The MeatEater

On June 28, Brittany Clark was fatally attacked by an alligator in Florida. The incident occurred when the 31-year-old woman went for a swim in the Econlockhatchee River with her boyfriend and best friend after hiking in the Little Big Eco State Forest, Grant Eller, a lieutenant with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, reported in a press conference.

The group was cooling down, kneeling in about three feet of water when the alligator attacked, biting both her arms. The friend called 911 while the boyfriend was actively trying to remove Clark’s arms from the mouth of the giant gator.

The emergency dispatcher ensured them help was on the way and asked if her arms were still attached. “One of them is like, very hanging on (by a) thread, and the other was off,” the friend responded.

The pair were able to remove Clark from the water and alligator and perform CPR until first responders arrived. Devastatingly, Clark died before reaching the hospital.

On Monday, following the attack, FWC announced that any alligators that associate humans with a food source must be immediately reported and removed from the wild. "Multiple agencies and a contracted nuisance alligator trapper have responded to the scene," FWC said regarding the ongoing investigation. Officials used aerial tactics to locate, trap, and kill two alligators in the area measuring 12 and 13 feet long.

Witnesses' descriptions of a “very large alligator” led wildlife officials to believe one of the two trapped was involved in the attack. The 13-foot alligator was located directly at the scene of the incident, while the slightly smaller of the two was found nearby. Genetic samples from both gators were sent to a lab in Gainesville to determine if one was responsible.

As for what prompted the brutal event, wildlife officials can only speculate. It is nearing the end of mating season when gators tend to become very territorial. And while this group did nothing to antagonize an attack, there is always some inherent risk when swimming in Florida waters.

In fact, there were two other non-fatal alligator attacks within the last week in Florida. A snorkeler was bitten along the Rainbow River, and a child was bitten on the hand while fishing on the Ocklawaha River.

MeatEater sends its condolences to those impacted by this tragic incident.

A lot of poaching investigations seem to end with wrist slaps, but that’s hardly the case for former corrections officer, Christopher Matson (48) of Umatilla, Oregon. After pleading guilty to numerous wildlife and firearm-related felonies, Matson was sentenced to 24 months probation, a lifetime hunting ban, 300 hours of community service, forfeiture of firearms and property seized, and is forced to pay more than $114,000 in fines.

Because the violations spanned multiple areas, Matson was charged in both Grant and Umatilla counties and therefore faced two separate court cases. The charges in Grant County included four counts of unlawful take of buck deer (felony and misdemeanor), and three counts of unlawful take of black bear (felony and misdemeanor).

After pleading guilty to these, Maston was sentenced for possession of a short-barreled rifle (felony), unlawful possession of a silencer (felony), unlawful possession of multiple wildlife (misdemeanor), and unlawful take of mule deer (felony) in Umatilla County.

His sentencing concludes a nearly two-year investigation conducted by the Oregon State Police (OSP) Fish and Wildlife Division. In 2024, the OSP received information that Matson had been illegally taking wild game animals.

After serving a search warrant in February 2025, OSP seized multiple firearms and big game animals. In addition to his final charges, Matson originally faced 67 criminal charges that included falsely applying for a license/tag, unlawful take of antlerless elk, loaning/borrowing big game tags, hunting during prohibited hours, failing to validate a big game tag, and unlawful take/possession of a game bird.

While Oregon has recently made headlines with radical initiatives from anit-hunting groups aimed at threatening hunting opportunities, this case reflects similar problems on another front. Only, Matson’s actions stem from “within,” rather than direct opposition to the Beaver State’s hunting opportunities.

In fact, Oregon Department of Justice Wildlife Anti-Poaching Resource Prosecutor Jay Hall said that Matson’s crimes have resulted in “...one of the highest damage amounts done to Oregon wildlife by any singular actor.”

“This is another example of serial poaching,” he said, “which rises to the level of felony conduct based solely on the repeated poaching conduct and impact of one individual on Oregon’s game mammals.”

Images via Oregon State Police

In Part 4 of Bear Grease's Civil War Summer series, Clay Newcomb continues the conversation with JD Huitt and sits down with historian Dr. Brooks Blevins to examine one of the most consequential decisions of the war: Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. Following the bloodshed at Antietam—the single deadliest day in American history—the Union president made a bold political, military, and moral gamble that transformed the conflict forever.

Together, they unpack why the proclamation was far more than a declaration of freedom and explore how Lincoln used emancipation as a diplomatic weapon to keep Britain and France out of the war, weaken the Confederate labor force, recruit Black soldiers, and redefine the Union cause. Along the way, they examine the staggering casualties of Civil War combat, the strategic failures of Union generals, and the growing realization that the war would not end in compromise but in total transformation.

The Civil War had begun as a fight to preserve the Union. By the end of 1862, it had become something much bigger.

Thank you to our sponsor, Tecovas.

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Spencer Neuharth hosts MeatEater Trivia with Brody Henderson, Seth Morris, Max Barta, Nate Mason, Jon Montresor, and Logan Dove.

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A dull knife is like a rusty car or a worn out pair of sneakers. It’s almost useless and can be quite dangerous. Your knife will get dull eventually. Rather than replace it, it’s far cheaper to sharpen it. The question is how.

You can sharpen a knife on a rock. I once watched two skinners in Africa do this before turning a large bull Kudu into an abridged version of its former self. But if you’re like me, you probably don’t have a hand that deft, or the years of experience sharpening a piece of steel. Instead of rocks you need tools to sharpen your knives, and those tools can be expensive, finicky, and difficult to use correctly.

There are very good knife sharpening tools out there, though, and we evaluated several to bring you a list of the best knife sharpeners for the hunter, angler, and outdoorsperson. Some did very well, while others did kinda well, but there really wasn’t a bad one in the bunch. These are a few of the best knife sharpeners to keep your hunting, fishing, and kitchen knives working in the field and at home.

Jump to: The Products We Tested and Reviewed

There are knife sharpening nerds out there who might take exception to my test. I’m a hunter—not a mechanical engineer—so I tried to keep this test as basic and real-world as possible. I didn’t use things like a BESS Tester (Brubacher Edge Sharpness Scale) to measure sharpness. Instead I cut up the newspaper, shaved the hair on my arm, and sliced a tomato to gauge how sharp I could get a knife edge on each sharpener. I know how sharp a knife needs to be to break down an animal or cut ribbons off a stick to build a fire. That’s how far I took the knives during this test.

I evaluated and scored each sharpener based on four criteria I’ve outlined below: Sharpness, Ease of Use, Affordability, and Versatility. I also defined each sharpener's “Use Case,” or what I felt it was best suited for. It’s important to note that comparing different kinds of sharpeners to each other veers into apples and oranges territory. Knife sharpeners can be subjective, meaning you might be better at using one kind while your buddy might be better at another. They’re also designed for different applications or to be used in different kinds of places.

Knife sharpening can come down to personal preference, and we’ll get into that with each sharpener. My main objective here was to give you a good overview of some of the best knife sharpeners while outlining the things they’re good and bad at.

This is how sharp I could get a knife with each sharpener. I didn’t use hard metrics for this. I just sharpened them until I felt I’d reached the top-end potential of the sharpener and tested that sharpness by shaving hair, cutting paper, and slicing into a tomato. Knife sharpeners that produced better results got a higher score.

The big question I wanted to answer here was how easy is it to get a consistent edge with each sharpener. Some had more learning curves than others. Some had more moving parts to keep track of. The simpler and easier to use a knife sharpener, the better it scored.

You can spend hundreds of dollars on knife sharpeners, but it might be more than you need to spend. I weighed the affordability of each knife sharpener against how well it performed and what it offers the user, then scored accordingly.

How many tools a knife sharpener can sharpen, its portability, or how many different functions it has all contribute to this category. Knife sharpeners that allow you to sharpen things like axes and fish hooks got a bit of a bump here because they replace other sharpeners you’d need to buy.

There are a few controlled angle sharpeners on the market, and lansky is the old standby. In my opinion, it’s the most practical choice for the outdoorsman. During the test, I was able to take several pocket knives and hunting knives to scary sharp places, giving them an edge that easily sailed through paper and could give a shave a drill sergeant would be proud of.

I gave the Controlled Angle Sharpening System my pick for best overall because all of that performance comes at an affordable price, in a portable package—unlike many controlled angle systems. It does not have the versatility of some of the sharpeners here, but if you want to sharpen hunting and fishing knives, this is your tool.

The Lansky Controlled Angle system does not need to be fixed to a bench, and it comes in a handy hard plastic case. This gives you bench-level sharpening capability outside of your home. It’s a bit heavy for an ultralight backpack hunter, but it’s a solid tool to keep in your truck or throw in a saddle bag. To use it, you fix the knife in a clamp and use the angle guides to work through five grits of Arkansas stones.

The only issue with angled sharpeners is with longer knives. Blades that are excessively long tend to mess with the controlled angles. But for most of the blades you need in the woods, it shouldn’t be a problem. This system gives anybody the ability to sharpen a knife without electricity, skill, or a flat surface. And at less than $80, it’s a must buy.

The Ken Onion Elite Mk 2 could easily take the top spot in this test, and it was down to the wire when I made my final decision. You could say its biggest draw back is price, but you get so much for your money. It is also complicated with several belts and ways to set those belts up, but that’s what gives you unparalleled versatility.

Think of this sharpener as a small knifemaker’s shop. With it, you can actually build hobby knife kits, repair broken and chipped blades, and sharpen everything from axes to machetes and lawnmower blades.

The 7-speed electric motor and grinding belts did an excellent job at putting a new edge on a completely trashed S30V-steel Benchmade folder. It quickly took out divots and chips in the blade, leaving a factory-new edge. I also used it to sharpen chisels in my wood shop, and it worked well for this too. I did have some trouble maintaining a consistent angle with the angle guides, but I feel like I’d get better at this with practice. This sharpener is perfect for those who want to bring old knives back to life, keep new knives fresh, and maintain every sharp tool in the house.

This sharpener gave the sharpest edge of the test. It’s ridiculously easy to use and will put an edge on a variety of tools. With it, you can touch up serrated blades, plain blades, fillet knives, chisels, scissors, tin snips, and hatchets. Best of all, it’s about as big as a large television remote when it’s all packed up, and it can be converted into a more traditional-style flat stone.

The Sharpmaker comes with clear instructions for sharpening almost anything. To use it, you place ceramic rods in a plastic holder at one of two predetermined angles, then cut directly downward with the blade against the rods for 20 strokes. You repeat this process three more times using different edges of the rods.

I used a neglected Benchmade folder with S45VN steel to test the Sharpmaker, and took it to a level of sharpness that I’m afraid to even write about. If you prize sharpness over everything else, and you take care of your knives, this is the sharpener for you.

This is my personal favorite portable knife sharpener, and in my opinion every hunter and angler needs one of these. I have a Guided Field Sharpener that’s 10 years old that has gone just about everywhere with me, and it still does everything I need it to do.

To use the Guided Field Sharpener, you simply lay a blade on the angle guide and work it through a variety of grits, flipping the sharpener around as you go. It can also be used for fish hooks and broadheads.

Based on my experience in the field, this sharpener easily took the top spot for the Best Portable Sharpener. It’s lightweight enough for any expedition, and tough enough to last. You could easily use it to maintain a collection of hunting knives for the rest of your life, no matter where you are.

What’s most incredible about the Buck Tool Sharpening Station is the price. For just under $300 you get a professional level sharpener for your workshop that can handle knives and tools with ease. This sharpener may be larger than the Worksharp Ken Onion Elite Mk 2 and more basic, but it has few parts to lose track of, and it gives you a lot of control while sharpening.

The Sharpening Station uses a large rotating 220 grit abrasive wheel and a smaller leather stropping wheel, both driven by a variable speed, two-direction motor. The grinding wheel is set in a water reservoir to keep blades cool and keep the stone clear of metal while sharpening. It also comes with an angle guide to set blades at the perfect angle while sharpening.

To use the sharpener, you select the speed and direction of the wheel, then set the angle of the blade using a clamped fixture and adjustable metal bar. For the test, I went from a small 4-inch Spyderco folder made of H2 steel to a long reproduction Navy pattern Ka-Bar. I was able to hone a nice, shaving-sharp edge on both blades in no time. Get this sharpener if you have a dedicated space in your garage for sharpening knives and tools. It’s an absolute workhorse.

There is no reason why every bow hunter shouldn’t have a Lansky Broadhead Sharpener in their pack. It’s dead-simple to use, cheap, and extremely lightweight. Even better, there’s a broadhead wrench molded into the handle.

Think of this tool more for expedient touch-ups rather than soup to nuts sharpening. It’s especially nice if you don’t feel confident using a whetstone but still need to keep an edge on a blade or broadhead in the field. To use it, you place the edge of your knife in a tungsten notch and draw the knife through for a couple of strokes. Should you nick a bone while field dressing a deer, or just need to freshen a blade while skinning, this sharpener will have you covered for about the price of a Big Mac meal.

Just a bit more complicated than the Lansky broadhead tool, this rolling sharpener is great for those who struggle with sharpening technique and don’t want to spring for an electric sharpener. You’ll need a table to use it, so it’s out for backpacking, but it’s a great tool to have around the house.

The sharpener comes with a coarse, medium, and fine grit disc along with a magnetic base that has four angles for holding different blades. To use it, you stick the knife, blade up, on one of the magnetic angles, then roll the roller against the edge. I tested the Rolling Sharpener with a short gaucho knife I picked up in Argentina. It was a bit difficult to get the blade to stay still in the base, but this could be because the blade was handmade and inconsistent. I tested the sharpener with a couple of factory-made folders, and I was able to get them reasonably sharp.

Deep hollow grinds and strange knife shapes would be difficult to sharpen with the Rolling Sharpener, but if you have straightforward, factory-made knives, it’s easy to get a decent edge on your blade.

Like the Spyderco Sharpmaker, I look at the Lansky Masters Edge as more of a tool for keeping a blade sharp rather than repairing a completely neglected blade. It’s very simple to use, easy to store and transport, and it produced some of the sharpest blades of the test. With it, I honed a nice, tacky edge on a custom-made damascus knife I picked up from a bladesmith named Jeremy Murasso.

I’d use the Masters Edge in the kitchen instead of a standard knife steel, and I would take it to camp if I had a lot of meat cutting ahead of me. It would also be great to keep on the counter while breaking down a deer, and a fantastic tool to use before hunting season to touch up all of your knives. The Masters Edge would also be a good companion to an electric sharpener like the Ken Onion Elite Mk2 to give a final pass for next-level sharpness. If you’re the kind of person who takes care of their knives and doesn’t let them go too long between sharpening, this is your sharpener.

If there’s anything I learned during this test it’s that knife sharpening is and isn’t a one tool job. If you’re looking for serviceable blades, any of the tools above can get you there, but some can do things better than others. If you’re looking to keep your knives atom-splitting sharp no matter what happens to them, you’re best off with a combination of tools—ideally an electric sharpener and a manual sharpener with extremely fine stones. But it’s better to gauge what you need out of a knife sharpener based on how you use knives. If you’re the kind of person who routinely takes care of their knives, a honing tool could be all you need. If you’re hard on things, you’ll need the horsepower of an electric sharpener. No matter what you pick, these are some of the best knife sharpeners above that will have you covered for a long time.

Images via Matthew Every.

The California Fish and Game Commission issued an emergency action that is causing controversy in the Golden State angling community. On June 25, the commission essentially banned shore- and pier-based shark fishing throughout a large swath of its coast to “prevent white shark take and reduce potential interactions between hooked sharks and swimmers.”

According to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW), this year’s El Niño will create warmer-than-usual ocean conditions in the state, shifting the range of juvenile great white sharks north from Mexico into California’s nearshore areas.

In California, and elsewhere in the U.S., targeting great white sharks by recreational anglers is illegal because the species is protected. But according to the NOAA, “they are occasionally caught by accident in a variety of fisheries for other species…[though] regulations are currently in place to minimize such bycatch.”

That doesn’t seem to be sufficient for Golden State officials, however. The agency is restricting the use of hooks bigger than 1.5 inches and the use of wire or metallic lines and leaders when fishing from or within 1,000 yards of shore from Pigeon Point on the Central Coast south to the border.

The agency claims it has implemented the action not just to reduce the incidental catch of white sharks, but in the interest of public safety. “We’re really worried that if someone catches a large shark and is fighting it with this heavy metal leader, that the shark could wrap itself around a person,” CDFW spokesperson John Ugoretz told KEYT.

While this kind of thing is exceedingly rare, Ogoretz reportedly referred to a 2014 incident in which a long-distance swimmer was bit by a great white shark that had been hooked by and was fighting a shore-based angler. This incident occurred on a popular beach in Southern California. That said, the vast majority of shark bites involve sharks that are swimming freely have not been hooked by fishermen.

Many local anglers are up in arms about the emergency regulation, which they say will make it impossible to legally and effectively target open species such as mako, leopard, thresher sharks, and more.

“This measure moved forward with little opportunity for the thousands of anglers it affects to weigh in before the vote,” wrote Nick Heid in an op-ed published by Western Outdoor News. “The unintended consequence will be a dramatic increase in the number of sharks swimming around with hooks and fishing line left in their mouths after breaking off weaker monofilament leaders. Many of these sharks would have otherwise been successfully landed and safely released if anglers had continued using wire. This will do real, measurable harm to a sustainable fishery that has nothing to do with the problem.”

The recent news comes four years following the implementation of legislation that made it “unlawful to place any shark bait, shark lure, or shark chum into the water within one nautical mile of any shoreline, pier, or jetty when a white shark is either visible or known to be present.”

This year’s emergency action is valid for 180 days, with the option for the California Fish and Game Commission to pursue two 90-day extensions.

Feature image via Adobe Stock.

The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is one of America’s most famous laws and contributions to world culture, yet half-a-century after its passage it has become yet another political lightning rod. But if you value having Thoreau’s “entire Earth,” the ESA is one of America’s best ideas.

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You have to start somewhere, and you have to start sometime. How to start building your fall whitetail plan right now, so that you have plenty of hotspots idenitfied and ready to go before the season opener.

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For most of my bowhunting career, I've carried a compound bow. But the very first time I toted a bow to the whitetail woods, I carried a borrowed Bear recurve. No deer were harmed on that first day, but I’ll never forget the feeling of walking into the woods with that lightweight recurve at my side.

I appreciate the speed, accuracy, and technology that modern compounds offer. You can make shots on deer with a compound that you wouldn’t dream of doing with traditional equipment. But there is something primal about hunting with a traditional bow. It’s nostalgic and draws me back to my traditional roots whenever I feel the need for a change.

Despite all the progress with modern equipment, it seems like every year more bowhunters need to scratch the traditional itch. Some make the switch permanently, while others want a new challenge for a season or two. Either way, there's something about traditional archery that intrigues hunters.

If you're considering making the swap to traditional archery this season, here are four reasons to make the jump.

If you've been bowhunting for years, it's easy to fall into a routine or even autopilot with modern compound bows. You shoot your bow all summer, dial in your effective range, and maybe you’ve experienced a decent amount of success in the deer woods. If you’re craving a new challenge, a traditional bow can deliver that.

There's no let-off, peep sight, release aid, no rangefinders, and no sliding sight pins—just a simple stick and string. Because the shot depends more on your ability to repeat a successful process, you have to practice more intentionally than you might with a compound. Traditional archery is less about punching groups and more about building instinctive shooting skills.

That challenge doesn't stop at the range either. The limited range of traditional archery forces hunters to get uncomfortably close to game. This forces you to develop better woodsmanship and sharper scouting skills to create more precise shot opportunities. You'll look at the woods differently when your max range shrinks to 20 yards. Every trail, pinch point, and bedding area becomes an opportunity to close the distance.

Modern bowhunting sometimes feels more like managing equipment than hunting. Unless you buy a ready-to-hunt bow, you’ll need to buy sights, a release, maybe a stabilizer, quiver, rangefinder, dampeners, and the list goes on. None of these things are bad. They all serve a purpose, but compound bows have a lot of moving pieces and some you don’t even need.

Traditional archery offers a refreshing alternative. Most recurves and longbows are incredibly simple. No moving parts, extra gadgets, or excessive tuning. You simply grab your bow, a handful of arrows, and head for the woods.

There's a certain freedom that comes with simplicity. Instead of worrying about whether your sight got bumped or if you remembered your release, you can focus on the hunt itself. You become more connected to the experience and less dependent on equipment.

You don’t realize how heavy compound bows can get until you’re several miles back on a hunt. By the time you add a sight, quiver, stabilizer, arrows, and other accessories, it's not uncommon for a hunting bow to weigh eight to ten pounds or more. That might not seem like much until you have to carry it all day through the mountains.

Traditional bows offer a dramatically lighter alternative. Many recurves and longbows weigh just two to three pounds. Even with a quiver, you're often carrying less than half the weight of a fully outfitted compound setup.

For elk hunters covering miles of mountain country, public-land deer hunters navigating rough terrain, or anyone who enjoys spot-and-stalk hunting, a lighter bow can make a noticeable difference. Less weight means less fatigue, more mobility, and more enjoyment during long days in the field. Sure, you’re trading that weight for effective archery range, but if you prefer to hunt close to your game, it’s probably worth it.

When compound hunters swap to traditional, their definition of success usually changes too. It’s easy to focus on a certain class of deer with a compound bow. But when you carry a traditional bow, every successful hunt feels like a huge accomplishment.

If you think a mature buck is a trophy, try shooting any deer with a traditional bow. The rush and accomplishment of shooting a doe or small buck with a stick and string is hard to beat. My first trad bow kill was a spike. I thought I had accomplished something that day, walking out of the woods with a longbow in one hand and dragging that little buck with the other.

A squirrel, rabbit, or grouse all feel like a trophy when you’ve got a trad bow in your hand. Traditional archery has a way of shifting the focus away from antler measurements and toward the overall hunting experience.

Switching from a compound bow to a traditional bow isn't for everyone. It requires patience and consistent practice. You’ll have to shrink your effective range and be okay with passing deer that you probably could have shot with a compound. It requires a steeper learning curve, but that’s part of what makes it so rewarding when you arrow an 80-pound doe. You may not shoot as many animals, but you might just rediscover why you became a bowhunter in the first place. And that's a trade worth considering.

Steve joins chef Jesse Griffiths on the Texas coast to target redfish and sea trout with Captain JT Van Zandt and gig for flounder with Captain David Dupnik. An abundance of fish results in a seafood feast.