The Campfire's Edge

Haw River Personhood, Protections and PFAS

In this episode we interview Haw River Assembly Executive Director Emily Sutton about our wild and damaged river, in a discussion that spans environmental strategy, river-personhood, and our worries for the future. HRA is lobbying NC's Environmental Management Commission. The group that is responsible for setting state pollution regulations is taking public comment on their draft language new laws on PFAS contaminants. The North Carolina Environmental Management Commission (EMC) plans to adopt a set of rules that were written by polluters and would allow nearly 500 industrial facilities across North Carolina to continue to dump toxic PFAS and 1,4-dioxane into our rivers and drinking water supplies. Rather than require industries and wastewater plants to reduce their chemical pollution, these rules only make dischargers collect a handful of samples and write a plan for how they could reduce pollution. There are no consequences or penalties if the polluter fails to cut its pollution—even if the polluter increases its toxic discharges. The rules do nothing to prevent current or future pollution. You can send a note to the EMC here: https://actionnetwork.org/letters/stop-the-polluter-written-minimization-plans?source=direct_link&&blm_aid=2422566 You can find more about the Haw River Assembly here: https://www.hawriver.org/ Check out TheCampfiresEdge.com for episode art and more context. https://thecampfiresedge.com/ You can support us on Patreon at The Hungry Forest Gallery and Press. https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheHungryForest Thanks for listening.

Floating Humanoids, Bizzarro Deer Interactions: Connected? Dad says nope

Back from apocalyptic life difficulty season, we have the first of what we hope will be several new episodes publishing in quick succession to close out Season Two of the Campfire's Edge Podcast. In this episode, my father tells the story of his encounter with a figure on a floating platform which was investigated by the Project Blue Book operation in the 1960s. He also tells one of the strangest deer hunting stories we've ever heard. Sarah and I introduce the episode with our 2025 deer season wrap up and Sarah details the cross-species communications she was downloading from the dream deer. Check out the episode art, our newsletters, social media and our publishing platform on Patreon - which you can find at TheCampfiresEdge.com. Be sure to rate us on your podcast listening service to help us grow.

Hunting Western North Carolina's New Bear Management Units

Western North Carolina opened a new chapter this year: the first regulated black bear hunts in some of the steepest, coldest, and most tangled country in the state. Sarah and Matt both drew tags for this historic hunt. In this episode, they share stories from the field; two hunts shaped by different challenges. Matt’s encounter unfolded fast, with close-distance decisions and teeth clacking in the brush. Sarah battled brutal terrain and a sudden mountain cold snap that shut down bear movement and made for dangerous conditions. After the stories, we sit down with Justin McVey, the district wildlife biologist overseeing the region. Justin walks us through the biology and politics behind the new season, and what’s at stake as populations expand into both wilderness and neighborhoods. Check out TheCampfiresEdge.com for episode notes, hunt photos and original art. If you enjoy the work Sarah and I are doing, please consider supporting our publishing project on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/TheHungryForest]. Also, it helps the show a ton if you give us a rating on your podcast player of choice, or share it on social media.

Folk Medicine, Politics and Interdimensional Swamp Trees with Hal Herring

In this episode, Sarah and I sit down with Hal Herring, host of the Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Cast and Blast, for a wide-ranging conversation about hunting, conservation, and what it really means to be in relationship with land. Hal brings decades of experience as an outdoor journalist, conservation advocate, and lifelong hunter, and we move through topics ranging from big-game seasons and public land realities to harder questions: who gets to shape conservation priorities, why conflict is unavoidable (and necessary), and what hunters owe the landscapes that feed and sustain them. Along the way, we talk herbalism, fire ecology, strange experiences in the woods, and the ways knowledge forms when you spend enough time paying attention outside. Check out Hal here: https://www.halherring.com/ and BHA Cast and Blast here: https://www.backcountryhunters.org/Media/BHA-Podcasts If you enjoy the work Sarah and I are doing, please consider supporting our publishing project on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheHungryForest And it helps the show a ton if you give us a rating on your podcast player of choice, or share it on social media. Go to TheCampfiresEdge.com to check out photos from my 2008 trip to the high desert of Eastern Oregon on a habitat restoration project with one of BHA's founding leaders, Mike Beagle. https://thecampfiresedge.com/

Hunting and Magical Practice - Aspen from Yarrow & Bone

In this episode we are  talking about magical practice and hunting. Human's earliest magical practices almost certainly arose from attempts to secure hunting success. But today, the overlap between these two archaic practices is very limited.  In this episode we are talking to Aspen, who is a poet and hunter and magical practitioner living out in the American west and she has a substack called Yarrow and Bone which we encourage folks to check out. If you are a hunter who has a magical practice that you follow, we'd love to hear from you. You can reach out to us at info@thecampfiresedge.com.  Aspen's Substack: https://yarrowandbone.substack.com/  The Campfire's Edge Site has original artwork and show notes: https://thecampfiresedge.com/ Follow The Hungry Forest Gallery & Press on Patreon for more writing and art projects and support the show: https://www.patreon.com/TheHungryForest