Backcountry Hunting Podcast

WINNING! With Traditional Muzzleloaders: Prep, Tuning, Shooting, & Scoring. Sep 25, 2026

Show notes

How do you win with a traditional blackpowder longrifle? How do you tune a muzzleloader to kill elk precisely and profoundly? You get good equipment that's properly suited to the task, and then you work it out. Our family has two premium blackpowder elk permits in our pockets, and in this episode we sit down to talk through the fun we've been having getting tuned up to hunt. HINT: It includes shooting at Fort Bridger, Wyoming and winning two superb custom longrifles.

Ever wanted to learn more about shooting, competing, and hunting with classic traditional blackpowder muzzleloaders? This episode may help... ENJOY!

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Email us podcast-related questions here: backcountryhuntingpodcast@gmail.com

Email hunt inquiries here: info@globalhuntingadventure.com

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Best Rifle Scopes for Backcountry Hunting: American Made & Tougher Than The Rest! Sep 18, 2026

Show notes

How do you choose a riflescope that won't let you down in the backcountry? Pick from a proven brand, with a track record of performance and reliablity.

In this epside we sit down with a Leupold engineer and discuss what makes a scope tough, clear, reliable, and predictable, as well has how the best optics maximize light gathering and minimize sun refraction and glare. We talk through internal mechanisms and lens coatings and magnification ranges and recoil testing and so much more. What an inspiring conversation! ENJOY!

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Email us podcast-related questions here: backcountryhuntingpodcast@gmail.com

Email hunt inquiries here: info@globalhuntingadventure.com

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Hunting Red Stags, Fallow Deer, & Alpine Game in New Zealand: Planning & Prep Sep 11, 2026

Show notes

If you've dreamed of hunting New Zealand for giant Red Stags, Fallow deer, Himalyan Tahr, or Chamois, this episode is for you! We got on the phone with a professional guide and asked questions. Best routes to travel to NZ, how to bring a rifle to NZ, what the best hunting seasons are, free-range vs. estate/private land, how to choose a rifle, cartridge, and bullet for New Zealand big game species, necessary gear, and more.

ALSO! We're about to open our two podcast-hosted hunts with our premier outfitter on the northern tip of the South Island. One week is a traditional lever-action/classic rifle hunt for big red stags in early June, 2027. The other is a learning-type experience in early August, during which we'll teach rifle setup, field shooting, shot placement, and fieldcraft such as reading terrain, glassing, field judging, planning a stalk, playing the wind, blood tracking, field dressing, packing meat, and even how to cut and wrap venison and cook it like a professional chef--plus you'll take those skills to the field and hunt a red stag and a management/meat deer.

Those hunts will open first on www.patreon.com/backcountry , which enables our loyal long-time listeners and supporters first chance to book. Join us there if you'd like to share a campfire in one of New Zealand's finest hunting areas!

For more details on these and other hunts through the Backcountry Hunting Podcasts' sister company Global Hunting Adventures, email info@globalhuntingadventures.com and let us know what you dream of hunting. We'll help you turn those dreams into plans, and then into fantastic memories afield!

FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST!

Email us podcast-related questions here: backcountryhuntingpodcast@gmail.com

Email hunt inquiries here: info@globalhuntingadventure.com

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BEST CARTRIDGE for EVERYTHING, with Ron Spomer Sep 04, 2026

Show notes

We're attacking the old debate, folks: If you had to pick just ONE CARTRIDGE to hunt ANYTHING you want, what would it be? I suspect our choices may surprise many of you. ENJOY!

FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST!

Join the Backcountry Hunting Podcast tribe and get access to all our bonus material on www.patreon.com/backcountry Recent brief Patreon-only topics include "Preparing to Hunt the Scottish Highlands" and "Best Custom Barrels and Muzzle Brakes" and "How Exit Wounds Affect Blood Trails," as well as brief audio episodes on "6.5 Backcountry" (6.5 Creedmoor +P), and ponderings on ".30-06 High-BC Bullet performance." Check 'em out!

Email us podcast-related questions here: backcountryhuntingpodcast@gmail.com

Email hunt inquiries here: info@globalhuntingadventure.com

VISIT OUR SPONSORS HERE:

Are Suppressors Deregulated Now? Aug 28, 2026

Show notes

Can you now just walk into a gun store, buy a suppressor, and walk out with it? Recent legal rulings have upset the NFA's apple cart, leaving a frenzy of good and bad info scattered across cyberspace. In this episode we welcome Brandon Maddox, suppressor mastermind behind Silencer Central, to help clarify what we know, what we don't know, and what to expect in coming months. ENJOY!

FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST!

Join the Backcountry Hunting Podcast tribe and get access to all our bonus material on www.patreon.com/backcountry Recent brief Patreon-only topics include "Best Custom Barrels and Muzzle Brakes" and "How Exit Wounds Affect Blood Trails," as well as brief audio episodes on "6.5 Backcountry" (6.5 Creedmoor +P), and ponderings on ".30-06 High-BC Bullet performance." Check 'em out!

Email us questions here: backcountryhuntingpodcast@gmail.com

VISIT OUR SPONSORS HERE:

Hunting Spanish Roebucks, Vineyards, & Monasteries Aug 21, 2026

Show notes

No European country offers more spectacular hunting than Spain. Four species of ibex, chamois, red deer, roe deer, mouflon, wild boar, fallow deer, and even barbary sheep can be hunted across the rolling terraces and amongst the ancient mountain ruins. Archetecture, food, and history is unparalleled. And it's not expensive! In this episide, we sit down with outfitter Oscar Colomina and take a deep dive into just how special Spain is. And of course, hunting stories occur! ENJOY!

FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST!

Join the Backcountry Hunting Podcast tribe and get access to all our bonus material on www.patreon.com/backcountry Recent brief Patreon-only topics include "Best Custom Barrels and Muzzle Brakes" and "How Exit Wounds Affect Blood Trails," as well as brief audio episodes on "6.5 Backcountry" (6.5 Creedmoor +P), ponderings on ".30-06 High-BC Bullet performance," a first look at a new heavy-for-caliber 270-grain Solid .35 Whelen load, a "6.8 Western Survival Forecast" and "Gear List for Hunting." Check 'em out!

Email us questions here: backcountryhuntingpodcast@gmail.com

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Small Cartridges for Big Game, continued: Does RECOIL Make You A Worse Shooter? Aug 14, 2026

Show notes

The "small cartridges for big game" debate continues. Does stout recoil REALLY prevent you from making accurate shots in the field? If so, what's the reason: Is it rifle dynamics? Shooter technique? Lack of discipline? Or... could large-caliber rifles actually be fundamentally less accurate? In this episode we take a deep dive into whether hunters actually should be better shooters with small cartridges. ENJOY!

FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST!

Join the Backcountry Hunting Podcast tribe and get access to all our bonus material on www.patreon.com/backcountry Recent brief Patreon-only topics include "Hunting Monster Aoudad in Mexico," "Best Mauser Rifle Ever" and "How Exit Wounds Affect Blood Trails," as well as brief audio episodes on "6.5 Backcountry" (6.5 Creedmoor +P), ponderings on ".30-06 High-BC Bullet performance," a first look at a new heavy-for-caliber 270-grain Solid .35 Whelen load, a "6.8 Western Survival Forecast" and "Gear List for Hunting." Check 'em out!

Email us questions here: backcountryhuntingpodcast@gmail.com

VISIT OUR SPONSORS HERE:

Elk Hunters' Best Friend Aug 07, 2026

Show notes

In the backcountry, dog ain't mans best friend. Nope: a good horse is. We take this episode out into the pasture with Audrey von Benedikt (the horsewoman of the family) and talk through how to get the most out of your horse and yourself on an elk hunt. We compare the pros and cons of horses versus ATVs, discuss best ways to carry a rifle on a horse, specific training (for the horse and for you) prior to heading into elk country, and more. Plus, we introduce a new member of the family: a little blue roan filly that just might turn into the ultimate elk-hunting horse. ENJOY!

FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST!

Join the Backcountry Hunting Podcast tribe and get access to all our bonus material on www.patreon.com/backcountry Recent brief Patreon-only topics include "Best Mauser Rifle Ever" and "How Exit Wounds Affect Blood Trails," as well as brief audio episodes on "6.5 Backcountry" (6.5 Creedmoor +P), ponderings on ".30-06 High-BC Bullet performance," a first look at a new heavy-for-caliber 270-grain Solid .35 Whelen load, a "6.8 Western Survival Forecast" and "Gear List for Hunting." Check 'em out!

Email us questions here: backcountryhuntingpodcast@gmail.com

VISIT OUR SPONSORS HERE:

Best Hunting Cartridges for Mule Deer, with Colton Heward Jul 31, 2026

Show notes

Great cartridges for hunting mule deer tend to be good for most western big game species... But what if you singularly, passionately want one ultimate mule deer cartridge? In this episode, we sit down with Colton Heward, managing editor of Petersen's Hunting magazine, and talk out what makes a perfect cartridge for hunting mule deer. Heward is a big game guide with decades of experience, and loves to hunt big mule deer over all else. He shares his personal favorite cartridges, and tells the story of three incredible bucks he's had the priviledge of hunting. ENJOY!

Check out Colton Heward's work at www.petersenshunting.com

FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST!

Join the Backcountry Hunting Podcast tribe and get access to all our bonus material on www.patreon.com/backcountry Recent brief Patreon-only topics include "How Exit Wounds Affect Blood Trails," as well as brief audio episodes on "6.5 Backcountry" (6.5 Creedmoor +P), ponderings on ".30-06 High-BC Bullet performance," a first look at a new heavy-for-caliber 270-grain Solid .35 Whelen load, a "6.8 Western Survival Forecast" and "Gear List for Hunting." Check 'em out!

Email us questions here: backcountryhuntingpodcast@gmail.com

VISIT OUR SPONSORS HERE: