Eastmans' Journal Podcast Edition

Scott Reekers sits in for Ike and sits down with Fonzy Haskell — Wyoming Game & Fish Commissioner and longtime outfitter at Four Horse Outfitters in northeast Wyoming — for a genuine conversation on the state of Wyoming hunting, the commission’s current workload, and where the pressure points really are. Fresh off a two-day commission meeting in Cody and the Wyoming Outdoor Hall of Fame induction ceremony (where this year’s class joined Gordon Eastman, inducted in 2011), Fonzy walks through the big items on the table: a potential move to a two- or three-year season-setting cycle, a department budget running on 2008 license fees against nearly 70% inflation, and why nonresident hunters (who fund 87% of the license revenue) are absolutely essential to Wyoming’s wildlife model. Scott and Fonzy dig into Region G and H’s bounce-back after the devastating ‘22–‘23 winter, hot-spotting and hunting pressure, whether it’s time to split Region G into limited-quota areas for nonresidents, what Colorado’s and Nevada’s season structures could teach us, electronic tags and the privacy trade-off, wild horses and winter range in the Red Desert, and where the search for Wyoming’s next Game & Fish director currently stands. Fonzy closes with the message every Wyoming resident and nonresident needs to hear: get involved, write in, and keep applying.

Scott Reekers and Luke Washington sit down to break down the Wyoming big game draw — timed to the October 2nd nonresident preference point deadline — and dig into the strategy that actually gets hunters tags in hand instead of sitting on points forever. The two walk through the three Wyoming elk regions (West, East, South), the split between special and regular draw and why the special pool got more attractive, the 75/25 nonresident allocation, and the point creep that keeps catching people off guard. Scott makes the case for burning points instead of waiting for a “perfect year” that doesn’t exist, and Luke shares his own random-draw bighorn sheep story — two points, 0.08% odds, and a tag of a lifetime. From there, they get into Region G mule deer recovery after the brutal ‘22–‘23 winter, the reality that 350" bulls and 200" mule deer are rarer than social media suggests, hunter recruitment and the baby-boomer wave on its way out of the field, Luke’s push to grow the next generation through the local middle school bragging board. They talk about the the partnership with Jordan Christiansen at The Draw for anyone who wants expert help getting their applications in and a real plan to actually go hunting.

Brandon Mason sits down with Eli English — Eastmans’ 2026 Wyoming mule deer Hunt Winner from Michigan — for a genuine conversation on family, faith, business, and the hunt of a lifetime. Eli walks through the story of how he was once an Eastmans member, let it lapse through the chaos of raising a young family, and then his son got hooked watching Eastmans shows on Amazon Prime and talked him into resubscribing in October 2025 — nine months before he got the call that changed his fall. From there, Brandon and Eli relive the hunt with Four Horse Outfitters: guide Garrett spotting a bedded giant in a sea of sagebrush from almost two miles out, the hour-and-a-half of agonizing decisions on whether to move, the stalk that put Eli within 330 yards, and the use of Gordon Eastman’s old deer call to coax the buck up out of his bed for the shot — potentially the biggest mule deer any Eastmans winner has taken at Four Horse to date. The conversation widens into Eli’s path from software engineer to running an adult foster care home with his wife, how hunting shaped his seven-year-old daughter’s first deer and his approach to raising kids who want to be in the woods, and the lifelong friendships formed with Brandon, Travis, and the other winners in camp — now a monthly men’s Bible study. A real one about why Hunt Winner hunts become the favorite part of everyone’s fall.

Ike Eastman sits down with Nate Hosie — co-host of Headhunters TV, turkey killer, musician, husband, and dad — for a genuine conversation about the moments that shape a life. A born-and-raised Montdale, Pennsylvania kid who's lived in his hometown his whole life, Nate walks through hunting his first pheasants at five with his dad and grandpa (the "Grouse King"), getting hooked on turkeys at 13, meeting Randy Birdsong at the Harrisburg Sports Show, and how 17 years of Headhunters TV came together almost by accident. The heart of the episode is his music story — how a devastating car accident and the loss of his sister put a guitar in his hands he'd never touched, how YouTube videos and grief turned into a cover band, and how he's now sharing stages with artists like Rodney Atkins with a new single called "Hunting" dropping this fall. Ike and Nate dig into faith, family, the pursuit of peace of mind over more, why hunting is a celebration not a scorecard, and Nate's exciting new chapter with Buckmasters. It's a real one — bring some tissues.

Ike Eastman sits down with Randy Birdsong of Headhunters TV for a genuine conversation on the long game of Midwest whitetail hunting, land management, and predator trapping. A southeast Missouri kid who followed the best whitetail hunting to Southern Illinois University (on what he calls his "Van Wilder program"), Randy got his first break filming for Whitetail Freaks with Don & Kandi Kisky and Lee & Tiffany Lakosky before Jeff Wayne handed him his shot at his own show on Outdoor Channel. The heart of the conversation is the Raven Project — his 1,000-acre Missouri property that six years ago held maybe 15 deer, and today holds over 100 mature deer, along with the story of the 8-year-old buck he took there last fall. Ike and Randy get into food plots, water, cover, doe reduction, being "only as good as your neighbors," and Randy's real passion: trapping. From running a 20-mile trap line before school at age 10 (with grandma tailing on a four-wheeler) to 113 coons in three weeks on his Oklahoma property, he breaks down when to hit coyotes, coons, and possums to protect fawns and turkey nests — and why you can't just trap a property out, because knock a coyote population down and they'll simply throw bigger litters.

Ike Eastman sits down with Jon Collins of FoxPro for a genuine conversation on predator hunting and why coyotes might just be the most addictive game animal in the country. A central Kentucky boy born and raised, Jon walks through how he stumbled into coyote hunting in his early 20s — calling in seven coyotes on his very first stand with a 300 Weatherby Magnum and a wooden closed-reed rabbit call — and how that morning changed the trajectory of his life. From there, Ike and Jon get into predator management as a real tool for land managers wanting bigger bucks, better turkey hatches, and healthier fawn recruitment, why you can't just hit coyotes once a year and call it good, how affordable thermal has reshaped night hunting, and where to start if you're brand new to the game. They also cover FoxPro's flagship X360, the new X48 dropping soon, why raccoon calling is some of the most fun you can have with your kids, and the three sounds every new predator hunter should learn to make.👉 Watch all of the EHJ Podcast episodes:https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3oV1kEbu74HrR_GEK5VL9pCc6dME5py_👉 Eastmans Journal Podcast Sponsors:Browning: https://bit.ly/Browning-EastmansEberlestock: https://bit.ly/Eberlestock-EastmansStealth Cam: https://bit.ly/StealthCam-EastmansHornady: https://bit.ly/Hornady-EastmansLeupold: https://bit.ly/Leupold-EastmansPrecision Pay: https://bit.ly/PrecisionPay-EastmansSafari Club International: https://bit.ly/SCI-Eastmans

Ike Eastman and co-host Brandon Mason sit down with Patrick Ginder, a central Wyoming outfitter out of Casper and a competitive long-range shooter, for a genuine conversation on the elephant in the room: how far is too far. Patrick shoots NRL Hunter Series matches and Nightforce ELR out to 2,000 yards, but personally caps his shots on animals at around 500 — and he unpacks why. The three get into where technology has taken hunting (rangefinding binos, custom loads, dialable turrets), what these shooting competitions actually teach you, why the bench is the worst place to prepare for a real hunt, whether states should even try to regulate technology, and the older question underneath it all: why are we out there in the first place — to match wits with an animal, or to prove what a rifle can do.👉 Watch all of the EHJ Podcast episodes:https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3oV1kEbu74HrR_GEK5VL9pCc6dME5py_ 👉 Eastmans Journal Podcast Sponsors:Browning: https://bit.ly/Browning-EastmansEberlestock: https://bit.ly/Eberlestock-EastmansStealth Cam: https://bit.ly/StealthCam-EastmansHornady: https://bit.ly/Hornady-EastmansLeupold: https://bit.ly/Leupold-EastmansPrecision Pay: https://bit.ly/PrecisionPay-EastmansSafari Club International: https://bit.ly/SCI-Eastmans

Ike Eastman takes a moment to thank the sponsors who help make the Eastmans Journal Podcast possible. From gear and optics to cameras and hunting equipment, we’re proud to partner with companies that share our passion for the outdoors and the Western hunting lifestyle.Eastmans Journal Podcast SponsorsBrowning: https://bit.ly/Browning-Eastmans Eberlestock: https://bit.ly/Eberlestock-Eastmans Stealth Cam: https://bit.ly/StealthCam-Eastmans Hornady: https://bit.ly/Hornady-EastmansLeupold: https://bit.ly/Leupold-EastmansPrecision Pay: https://bit.ly/PrecisionPay-Eastmans

Brandon Mason sits down in person with Joe Kondelis, founder of the American Bear Foundation, for a wide-ranging conversation on everything bear. Joe walks through how the foundation started back in 2007 out of his own move to Cody and a frustration that black bears had no advocacy group of their own, and how it's grown from a three-state effort into chapters across the country. The two dig into the July 2026 grizzly 4(d) rule and what it actually means (spoiler: it's not delisting), the political tug-of-war keeping grizzlies on the endangered species list, ballot-box biology, and why hunters are the missing piece in grizzly conservation. Along the way they trade stories on Alaska bear country, sizing bears in the field, color phases, and why the pursuit of bears gets in your blood and doesn't let go. 👉 Watch all of the EHJ Podcast episodes: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3oV1kEbu74HrR_GEK5VL9pCc6dME5py_ 👉 Eastmans Journal Podcast Sponsors: Browning: https://bit.ly/Browning-Eastmans Eberlestock: https://bit.ly/Eberlestock-Eastmans Stealth Cam: https://bit.ly/StealthCam-Eastmans Hornady: https://bit.ly/Hornady-Eastmans Leupold: https://bit.ly/Leupold-Eastmans Precision Pay: https://bit.ly/PrecisionPay-Eastmans

Ike Eastman sits down with longtime friend and elite western guide Johnny Hamilton for a genuine conversation about a pursuit that gets in your blood and doesn't let go: sheep hunting. Johnny walks through his stone sheep hunt in the same northern country Ike's grandfather once hunted, reflects on his dall ram and Rocky, and talks about what's next — a desert sheep hunt with Clay Lancaster down in Mexico that would complete his Grand Slam. Along the way the two get into 25 years of guiding elk in southern Colorado, Johnny's recent New Zealand tahr and chamois trip, and why, for the guys who catch the sheep bug, it becomes the pinnacle of a hunting life. 👉 Watch all of the EHJ Podcast episodes: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3oV1kEbu74HrR_GEK5VL9pCc6dME5py_ 👉 Eastmans Journal Podcast Sponsors: Browning: https://bit.ly/Browning-Eastmans Eberlestock: https://bit.ly/Eberlestock-Eastmans Stealth Cam: https://bit.ly/StealthCam-Eastmans Hornady: https://bit.ly/Hornady-Eastmans Leupold: https://bit.ly/Leupold-Eastmans Precision Pay: https://bit.ly/PrecisionPay-Eastmans