This episode aired before the death of one of coon hunting's most successful and most colorful ambassadors. I hope you enjoy this replay from November of 2022.  This episode takes us to the Ozark Mountains of Missouri and Arkansas to visit with coon hunting legend Junior Lasseter.  At 73 years of age, Junior had amazing recall of events that led him from the Ozark hills to the major stages of competitive coon hunting, in the woods and on the bench. At one time in coon hunting history, there were many commercial coonhound and combination dog kennels operating out of the Ozarks.  Ads appeared in the classified sections of not only the tree dog publications but in major outdoor magazines as well.  Writers like Wilson Rawls created a narrative that the Ozarks were the cradle of coon hunting in America.  Lasseter’s stories emanate from the same root and place him as the perfect visitant to the Gone To The Dogs microphone. 

Lasseter has owned National Champions on the bench in both the UKC, PKC and ACHA registries and has a final four appearance in the UKC World Championship to his credit.  He’s the first, and perhaps only handler to win a pickup truck showing hounds.  Lasseter’s hounds like Table Rock Flying Hawk, Table Rock Mundo, Jr., Biggerstaff’s Little Buck, and Morgan’s Tree Jamming Mundar fill the conversations in this episode.  Lasseter was known far and wide in the 80’s when Steve began his career at the UKC registry.

This episode is smothered with Ozark flavor, like cathead biscuits under a blanket of fried squirrel gravy. You’ll enjoy Junior’s stories.  You’ll want to follow them to the source, and you will, where mountain music echoes off the ridges and swells up from the cold stream hollers of tree dog country. It’s all right here so, enjoy!