The MeatEater

Jason Phelps returns to the rolling mountains of New Mexico to hunt archery elk with friends, Luke Combs and Jeremy Romero. After a quick tutorial on elk calling, Luke's first elk hunt is under way. This is a high density elk area during the rut - finding elk is the only guarantee. Presented by Pendleton

This week, Cal talks about what happens when you drop your phone in a creek, the crime desk, listener voice-mail, and a bear attack turns fatal.

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It's September and everyone's mind is on bugling bull elk. Today they are recognized as one of the most sought after western big game species, but have you ever wondered if it has always been that way? In this episode, we dive into the fascinating history and mystery of the Eastern Elk. What were they, and what happened to them? We will cover everything from their first scientific description based off of a painting, to their hopeful future led by sportsmen and women.

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Steven Rinella talks with author Wright Thompson.

Topics discussed: Grab a copy of Wright's book, The Barn: The Secret History of a Murder in Mississippi; the history of a patch of ground; the Mississippi Delta as manmade land; the murder of Emmett Till; cotton; the sharecropper system; always referring to "The War"; what it means to be Southern; the connection between Chicago and Mississippi; learning history to know it; the existential trauma of having so much wilderness erased; and more. 

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Other than the rut, I can’t think of a more exciting time of deer season than opening day. Aspirations are high. Weather patterns start to turn. Those bucks you’ve cleverly nicknamed are still stuck on their patterns and sporting more headgear than your favorite football team.

If opening day dreams always unfolded according to plan, there’d be a lot fewer mature bucks on the landscape. Unless you have a tightly manicured hunting situation, your odds of killing a mature buck on Oct 1 aren’t exactly in your favor. This is especially true if your opening day involves public land, where you’re likely to encounter as many trucks as a Best Buy parking lot on Black Friday. Not to mention, you’ll likely deal with those fickle early-season winds if the warm weather overstays its welcome. Instead of throwing in the towel or hoping for the best, here are a few ways to salvage your opening day plans.

Big bucks have humbled plenty a hunter, and they can give you tunnel vision if you’re not careful. That’s why it’s a good idea to have a few backup spots on deck just in case your plans go awry come opening day. You might have a perfect game plan in August when that big buck shows his face every day in front of your camera. Of course, changing weather, food sources, and other hunters can quickly derail those plans by the time October arrives.

Instead of banking on one spot, have at least three backup spots you can hunt if you don’t get the right wind or someone’s parked at the gate. It’s much easier to have a few spots you can immediately hunt instead of trying to throw a plan together while you drive around.

Even if you didn’t prepare for backup spots, you can still salvage your hunt and gather some useful intel. Let’s say you hit snooze one too many times and now all the “good” spots are taken. Instead of calling it quits, drive around and make note of where you see other trucks and drop pins. This will give you a good visual representation of all the places that get hammered. Of course, you can’t know exactly where folks hunt just based on their parking spot, but you will find the spots that get overlooked. You can make note of these spots or even scout your way through them.

You can also use this strategy throughout the season as the pressure heats up and the deer shift their patterns in response. Think of these spots as natural funnels away from pressure. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve taken this approach and been pleasantly surprised by the amount of deer I observed during shooting hours, even in highly pressured areas.

I used to sulk whenever I had to pivot away from spot-A. Now, I see it as an opportunity to hunt another location or even scout a new piece I’ve had on my radar. While I wouldn’t quite call it still-hunting, I’ll scout through new areas with my bow in hand whenever I have to pivot from a hunt.

Instead of committing to a random spot, you’re better off scouting through an area to catch deer traveling or finding intel for a later hunt. Last year, I decided to sleep in and scout a new spot. On my way into this area, I watched multiple does feed through just out of bow range, and I even came to full draw on a buck that nearly ran me over. The encounters were encouraging (and cool), but also gave me another reliable spot to keep in my back pocket.

If you decide to scout through an area, do it with your bow in hand. You don’t have to approach it like a still-hunt if your main goal is intel, but I would suggest knocking an arrow once the deer sign ticks up. Pay attention to the wind. If you’re scouting a promising spot, there’s no need to blow your scent to the deer. You can travel with the wind in your face, but I tend to see more deer scouting or still-hunting with a crosswind, especially bucks.

Sometimes things work out for the best when they don’t go according to plan. This is especially true of deer hunting. Even if you think of calling it quits, just try something new. You definitely won’t kill a deer from your couch.

Brent reflects on stories heard from old and new friends this past weekend at an event with Case Knives. Centered on the common thread of their love of knives and hunting, most of these stories end up being about something else entirely. He also reads a letter he received from a chance meeting that developed into a true friendship. Check your pockets! It's time for MeatEater's "This Country Life" podcast.

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In this episode, Trout Unlimited CEO Chris Wood joins Cal to talk about how important the Roadless Rule is to healthy fish habitat, why hunters and anglers should care about the Congressional Review Act, and doing the dishes with a sledgehammer.

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Hosts Spencer Neuharth, Ryan Callaghan, and Seth Morris speak with competitive birder Owen Reiser, talk gear in preparation for the fall season, soak in nostalgia for Throwback Thursday, and chat with Kip Adams of the National Deer Association about all things EHD.

Watch the live stream on the MeatEater Podcast Network YouTube channel.

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I’m always happy to see a premium gunmaker move into a more affordable category. If I can get a rifle from a reputable company for a little less jingle, I’m here for it.

That’s the idea behind the new line of Evoke rifles from Christensen Arms. The Utah-based rifle maker has built a reputation for producing high-quality long guns, but most of their current offerings land in the $2,000+ category. With an MSRP of only $898.99, the Evoke is Christensen’s first rifle within reach of the unwashed masses, and it’s been well-reviewed since it hit the market earlier this year.

But there are other great rifles that cost less than $1,000. The Evoke is affordable by Christensen’s standards, but it still has to compete with the Rugers and Tikkas and Savages of the world. Can the Evoke hold its own in the rough-and-tumble arena of high-value firearms or is Christensen’s bid to break into that market a dud? Keep reading to find out.

Of course, no matter how you slice it, the Evoke isn’t a budget-friendly firearm. A quick GunBroker survey shows that most listings hover around $870, with some chamberings exceeding $900. That’s more than many hunters are willing to spend on a rifle, so the Evoke definitely isn’t in the bargain-bin category.

Instead, it’s towards the top of what you might call “high-value” options: rifles between $500 and $1000 that are affordable but offer better features and more consistent performance than their “budget-friendly” counterparts. To give you a sense of the kind of rifle the Evoke is competing with, I did another search on GunBroker for other bolt-action rifles in this category.

This is the sweet spot when it comes to hunting rifles. You can get better performance from more expensive firearms, but in my opinion, the $500-$1000 range is where you get the most bang for your buck. If Christensen’s new rifle wants to stand out, it has to convince buyers it’s better than these other established models.

The Evoke is off to a good start. Christensen rolled out four different models in many of the most popular hunting cartridges. Not all models are currently available, and not all models are chambered in every cartridge. But you should still be able to find something you like no matter what you hunt. The Evoke, Evoke Hunter, Evoke Mossy Oak, and Evoke Precision all use the same action, but they feature different stocks/chassis and barrel lengths depending on caliber.

Barrel: Christensen Arms Cerakoted 416R stainless steel barrel, button rifled, hand lapped, match chamber, free floating

Thread Pitch: 5/8 x 24 (standard)

Muzzle: Removable premium RFR stainless steel brake

Action: Christensen Arms precision machined receiver

Capacity: 3+1 rounds (2+1 magnum), detachable magazine

Trigger: Adjustable Triggertech ® 2.5-5 LBS (factory set at ~3LBS)

Optic Compatibility: STD REM 700 Compatible, 0-MOA picatinny scope base (Hunter and Precision models)

Stock: Polymer

More Details:

MSPR: $898.99 – $948.99

The Evoke has many great features, but some of those benefits come with costs in other categories.

For example, the Evoke is a solid, durable rifle. I don’t know what Christensen calls this barrel profile, but it measures 0.765 inches at a point just forward of the stock. That’s pretty thick for a hunting rifle, but it should promote accuracy from shot to shot. The barrel is constructed from 416R stainless steel, and it’s free-floated, button rifled, and hand-lapped. The two-lug Christensen M25 bolt has also been beefed up with an M-16 style extractor, and the octagonal knob is large and easy to manipulate. The cylindrical receiver is machined from 416 stainless steel bar stock and features an integrated steel recoil lug.

All of these design decisions will help the Evoke run for as long as you do. When I picked it up for the first time, the word that came to mind was, “tank.” As hunting rifles go, this thing is a tank.

But all that durability comes with a downside. Christensen reports (and I confirmed) that the Evoke’s starting weight is 7.7 pounds. Add a scope and a full three-round magazine, and you’re looking at something close to 9.5 pounds. That’s not unreasonable for a hunting rifle, but from a company known for lightweight mountain guns, I would have expected something a little easier to carry, especially considering the other, lighter rifles on the market.

Those other rifles cut weight by adopting features the Evoke doesn’t have. A fluted barrel, for example, would shave off a few ounces. The bolt on the Evoke is fluted, but in some chamberings it’s significantly longer (and therefore heavier) than it has to be. All Evoke rifles use the same action length, no matter the chambering. While a 300 Win. Mag. might need that longer action, a 6.5 Creedmoor or .308 Win. doesn’t. Those easier-shooting, short-action cartridges don’t produce much recoil, so you aren’t benefiting from a weight/recoil perspective even though you’re still carrying around a longer action.

I assume these decisions were made to reduce production costs, and the Evoke’s MSRP is another important benefit. But like I mentioned in the previous section, there are lots of other rifles at this price point, some of which are both lighter and cheaper than Christensen’s new offering. You might decide the company’s reputation for quality–built for years at their facility in Gunnison, Utah–justifies a little extra cost. But it’s tough not to compare the Evoke with similar rifles, and I can see hunters leaning in either direction.

I might have some quibbles with the barrel and action, but the stock is almost exactly what you want in a gun like this. It’s all polymer, and so it can’t avoid that hollow, Tupperware-y feel. But it has aluminum bedding pillars that allow the action to be torqued down to 65 inch-pounds, which promotes accuracy. The texturing is grippy without being too rough, and the swelled, not-quite-vertical pistol grip allows for good purchase on the rifle with or without gloves.

I also like the inclusion of the picatinny/swivel stub combo at the front of the rifle. This lets users attach a picatinny compatible bipod and run a sling at the same time. It’s also recessed, so it stays out of the way if you’re not using it.

The AICS bottom metal accepts magazines in that pattern, though you might opt for something other than the polymer three-round MDT mag that comes with every rifle. It fits almost flush with the gun, which is great, but it doesn’t fall free when you push the mag release button. You have to grip the small portion of the magazine that protrudes from the bottom of the gun or push it from the top. This isn’t normally a big deal, but it might be difficult with gloves on. You can solve this problem by using a metal magazine or a longer one.

At two pounds, six ounces, the stock isn’t ultra lightweight, but it’s comparable to other stocks with similar feature sets. Overall, the stock is a Goldilocks combination of weight, features, durability, and cost—just what you want in a high-value hunting rifle.

After getting into the nitty gritty of the Evoke’s barrel, stock, and action, I was excited to take it to the range. You can read spec sheets all day, but there’s really no substitute for actually pulling the trigger.

In this case, that particular exercise was a pleasant experience. I’ve seen Triggertech triggers pop up on several high-end factory rifles in the last few years, and there’s a reason. This is their lower-end "Field" model, but you probably won’t notice. The break is clean and crisp, and the pull weight is easily adjustable between 2.5 and 5 pounds.

The gun’s weight made it challenging (though not impossible) to shoot off-hand, but shooting from a barricade was easy thanks to the rifle’s balance point at the front action screw. Adding a MeatEater Banish suppressor moved that point farther forward, but overall I thought the gun was well-balanced.

The cheek riser made finding the eye box in the scope quick and natural, and I’m a big fan of what Christensen calls the “Hybrid” grip angle. It’s more vertical than a traditional sporter style stock but not straight up and down like we see on competition rifles. I found that it helped me grip the stock naturally without torquing my wrist down to find the trigger.

If you have small hands and wrap the thumb of your trigger hand around the stock when you shoot, the swelled grip might make shooting less comfortable than a more traditional stock. But if you've adopted the more fashionable thumb placement along the side of the stock or resting on top, you’ll be pleased with how ergonomic the Evoke is to shoot from pretty much any field position.

The gun comes with a beefy, three-chamber muzzle brake that does a great job controlling recoil on a 6.5 Creedmoor (and I’m sure for other calibers as well). But I much prefer a suppressor for a long day of accuracy testing, so I swapped out the brake after just a few shots.

In terms of accuracy, the Evoke was right in line with what I would expect from a factory gun at this price point. I shot five, three-shot groups with four different bullet weights and styles, two of which I was very happy with.

As you can see, the Open Tip Match loads from Sig Sauer performed exceptionally well, both from a group size standpoint and in terms of standard deviation. The Evoke wasn’t designed as a competition gun, but the heavy barrel should be able to handle long shot strings and maintain this kind of accuracy from stage to stage. You might not win a national championship, but if your hunting rig can do double-duty in an NRL Hunter match, that’s not a bad deal. Plus, since the action uses a Remington 700 footprint, it won’t be hard to find an aftermarket stock or chassis more suited to the competition circuit.

You probably shouldn’t hunt with OTM bullets, but you should be able to find a hunting round that this gun likes. In this case, it was a 130-grain expansion tipped bullet from Sig Sauer. The five groups averaged one inch, which is more common for a hunting rifle than the forums would have you believe, and one of those groups measured a very respectable half-inch.

New and aspiring hunters often have a hard time choosing a first rifle. Now, the Evoke makes that decision even harder. But I’m not complaining–more quality, affordable rifles is a good thing, and Christensen’s new offering deserves a place among its counterparts. It’s not perfect (no rifle is) but it offers excellent accuracy, lots of great features, and the backing of one of America’s most trusted rifle makers. For less than $1,000, I’d say that’s a pretty good deal.

A new study quantifies the impact of poaching in the United States— the results show that an eye-popping number of wildlife crimes are not being detected, let alone successfully prosecuted.

The research comes from the Boone and Crockett Club, which is both a big game record-keeping group and the oldest wildlife conservation organization in North America. The Boone and Crockett Club invested heavily in its “Poach and Pay” project, which it called “the most comprehensive research project on poaching in this country” in a recent press release.

One of the main focuses of the study was developing a statistics-based estimate of the “dark figure” of wildlife crimes. A “dark figure” is a term for the proportion of crimes that are undetected and unreported. For instance, criminologists estimate that 51% of robberies are undetected.

Developing accurate “dark figures” is a difficult task because it involves quantifying something that is, by nature, unknown. In this case, the Boone and Crocket Club worked with researchers at the Wildlife Management Institute to come up with a statistically sound estimate. Researchers then used a Bayesian analysis, which Jonathan Gassett, southern field representative for the Wildlife Management Institute, told MeatEater is “an evidence-updating model that takes what you already believed, adds new information, and gives you a sharper, more realistic picture of the truth.”

In this case, researchers started with two initial models, one used a professional estimate of a 5% dark figure, and the other co-opted the dark figure for larceny (theft without confrontation or breaking and entering), which is around 24%. Those models were then run against six studies on wildlife crime detection rates that factored in citation rates for illegal take, ratio of known illegal take to legal take, officer coverage area, the number of licensed hunters in the state, and also included illegal take data from 28 radio telemetry studies on big game from across the U.S. Then, researchers ran their models against additional information from self-reported surveys of wardens, landowners, hunters, and even some people who admitted to committing wildlife infractions. Finally, they averaged the outputs of all the models they ran.

The number that the researchers came up with is stark. According to the results of the study, only 3.92% of wildlife crimes are being detected. “We have long known that poaching is a major problem in the United States, but we didn’t truly understand the magnitude of the problem until this Poach and Pay research,” said Boone and Crockett Club CEO Tony A. Schoonen in a recent press conference. “With this defensible assessment of the Dark Figure, we can clearly describe the conservation cost of poaching and prove that poaching is not a victimless crime—not only do we lose individual wildlife, we are also losing a valuable public resource with a high cost.”

In sum, the researchers estimated that the annual “replacement cost” of animals illegally taken is $1.13 billion nationwide, and the lost fine money is $302.6 million. The numbers are particularly staggering when you consider that annual hunting license sales nationwide hover around $1 billion.

“Poachers are stealing from all of us, whether you hunt or not,” said Schoonen. “This is a theft of a public resource.”

Other notable findings from the 205-page Poach and Pay report include the development of 9 different motivations for poaching, which Boone and Crockett Club hope will help identify actions to reduce poaching. Research showed that the most common motivation for poaching was “trophy poaching,” followed by “opportunistic poaching.”

The research also highlighted that hunters were overwhelmingly alarmed about wildlife crimes, with 90% of interviewed hunters, land owners, and wardens saying they were concerned about poaching nationwide, and 70% worried about the social and biological impacts of the crimes.

“It’s critical to differentiate between legal, fair chase hunters and poachers,” said Schoonen. “By quantifying the dark figure of undetected crime, identifying judicial bottlenecks, and presenting a structured deterrent framework, the research equips state and federal wildlife agencies with data-driven strategies to reduce illegal take and protect America’s wildlife heritage.”