On this episode of The Western Rookie Podcast, Dan and Brian talk with Ryan Carter about giant elk and what it takes to consistently get on mature bulls. Ryan is the owner of DC Outfitters in Utah and is known for finding and patterning some of the biggest bull elk you have ever heard of. From nearly 60” wide bull “MJ” to the 450+ “Freak” bull out of Arizona, Ryan has had the opportunity to watch some of the largest elk in the country. Hear his view on what it takes to grow these amazing animals, and how he finds these bulls, patterns them, and gets his clients on them. To follow along with Ry ..read more

Bransen is a second-generation outfitter for Western Timberline Outfitters and specializes is big mule deer. Bransen shares some insight for what it’s like to manage hundreds of thousands of acres of private land leases to grow a healthy herd for his clients and what kind of experience his clients can look forward to. He also talks about some do’s and don’ts when it comes to western hunting and tagging a trophy buck or giant bull. The guys also talk shed hunting, which must be a part of the Krebs family genetics as both Brian and Bransen are die-hard antler hunters and looking forward to the u ..read more

On this episode of The Western Rookie Podcast, Dan and Brian talk with Ethan Pateman about shot placement and follow up shots on Western Big Game. Ethan is from Western Montana and has already racked up a lifetime of adventures hunting big game. Early in his career Ethan guided elk 20 miles deep into the famous Bob Marshall wilderness area where they had lots of encounters with huge bulls. From there, Ethan started taking new hunters out and showing them the ropes while continuing to chase big game with his brother and friends. Ethan also hosts his own podcast and started a gear company specif ..read more

On this episode of The Western Rookie Podcast, Dan and Brian have Ryan Stieg on to talk about getting more tags each season. Ryan grew up in the flat land like both Dan and Brian, but like the hosts, caught the western bug during college and started piecing together how to get out west as much as possible. Ryan has had incredible success with North Dakota’s second chance draw to get rifle Whitetail Buck tags in underrated units while building points and using his bow tag to chase Mule Deer each fall in the badlands. Ryan has taken this same strategy to Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado to show it ..read more

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan and new co-host Brian Krebs talk to Stephen Walker a shed hunter from Colorado about what it takes to consistently find elk and mule deer sheds. Stephen was born and raised in Louisiana but moved to Southern Colorado where he found a serious passion for finding dropped antlers. Stephen along with his friends and family consistently find hundreds of sheds a year across Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado. Dan, Brian and Stephen discuss what to look for in shed hunting land as well as techniques and strategies for going after big antlers. Check out the Spor ..read more

On this episode of The Western Rookie Brian and Dan are joined by Chris O’Neal, a big game hunter and shed hunting enthusiast from Wyoming. Chris grew up in South Dakota pheasant hunting from a young age. As he got older his girlfriend’s dad introduced him to big game hunting for whitetail deer & antelope. Chris’s passion for big game hunting grew the more he learned. He decided to level up his hunts and bought a bow.  On his birthday in 2012 he was able to kill his biggest buck, a 177” monster. Present day Chris lives in Wyoming and loves to shed hunt and chase bulls. He devoted hims ..read more

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan and new co-host Brian Krebs talk about the future of the podcast. Brian is a diehard hunter from Minnesota where he loves chasing antlers on the hoof and on the ground. Brian is the host of the Two Bucks Podcast and has a line of beard care products called Bull Elk Beard Oil. Dan and Brian met a few years back when Brian sponsored The Nomadic Outdoorsman podcast. Dan and Brian have since shed hunted together and have plans to do a western hunt in the future. Check out the Sportsmen's Empire Podcast Network for more relevant outdoor content!   Conn ..read more

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with Robert Gillingham about how to plan and compare western hunt prices. Robert is an avid fly fishermen and has been fishing for over 20 years. He lives in Boise, Idaho and spends as much of his time as possible in the outdoors. Robert has a background in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Biology and currently teaches Zoology to high school students. As an avid outdoorsmen he has created tools to help outdoorsmen and women protect their valuable gear as well as compare the cost of different hunts. He built Karmik Outdoors out of necessity and a ..read more

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan talks with Kyle Davidson, a rocket scientist in his own right with a passion for all things archery. Kyle didn't grow up in the outdoors and it wasn’t until he found archery that he discovered his true passion. He grew up racing go-karts all through high school. When he started working with a buddy he discovered archery and was hooked from the first shot. After being unsatisfied with his arrow setup he started diving into the physics behind arrow flight and that led him to his true passion, building custom arrows with peak performance. DCA Custom Arrow ..read more

On this episode of The Western Rookie Dan discusses his plans for 2023 and all he hopes to accomplish. Dan has been hunting the west for the past several years. Although he enjoys getting to hunt the west he is extremely excited about starting to chase elk and mule deer with a bow. Dan has spent 4 seasons hunting elk and mule deer in Colorado during firearms season and got his first taste of archery hunting for mule deer this past year. Dan hopes to expand the states that he hunts and is looking north, south, east and west for new hunting opportunities. Check out the Sportsmen's Empire Podcast ..read more