The MeatEater

On this episode of the Bear Grease Podcast, it’s Turkey Stories time! We’ve gathered a lineup of hunters from Arkansas, Alabama, Virginia, and Mississippi, both young and old, connected by a love of spring turkey hunting.  You’ll hear about a University of Arkansas student on her first solo hunt, a hunter who survived being shot in the back, bobcats crashing the scene at the worst possible time, a woman in pursuit of a Turkey World Slam with a flintlock shotgun and more. Plus, insight from turkey biologist Mike Chamberlain and voices shaped by a lifetime in the woods. If you love turkey hunting or just plain old good stories, don’t miss this one.

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This week, Tony explains how our dogs are always learning from us, whether we are training them or not, and how that can lead to behavioral issues as they age.

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On December 1st, 2025, I put my foot in the stirrup of a white mule named Snowy River and threw my leg over the saddle. Over the next five days, he’d carry me 80 miles through some of the roughest ground in Southwest Utah in search of a mountain lion. Snowy River belongs to McClain and Hunter Mecham, a father and son team native to Utah, both lifelong mountain lion hunters and mule men. Also accompanying us on the hunt would be nationally known mule trainer and clinician Ty Evans of TS Mules. The following five days would take me on the roughest and longest mule ride I’ve ever been on.

McClain is a fourth-generation houndsman and known for having some of the best dogs in the country. He’s considered a dry-ground hunter, meaning most of the time he tracks lions without snow, on bare dirt. In many places, snow makes tracking lions easier and faster, but in the arid Southwest, often it’s cold and snowless.

Tracking them on dry ground is much harder and takes a dog with a different skill set than most hounds. Incredible stamina, prey drive, and an other-worldly nose are the hallmarks of a good dry-ground hound. Like many hunters in the West, he hunts mixed-bred hounds with Walker, English, and bluetick mixed in. Their hounds are known as some of the best in the West.

On the second day of the hunt we treed our first lion, a sub-adult male. We followed the dogs step-for-step and trailed the lion no less than six miles before they treed him. The cat likely weighed between 110 and 120 pounds, a completely legal cat. However, we decided to pass on him.

Utah has liberalized lion hunting in efforts to help mule deer and elk populations, much to the chagrin of many lion hunters. Currently the lion season is open 365 days a year, with no annual bag limits, and you don’t even need a tag—just a hunting license.

I’m confident the wildlife agencies have a bonafide reason for this, but according to McClain, "Utah doesn't have the numbers of big lions we used to have.” The theme of our conversation over the next few days would revolve around lion management in Utah. Ironically, McClain and Hunter are also elk and mule deer outfitters, so they’re invested in healthy cervid numbers but don’t think killing all the lions will have that much impact. Some disagree, but I think it’s interesting that the lion hunters are the ones advocating for more conservative lion hunting seasons.

By the end of the trip, we treed three lions—two young males and a female. We chose to let them all go even though they were all legal. I’d have been happy with either of the males, but when you’re the guest of men as knowledgeable as the Mecham’s, you take the cues from them. Ultimately, I opted to pass them.

Perhaps some might think we should have killed all three, but I’m glad I made the choice I did. I hope to go back and finally get to see a big mature tom bayed on a rock cliff in Utah. This was a unique experience with some of the best lion hunters in North America. And to boot, I learned a lot about trusting my mule from Ty Evans. You can watch this episode of Meateater's 12 in 26 film series right here.

In the 20th century peculiar landforms dismissed earlier in western history with the denigrating term “badlands” became compelling locations for scientists and artists in the West. First passed over as economically worthless, these barren, colorful landscapes were translated by painters like Georgia O’Keeffe into iconic imagery. Now many are national parks and wilderness areas.

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Check out more MeatEater's American History audio originals "The Long Hunters" and "Mountain Men"

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This week, Tony talks about how if we don't pay attention the non-target critters in the woods, we often alert deer to our presence without even being aware of it.

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A 17-year-old has been charged after allegedly running down and killing three whitetail deer with a truck outside of Maryfield, Saskatchewan, on March 9. Witnesses called it in after seeing the chase take place through a field. By the end, the driver appeared to deliberately strike the animals, according to CBC News and a social media post from SaskTip.

Conservation officers found two young whitetail fawn carcasses when they arrived on the scene the following morning. They also discovered the remains of a third deer that had already been picked over by scavengers.

Early eyewitness reports indicated a second truck was involved in the chase. But after further investigation, officers determined that the second vehicle did not run down the deer. The driver ended up being just another witness.

SaskTip, or Saskatchewan Turn In Poachers, is a charity that partners with Saskatchewan conservation officers and provides a platform for the public to report hunting and other natural resource violations anonymously. The organization also offers cash rewards for information that leads to the arrest of violators.

For this case, SaskTip put up $2,000 for tips. Once the word was out, tips started rolling in. That’s how officials found the teen who had been behind the wheel. Because he’s a minor, his name hasn’t been released. Charges also haven’t been made public, and the investigation is still ongoing.

Using a vehicle to hunt or harass wildlife is illegal in Saskatchewan. Violations can carry hefty fines and additional penalties tied to the animals killed. It can also cost you hunting privileges and the forfeiture of equipment, including your truck.

Cases like this hit raw nerves among hunters because it flagrantly goes against fair chase. The reaction online has been particularly harsh.

“We have low deer counts due to CWD and scum does this,” wrote one commenter. “I hope they are caught, vehicles confiscated, lifetime gun ban, and full extent of animal abuse.”

Most hunters live and die by the idea of fair chase. You hunt the right way, which doesn’t include running it down with a bumper. In this case, people saw someone breaking the law, reported the activity, and the system worked exactly like it’s supposed to.

Steven Rinella talks with Alison Fox, CEO of American Prairie. 

Topics discussed: The history of American Prairie and its aim to create one of the largest land preserves in the country; plains for buffalo; land acquisitions; funding structure; grazing permits and the BLM; block management, hunting on American Prairie lands, access; and more.            

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This week, Cal covers a troubling case of a deer processor who stole venison that was supposed to go to charity, a rancher who allegedly stole an elk head, and the world's oldest bird.

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Locals in a northern Minnesota community have reported more than 100 dead deer along a railway, where a cart apparently leaked corn along the tracks for miles. According to the Facebook page of Steve Porter, owner and operator of a deer farm in the area, he’s documented droves of deer and turkeys feeding along the tracks and fielded similar reports from other hunters and landowners.

The corn spill spans from Thief River to the Canadian border, a more than 80-mile stretch that has lured the deer to their deaths. In a response to MeatEater, the Minnesota DNR said it is aware of the incident and that it isn’t uncommon.

“Unfortunately, when this happens, wildlife are occupying the tracks when another train comes through,” The Minnesota DNR told MeatEater. “The deer often respond by trying to outrun the train rather than move out of the path, especially if the snow is deep beside the train tracks. Regrettably, this can result in deer being injured or killed.”

In a video posted to his Facebook account, Porter said there are “reports of dead deer like never before.” He zooms his phone closer to the rails, revealing the corn spillage and hordes of deer tracks.

It’s unclear whether this incident will have noticeable repercussions on local deer herds, but that hasn’t stopped locals, like Steve Porter, from posing the question.

“Dead deer for miles and miles and miles,” Porter said in his video. “I wonder what that will do for hunting this fall in Pennington County, Marshall County, Kittson County with all these dead deer.”

Other news outlets asked the Minnesota DNR for an estimate on deer deaths related to the incident, but were told there hasn’t been a noticeable difference from prior years.

Photos Via Steve Porter