Outdoor Ruhls

Episode 90: Unscheduled Landings (Revisited) Before we dive into next week's brand-new episode, we thought it would be fun to bring back one of our favorite story episodes. Join Poppy, Matt, Mark, and Mike as they swap stories about unexpected flights, abrupt transitions from water to land, and a few outdoor adventures that didn't exactly go according to plan. Like most good campfire stories, thes...

Episode 89: One Fish, Two Fish, Redfish, Cobia Hosts: Mike Ruhl, Mark Ruhl, Caitlin Ruhl, and Rachel Ruhl This week, the Outdoor Ruhls gather around the table on the final morning of their annual Chesapeake Bay family fishing trip to recap an unforgettable week in Cape Charles, Virginia. From boat logistics and rough seas to beach house life and family memories, they share the highs, lows, and lau...

Episode 88: Outdoor Dads Father's Day provided the perfect excuse to catch up with Seth Morris and talk about the role the outdoors plays in fatherhood. Seth joins Mike and Mark for a wide-ranging conversation covering life in Montana, his connection to MeatEater, becoming a new father, and raising his son Virgil in a world filled with fishing rods, hunting stories, and outdoor adventures. The con...

Episode 87: More Than Inches This week on Outdoor Ruhls, Mike, Caitlin, and GT are joined by special guest Nicole Tatman , an official Boone & Crockett measurer , for a conversation that goes far beyond antler measurements. Nicole helps explain the history and purpose of Boone & Crockett and Pope & Young, while the group explores why these organizations were founded and how their conse...

Episode 86: Mountain Hollow Review Turkey season is in the books, and Mike welcomes Jeremy Cressley of Mountain Hollow Game Calls back to the podcast for a post-season recap. The two compare notes on a challenging spring, including Jeremy’s Osceola turkey hunt in Florida, encounters with rattlesnakes and swamps on public land, and Mike’s frustratingly dry New Mexico season that featured plenty of...

Episode 85: Have You Learned Anything? In this special birthday episode of the Outdoor Ruhls Podcast, Caitlin takes over hosting duties to interview Mike on the morning after his 46th birthday. The conversation explores what life has taught him through family, fatherhood, conservation work, hunting, fishing, and simply getting older. From raising kids as an older dad to lessons learned through dec...

Episode 84: Ole Bull Memories On this Memorial Day episode of the Outdoor Ruhls Podcast, Mike, Mark, and Caitlin reflect on family traditions, trout fishing, and growing up around one of Pennsylvania’s most beloved state parks — Ole Bull State Park along Kettle Creek. The conversation wanders through childhood memories of Deer Camp, feeding giant trout below the dam, fishing the kids-only section...

Episode 83: Tackling Matt’s Addiction This week on the podcast, Mike and Matt sit down for the first-ever one-on-one brother episode in Outdoor Ruhls history, and it quickly turns into a deep dive into the world of fishing tackle. What starts as a simple conversation about fishing line spirals into rods, reels, braided line, fluorocarbon leaders, drag systems, warranties, Japanese tackle websites,...

Episode 82: A Mother’s Love! In this Mother’s Day episode, Mike and Caitlin open with a family weekend in Glenwood, New Mexico, where the boys helped stock Gila trout, Robert caught his first Sonora sucker, and Caitlin had a true “mother’s instinct” moment when she jumped into a cold pool to help both boys after Emmit got in over his head. The episode then shifts into a conversation about mothers...

Episode 81: A Mother’s Love? In Part 1 of the Outdoor Ruhls Podcast Mother’s Day series, Mike sits down with Caitlin, Poppy, and his mom Karen for an honest and surprisingly emotional conversation about Mike’s grandmother, Elizabeth “Nutt” Hartlieb — a woman remembered as tough, stubborn, guarded, and often unable to show affection, even to the people she loved most. The episode opens with stories...

Mike sits down with Uncle Sim and Poppy to explore the history of the Cornwall iron mines, from their role in early American industry to their impact on the local community. Uncle Sim shares firsthand stories of mining life and explains how iron ore was mined and processed in Lebanon County. The episode wraps with the mine’s closure after Hurricane Agnes and reflections on how it shaped both the r...

Episode 79: Love in the Time of Turkey Season In this laid-back spring check-in, the crew gathers to catch up on life, family, and the outdoors during a busy and slightly chaotic time of year. From a full-on Ruhl family reunion back in Pennsylvania to a stretch of rapid-fire podcast recordings, the conversation reflects on recent episodes covering everything from zoos and conservation to Hershey h...

Episode 78: Pennsylvania Dutch Chocolate (The Hershey Story) — Show Notes In this episode, the Ruhls are joined by Uncle Sim (94!) in the “Outdoor Ruhls East Studio” for a deep dive into the life and legacy of Milton S. Hershey—one of the most influential Pennsylvania Dutch figures in American history. The conversation traces Hershey’s unlikely path from repeated business failures to building a ch...

Episode 77: Spring Ruhls In this follow-up to the winter farm episode, the Ruhls gather in Quentin, Pennsylvania—joined once again by Uncle Sim—to bring the story into spring. As the thaw sets in, the work ramps up fast. March means one thing above all else: manure. From hand-forking frozen piles into spreaders to racing the mud and broken chains, the crew paints a vivid picture of just how physic...

Episode 76: The Zoo Keeper Chronicles In this episode, Mike sits down with Dale and Denise Snyder—family members and lifelong animal people—for a wide-ranging conversation that blends family history, hard work, and an unexpected journey into the world of zoo keeping. From Dale’s upbringing on a Pennsylvania farm to a 40+ year career working with North American wildlife, the story unfolds as one of...

Episode 75: Disturbance by Design This week on the Outdoor Ruhls Podcast, Mike sits down with Karl Malcolm —conservation professional, lifelong outdoorsman, and one of the most compelling recent voices in the conservation space. Recently featured on the MeatEater Podcast, Karl brings a rare blend of deep scientific knowledge, field experience, and thoughtful perspective to a wide-ranging conversat...

Episode 74: A Picture’s Worth... In this episode, Mike and Caitlin are joined by GT for a conversation about old photographs, the memories they preserve, and the way a single image can instantly carry you back to a different time. What starts with digging through family photos for an Outdoor Ruhls social media project turns into a deeper reflection on family history, outdoor traditions, and the em...

Episode 73: Camping with Kate Mike and Caitlin kick off the episode by looking back at last week’s conversation with Mountain Hollow Game Calls and celebrating the new “official turkey call” status for the Outdoor Ruhls podcast. From there, they welcome one of their longtime Yellowstone friends, Kate Olsen, for a conversation that feels equal parts reunion, storytelling session, and tribute to the...

Episode 72: The Legend of Mountain Hollow Spring is creeping in, gobbles are echoing across ridges, and turkey season is officially on our minds. In this episode, Mike sits down with Jeremy Cressley and Adam Brewer of Mountain Hollow Game Calls , a small, family-run company with a 44-year legacy rooted in the hardwood ridges of Pennsylvania and New York. From booth days at the Harrisburg Great Ame...

Episode 71: A River Runs Through Us Mike, Caitlin, Poppy, and Robert recap a family weekend trout trip to the world-famous San Juan River in New Mexico—one of the best trout fisheries anywhere, and only a few hours from home. Robert proudly reports on the highlights: cold mornings, frozen rod guides, lots of action early, and “pretty big” trout, while the adults compare notes on what they caught (...

Episode 70: Love Ruhls Throwback Episode: “Romancing the Spam” (Originally Episode 5) It’s been a busy week around Outdoor Ruhls. We’ve upgraded the Outdoor Ruhls West Podcast Studio, and Mark and Rachel have been hard at work on a special cooking project we can’t wait to share more details about soon. We’ve also scheduled a family reunion for the end of March, and Mike and Emmit are heading back...

Episode 69 Show Notes: A Homestead Castle… In this episode, Mike sits down with his neighbor John Brown —one of the most industrious (and endlessly interesting) people in New Mexico—to unpack the wild, winding story behind their little corner of Santa Fe. What starts as a conversation about neighbors and an RV park quickly turns into a deep dive into homesteading, New Mexico history, family legacy...

Show Notes — Episode 68: Expectation, Meet Reality… After a full year of anticipation, Mike and Caitlin finally get the crew up at 3:30 a.m. and hit the ice—only to get completely skunked. Not a bite, not a fish in sight… just one lone pike visible down the hole, like it was there purely to taunt them. Which sparks the episode’s theme: all those times the outdoors (and life) humbles your plans and...

Episode 67 Show Notes A Ruhl’s Best Friend… In this episode, Mike and Caitlin check in with Mark and Rachel from the Outdoor Ruhls East studio for a heartfelt (and funny) conversation about dogs—the ones we’ve lost, the ones who shaped our lives, and the ridiculous trouble they sometimes get into. The episode centers on saying goodbye to Hatch, Mark and Rachel’s beloved Chesapeake Bay Retriever, a...

Episode 66 — O’Hare? Oh No! Mike opens this episode with a rare confession: he doesn’t usually listen back to the podcast once it’s edited—but last week’s episode with Uncle Sim was different. After going back and listening as a fan, Mike reflects on just how special it is to hear firsthand stories from someone born in 1932, whose lifetime spans from horse-powered farming with barely any electrici...