sure. Yeah, I'm a forester. I live here in Vermont.
I've been practicing forestry now just forty years here in a variety of capacities over time for science forest management, start working with private landowners, and then, as you mentioned, I was tapped to philip role as Commissioner of the Department of Forest, Parks and Recreation, working closely with the Department of Fish and Wildlife unrelated matters and so a couple of years ago I stepped down from that and have gone back into private practice with my company Green
Fire as you say, consulting in a variety of forestry, conservation, outdoor recreation related topics. I also spent time teaching at UVM University of from teaching forestry for decade and a half and have been writing for various magazines over time as well. So it's a mixed bag, but pretty much everything I've ever done has been related to the woods one way or another.
So, like, for all those city folks out there, like, what does a forester do? Is it just like looking at a chunk of land and being like, how do we make this healthy? How do we keep this forest healthy? Like just like what like say as the state for well, you said state forest was political, but like's what's an on the ground forest are doing?
Yeah, it's a good question because there is a lot of it seems overtime definitely learned that there's misconceptions. There's a lot of ways to be a forester. Uh And but the sort of boots on the ground, as you describe the basic field forester is as you say, it's the folks who kind of take care of the woods, understand, map, inventory, describe, and make decisions and choices about how to get what people need from the woods, well, taking care of the woods.
One good analogy I would I would draw that's very helpful, I think is it's rough, but it's reasonable. Particularly where you think about forester is differentiated from the lagger. So like the forest think of like architect and builder. The forester is more like the architect, design input on the front end, and then the lagger is more like the builder who actually does the tough work of harvesting trees, you know, getting them out of the woods in a
careful way. And so you know, that's how I would describe it. Foresters are responsible to the landowner and to the land and kind of agent for land and for landowner, trying to hold it all together. And you know, forest health is the root of it, but also the practical realities of people needing stuff from the woods. We use an enormous amount of wood products, a wild range of wood products in our daily lives, even if we don't
really know it. And foresters that's the core of what forestry and foresters are all about.
Cool. Well, since you're a forester, and I'm assuming you worked with a lot of logging operations, so like we've established, you got some subject matter expertise. I wanted wanted to get your thoughts on the recent repeal of the roadless rules that in national forests that are going to open up tens of millions of acres of national forests a logging.
There's definitely, like I believe, some legitimate concerns around this surrounding like threats to critical wildlife habitat and threats to the headwaters of river drainages that supply clean water to millions of people. But the logging part, it's not so cut and dry.
You know.
Some folks feel like all logging is gonna end up being this like ecological disaster, and there's others that are like, man, it's national forest, like every single acre of it should be used and logged. So you know, we're not so reliant on Canadian lumber and you're creating jobs. And then like that's legitimate too, So like give us your perspective on this and try to help our listeners understand like when logging is good and when it's bad, like both in practice and in location.
Yeah, there's a lot too much. So we've got a couple hours. Yeah, there's a lot there, right, And so it's like so many things particularly in nature or wherever biology or ecology involved. People and policy seem to really want black and white, one size fits all kind of policies and approaches and statements and forests all biological systems. They just don't do that. And so here where we're
talking about logging, habitats management, you know, it's complicated. So I would start there and then says it's nowhere near as simple or black and white as any of us might want to say when we go to our respective corners and sort of anchor down. Let's start with I would start with the forests are are incredible. They're complex, they're diverse, they're dynamic, and they don't need us. They're just fine and they're gonna be fine. But the fact is we need them, and we have been involved with
forests for forever. There's never been a time in the history of people when people weren't utterly dependent on on wood for a variety of things basic needs, and that continues. There's not there's no reason to think that's ever going to change. So we have this relationship and on the one hand, we'd like to say, let's set it aside and leave it be. And then there's the more Leapolean
kind of approach of like, we're part of this community. Uh. And and that's where forestry comes in, and that's where we have to start thinking with with public lands national forests. The intent is very clear for this multi use mandate uh and for wood supply.
UH.
And so then we just further get into like, well, what where when, for what reasons and and uh proposals to generally speaking, whether it's roadless rule or doing away with pesky regulations as that's been called, but just basically an executive order that says, let's increase the on of timber supply, domestic supply. On his face, I'd say, there's there's good good there's some good stuff there. Like it. It's reasonable to up our, you know, production of domestic wood.
We have the resource, we have the wood base, we have the the technology, we have the the expertise to do it really well. And so any given place where there's a proposal on public lands for logging, it's not logging just because somebody doesn't like trees or once enjoys cutting them down. It's to meet massive demands, uh, societal
demands and economic needs. And so you got to look at each one, and I would I would also just say that the public lands managers, the foresters and biologists and hydrologists you know that work on public lands that propose and and vet logging projects there, they're more than logging projects. They're forced management projects. And logging is a tool to affect various changes in the forest, to to tweak forest health, to reduce fuel loads, to enhance habitat,
to protect water quality. And the wood that comes off is this wonderful byproduct. But these are the most regulated, the most that scrutinize the quality of silver, cultural planning and then implementation. It's it's the best anywhere, certainly more than on private lands or industrial lands. And so you know, I would encourage folks to relax a little bit and then look into the details of any given proposal. And then lastly, I would just say this idea that well,
let's just increase domestic supply. That's for me. That would that make as I said, that makes sense on the surface, but that's not what is wrong with or what plagues
rural communities where that depend on harvesting. Like we've lost mills, we've lost workforce, the loggers, the truckers, we lost the mills, the secondary manufacturing facilities, and we can dump a lot of wood back into the system, but therefore aren't loggers, there aren't truckers, there aren't mills and processing facilities to process produce material from those. Then it doesn't do us
any good. So that's my big point in all this is we can get all hot and bothered about any given logging project, but it doesn't matter if we don't have the real policy shifts are in workforce and education, rural redevelopment, investment in these facilities that have this conservation effect on the landscape. That's my big point here would be that forestry is a conservation tool that keeps forests forests.
And it's counterintuitive to most people that we can save forest by cutting trees, but we meet our needs with wood being better than all the alternative materials plastics, steel, concrete. And that's what we got to get over is that people survey after surveys show that people really truly love wood, and people say that wood is the most sustainable material of all they're right, but then they say that logging and forestry are the least sustainable. So this is where
we gotta we gotta lean in. People love wood, but they don't like how we get wood, and that's a big problem. Public lends can play a role in supplying wood and helping us realize that it's done well. It's complicated. Uh and yeah, I guess I'll cause there. Just sure, I know, I spit out a lot there.
We had plenty of time there, We had plenty of time. Let's let's jump into hunting next, Mike, if we can. Vermont recently expanded dough hunt hunting opportunities in order to dress some overpopulation issues. I'm assuming and state biologists and a college just kind of agree that keeping deer numbers in check would lead to healthier herds, healthier for us.
We've seen a lot of states go this route in the past couple of decades, and the hunting community, like in general, I would say, has embraced killing more white tailed dos as a management tool. But I heard that some for my hunters were very opposed to increasing dough harvest. So we're gonna get your thoughts there. Like when I was a kid in Pennsylvania, a lot of the old timers frowned on killing does because they thought that meant
less bucks In the future. I don't know if it was that way for you, Seth, but again, like I feel like in the last couple of decades, last decade, for sure, I think most white tail hunters have turned the corner on that. So it's interesting to me that there's still, you know, a widespread stigma against killing does in Vermont.
It's yeah, you nailed it, and this is it's so Vermont. As of now, we have antlerless you know, with archery, and there's a lottery system for antler liss tags for muzzleloader, but it's verboten. There's never you know, you don't shoot those during the rifle season. And that's what has recently looks like it's changing. So and Vermont is the only state in the Northeast, i think, all the way through Pennsylvania down in Virginia that doesn't still doesn't allow any
antlerless rifle hunting. And so the Fish and Wildlife Board, the Vermont Fishing Wildlife Board, that is charged with setting regulations and developing and enacting those regulations for hunting and fishing and trapping things like seasons, bag limits, methods of taking license fees. That's the body that makes these decisions and they've last time, it's been forty years since there was any dough season, and that's back in the mid
eighties during rifle and it was highly contentious. Then there were more deer and more hunters than and so you're right. Now they have this these deer density targets for various management units around the state and they're finding that we have fewer hunters and more deer and that's a problem for habitat and for healthy forests. And so they've been suggesting this and it's been no, no, no, no, no no. The philosophy, the traditional philosophy is you don't shoot up.
And so a couple weeks ago, at its last board meeting, the department proposed about seven changes to the deer management rule and the board, well, so this was the second vote they in February, they voted, that's the first vote to say, okay, this will let's go forward with public comment and the process. And that opened up this can
of worms. And it's very contentious and many of my buddies hunting pals, they're dead set against it, but they went for it and they came back and then two weeks ago they had a meeting they had a vote and it was highly contentious, and it's a fourteen member board and this component passed eight to six and so and with quite a lot of controversy and contention. So that's the second vote, that is the most important, meaningful vote.
It now goes to the Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules and then it'll go back to the board for the third vote, which is usually kind of pro forma.
So is it not a done deal yet?
Right, That's what I'm trying to say. This is the big step just happened, which I spoke with the Director of Fish and Wildlife yesterday and indicated this generally means it's going forward. But yeah, there are a couple more steps and then it would go into effect if passed fully and as it is expected to do. Now, this was the last big hurdle. It'll be a fall of twenty six where these go into effect. And there's a number of related rules, but this was the big one.
The antler permits to be used during the regular sixteen day rifle season in November.
Has has Vermont experienced like is there deer herd? Like on a big upward climb, like there's like is there too many. I mean too many is obviously, you know, it depends on who you're talking to.
And it's amazing, right, this is a small state. You guys are in Montana. This is a really small state. And yet even here we have wide ranging habitat conditions and populations. So by management unit around the state, there are some that have the biologists even indicate that we foresters have been kind of whining about this for some time.
Locally over abundant leading to significant over browsing, which is not good for forest, but it's certainly not good for deer, right, yes, in some places, and that's why they want to do this these deer density unit targets by unit and it but this this rag would apply to all but the far northern northeastern portion of the state because as generally the population trends are going up, dear effort, a hunter
effort is down, winter severity is down. You know, the various factors they put into their model which are all pointing to our increased herd size, decreased hunting, and wanting to get this back in balance with their habitat.
Right, Well, myself, I hope it goes through. I think people tend to forget about this kind of stuff fairly quickly, and you know, in ten years, if the dough hunting thing goes through, it won't be an issue anymore. That's that's my take on it anyway.
And I think, you know, like you say, it's contentious and there's a lot of folks that are not into it. There have been lens made at this over the last few decades, and they do surveys and it's been slowly changing where hunters are saying. You know, before it was everybody was against it, and then there's some for it, and now it's about half. And the board heard from their constituents ultimately, and I think for some of them it was really hard. But there's still a bunch you say,
it's really a safety issue. They you know, Vermont was behind in this regard as well. We don't require hunter orange and so they're sort of brown is down fear and it's going to be crazy out there come rifle season. Uh. And as I understand that that's a big piece of the the the concerns against even because because the culture has shifted, as you suggest to, we get this a little bit more now that maybe we need to shoot some does a bit more than just with bow and arrow.
Yep, all right, Uh, I understand that that you're going on the hunt of a lifetime. This fallout in our area and one of one of our country's most impressive public land destinations, the Bob Marshall Wilderness. Are you are you? What are you going after? Deer?
Elk?
Are you going? You're doing this on your own? Are you getting a guide?
This?
I'm so excited. And you rightly called it a hunt of a lifetime. This is not something I've done done. I've hunted in Montowna and in the West elsewhere, but this is a pack string hunt guided fully you know, outfitted. We're going in the Bob Marshall uh of seven days of hunting gear elk. Three good buddies, excellent hunters that I have been. We're more trackers here in the Northeast. We don't, you know, sit sit on stands and and
so this is just going to be super different. And I have to say each one of us is completely freaked out at the prospect of being lame for three or four days. After I know which which end, I know which end the food goes in, and I think I'm pretty sure which end, the food comes out. That's the end of my horsemanship knowledge.
Well, I mean it's the The Bob is a super cool place, so that alone will make the trip worth it for you, I think.
Yeah, that's how we see it is like, you know, no matter what, this is going to be great, right, I mean just great. Watch out that you guys have for getting ready for this.
Well, Corey here used to guiding the Bob, So yeah, Mike, I guided in there for a decade. I'm not going to ask for you're going because it's all gnarly and rugged, but yeah, I get ready for the toughest hunt of your life.
I'm ready. I'm gonna be ready. It's this is super motivating, right, I mean, and then you're talking with the outfitter, just like I don't know most of I don't shoot at four hundred yards very often. I don't even know how to train for that. So that's my biggest fear is sort of being ready for a good shot at at distance, because that's just not something that I have a lot of experience with.
Well, yeah, depending on what end of the wilderness you're in. The area I was in, our average shot was sixty to eighty yards with a rifle.
That's what I'm talking.
Because we're hunting in during the rut, as you know, so right, yeah.
This is just so I don't know if I dropped that to somebody. I'm really glad you brought it up. It's just like you can imagine my excitement, right yep.
Well, Mike, thanks for thanks for checking in with us, and good luck on that hunt.
Yeah, good luck, Mike.
Thanks guys, take care, take it easy.
Man.
Unless you've been living under a rock and like Senator Mike Lee's backyard, you probably know what's going on with his attempts to sell off our public lands. It's like ever changing it. So there's been like three different versions of it this week, but it's still he's still going after that stuff. But just in case you're not aware of what's going on, like, hop on our website, read the article, follow Cal on Instagram, and he'll keep you
up to date. But it just to show people like how important this stuff is and what's at stake, Me and the boys here are going to remind you about it and share some of our favorite public land hunting. Did you guys do fish any fishing or just hunting?
I just did hunting slash.
Yeah, yeah, yours through a little twist, a little little hike and bike and kind of stuff.
Hiking, Ye, not a bike, gotcha.
Anyway, we're gonna share some pictures and tell a little story and kind of let you know why public lands are important to us. Corey, since since you're not a hunter anymore, why don't you start off?
Well, I'm gonna throw this all the way back to last n I.
Screw up there Phil by having Cory go first.
Probably, Oh no, it's fine. I can. I can change things on the fly.
It's all right.
It feels like a chameleon. He can adapt. H Anyway, I'm gonna throw this all the way back to last week, last.
Wednesday, long time ago.
Yeah.
A few colleagues and myself teamed up with the Station Foundation, which is an amazing organization made up of Special Operations vets and other highly trained professionals that help transition our nation special ops forces and their families get back to normal civilian life, which includes a multi day retreat here in Montana, which includes one day of high making this ten thousand foot peak just south of Bozeman, So three of us from meat either.
Is that within the five mile corridor or whatever border thing that like, Oh, not quite close to town.
Yeah, and from the top, I mean, you can see one of our busier towns in this city. Ear excuse me, in this state of Montana, not Bozeman. But anyway, it was a really amazing experience. There was thirty of us that summit did this peak, kids ranging from eight to fifteen, I think, and then a bunch of their dads and some of the other volunteers for the Station Foundation climbed this ten thousand foot peak. Hats off to all those kids.
You made it up there.
My seven year old kid wouldn't have made it halfway up there, and there were these eight year old kids who just kicked its ass. Last Wednesday, a beautiful day. Couldn't have had better weather.
There's a view.
All that that you can see right there in that photo is public land, So keep your hands off of it.
Nice seth. What do you got for us?
Oh, I got a photo of a mountain lion. This is the first mountain lion I've ever encountered in my life. I have seen multiple since then, but this was twenty seventeen. I believe was hunting this during Archer season September in Montana here hunting some public land National forest, and we weren't hearing many bugles that day, so we're kind of just still hunting through some timber and kind of out of nowhere, a few cows and a couple calf l
kind of filtered past us. So we kind of honkered down, thinking, you know, there might be a bull behind them or whatnot, and we're.
This was all pretty new experience for you.
This was like, yeah, this was my first archery season.
Like all this public land to just go Yeah.
Yeah, I moved in twenty sixteen, but this was the first time I had like my resident license for our tree season. And so these these elk kind of moved past us, and we hunkered down just to see what was gonna happen next. And I kind of look over and I see something brown like moving kind of on the same trail where these elk could just come by. It's probably I don't know, maybe a minute later, and sure, shit, it was this mountain lion. And it was like hunting
those elk, which was cool. And this photo here was taken through a pair of binoculars with a cell phone. Cool. It turned out pretty Yeah, it turned out pretty good. And uh so this thing it came, it came to about fifty yards of us, and once it like noticed we were there, it like did the like the cat just like hunker, like it just sunk to the ground, like put its belly on the ground and just sat there for a couple of minutes, just staring at us and like we weren't moving, so it I don't think
it really knew what we were at first. And then finally it just like got up and ran off. But yeah, it was that's when it was so cool. Yeah, it was awesome experience. Sweet all in public land. Yep.
I guess that leads me this year is going to be It'll be twenty years I've been out west hunting, and man, I don't know, like I like, let's say I've got in twenty years I've killed I don't know, let's say, like fifty big game animals or something like that. I think only four or maybe five of those animals were killed on private land. I've got nothing against hunting
on private land. That's how I grew up. But when I came out and to the west and was like I have all this stuff to hunt and twenty years later. Here I am. These pictures are my older boy, his firsts that he's had on all on public land in the last few years. So like this is his first ever dear Mule deer buck that he got on public land. I don't know what Phil has has teed up next. So this was his first elk last year on public land. Antelope, that's his first anilt with his little bro there with him.
And then I think the last photos me and him he did. We we doubled on Turkey's last year. The reason I picked these photos is because like those firsts are super important, and like that kid only knows hunting on public land, Like we don't have a bunch of friends with big private ranches and access to a bunch of private land. Like this is how this kid hunts. And if that stuff gets taken away, that get that's
getting taken away from him. I'm not so worried about myself, you know, but like those opportunities will be taken away from him and a bunch of other kids and first time hunters, and you know, on top of that all the other people that that recreate on public land. So that those are the pictures that I chose and that's why I chose them.
Yeah, good point. Yeah, yep, it's not worth it.
Nope, Nope. What's what's the chat have to say about all that? Phil?
A lot of people yelling about protecting public land, calling your senator a bunch of a bunch of a handful of Canadians who are who are worried for us?
Bill Brent? Are you still lurking in there not working?
He hasn't said anything for a while, so I think he's probably I don't know, doing something with a knife for recording a podcast.
But uh, let's see here.
We've gotta gotta get your questions in. This has been questioned l a question light episode. But you have any questions for the crew, let me know. But Colton asks Seth, what's the plan for yeall's time in Tanzania.
Where I know Steve's buffalo hunting, so spend the big chunk of time doing that? And then I think he wants to kill a warthog two other than I don't know. I think we're just gonna be hiking around the bush a bunch and you guys are.
There for a long time, right, yeah, almost three weeks.
Yeah, it's quite a chunk of time. So yeah, I don't know. I don't know if he If he gets those things early, we're gonna go after other things.
I got a question for you. If one of those water buffalo charges Steve and you're right over his shoulder with that camera, what are you gonna do.
Oh, I'm gonna drop the camera.
That's what I was wondering. That's what I get.
I will also say too, that we are going to have a handful of bonus podcast episodes coming out around the African.
Buffalo.
So they're gonna be kind of sort of diaries from the field with Steve and and various members of the crew that are gonna be on the trip. Seth included Dirt Myth as well, so look forward to those ones, and then we're gonna have a big, old normal podcast episode at the end of the trip. And then I'm sure you guys can look forward to some video content down the road, but that stuff takes a few months to put together.
But yeah, this is all for season thirteen and media. Yes, So yeah, I'm gonna stick to stick close to whoever has that double barrel rifle.
Yeah that's a smart plan.
Yeah, Noah asks Brody, what was your favorite thing to do outdoors wise in Pa?
Well, I mean I can never answer these questions like hunting and fishing, but I did more fishing just because I was younger when I was there. But I did a lot of hunting too.
This guy's asked this question before, and I don't remember if you guys were in the room when he asked it, but he wants to. He wants an answer from everyone on the crew, and I'll give him that opportunity. But he says, what animal do you shamelessly wish was a game animal but is and will never be?
Mm hmm, whales?
That's a good answer.
Well, they're game animals for some people. I guess.
Uh.
I that's not something I've ever even like considered.
Yeah, it's a tough one. Tourists, that's pretty shamelessly, but it's tourists season here in Montana. But I can't seem to find a tag, so.
Yeah, yeah, what else would be good?
Trying to think wild horses?
Yeah, here in Montana.
To the dads, this is from Alaska High boy Any books for kids, and I mean, I think it goes without saying. Uh, some of the ones that Brody wrote that. I'm sure he'll mention, but yeah, those are pretty good. Those are solid. He says he's got an almost one year old and he's tired of all the cutesy, far from accurate wildlife books.
That's a tough one for me. Man, Like, I like it's so little, Like I don't even like we just read our one year old all sorts of stuff. I don't know that there's like outdoor specific books that we were reading to our kids at that age. Yeah.
Same, I know there's some out there, but we didn't read any. Now he's too old for those little kids books.
Yeah, tough.
One question for Corey. It's from figure Nit out Doors. Solid name there. This guy he got too excited and didn't even finish his question. He says spring Bear scope magnification SFP, or FFP and best all around cartridge and then he stops. But I think you can answer some of those if you would like to.
Oh, yeah, I like the second focal plane four to fifteen is plenty. If you're shooting anywhere over three hundred yards, you might want to zoom in a little bit more than twelve power, but you certainly don't need it, depending on where you're hunting to if you're shooting close quarters, you might not even need a scope. And then best all around cartridge is the three hundred winch mister magnum period.
Gotcha, there you go.
Corey's spoken, Uh, let's see here, just kind of these are these are coming in hot, hot and heavy, trying to.
Pick them out?
Uh?
Dan the outdoorman question for the crew, any unwanted interactions with the environmental police while hunting or fishing? Any complicated laws gotten you in trouble before?
Nope. All my interactions with game wardens have been very pleasant because I haven't had any reason to be in trouble.
Yeah.
Same as a fishing guide. We'd get pulled over all the time, making sure we I was licensed in my anglers were had their fishing licenses and we had enough life jackets in the boat. But it was always a pleasant Yeah.
Yeah, I never had any bad There's one time we had a weird interaction with a park ranger in a spot where we were hunting. Yeah, I remember, well, still a park and he seemed like the guy just didn't like hunters.
Right, But that was like that wasn't a game work.
No, it wasn't a game war and it was just a yeah, weird interaction with authority.
I we'll do one more Africa question then we can we can move it along. Max says, question for Seth, will you get any opportunities to hunt in Tanzania?
I don't think so. Yeah, it's usually the Steve.
Show down there is Yeah, shoot with you.
It's too expensive, I think, yeah, get creators over there. Cool.
All right, we'll check back in with those guys towards the end of the show. Our next segment is new. We're gonna do kind of a regional summer fishing report.
Yeah, so if you got a handful, you got a couple remote check ins from some some crew members.
Let's take Phil.
It says pause for sound. Here, do you got a song or not?
No, I don't have a sound. I don't know.
Come on, that was going.
Up right now, Phil?
That was somebody cast in a line and open something would bite.
All right, we'll come up with a song for that one.
In the dark.
There you go.
We didn't play this one.
Oh we didn't. I didn't give you time to play it earlier.
All right, we're live, We're to start out.
But I've just been getting hotter.
The rivers, they've been shrinking down obviously, and the fish have been getting more concentrated. I've noticed that the smallies they've started to run in big groups, going after baitball, some minnows, any sort of streamer.
Those have been working well. Crawdads.
Also, this time of year, if you're looking to catch a big trophy smallly uh. Night fishing is super effective. On the trout side of things. The soul for hatches in full swing. I've been hearing from some of my guide buddies that they are going more after the dry flies and the emergers, and then this time of year you will find the long ear sunfish are in full bloom. They're as vibrant as ever, looking like something straight out of the Amazon rainforest. So get out there, go get them.
Good luck to everyone this week who's going out there to fish.
Stay safe, and hey, keep it public. Yeah, buddy, god, he sounds like Clay.
He's way better angler than Clay.
I'll pay that. Well, that sounds pretty good.
I'll let your tea this one up, Bertie. I apologize.
We're bringing in thank you because I came up with a good one. Okay, we're bringing in Chester the walleye Molester from Wisconsin to let us know what's going on out there.
Hello everybody, Chester Floyd coming at you from northern Wisconsin. Here's your Northern Wisconsin muskie fishing report. With the weather being so inconsistent in northern Wisconsin, the fish have kind of been inconsistent too, but big fish are being caught. Once you find them one day, they could be gone and move the next day. So the key is to move around a bunch until you find those fish. I'm going to focus on main lake points, kind of main lake humps. If I can find weeds on those, all
the better. Some baits that have been working have been top water baits, jerk baits like a squarely tailed hellhound here. Soon enough, the rubber bite and the buck tail bite should should pick up with the weather, you know, leveling out and being more consistent. I haven't been out a lot recently, so I got this information from my buddy Gus Manti with sugsfishing dot Com.
He's a guide up here.
But I hope you guys can get out on the water and hopefully this information helps you catch a big ol' musky.
See ya, very professional report.
Nice yeah, thanks boys.
Wow, he's in his new fancy. I'm jealous of that boat.
Said, I know you don't got a report because you're all mad that you haven't been fishing.
Well, I have been fishing. It's not worth a report, so got you. So it's been tough, it's been tough for me. Oh yeah, Cory.
Uh man.
I've been fly angling on some of our local waters around here and it's been amazing. Really runoffs over with a little earlier this year. Water temps are just right for now getting it. River temps just right. I wish it was end of July and not the end of June, talking like right now is the time because in three weeks there might not be a lot of angling to be done.
We've already got some Houdau restrictions going on. But it's just good shutting stuff down.
It's really good right now.
I've been out a little bit, uh planning on heading out this weekend to one of our favorite lakes for perching while I hear it's picking up. So I'll have a report for yeah later after that.
Yeah, we'll have to do this again.
Wuld I do kind of have a report all right? I guess you call it that. I've been keeping track of what's going on with the local Montana walleye circuit, and holy crap, some big numbers this year.
I saw the numbers from Tiber. Holy cow.
Yeah, big numbers.
One hundred and forty pound bags.
One hundred and forty three pounds for the winning bag.
So that's ten fish.
Yeh fish? Whoa, that's do the math in your head there, yeah, figure out a lot. Cool.
Yeah.
Yeah, sounds like the walleye fishing other than where I've been fishing has been good.
Yep.
All right, we're gonna stick with the fishing theme for this next section. Uh, We're not doing one minute fishing because it never seems to work out. I'm really over it. We're so different where this is gonna be really exciting for everyone. First of its kind live fishing contest between Seth and Corey. We've we've got our own trout pond right out here behind Meat Eater h Q. Seth is gonna be out there with his spin pole and Corey it's gonna take his fly rod. But I am picking.
I'm picking their lewer slash fly for them.
I'm nervous too.
You shouldn't be I didn't get I thought about being mean, but I'm not going to be mean. So I actually I am going to give you a choice.
I like options, Corey.
If you can't catch fish with one of these two things, like, I'm gonna be really embarrassed, olive or blackly bugger, and then seth a little panther Martin or a little cast Master, both of which are pretty good choices.
Oh. I like that. We did a little pre fish yesterday, and I'm a little worried I need the heavier one.
That's what you get.
I get it.
I was ready for whatever. They're pretty aggressive out there, mostly brick trout that we can find. I know there's well somebody caught a cutthroat in there at one point.
Right, I caught a sucker in there one time.
Okay, you don't know, Okay, so.
So choose your weapon, man, Yeah.
Okay, I'm going with the panther Mark.
I'm going with the olive wooly bugger.
All right, run out there and here we go.
Time or goes? Is it is this like.
First fish?
I guess I just got to sit here while they're they're out fishing.
Hello, audio listeners, Phil butting in to let you know that I'm cutting this entire segment out of the podcast version that you are currently listening to, because, frankly, it wasn't very exciting for audio only listeners. We didn't get a lot of banter from Seth and Corey out there at the pond. So let's just cut right back to the moment where they come back in the studio and Seth wins the competition with one fish.
How I look Phil terrible?
So you have to tell us about it.
When I was releasing that fish, I don't know if you could hear it, but there's a lady behind me saying release it nicely, gently gently that yeah.
Yeah, we had some spectators, there are some lawnmowers.
What was your challenge out there? Your biggest challenge?
Course, mine was just the weeds that I had to deal with managing my line.
Which you should have waited right in there.
I thought about it, not really. Uh, yesterday we went and tested the water just to make sure there was actually fishing.
I saw it like you're doing a little pre fish and beating them up out there. You could have caught those fish today.
That could have been what happened. I think I caught four yesterday. There you go pretty quickly, or it was all of the selection fly. Maybe I should have went with the black one. But either way, nice work.
Set I thanks. I wasn't catching anything until I sent one all the way up into where that yep, and then I could see him. He missed it a few times. I could see it flashing, oh yeah, and then he got.
A rush, a bit of an upset, I'd say, Seth, nice work.
I was kind of nervous because yesterday Corey was crushing him on the on the the fly.
Can't be sure, but my guess is is there's probably like ten or twelve fish in that.
Entire games like that might be over overkill. Actually, yeah, that half a dozen. I keep saying I'm gonna win during the winter. I'm gonna drill hole and get the the live scope down in there and just see what's going on. But it's just hard to motivate me to do that for a couple of Brookies for sure.
All right, Well, that good job, boys. We're gonna move on to our trail cam photo contest. Man, here we go. It's gonna be big. It's brought to us by our friends at Moultrie and For the first round, we ask you guys to send us your funniest photos. We got hundreds of submissions, so choosing the top five was difficult. We saw shots multiple folks taking a dump in the woods. That's that's like not I don't know, I don't find that funny. Dear raccoon, squirrel, bear fornication, that's funny. Topless
female hiker not funny, but you know whatever. Anyway, Corey, you looked through all these, didn't you.
I looked through all of them last night with a tall glass of whiskey. So thanks for everybody for putting all these in. I'd say there were like three hundred and fifty submissions.
Are you damaged from it? Or you're doing all right? I mean.
This made you laugh out loud?
Yeah?
There were like are we gonna see them?
Yeah?
The couple that made me laugh out loud it made it in here. There was a lot that should have made it in here.
But it was tough to select five. Yeah.
Again, next to everybody for submitting. We're gonna do this again next month, maybe with a different themes. So stay tuned.
But so let's like I'll tell people what let's like announce what they're getting after we look at the picture, build up the excitement.
All right, are we ready to see photo number one?
Here?
Photo number one? Now the chat. If you guys can give us your thoughts on the your funniest picture please.
Yeah, you guys are going to decide the winner. We're not deciding the winner. So like Phil's gonna do some quick math as you guys.
Vote for them, I'm going to try to start a pull. I think I can add five five options on the poll that I might be limited to this one.
Exist you can say these people's names, right, yeah, Branson McAtee. He's calling this the Ninja squirrel.
I mean, look at that capture.
I wonder what is he trying to land on the turkey's back or what? I wonder what's going on?
It looks like he's going full American Ninje warri or on this turkey.
I wish that was ael video we do.
I know that would be a mat we can do that. What happened after? But I cracked up to this one. I mean, what a great shot. Yeah, what a capture.
Just squirrel. You know, squirrels just do weird stuff when you're yep, they're funny when you're sitting a tree stand back east. You just watch squirrels do weird stuff, which is cool, Okay, Ninja squirrel?
All right?
Number two this is from level nineteen. Uh, late night Talk. It's really hard to tell what come on? Is this real?
I was worried we had some AI generated photos, but it's so it's hard to say what's happening here.
But that's just it's like a bug that's yeah, close to the camera and it just just happened to be a right right spot right time.
I'm gonna show. I'm gonna I'd like to think that's what it is. Seth, I'm gonna.
I'm gonna.
I'm gonna not be a Debbie Downer and say this was this was like.
This one had the second most likes on the website.
It looks like that Is that a palmetto right there? Yeah?
Somewhere south?
Good call? All right?
Number three, number three weeks coming from Michael hammondry kid Menace.
I think he's doing the Shocker. I can't tell.
This kid is just driving by a camera. He knows is there that his dad how's has out and he's just like trespassing.
So, yeah, we had a lot of you know, wild game images, but some really great, like home security photos that were hilarious, and this one just seemed like it was obviously set up maybe for turkeys or deer. And this kid who's supposed to like.
In a neighborhood, there's like houses and stuff back there.
Yeah, and I remember the guy mentioning that this kid is supposed to be on the street and he keeps kind of like taking a short.
Cut, and then he found that camera. He's just brutalizing that guy.
Know, I couldn't help.
Maybe it's more funny.
Now, all right, here's number four, Brian cal Yoda. This is the one that I do not think is a trail camp.
Okay, so Brian said, and Brody, you've met Brian before, for he made sure to mention this. Yeah, i'll forward you the email. But he was doing a Purdue University project where they were learning how to scientifically survey wildlife populations using trail cameras. And this trail camera was a thirty five millimeter film camera that they were using.
But Bud just set up as an yeah gotcha.
Yeah, But a buddy of his played a joke and put on the Yoda mask and obviously captured something other than what they were going.
For here, but I that's creepy.
I thought it was funny.
It was that phill. That one was for you. Oh, I appreciate it. Thanks for the shout out. I like to feel included. You know, someone was having fun with that one.
All right?
Number five, like, how can this not be funny?
Yeah?
Like a bear shitting in the woods is just fun.
If you zoom in close to you can really.
I think I wish I wish I had a zoomed in one.
People's vote, but this one gets my vote.
I like it not because he's shitting, but his facial expression looking into the cameras.
Embarrass and he's like, up on. I feel like he's working pretty hard because he's up on hind legs man, like he's really getting after.
I was impressed by that too.
Okay, so here are the limitations of the poll. I can only give four options, so I think as a room, we eliminate our least favorite Yoda.
Yeah, I'm sorry, Brian, I understand we met, but that pictures I don't like it.
All right, So I am we are eliminating Yoda. I'm going to start the pole here in a few seconds.
So one two, here we go, three or four.
One two, three or five. Pole is going live right now. Please vote in the live chat and we will do.
We want to mess around with. Can we do a little feedback while of course please do people are voting. That'll give us something to do.
Let's see.
We got a question from mote. Hey says Hi Seth, what camera are you currently using? Do you bring a lot of photography gear when you travel or just one reliable setup?
Thank you? A seven R five for the main camera. Backup is in a seven R four. I got a seventy to two hundred lens, twenty four to seventy and sixteen to thirty five. Yeah that's my setup, A bunch of batteries, some filters. Yeah, it's about it. Not super complicated, but sounds complicated to me. Wow, you're a professional.
Yeah, Spencer not our spencer in the chat has an idea. He says, we should do an outdoor obstacle course. Catch a fish, catch a loose chicken and a fishing net, then pluck a duck.
First we got to catch a fish, like the other stuff. It'd be great to do the other stuff first.
We but we never get there.
Yeah, this was an idea last winter. Actually we're gonna like ice skating, drilling holes in the ice and then like first one to drop their line in the ice. But it would have been too much. We would have needed more than a couple of minutes.
The question from Matt He says, how do you like to answer non hunters who ask you did you catch a big one when you get home from hunting season?
I don't. I just like I just tell them, like I'm not going to like try and make him feel stupid, you know.
Yeah, I would just say we kill them, not catch them, unless you're like lying hunting or something. Yeah.
Captain Texas says Seth. What is the most challenging part about filming other people hunting?
Hmm?
I would say just trying not to be the guy that ever spooks the animal, you know, ye, which over time you learn you just I typically I don't move unless Steve's Steve moves, so there's never like a you know, he can't turn around and be like you spooked it. I'd be like, well, I was doing the same thing you were doing.
So do you notice the difference between because like Steve's very aware you know, I used to work on the camera crew way back, and like Steve's very aware of the camera guys and how the whole thing works, and like there's got to be like you've got to have expectations for the hunters too, right, do you notice like a way big difference between like filming Steve and filming a guest hunter has never been filmed before, Like as far as challenges they present to you.
I mean, yes, and no filming someone that's never been filmed before, Like they they just think. I feel like most people just think it's like impossible to kill something with that many people. And you'll get guys there like, you know, don't move, don't It's like, yeah, we know what we're doing. So that's kind of like one thing
with with new people. And Steve's like it depends on the animal too, but he's like I think he we always use guys that have been with us forever and know the game and know how to be quiet, and so he's he typically doesn't like yell at us or anything. Sometimes he does, but yeah, it all depends.
Mark says, guys, I want to send a mule deer hide off to get processed hair on it's currently wrapped and in the freezer. How long is that going to be good for before I need to ship it off?
As long as it's frozen.
Yeah, for a long time, forever cool.
I'll do one more, then we'll see how the pole is going. Max, not our Max says, how did y'all get started with meat Eater? Was there an application, an interview process or we all picked because of your individual skills. I think we each have like a different path to how he got.
I'll start since I'm the oldest. I used to guide with Giannis in Colorado. Jannis moved to Alaska through a mutual friend, got hooked up with Steve and became a production assistant. A few years later, they needed help on the Stars in the Sky shoot. Joannis approached me. That's how I got my start, and one thing led to another and I started writing with Steve. That was ten years ago.
Yeah, mine was semi similar. Good friend of mine and also one of our colleagues presented the job offer to me. It was during COVID, when I was guiding fishermen and hunters, when I wasn't quite sure if that industry was going to last. A whole lot longer. Just we weren't letting out of staters in the States, so things were really weird. So I tried to get a different job, I guess more steady job. And yeah that was five years ago.
Now, nice. Yeah, mine was meteor. Was just looking for a pretty auction assistant to help out on shoots and haul gear and make time.
Can you find out a mutual friend.
Recommended a mutual friend that knew Yiannis and Steve and whatnot recommended me to them, And yeah, just kind of got on a phone call with The Honest and rest was history. That was twenty eighteen, Washington. El Khunt was the my first shoot ever.
Phil Oh I got burnt out working in TV and applied via indeed dot com. Nice yeah, and yeah I had audio experience and I was worried they wouldn't want me because I didn't hunt and the Honest. My first interview was with The Honest. He said that does not matter. I said, thank God. And that was six years ago now, so yeah, there we go. All right, let's see who had the best trail camp photo in last place with six percent of the vote, we have number three, biker Kid.
Oh well, yeah.
We get rid of it. But that shit, look at them. You probably needs slapped.
Is that an e bike?
Oh it might be, it's.
Hard to tell you a little motorcycle.
Yeah, possibly, all right. And then in third place, with twelve percent of the vote, we have deer fart.
Oh see you had high hopes for that left.
I agree with that.
Hard to say what's going on in that photo, but yeah, nobody else.
Cared and we only have two left. Now it's between Ninja squirrel and bear shitting, and I will announce the first place winner. The first place winner with sixty eight percent of the vote.
It was a landslide. We've got bear shitt.
There we go, congratulations, Yeah, yeah, yeah, all.
Right, So who was that fine at a Pain?
A pain?
Yeah, we'll reach out to you for this so massive collection.
Yeah, gear the winner at a Pain you're going to receive a uh what's is it? T w O or two two two? It looks like it's part of the Okay, it's like written weird two of the Moultrie Edge, two cameras, So two of those suckers. Two ten watt solar pack or is that ten watt ten watt solar power power packs? An MKC knife, the saw two slicer. You want to show them what that one is.
Well, it's pretty packaged up here.
Oh then, don't worry about it all. Geez man, this just this list, just this is a long one. The list just keeps going. Two hundred and fifty dollars Meat Eater store gift card and a two hundred and fifty dollars First Light gift card.
That's five hundred dollars.
Fake Pride. Didn't know who's this big. I would have submitted a photo.
A fair ship in the woods for all that stuff.
Yeah, stay tuned again. We're gonna try this again next month and maybe the month after.
Sounds I think we should. It's kind of fun as long as Moultrie is gonna kick down and we keep getting cool prizes. All right, hope you enjoyed it. That's the end of today's show. Join us next week everyone, and have a great weekend.
Take it easy later.