Nada Grande Outdoors Podcast

Guess who's back? This week, on the Nada Grande Outdoors Podcast, we discuss your options when you just cant make the hunt. Join us to see what to do with your tag. 

Slick heads. Green heads. Coming in on a string. Shoot 'em in the lips. There are a ton of slang terms used in the hunting world and they can be fairly universal like "bag limit", down to as specific as a family or group of hunters using a term only understood by each other, like "2 hundo". This week we are joined by our friend @nmduckboy aka "Dirty Dave" to have a fun discussion about the many different colloquialisms that are so interlaced with our language as hunters. As we expected, these terms are so ingrained in our speech patterns that as we did this podcast we found ourselves using slang terms to define slang terms! This is by no means a comprehensive discussion about decoding hunting jargon, but it is a fun discussion that may be eye opening to some as to just how many of these terms can dominate discussions around hunting! 

Podcast from elk camp! Kyle got a quick chance to slip away and join Rodney and Deedon for the 2021 elk hunt for an evening and morning hunt. Hunting has been tough! It has been hot and the elk are not yet talking making for some difficult hunting conditions for an archery hunt. We talk about hunt strategies when other things aren't working. We also talk about the fact that having a bear tag in the pocket helps change you perspective and allows options to open up. 'Tis the season! Good luck to everyone out there hustling and remember to enjoy the experience!

In a first for the Hunt it Forward program, we were able to take a participant out and do some spot and stalk skills learning in the field on a real animal! Shea was with us for an evening to learn about glassing, reading sign, animal behavior patterns, putting a stalk on pronghorn antelope. We were also joined by Cozzy, Shea's longtime friend from back east. While Cozzy has previously hunted white-tail deer, this was his first experience learning about western big game hunting. It was a great experience that thus far we have not had the chance to implement into our program, so we were thoroughly excited to take the opportunity for some hands-on education. We never get tired of the excitement these participants bring to the hunts as it is infectious and reinvigorates our efforts in this worthy cause! Don't forget to follow Shea's Hunt it Forward experience through all our podcasts! 

As a second part to last week's EPLUS soapbox, we take a look at the discussions that are being had regarding wildlife management in New Mexico. You remember the disaster that was Senate Bill 312 from the 2021 legislative session right? Well, that fight isn't over. Proponents of wildlife reform are starting the push again to change the Department of Game and Fish name, purview, and authority. Kyle recently participated on a panel discussion in front of the legislative Water and Natural Resources committee as an opponent of the drastic wildlife management reform that was proposed in SB312 and will continue to be pushed going into the future. What proponents of this reform want you to believe is that Game and Fish only care about game and fish species. The truth is that Game and Fish already has the authority and processes in place to address "species of greatest conservation need" as well as any other species that may need protection. Join us for a very informative podcast!

Show Notes:

NM Wildlife Conservation Act

WNRC Panel Discussion

NM State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP)

Recovering America's Wildlife Act (RAWA)

You guessed it! we are back on the soapbox! Why??! Because they just keep pushing. Had a friend of podcast send us an email that went out from the New Mexico Wildlife Federation that was a call to action asking people to contact the Attorney General's office to petition for the removal of all Private Land Elk authorizations in the state. If you will remember, not too long ago, Senator Martin Heinrich released a letter urging the governor's office to take action against private landowners and do away with the Elk, Private Land Use System (EPLUS). At that time, Jesse Deubel himself publicly stated that the senator's letter was targeting the unit wide aspect of the EPLUS system. We told you then that the ultimate goal was to do away with the private lands systems and gain access on private land for public hunters. We had to say "I told you so", but there is no denying it now. Understand the issues, educate yourself, and make a conscious decision where you stand....just make sure it's not because someone else told you to. 

Join us on the go for a podcast in the field. Rodney is pretty legit when comes to e-scouting, and what's more is he is becoming more fond of it every time we have a hunt. However, it should go without saying that it can't replace the knowledge you get by ground truthing what you see in the imagery. We are out and about for a look around the hunt area. Don't mind the truck noises, there's no substitute for boots on the ground! 

As a follow up to last week's episode where-in we talked with Mike Shine, one of two participants in our Hunt if Forward program this year, we sit down with our second participant Shea Hoffmann. Shea may be the participant that has been the most excited to do Hunt it Forward. He goes all in!! Between the time that we invited him to do the program and sitting down for the first podcast together, he has already bought a couple guns, a bow and a full set of camo. Talk about stoked! We love seeing people this committed and know that that excitement will only grow as we mentor them through the process. Shea had a ton of questions that we think most new hunters probably have, so listen in while we get acquainted with our second Shea to go through Hunt it Forward. This could get confusing! We will have to decide how  to distinguish between the two. What do you think? Should it be He Shea and She Shea or One Shea and Two Shea? 

This week we are joined by Mike Shine. Mike is one of our newest Hunt it Forward participants. Mike is originally from Massachusetts and while he grew up around some exposure to firearms, he has had limited exposure to hunting. The Pandemic really brought Mike to the awareness that he feels strongly about knowing where his food comes from and instilled a desire to be more self sufficient in obtaining his own welfare. He is extremely interested in getting into hunting as it is a way that he feels he can ethically put meat on his table while at the same time be an active participant in conservation. We are really excited to have Mike with us this year for Hunt it Forward! 

This week we discuss a myriad of topics. A long standing issue that we have had conversations about before is re-surfacing....stream access. We talk about our personal stances on the subject particularly in light of New Mexico's lack of flowing water. We also remind people that vigilance is key when it comes to other hot-button issues such  as E-plus and 30 by 30. These conversations are still being had and rest assured we need to keep our fingers on the pulse of what is happening. We also talk about the fact that it is ok to be a hunter without having to explain why. What better time than the off season to pontificate about ongoing issues? Join us!