MOJO’S Duck Season Somewhere Podcast
Mexican Mallards and Decoying Pigeons, Arizona-style
Waders shucked and air-drying on side of the truck, a pair beautiful Mexican Mallards rest on the tailgate. Closer to Mexico than to Pheonix, Ramsey Russell meets with local hunter Colin Shepherd, recounting the days’ events and discussing Arizona duck hunting while endless miles of train boxcars keep rolling past. What characterizes typical Arizona duck hunting, how’d Shepherd get started duck hunting in the state where 4 deserts converge, and what really hooked him on it? What other wingshooting opportunities exist in Arizona? How’s the local cuisine and what’s Shepherd’s favorite duck recipe? What D-I-Y non-resident hunting opportunities exist in Arizona?
Arizona Small Game Hunting, Duck Tacos and More, Part 2
Like 44 slugs whizzing by in old-day Tombstone, this episode potentially packs real wallop. Arizona’s Migratory Game Bird Coordinator, John Odell, and Ramsey have hung their waders to dry and continue building on last week’s fascinating episode, exploring a variety of topics. Their conversation eventually stumbles into the kitchen, where the grease gets hot. Whether squirrels or green-winged teal, what’s small game hunting’s significance in the great scheme of things? Has the grocery supply chain affected American taste buds, our interest or abilities in cooking wild game? How might 9/11 have cultivated a strong cooking ethic among newer hunters? In managing migratory game birds such as waterfowl, what makes the Pacific Flyway unique among US Flyways? And are the guiding hands of migratory bird management scientific or political? Odell is a great storyteller, and his perspectives are highly informed and interesting. Pull up a chair, tuck a napkin in your collar and get ready to sink your teeth into another great episode on Duck Season Somewhere as the 2020 North American Tour winds through Arizona.
Arizona Small Game Hunting and Other Great Stories, Part 1
Chalk this episode up to fascinating thing learned while duck hunting along Arizona’s Salt River. John Odell is Arizona’s Migratory Game Bird Coordinator and holds the claim to fame as first known hunter achieving a little known North American Slam – you won’t guess it in a million years. Along the way, he tells a thought-provoking story about his dad’ last buck. What makes Arizona one of the most unique landscapes in North America, and what are the predominate duck species bagged? Why do small game intrigue him, what’s a Jackson Rifle, and how’d he “find his tribe” while attending a championship cook-off in Bentonville, Arkansas? What is the Big Breast Contest in Yuma, Arizona entail, and what annual hunting event is regaled as very best in North America? Part 1 of a 2-part series with John Odell will have your head reeling like a hell-bent squirrel scrabbling up a piñon pine, bark flying! Odell’s an incredible story-teller, plenty interesting subjects you’ve likely never thought of, but like me will probably add to your bucket list.
Hunting is a Lifetime Journey, Steve Comus in Arizona
On the bank of the Salt River, just outside of Mesa, Arizona, Ramsey Russell visits with Steve Comus, Senior Editor of Safari Club International Safari Magazine for over 2 decades. As usual, meeting with such an experienced hunter that describes hunting as a lifetime journey makes for an interesting conversation. What shotgun does Steve usually hunt with, and why does he think using a 410 is cheating? Why does he usually hunt over a single decoy that’s older than even himself and how’s it work? Why did Walter Cronkite present him an aware back when, and for what? What was his secret as an investigative reporter and why’d he quit? And why does he believe that the heyday of hunting lies ahead? Words of wisdom from Arizona’s Sonora Desert.
Rudy Duck Hunting Club in Utah
Following a beautiful morning of Utah duck hunting on the south end of Utah’s Great Salt Lake, local historian Jack Ray describes to Ramsey Russell the history of the Rudy Duck Club and other venerable duck hunting camps in Utah’s Great Salt Lake basin. The sign above them reads, “So fowl and fair a day I have not seen.” Why were so many great duck camps established way back when and why do they still exist? Located in one of the driest states in the US, how are many of these properties managed and, importantly, what would likely happen if they ceased to exist? What’s so special about the boats used and how do camp amenities reflect the boats importance to hunting this these type properties? This interesting episode concludes the Utah duck hunting portion of Ramsey’s 2020 North American Waterfowl Tour.
Utah Swan Hunting and Unique Utah Duck Hunting Methods
Following a couple exciting days hunting swans and ducks together in Utah, Chad Yamane and Ramsey Russell share a couple cold beers before supper, talking about those memorable hunts. How are swans hunted in Utah, what gear is required and what pointers does Chad have for swan hunters? What was the weather like and why might the Utah swan season be abruptly closed within upcoming days, weeks? What distinctly Utah duck hunting technique was deployed to shoot ducks out on the Great Salt Lake and how’d this duck hunting method originate? What duck species did they shoot? What unique problem did they encounter? This episode is purely Utah, depicting a fun hunting you’ll not experience elsewhere!
Why Utah Swan Hunting?
Rich Hansen is a field biologist and State Banding Coordinator in Utah. He and Ramsey Russell discuss Utah swan hunting and the important of Great Salt Lake associated wetlands to swan conservation. Why is this region vital to North American swans and how many swans pass through Utah? How did swan hunting originate in the United States? Importantly, why is hunting swans vital to this iconic waterfowl species conservation? How many permits are issued to hunt swans in Utah, and how is species harvest regulated? Tundra swans or Trumpeter swan, and does it matter? This informative episode about hunting North America’s largest waterfowl species packs as big a wallop as a ol’ big white bird crashing belly up into the decoys.
The Old Duck Hunters Dinner, Other Mississippi Delta Times, Places
Y’all better buckle up and hang on! Mississippi Delta historian and story-teller-of-epic-proportions, Hank Burdine is back, and this times going as fast and furious as an almost late-for-shooting-time hunter tearing down a gravel road! This colorful episode touches on memorable people, places and times throughout the Mississippi Delta like only Hank can tell it. What’s so special about the Mississippi Delta, how’d Hank get his start duck hunting and what’s changed since those glory days? Where or what is “Booger Den?” What inspired Hank to organize “The Old Duck Hunters Dinner,” who was there and what’d those folks’ represent? Who was The Duck Doctor, and what infamous Mississippian once described him as “the best duck hunter ever known”? Folks, this is one great episode y’all won’t want to end.
New England Sea Duck Hunting, Capt. Reilly McCue
New England sea duck hunting is an obvious destination for hunters looking to travel beyond their own backyards because it offers a much different experience and diversity of unique species than most other places within the US. To long-time sea duck hunting guide and USHuntList outfitter, Captain Reilly McCue, connecting clients with dream species to include eiders, long-tailed ducks, black ducks, brant and red-breasted mergansers is like putting together an elaborate puzzle. He relishes the challenge. And usually delivers. Here’s why. How’d Capt. Reilly get into sea duck hunting and at what age did he know that he wanted to be a guide? What waterfowl species are available in New England? What’s it like hunting sea ducks in New England? What are reasonable client expectations? What factors determine where different waterfowl species cadres will be located, and when they can be hunted? How are sea ducks hunted in New England and what are some of the challenges? Like tank-sized eiders suddenly appearing low over the chop and hurtling towards the salt-soaked spread, this information-packed episode brings it! Big time!
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Out of Cache, Utah Duck Hunting
After a fun morning Utah duck hunting on public land, Kevin Booth and Ramsey Russell visit at the Out of Cache Custom Knives shop. Kevin grew up hunting in Utah with his dad, but it was his sons that drug him back into it. With a fervor. His Out of Cache knife hobby-business began as one of many do-it-yourself projects that kept he and his sons busy during the off season to include long-tail motors and much more. How’d his sons pull him back into duck hunting and why do they really spend so much time in the shop? Where’d the name “Out of Cache” originate and what is a duck zipper? What is the Canvasback Club, how do you join, what do members receive? Why does Kevin think that hand-crafted items such as his knives feel warm to the touch? This Duck Season Somewhere episode is about putting your heart into everything you do and spending t-i-m-e with those that matter most.
Related Links:
Out of Cache Custom Knives (Facebook)
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