Activate The Hunt With Collin Cottrell

Taking someone on their first hunt is not only rewarding for the person you’re taking, but I found out first hand that it’s even more rewarding for the hunting mentor.  In this episode, I have a conversation with my friend Ryan Michler, who is just getting started as a hunter. I took him on his first hunt and after the hunt, we sat down to talk about his whole experience and journey as a new hunter.  A few topics covered include; Ryan’s journey to becoming a better man and how that involves hunting, the perception and misconception of hunting, preparing for the hunt, lessons learned from the hunt, and why you should try hunting.  Show notes at http://activatethehunt.com/11

Heading west to hunt the rugged backcountry is what many hunters think of when they hear the word adventure. There’s no doubt, that’s a dream hunt for all of us. But, you really don’t have to head west to find a great hunting adventure. You can do it anywhere!    My guest today, Tim Endsley, talks about his journey as a do-it-yourself adventure bowhunter. From his start, honing his skills hunting on public land in his home state of Arkansas, to heading all over the midwest to live out of his truck and tent, testing his skills against mature whitetail deer. Tim explains that every hunt can be a true adventure if you want it to be. Show notes: http://activatethehunt.com/008

In today’s social media driven world, it’s easy to follow someone online and think they have it all together as a hunter. Unfortunately, our culture today has urged us to only post our successes online, which is very deceiving and can be discouraging for some, especially new hunters.  My guest today, Mark Kenyon, has been someone that I’ve enjoyed following on social media for many years because he doesn’t just post about his successes as a hunter but also posts about the journey of growing and learning as a hunter.  In today’s podcast episode we talk about many important hunting tips for new hunters, including tips for finding a place to hunt, Mark’s system for getting hunting access on private land, the next steps you should take as a hunter once you get hunting access, what is shed hunting and why do hunters do it, Mark’s best shed hunting tips and tactics, and early season deer scouting.  Show notes: http://activatethehunt.com/009

One of the first hunts I tried outside of deer hunting was turkey hunting. I was in my first year of college and it had just recently been announced that the zone I hunted in in Minnesota, was going to have a turkey season again after many years of not having one. At this point in my life, I was looking for new ways to spend time hunting, so I quickly started researching how to hunt wild turkeys.  My main source of information at that time came from magazine articles and watching Primos Truth About Hunting on TV. I would spend all of my time outside of studying and classes learning everything I could about turkey hunting. I would say that today’s hunters are lucky to have so many more resources, like this podcast, to learn about different hunting methods and tactics.  Anyway, that spring, I ended up calling in a big Tom turkey and missed it with my bow. On the last day of the season, I hunted with my dad, and we had a memorable hunt together. We ended up calling in a big gobbler and my dad made a great shot!

One of the biggest challenges faced by hunters today is finding a place to hunt. Luckily, our forefathers set aside millions of acres of wild, public land for all of us to hunt on. If you do your research and put in a little effort, you will find some great public land hunting spots all over the country, and have an opportunity to kill wild game this hunting season! My guest today, Shane Simpson, talks about his experiences as a lifelong public land deer hunter. He explains how he finds a piece of public land to hunt on, what to expect hunting on public land, and his strategies for scouting and hunting on public land! Show notes: http://activatethehunt.com/007

Killing a Pronghorn Antelope is the goal for many first-time western hunters. With an abundance of the animal on western public lands, there’s a lot of hunting opportunity. I’m here to tell you, you’ll quickly be humbled by these magnificent, but elusive creatures. Antelope are very wary and can provide even the most experienced hunter with a formidable challenge, especially when bowhunting. But, that’s what draws many hunters to the western plains in search of this mighty speed goat!  My guest today, Jace Bauserman, gives his best tips, tactics, and information for hunting the “Prince of the Plains”. We go in-depth about the methods used for hunting antelope, how to scout for success, hunting on a budget, and his best advice for first-time antelope hunters.  Show notes: http://activatethehunt.com/006

For the past several years there’s been a movement towards eating locally grown and organic foods. This movement was started by individuals, that not only want to know what is going into their body, but also have a deep respect for the land we live on and our resources. As these individuals research and dig deeper to find the best sources for their food, they are finding out that hunting is much more than killing wild animals for an adrenaline rush — they are finding that it’s one of the best ways to feed their passion for an organic lifestyle.   My guest today, Josh Dahlke, talks about hunting for the purpose of killing your own food, the importance of understanding where your food comes from, his suggestion for how to get started as a hunter and the experience of butchering, packaging and eating wild game.  Find the show notes: http://activatethehunt.com/003

Being a new hunter is hard. The learning curve is steep, especially if you don’t know others that hunt. Don’t let this discourage you though. There’s many experienced hunters that are looking to help new hunters. Finding a hunting mentor is the best way to accelerate the learning curve and gain the knowledge and confidence you need to help you advance on your journey as a hunter. My guest today, Eric Dinger, talks about the importance of mentoring new hunters, where you can find hunting mentors, the north american model for wildlife conservation and the decline of the baby boomer generation in hunting and the effect it could have on the future of hunting.  Show notes: http://activatethehunt.com/005 

In the last 10-15 years there’s been a major change in how hunters are perceived. It used to be all about the good ol country boy who kills his own food, which is still the truth, but it has also transformed into something hunters train for all year, basically becoming a hunting athlete of sorts.  My guest today, Jordan Miller, is a lifetime athlete. He adopted this kind of thinking about hunting early in his life. As he build a business around personal training, he realized that he wanted to train hunters so they could have more successful hunts. This prompted him to start a business and media company called Run2Gun.  A few topics we covered in our conversation include:    - Tips about fitness, nutrition and overall healthy living   - Having a positive mindset   - Motivation and direction in life  - And some of Jordan’s hunting adventures Show notes: https://www.activatethehunt.com/12

This week’s podcast episode is with someone I’ve recently connected with through social media, his name is Aaron Schmuas. Aaron is a passionate hunter and outdoorsman originally from Montana. He reached out to me on Instagram because he wanted to send me a copy of his book “Ten Rules for Finding a Hunting Partner”. I read the book while sitting in a ground blind during turkey season and knew right away after reading the book that I wanted to get him on the show for a conversation. Sit back and relax, you’ll really enjoy this one! 

Hunting isn’t easy. It takes a certain amount of hunting skill to kill a wild game animal. Not every hunting adventure will result in a bounty of delicious organic food. So, don’t get discouraged if you come home without a cooler full of meat to show for. As you advance in your journey as a hunter, you will likely have the inclination to learn the traits and tactics of elite hunters, so that you can use their information to help you bring home more than memories from a hunt. My guest today, Trevon Stoltzfus, talks about the idea that 10 percent of hunters kill 90 percent of the wild game. He explains the common traits he found in his research of this elite group of hunters, and how adopting these traits has helped him to be much more successful in the field. Show notes: http://activatethehunt.com/004

You may have never been taught how to hunt at a young age by your dad, uncles or grandpa, but now you have the desire to learn? This is more common than you think. You’re definitely not alone. Adults of all ages and from all walks of life are looking for information and insight that will help them learn to hunt. My guest today, Scott Kirchoff, a lifelong hunter, and hunting mentor, joins the podcast to share his experiences as a hunter, reasons why we hunt, tips for those that want to mentor new hunters, and most importantly, information about Learn to Hunt programs for new hunters and how they can get started. Find the show notes at http://activatethehunt.com/002