The Field And Stream Podcast

Duck camps, giant striped bass, and fading hunting traditions collide in this unforgettable outdoor storytelling conversation.

The latest edition of the Field & Stream Journal centers on one theme that every hunter and angler understands instinctively: tradition. Host Colin Kearns sits down with editors Dave Hurteau and Ryan Chelius to unpack the stories behind the new issue, from vanishing duck camps and Adirondack deer traditions to nighttime trout fishing with mouse flies on the Upper Delaware.

The conversation dives deep into waterfowl hunting culture, fly fishing history, turkey hunting, striped...

Wide open prairie gobblers, tight roosts, and the fight to protect rivers.

Will Brantley breaks down hunting open country turkeys across Texas, Nebraska, Kansas, and beyond, contrasting Rio Grande and Merriam’s birds with Eastern timber gobblers. From early season Texas leases to late-spring prairie hunts, he explains how vast terrain changes everything from glassing strategy to calling distance. Open country birds cover ground fast, often forcing hunters to read roost patterns, use optics, and cut distance quickly instead of easing through timber.

He details setup fundamentals in wide la...

Slip into hardwood ridges and learn how to call pressured gobblers into gun range.

Few pursuits in the hunting world rival the intensity of chasing Eastern wild turkeys through big timber. This conversation digs into the craft behind successful turkey hunting in hardwoods, where terrain, patience, and decision-making matter more than anything in your vest.

From locating gobblers on ridges to understanding how turkeys use strut zones, you’ll hear practical turkey hunting tips that translate directly to more opportunities in the spring woods. The discussion breaks down how to...

An aging angler returns to sacred water where memory, family, and trout still rise. 

In this Campfire story from the Field & Stream archives, John N. Maclean delivers a deeply reflective piece of fly fishing writing rooted in Montana’s Blackfoot River. What begins as a familiar ritual, sitting on a well-worn stone above productive trout water, unfolds into something far more enduring. This is a story about time, lineage, and the quiet transformation that comes with a lifetime spent outdoors.

Listeners will find themselves immersed in classic fly fishing rhy...

Unlock aggressive early-season trout tactics and rediscover why opening day still matters.

Early spring trout fishing rewards anglers willing to embrace high water, cold temps, and aggressive fish behavior. In this conversation, Field & Stream fishing columnist Joe Cermele breaks down how to target big trout when rivers are up, slightly stained, and primed for movement. From reading water in elevated flows to understanding how trout shift into softer seams and banks, you’ll walk away with practical trout fishing strategies you can apply immediately.

The discussion leans into a “go b...

Four seasoned outdoorsmen draft their ultimate wild game menu—and defend every controversial pick.

What happens when a group of diehard hunters and anglers sit down to build the ultimate wild game lineup? In this episode, the Field & Stream editors turn a friendly debate into a strategic wild game draft—stacking their picks with everything from classic whitetail deer and wild turkey to overlooked small game like squirrel and even exotic species like nilgai and iguana.

Along the way, you’ll get more than just a list of favorite meats...

Why a legendary fly fishing book still resonates deeply with anglers and river lovers today.

Few works of outdoor literature have shaped fly fishing culture like A River Runs Through It. Fifty years after its publication, Norman Maclean’s classic still speaks to anglers who understand that time on the river is about far more than trout.

Host Colin Kearns sits down with John Maclean, award-winning journalist and son of Norman Maclean, for a thoughtful conversation about the legacy of the book that helped define modern fly fishing storytelling. To...

From trophy bass tactics to the fight over America’s most iconic wilderness.

Late winter signals two things for serious outdoorsmen: pre-spawn bass are feeding up, and critical conservation fights are heating up. This conversation moves from the shallow flats of Alabama to the canoe country of northern Minnesota, then back to a father and son rediscovering waterfowl hunting.

Shay Baker breaks down early pre-spawn largemouth bass behavior, explaining how increasing daylight—not just water temperature—triggers staging fish. He dives into muddy water bass strategies, slow-rolling spinnerbaits through wood c...

From king eiders to campfire stories, this episode captures the full spectrum of hunting culture.

The Field & Stream editorial team brings together the kind of range that defines modern hunting culture, moving from extreme waterfowl pursuits to campfire debates and classic upland storytelling. The conversation opens with a firsthand account of sea duck hunting in Alaska, where chasing king eiders on the edge of the Bering Sea tests judgment, preparation, and respect for conditions that dictate every decision. It’s a reminder that some waterfowl hunts demand the mindset of a big game expedition.

We’re revisiting “Lost Soul” this week, one of the most powerful hunting essays ever published in the magazine’s archives. Written by Scott Bestial and read by his longtime editor and friend Dave Hurteau, the story unfolds during a brutal late-season whitetail hunt marked by deep snow, bitter wind, and the quiet weight of personal upheaval.

What begins as a familiar deer hunting scenario—spooked does, a cold tree stand, and low odds, quickly becomes something deeper. Through bowhunting whitetails in December, Scott explores how time spent outdoors can intersect with grief, divorce, and emotio...

One rifle, one deer, and generations of memory reveal what really matters in deer season.

Writer and lifelong hunter Richard Mann reads and reflects on his modern classic, The Gun and the Ghost. What begins as a simple deer hunting story unfolds into something deeper; an exploration of memory, family, and the emotional weight we carry into the woods each fall.

Mann uses the guns of his past as touchstones, objects that connect him to family, memory, and the moments that made him a hunter. The story isn’t ab...

Flooded timber duck hunts, hard-won conservation victories, and one trout river that carried a man through grief.

Flooded timber duck hunting has long been considered one of waterfowling’s most spiritual traditions and comes fully alive as Host Colin Kearns sits down with legendary outdoor writer T. Edward Nickens to talk about green tree reservoirs, the culture and history behind timber duck hunts, and why standing waist-deep among ancient oaks feels more like a rite of winter than a morning hunt.

From Arkansas bottomlands to Mississippi backwaters, Nickens explains wh...

Join us for another Campfire short this week, where we crack open a modern Field and Stream classic as senior editor Ryan Chelius revisits his unforgettable season patrolling the famed Salmon River in Pulaski, New York. What begins as a broke college kid’s workaround to access the best steelhead fishing water quickly spirals into confrontations with trespassers, counterfeit pass-holders, and the kind of hardened characters you only meet during a full-blown salmon run.

Ryan shares what it’s really like to enforce regulations on two miles of private river during peak season, navigating angr...

From tide-driven duck hunts to unforgettable Christmas gifts, this episode captures the soul of the outdoors.

Salt marsh waterfowl hunting is a game all its own and listeners get an insider’s look at one of North America’s most demanding and storied duck hunts. Host Colin Kearns sits down with Field & Stream senior editor Ryan Chelius to break down salt marsh duck hunting on Long Island, where tides dictate everything, black ducks rule the sky, and tradition matters as much as gear.

Ryan explains how Atlantic Flyway tides shap...

In another immersive Campfire short, we revisit one of Field and Stream’s most powerful pieces ever published: “Dad’s Gun” by Phil Bourjaily. What starts as a simple pheasant hunt in the brutal Iowa winter of 1979 becomes a defining moment, one that pulls a young hunter into the outdoors and reveals the complicated, often unspoken truths between fathers and sons.

Phil guides listeners through the history of a battered Beretta over/under that survived decades of pheasant hunting, duck marshes, barbed-wire crossings, and hard Midwestern winters. The story isn’t just about a gun. it’s...

A cold fall swamp, rising light, and a duck hunter’s lifelong love collide at daybreak.

In this special immersive Campfire short edition of the Field and Stream Podcast, veteran outdoors writer T. Edward Nickens brings listeners deep into the heart of a Southern swamp, where wood ducks whistle through cypress shadows and time moves with the slow pulse of rising water. This episode isn’t just a reading; it’s a full-on immersion into why swamps matter to waterfowl hunters, public-land diehards, and anyone who’s ever chased wild places for meaning.

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Unlock the whitetail rut’s most explosive moments with proven rattling tactics from a true legend.

Few hunters have rattled in more mature whitetails across North America than Larry Weishuhn, and in this episode, “Mr. Whitetail” breaks down his lifetime of lessons for hunters gearing up for peak rut action. If you’ve ever wondered when to rattle, how to build a realistic rattling sequence, or why bucks react the way they do during the breeding season, this conversation delivers the answers.

Larry walks listeners through the biology behind rising t...

The rut is on, the bucks are moving, and the stories in this episode will fire you up.

This week’s Field & Stream Podcast delivers a full spread of hunting-season wisdom from peak whitetail rut strategy to modern insights on lever-action rifles, plus a Thanksgiving debate only true outdoorsmen could have. Hunting columnist Will Brantley joins the show first, breaking down why the rut remains the most unpredictable and electrifying stretch of deer season. He explains how shifting doe patterns, overlooked creek-line pinch points, and timing from Halloween through early December can make or br...

From Great Lakes steelhead runs to the wisdom of “Mr. Whitetail,” this episode celebrates the wild heart of hunting and fishing.

On this episode of the Field & Stream Podcast, host Colin Kearns takes listeners through a trio of stories that capture the best of the outdoors. Senior Editor Ryan Chelius kicks things off with a deep dive into Great Lakes steelhead fishing - how it differs from the Pacific runs, why accessibility makes it so special, and the chaotic beauty of hooking into a chrome-bright fish in shoulder-to-shoulder waters. Ryan shares hard-won steelhead fly fish...

From the pheasant fields of Iowa to the public lands of Wyoming, this week’s episode celebrates freedom, tradition, and the stories that define hunting season.

For more than a century, Field & Stream has been home to America’s best hunting and fishing stories—and now, those stories come alive in this podcast. In this episode, host Colin Kearns is joined by Phil Bourjaily, Field & Stream’s shotguns columnist and upland expert, for a deep dive into the passion, tradition, and nostalgia that define pheasant hunting season. Phil shares what makes the pheasant opener feel lik...

For more than a century, Field & Stream has told America’s best hunting and fishing stories—in print, online, and through video. Now, the editors are bringing that legacy of storytelling to life in a brand-new podcast. In the premiere episode, Editor-in-Chief Colin Kearns kicks off the show with six distinct segments that capture the full spirit of the outdoors.

First up, in The Season, longtime Field & Stream writer T. Edward Nickens dives deep into his wood duck obsession—from scouting beaver ponds to carving hand-painted decoys—and shares lessons any waterfowl hunter can use.