The Western Rookie - Hunting Podcast

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks physical and mental fitness with Dan Staton, a life long fitness enthusiast and host of the ElkShape Youtube channel and podcast. Dan S. is obsessed with elk hunting! From training year round to fueling his body with the elk that he harvests, a lot of what Dan does is centered around chasing September bugles. Dan took his ideas of being in ElkShape a...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with serial entrepreneur Will De Rover about his passion for bear hunting which he developed after purchasing a bear hunting outfitter. Will is 24 years old and grew up in Southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Will has been part owner of Beartrack Outfitters in Manitoba, Canada since 2018. He jumped into owning a bear hunting outfit having never bea...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with his good friend and avid outdoorsman Weston Marsh about Weston’s recent trip to chase Canadian black bears with his bow. Weston grew up in Michigan and quickly became passionate about hunting and bass fishing. He is an avid waterfowl hunter but he primarily chases big game with his bow. Weston has lived in multiple states and always finds time t...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan takes a deep dive into elk hunting with his good friend and western big game mentor Shawn Leschinsky. Dan and Shawn cover anything and everything pertaining to elk hunting including gear, rifle setup, approach angle and so much more. Shawn taught Dan most of what he knows about western hunting and has successfully helped over a dozen new hunters take a bul...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with his good friend Linnea about their upcoming archer mule deer hunt. Linnea grew up in smalltown Wisconsin where her love for the outdoors and adventure began. Linnea currently travels the country with her dog Akela in their converted Ram ProMaster van. Linnea has been living a nomadic lifestyle for over a year and a half which has only increased...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan continues his talk with Shawn Leschinsky but they transition from moose hunting to Shawn’s mountain goat hunt that took place 2 seasons later. Dan and Shawn dive deep into the preparation and execution of their adventure chasing after a big Rocky Mountain Billy. As soon as Shawn let Dan know about the hunt they both immediately began planning and training...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with hunting buddy/mentor Shawn Leschinsky about his successful moose hunt in Colorado. Dan and Shawn break down the entire story behind Shawn’s moose hunt including gear, scouting, strategy and more. Dan and Shawn have been on several big game hunts throughout the years. Shawn is an avid big game hunter and waterfowl enthusiast from Colorado’s front...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks about his failures, successes and lessons learned from his first few years hunting Elk and Mule deer out west. Dan has been hunting and fishing in the midwest since he was 5 years old. He started off chasing squirrels and birds with a bb-gun and graduated to deer hunting with a 20 gauge shotgun when he was 12. Most of his life he has hunted East of t...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with fellow western rookie Dan Johnson about his past few seasons chasing western big game with his bow. Dan Johnson is the host of Nine Finger Chronicles, owner of Sportsmen’s Empire and former cohost of The Wired to Hunt podcast. He shares about his successes, failures and everything in between while hunting mule deer. Dan M. Picks his brain about...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks to 3 “brothers” from Wyoming about all the things they love to chase in their great state. Tanner Varndell, Chase Galley and Colton Jones join Dan to talk about everything from hunting antelope on the plains to chasing high country mule deer. Chase has always dreamt of filming his hunts and to try and make it "big time". Recently Chase’s dreams have...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with Jake Trujillo, a fly fishing and big game guide from New Mexico. Jake shares tips and tricks that he uses every September as he chases after bull elk during the rut.  Jake grew up hunting and learning the craft from his dad Patrick. Not only did Jake learn to hunt from his dad, he also followed in his footsteps when he started competing in profe...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with Landon, Brandon, Tucker, Cody, Victoria and Tyler about Dan’s recent trip to Texas to chase hogs with thermal hunting equipment and helicopters. Landon and Brandon own Rogue Texan Outfitters, a guided hog eradication company where they host people from around the country. RTO uses out of the box strategies that most midwestern hunters only dream...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan shares information about all of his hunting equipment. From boots to optics this episode covers it all. Dan has been using a variety of hunting gear over the past 20 years in the woods. He has hunted everything from frogs to moose and has honed in on the right gear for each job along the way. He loves to share information and gear recommendations with his...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks to Brian Krebs from North Dakota about shed hunting and his adventures and successes chasing after big game animals in the west. Brian is a passionate outdoorsman and businessman. He owns Bull Elk Beard Oil, a company he started that sparked from his love for the outdoors and his need to keep his face and beard from drying out while hunting. Brian is...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with long range shooting enthusiast and Gunwerks salesman, Pake Taylor. Pake and Dan discuss all aspects of long range shooting systems.  Pake grew up in eastern Washington on a cattle ranch that gave him the ability to spend a solid chunk of his time outdoors. He started chasing birds and small game the moment his folks kicked him loose with his fir...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with Jacob Coons about preparing for upcoming hunts. Joel shares tips about objectives, water and food systems and much more in this in depth discussion about planning a hunt in the west. Jacob is a Kentucky native with a masters in education. Jacob hunted here and there as a kid but really got back into the sport around 10 years ago. He now deer and...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with Mark Kenyon about Mark’s transition from hunting whitetail deer in Michigan to exploring western hunting opportunities. Mark is the CEO/Founder of Wired To Hunt.com, one of the largest independent whitetail hunting blogs on the web. In addition,  he is also a freelance outdoor writer, contributing to such publications as North American Whitetail...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with Utah houndsman Dustin Clark about his love for hunting with his dogs. Dan and Dustin recap their first 3 days chasing lions in the mountains of Utah and what they are hoping for on their 4th and final day. Dustin got his first hound 14 years ago after a coworker introduced him to the sport. He now has a team of 10 dogs and chases cats and bears...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with Derrick King about need-to-know information and gear recommendations for first time western hunters. Derrick and his family own and operate Rocky Mountain Archery in Fort Collins, Colorado where they tune bows, educate hunters and outfit people with all the latest gear needed to make a western hunt successful. Derrick has been competing with his...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with Stieg Phillips the owner of Canati Tripods and founder of Muley Maniacs. Stieg shares a wealth of information about scouting and pursuing giant elk and mule deer. Stieg spends countless hours finding elite bucks and bulls in Utah and New Mexico and shares his strategies for pursuing them once season comes. Dan and Stieg discuss the upcoming seas...

On this episode of The Western Rookie, Dan sits down with Chad Ryker to discuss what he will be doing now that he is stepping away from the Backcountry Rookies podcast. Chad shares some of his favorite moments from the show, some of his favorite guests, and how the information he received from his guests made him a better hunter. But don't worry, Chad informs us that the Backcountry Rookies isn't...

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan Johnson introduces Dan Mathews as the host of the podcast. Dan Mathews is currently the host of The Nomadic Outdoorsman but hopes to use The Western Rookie as a means of encouraging other hunters to chase after new adventures out west. Dan and Dan both share their hopes for the podcast which include bringing on seasoned western hunters as guests and gainin...