Hunting Blunders That Turned Into Lessons

From Spring Bear Wrap Up To A Smarter Fall Plan With Heather Aldrich

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2393435/fan_mail/new] One bad decision can change an entire bear season, and sometimes it takes a full year to see the consequences. We’re back with Heather Aldrich to wrap up spring bear season and turn those hard-earned lessons into a smarter plan for fall. Along the way we dig into what “success” really means in bear hunting, why learning the woods can matter more than punching a tag, and how experience reshapes the way you judge a season. Heather walks us through two very different spring bear hunts in Oregon and Idaho, including a key mistake: taking a sow that was effectively holding a target boar in an area. That single choice shifted his movement, wiped out a previously hot spot, and forced a fresh strategy built around finding other sows, understanding spring rut behavior, and staying realistic about pressure and late-season dispersion. We also talk about how burns can trick you, why scat tells the truth about seasonal habitat, and what it takes to mentor a hunter when access and mobility define every setup. Then we transition straight into fall bear season preparation in Washington State: trail camera strategy, travel routes, future food sources, and how to keep disturbance low while still collecting the intel you need. Heather also explains how blowdown, steep terrain, and missing “perfect” camera trees can force real-world adjustments, plus how to pivot when fire closures shut down your best area. From huckleberries and mountain ash to water and cool bedding cover, we keep the focus on practical bear hunting tactics. To round it out, we get nerdy in the best way: hyperphagia timing, how fast bears can gain weight, den site selection, and why bear hibernation is often “not quite” what people think it is. If you’re trying to connect spring scouting to fall success, this one’s built for you. Subscribe, share this with a hunting buddy, and leave a review with your biggest bear-season lesson so far. Support the show [https://www.patreon.com/TheBlacktailCoachPodcast]

How To Call And Rattle Blacktail Bucks With Tom Ryle

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2393435/fan_mail/new] Rattling for blacktail isn’t magic and it isn’t random. It’s a story you’re telling in the woods, and the buck decides whether he believes it. We’re joined again by Tom Ryle and Kelly Riordan for a deep, practical breakdown of blacktail deer calling and rattling, from first principles to field-ready sequences. We start with the why: bucks fight over breeding rights, but a lot of the deer that respond are coming in out of curiosity, sizing up the scene, or looking for an opening. From there, we lay out a clear rut timeline you can actually plan around, including the long seasonal build after velvet-off, the more aggressive late-October window, peak breeding behavior, and why rattling can still shine in December when does cycle again and tired bucks still can’t ignore opportunity. Then we get tactical. Tom walks through how he layers sounds the way real deer interactions build: soft doe bleats, natural movement in the brush, subtle grunts, and only then escalating into antlers. We talk duration, patience, and the real risk of getting busted when you go too long or get too aggressive. We also get into gear choices like shed antlers versus rattle bags in wet weather, how to tune grunt calls for a softer blacktail tone, and a simple cold-weather trick to help prevent reeds from freezing. We close with setup and strategy: wind, topography, expecting the downwind circle, and how a partner can call while the shooter waits where the buck wants to verify the sound. If you want to call in blacktail more consistently, this is the playbook to build from. Subscribe, share this with a hunting partner, and leave a review so more blacktail hunters can find the show. Learn more at https://pnwbowhunting.com/ Nilch'i Wind Checks [https://nilchi.com/] Nilch’i Wind Checks - An easy to use, must have gear addition to our hunts Dead Down Wind [https://deaddownwind.sjv.io/LK7LAo] Scent Elimination Products Tinks [https://tinks.pxf.io/4GbQNL] Tinks Scents Blacktail Solution [https://blacktailsolution.com/] Blacktail feed supplements. Use code BTCoach for 15% through March 31 2026 Bonded Outdoors [https://www.bondedoutdoors.com] Personalized leather tags to remember your hunts SkullCraft Collective [https://www.skullcraftcollective.com/] skull mounting systems Ghost Hook Sale until March 31, 2026 Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you. Support the show [https://www.patreon.com/TheBlacktailCoachPodcast]

Blacktail Hunting Mentorship And Modern Know How With Tom Ryle & Kelly Riordan

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2393435/fan_mail/new] A blacktail buck can live a whole season a few yards from you and never show itself, and that’s exactly why we love hunting them. We’re joined by Tom Ryle and Kelly Riordan for a wide-ranging talk that starts with how they each got pulled into the blacktail woods and quickly turns into what it really takes to improve at blacktail deer hunting in Washington and the broader Pacific Northwest. If you’ve ever felt like blacktails are “too thick, too dark, too hard,” you’re not alone. We dig into the bigger picture of mentorship and the real-world need to pass down institutional knowledge. Hunting culture has shifted from “keep your mouth shut” to sharing methods, especially as R3 efforts and simple stewardship become more urgent. We also talk honestly about paying for coaching or a hunting class, why some hunters want to cut through information overload, and how to shorten the learning curve without stealing the joy of figuring it out yourself. Then we get practical with scouting and sign. Tom breaks down why willow trees get absolutely shredded, what those bright orange rubs can tell you, and how soft bark trees can become repeatable rut magnets year after year. He also shares how he’s made mock rubs to create a signpost that pulls deer into a shooting lane, plus how he thinks about “rut zones” and why postseason scouting in winter can reveal rub lines and key terrain features you’ll miss in the summer salad bowl. We wrap by zooming out to habitat edges, fresh logging disturbance, late-season food clues, and planning for closures, fire restrictions, and weather patterns that can lock up access. Subscribe, share this with a hunting partner, and leave a review so more blacktail hunters can find the show, then tell us: what’s the clearest scouting sign you trust most? Nilch'i Wind Checks [https://nilchi.com/] Nilch’i Wind Checks - An easy to use, must have gear addition to our hunts Dead Down Wind [https://deaddownwind.sjv.io/LK7LAo] Scent Elimination Products Tinks [https://tinks.pxf.io/4GbQNL] Tinks Scents Blacktail Solution [https://blacktailsolution.com/] Blacktail feed supplements. Use code BTCoach for 15% through March 31 2026 Bonded Outdoors [https://www.bondedoutdoors.com] Personalized leather tags to remember your hunts SkullCraft Collective [https://www.skullcraftcollective.com/] skull mounting systems Ghost Hook Sale until March 31, 2026 Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you. Support the show [https://www.patreon.com/TheBlacktailCoachPodcast]

How Washington’s R3 Program Builds New Hunters And Anglers With Tom Ryle And Kelly Riordan

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2393435/fan_mail/new] Conservation doesn’t run on vibes, it runs on people showing up year after year. That’s why we brought on Tom Ryle (WDFW marketing and creative media manager and Washington’s R3 lead) and Kelly Riordan (R3 hunting coordinator) to break down the R3 program: recruit, retain, reactivate, and the “why” behind it. Hunting participation has declined nationally since the 1980s, and Washington is staring at an aging-out curve that can shrink license revenue and long-term support for fish and wildlife management. We talk about the real funding mechanics that many outdoors folks only half understand: license dollars, Pittman-Robertson excise taxes on hunting gear, Dingell-Johnson support on the fishing side, and how those dollars keep science happening in the field. We also dig into the group that decides a lot of Washington’s future at the ballot box: the huge middle that isn’t anti-hunting or pro-hunting, just curious and often uninformed. If we want healthy habitat, thriving wildlife, and durable public support, we have to connect more people to the outdoors in ways that feel safe, welcoming, and practical. Kelly lays out how retention actually works through mentorship and community, including the ORAM pathway from awareness to confident participation. We get specific about opportunities like turkey clinics, butchering clinics, foraging education, shooting sports as a gateway, and how partnerships with NGOs, landowners, schools, and even city programs can scale impact. Tom also shares why mywdfw.org exists as a more approachable resource for new hunters and anglers who get lost on a big government website. If you care about Washington hunting, fishing, wildlife stewardship, and conservation funding, this conversation gives you clear next steps to participate or help others start. Subscribe, share this with a buddy, and leave a review so more people find the resources and mentorship that keep the outdoors alive. To reach out to Kelly Riordan: kelly.riordan@dfw.wa.gov To reach out to Tom Ryle: tom.ryle@dfw.wa.gov Nilch'i Wind Checks [https://nilchi.com/] Nilch’i Wind Checks - An easy to use, must have gear addition to our hunts Dead Down Wind [https://deaddownwind.sjv.io/LK7LAo] Scent Elimination Products Tinks [https://tinks.pxf.io/4GbQNL] Tinks Scents Blacktail Solution [https://blacktailsolution.com/] Blacktail feed supplements. Use code BTCoach for 15% through March 31 2026 Bonded Outdoors [https://www.bondedoutdoors.com] Personalized leather tags to remember your hunts SkullCraft Collective [https://www.skullcraftcollective.com/] skull mounting systems Ghost Hook Sale until March 31, 2026 Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you. Support the show [https://www.patreon.com/TheBlacktailCoachPodcast]

Hunting Blunders That Turned Into Lessons

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2393435/fan_mail/new] You know that sinking feeling when you realize you forgot something critical, rushed a shot, or made a choice you can’t rewind? We’re leaning into that reality with our guest Asha, because the woods have a way of teaching lessons the hard way and then turning them into the funniest stories a season later. We trade honest, embarrassing hunting mistakes, not to glorify failure, but to help you build a better process and a better mindset for the next sit.  We start with a classic: a new turkey hunter belly-crawling into what he thinks are birds, only to get waved off because he’s about to shoot someone’s decoys. From there we shift into the heavier side of hunting ethics, including how hunters handle the emotional weight of a wounded animal and why “hunters are just killers” is a lazy stereotype. We talk ethical shot choices, what respect for wildlife really looks like, and why good hunters will spend days trying to finish what they started.  Then it’s rapid-fire practical: forgotten quivers, forgotten bows, missing headlamps, and the value of a simple gear checklist and a repeatable routine. Aaron tells the painful story of leaving a rifle on the roof of the car and hearing it bounce into the ditch, which leads into buck fever, shot process, and how quickly small mistakes stack up. Asha shares the legendary four-by-three encounter that ends with an arrow buried in a fir tree, and we cap it off with ground blind window mishaps that prove one rule: always know where your arrow is.  If you’ve ever blown a hunt and wanted to quit, this one’s for you. Subscribe, share it with your hunting buddy who “never makes mistakes,” and leave us a review with the most embarrassing lesson you’ve learned in the field. Nilch'i Wind Checks [https://nilchi.com/] Nilch’i Wind Checks - An easy to use, must have gear addition to our hunts Dead Down Wind [https://deaddownwind.sjv.io/LK7LAo] Scent Elimination Products Tinks [https://tinks.pxf.io/4GbQNL] Tinks Scents Blacktail Solution [https://blacktailsolution.com/] Blacktail feed supplements. Use code BTCoach for 15% through March 31 2026 Bonded Outdoors [https://www.bondedoutdoors.com] Personalized leather tags to remember your hunts SkullCraft Collective [https://www.skullcraftcollective.com/] skull mounting systems Ghost Hook Sale until March 31, 2026 Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you. Support the show [https://www.patreon.com/TheBlacktailCoachPodcast]