Urgent Action needed! In this episode Aaron sits down with Lukas Leaf and Matthew Schultz from Sportsmen for the Boundary Waters. The House of Representatives recently voted to strip a 20-year moratorium on mining in the Boundary Waters region and in the headwaters of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness through the unprecedented use of the Congressional Review Act (CRA). A vote in the U.S. Senate is expected to be held any day. Aaron, Lukas, and Matthew walk you through the conservation history of the region and its values, why mining here is a terrible idea, how the 20 year mining moratorium came to be, what the CRA is and why this particular use of the CRA is like nothing in history, and what you can do today to help keep protections in place. This episode is a must listen if you are an American conservationist.

NWF Outdoors action alert: https://support.nwf.org/page/93268/action/1?utm_medium=email&utm_source=engagingnetworks&utm_campaign=20260126_Outdoors_ETT_Senate_BoundaryWaters_NoSpecies_Email1&utm_content=20260126_Outdoors_ETT_Senate_BoundaryWaters_NoSpecies_Email1+6313878455&ea.url.id=4517047

Sportsmen for Boundary Waters website: https://sportsmenbwca.org/; Sportsmen for Boundary Waters action alert: https://bit.ly/SpeakUpForTheBWCA

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Aaron and Tanner sit down with renowned, award-winning journalist, writer, and communicator Hal Herring — one of the leading voices on the history and future of America’s public lands. From the hills of Alabama to the Montana mountains, Hal has explored nearly every facet of conservation, restoration, and land management. He’s thought about it, written about it, and lived it. In this episode, he shares his deep understanding and fiery passion for wild places and public lands.

Join this fascinating and wide-ranging conversation as we trace the origins of America’s public lands—how we got them, the defining (and sometimes disastrous) decisions along the way, and what’s at stake today. Hal helps us imagine a hopeful path forward, one where healthy, thriving landscapes remain a shared inheritance for future generations.

Hal is a one-of-a-kind storyteller and advocate for wild spaces. Tune in for an insightful, funny, and thought-provoking discussion that will leave you inspired to reconnect with—and reinvest in—our public lands.

Explore Hal’s work:
https://www.halherring.com/

The Narrow Corridor – Daron Acemoglu & James A. Robinson

Natural Rivals: John Muir, Gifford Pinchot, and the Creation of America’s Public Lands – John Clayton

Our Common Ground: A History of America’s Public Lands – John D. Leshy

Mining Law: A Study in Perpetual Motion – John D. Leshy

DeVoto’s West: History, Conservation, and the Public Good – Bernard DeVoto

This America of Ours: Bernard and Avis DeVoto and the Forgotten Fight to Save the Wild – Nate Schweber

Lands Worth Saving: The Weeks Act of 1911, the National Forests, and the Enduring Value of Public Investment – James G. Lewis

The Nation’s Largest Landlord: The Bureau of Land Management in the American West – James R. Skillen

Hal’s Reading List

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This week, during one of the most perilous times for public lands in recent memory, the NWF Outdoors Podcast hosts Aaron Kindle and Tanner Saul sit down with Congressman Gabe Vasquez,public lands champion from New Mexico’s 2nd District  and co-founder of the bi-partisan Public Lands Caucus.

We talk about the real threats facing public lands and the urgent need for bipartisan action. Congressman Vasquez shares his personal journey into Congress, his love for New Mexico’s wild places, and why he helped launch the bipartisan Public Lands Caucus. He breaks down how and why he’s fighting to stop land sell-offs and what we can do to maintain access and improve management on public lands. Even if we win current battles, we must remain diligent and defend public lands as the national treasure they are. 

If you hike, hunt, fish, or just love being on public lands—this one’s for you. 

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In this episode, NWF’s Aaron Kindle and Tanner Saul team up with veteran Wyoming journalist Angus Thuermer to dive deep into one of the most contentious public land battles in decades: corner crossing. With decades of boots-on-the-ground reporting, Angus brings a sharp perspective to the legal, ethical, and conservation questions swirling around this case—and what its outcome could mean for hunters, anglers, and all who rely on public lands across the country.

Angus Thuermer | Wyofile: https://wyofile.com/author/angus_thuermer/

NWF Outdoors Links

Website: https://www.nwf.org/Outdoors

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nwfoutdoors/?hl=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NWFoutdoors/

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In this powerful episode, we sit down with Walt Dabney, a true public lands champion and a neighbor to Aaron in Buena Vista, Colorado. Walt's incredible 43-year career with the National Park Service, spanning iconic locations like Yellowstone, Yosemite, and the vast wilderness of Alaska, and his subsequent leadership as Director of Texas Parks and Wildlife, offers unparalleled insight into the value and the current threats facing these vital resources.

The conversation takes a critical turn as we delve into the most pressing issue facing our public lands today: the significant loss of experienced staff and vital resources. Walt minces no words as he explains the devastating impact of these cuts on everything from visitor safety and resource management to the economic well-being of gateway communities. He paints a stark picture of overflowing restrooms, increased risks of unmanaged wildfires, and the potential for irreversible damage to these cherished landscapes.

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We're back! Outdoor traditions, and especially our public lands, are uniquely American. Something worth investing in and fighting for. Recreation. Cultural artifacts. Drinking water, fishing, wildlife habitat, energy resources, hunting and the backbone of rural economies. Our public lands provide so much for so many, and there's thousands of stories around each one of them. We aim to tell those stories and show our listeners the connection between enjoying the outdoors and engaging in conservation.

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The great Mark Twain once wrote, “Buy land, they aren’t making it anymore,” but Mr. Twain was wrong! The Mississippi River and the state of Louisiana are working together to build tens of thousands of acres on the Louisiana coast. Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority’s Chairman is Bren Haase. Chairman Haase is a passionate hunter and angler from Sportsman’s Paradise, and he joined us to talk about Louisiana’s coastal land loss crisis and how the state is battling that crisis for both people and wildlife.

Suggested Links:

https://coastal.la.gov/

https://midbasin.coastal.la.gov/

https://coastal.la.gov/our-plan/2023-coastal-master-plan/

https://www.vanishingparadise.org/blog/2022/8/creating-paradise-at-davis-pond

Due to advertising inserted into the show post production, we are no longer able to provide show notes.

Please be sure to following NWF Outdoors on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube!

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Aaron and Bill sit down with renowned deer expert, speaker, and author Jim Heffelfinger to discuss a wide-ranging set of topics focused around the status of mule deer. We expand on what is impacting mule deer health and abundance, CWD, what impacts antler growth, how habitat changes life histories of mule deer, and many other fascinating topics. We even throw in a good deer joke. Jim is the complete expert on mule deer and this is a discussion you don’t want to miss. 

Suggested Links: 

https://deernut.com/home

https://wafwa.org/wpdm-package/2023-range-wide-status-of-the-black-tailed-and-mule-deer/

Follow Jim on Instagram @CervidNut

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Bill and Aaron have a fun conversation about all things onX hunt app with Jared Larsen, the company’s Whitetail Marketing Manager. We talk about the advent and growth of the company, new features, things in the works, how they feel about the complaint that folks don’t have to put in the work to scout areas, the conservation work onX does, and many other interesting topics. We also take a few questions from listeners who will now receive a one-year elite membership. Jared is a fun and charismatic dude. You don’t want to miss this one. 

Suggested Links:

https://www.onxmaps.com/hunt/app

https://www.onxmaps.com/news

https://www.onxmaps.com/onx-access-initiatives

https://www.onxmaps.com/onx-access-initiatives/private-land-public-access

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Lots of guests elicit laughter and also a few tugs at the heartstrings. Laughter is pretty easy, but it’s rare a guest has both Aaron and Bill holding back tears in between the laughs, but Joey Monteleone did just that. From working hard in the inner city as a child of immigrants to traveling North America lecturing, writing and filming television shows about fishing, Monteleone has managed to live the life so many of us dream while hopefully watching a bobber during our youth. Over 50,000 (more than 1500 over five pounds) bass later, Joey’s focus on simplifying tackle and techniques is awesome information for both beginner and veteran fishermen. 

Suggested Links:

https://hub.jacksonkayak.com/team-jk/kayak-fishing-factory-team/joey-monteleone/

https://www.amazon.com/ILL-BE-TENNESSEAN-YA-History/dp/1689845139

https://www.amazon.com/60-Seasons-fishing-Joey-Monteleone/dp/1952474922

https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Storms-CentAnni-Joey-Monteleone/dp/1957344202/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15Q7IQIDO5MUD&keywords=the+secret+of+storms+joey+monteleone&qid=1692194518&s=digital-text&sprefix=the+secret+of+storms+joey+monteleone%2Cdigital-text%2C106&sr=1-1-catcorr

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