Backcountry Hunting Podcast

Friends, I'll be at the Dallas Safari Club in early February. We'll be holding meet-and-greet visits at booth 3216 Friday and Saturday 10-to-noon, and 3-5pm. Use code JOSEPH26 to get 25% off your entry tickets, and come swap hunting dreams and make plans with us!  We'll also have Rob Gearing, owner of Spartan Precision Equipment , and Neal Lane, proprietor of Lane Firearms & Appraisals , visiting...

What is the best cartridge for a kid or beginning hunter to start with? In this episode William (a.k.a. the Backcountry Apprentice) and host Joseph von Benedikt sit down and debate the merits of 14 different cartridge candidates for the title of "Best Kid Cartridge." By process of elimination, we boil it down to just one. Our top pick may surprise you... This episode was great fun, folks. ENJOY! ...

SHOT Show 2026 is drawing to a close, and a ton of great new rifles, shotguns, handguns, scopes, binoculars, cartridges, bullets, and other gear has just been introduced. In this episode, we sit down with gunwriting and YouTube legend Ron Spomer and talk about the coolest new products we saw at the show. There some great stuff coming down the pipeline. ENJOY!    FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST...

WHICH IS BEST: .270 Winchester or .30-06 Springfield? In this episode I sit down with the William vB—the "Backcountry Apprentice" himself, and we hash out the pros and cons of each cartridge, discussing:  Cartridge versatility Bullet weight ranges Modern bullets available Best factory loads Best bullets for handloading Which is more optimal for whitetails and other deer-size game Which is better f...

Q&A: Best Bullets for Vintage Rifles, Best Moose Cartridge, First Guns for Kids, Barrel Cleaning, Kill Kit Contents, and More! In this episode we answer great questions on a variety of topics, including:  Best bullets for classic (vintage) rifles NAS3 high-pressure cartridge cases Velocity expansion thresholds for monometal bullets Best boots for stalking in Africa Ultimate moose rifle and cartrid...

Rigby of London is debatably the most famous maker of fine double-barrel rifles and (bolt-action) magazine rifles in history. Jim Corbett used a .275 Rigby to hunt many of the maneating tigers and leopards he killed. Harry Selby carried a .416 Rigby while guiding Robert Ruark. The Rigby Rising Bite double rifle is considered by many savants to be the finest of its type ever made. And so forth.  In...

"When you don't have a pack raft, a river or body of water is a barrier. When you do have a raft, that water becomes a highway."  This episode we're joined with Alpacka Raft founder Thor Tingey. Thor grew up in Alaska, adventure-rafting, hunting, and fishing across most of the state. Alpacka packable rafts are the culmination of decades worth of experience and wisdom. Incredible though it sounds,...

Lots of hunters and shooters complain about new cartridges. "My .270 will do anything that stupid new (insert cartridge name here) can do!" Is that a fact.  In this episode, we explore whether cutting-edge new cartridges actually have an advantage over proven classic cartridges. To showcase the concept, we pit the legendary .270 Winchester against the racy new 6.5 WBY RPM, but we include a ton of...

If you had to face a charging cape buffalo, elephant, or grizzly bear, would you want a big-bore bolt-action or a double rifle? This episode was recorded in Mozambique, where we had the opportunity to sit down with two dangerous-game professional hunters and guides who have opposing views: one prefers a double rifle; the other likes a bolt action. We swapped stories and debated the virtues and wea...

We're live in the tropical forests of Mozambique, in one of the most remote safari camps in the world. This episode was recorded right after hunting two magnificent old dagga boy cape buffalo bulls in the floodplains of the Zambeze River delta, while the experience was still fresh and raw.  One buffalo was taken with a 125-year-old Westley Richards double rifle in .450/400 Nitro; the other with a...

Shooting skill can be crucial at the moment of truth, especially on elk. Good opportunities are often hard-earned, particularly when hunting DIY, on public land, with an over-the-counter tag.  This episode details two very special hunts, when my sons each shot their first bull. Both were in challenging scenarios, and both boys did everything right. There are a lot of proud father moments in this e...

Hunting season is in full swing, and the stories, questions, and reports are pouring in! This episode we dive deep into concerns and questions from our loyal listeners, addressing everything from how to set up a guide rifle for grizzlies to picking a whitetail cartridge to choosing a bullet for Africa. ENJOY!   FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST!  Join the Backcountry Hunting Podcast tribe and ge...

This just might be the coolest new rifle introduction of the year! Lipsey's and Ruger have teamed up to create this quick-handling, hard-hitting bush rifle chambered in two of history's coolest powerhouse cartridges. These rifles are available now, through your Lipsey's-associated local dealer. Links are below. ENJOY!  Ruger M77 Alaskan Bush Rifle in .35 Whelen Ruger M77 Alaskan Bush Rifle in 9.3x...

Want to shoot, process, and pack out 5 mature bull moose in 3.5 days? Me neither, but that's what professional elk guide Tate Bradfield and his group did last month. This episode, Tate tells us about the rifles, cartridges, and bullets the five hunters choose for their special trip (which included the taking of a Boone & Crockett bull!) and shares his observations on the various results. He also h...

If you had to own and use just one hunting knife for the rest of your life, what would it be? This episode we go over blade characteristics, types of steel, handle shapes and material, edge geometry, field sharpening, and more. Custom knifemaker Evan Siembida lends his expertise and walks through the process of designing and building a truely capable hunting knife. ENJOY!    FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPOR...

By a crackling fireplace in a 200-year-old Victorian hunting lodge in Scotland, we sit down and record a hunt recap. Red stag, sika stag, and salmon fishing are on the topic list, and we hash out crucial gear, hunt methods, stalking and shooting expectations, and more as we tell great success stories. ENJOY!   FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST!  Join the Backcountry Hunting Podcast tribe and get...

This episode was recorded in the field while hunting rut-crazed big bull elk in New Mexico's high country with the 7mm Backcountry cartridge and a super-accurate ultralight hunting rifle. The hunt was a struggle, but several big gnarly bulls hit the ground and filled our freezers. We add gear notes, seasonal tips, and what did and didn't work... ENJOY!    FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE PODCAST!  Join...

Have you ever dreamed of hunting a huge Red Stag in New Zealand? So have we... so we got a couple of experts on the phone and unpacked just how to get it done, along with chasing big fallow deer, himalayan tahr, chamois, and even Roosevelt elk on the tip of the South Island. This was one of the coolest and most informative episodes we've done in a long time. ENJOY!    FRIENDS, PLEASE SUPPORT THE P...

Hunting season is upon us, friends! It's time to refine our gear and our methods, and get afield to make the magic. This fun Q&A session address myriad pertinent topics submitted by our loyal listeners. 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   Check out our new "recommended...

If you had to pick just one type of lead-core bullet to hunt with for the rest of your days, for all big game species around the world, what would it be? Folks, in this episode we talk through what we consider the best bonded-core bullets made. Whether you're after big alpine-country mule deer, grizzly bear in Alaska, or kudu or cape buffalo in Africa, this line of bullets will serve you reliably,...

This episode brings you debatably the coolest pronghorn antelope hunt I've ever done... recorded in the field, while hunting solo on public land. I don't like the word "primitive" so I'll use the term "traditional" to describe my equipment: My rifle was a 1780s-style flintlock muzzleloader charged with blackpowder and a patched round ball.  The stars lined up and I was blessed with a 106-yard oppo...

Could the grand old .280 Ackley Improved cartridge still be one of the best all-purpose big game cartridges ever designed? We think so, and this podcast is dedicated to explaining why.  We address:  Broad-spectrum capablity from pronghorn to bisonMild recoil and easy accuracy Competitive modern ballistics Available rifles and ammo Favorite big game bullets for the .280 AI Top rifle models chambere...

Safari hunting, conservation, and family hunting traditions from squirrels to elk are key topics of this wonderful interview with Dallas Safari Club CEO Rob McCanna. We recorded this live at the recent inaugural summer DSC convention, and it was one of the most enjoyable conversations I've ever had with a top-end industry leader. Rob is a down-to-earth guy that hunts hard and appreciates time afie...

Spot-and-stalk hunting—the lifeblood of open-country hunters around the world—may have it's roots in a very special place in the Scottish Highlands. This episode, we visit with Sam Thompson, Head Game Keeper of Kildermorie Estate, during a red stag hunt. Sam shares the story of Great Britain's movement from coursing big game with hounds to spotting and stalking, DIY, putting in the hard yards to e...