The Flush Podcast - Stories from the field

Jacob & Ethan Schurter are DIY upland bird hunters on a mission to bag North America’s Upland Slam.  We dig into their DIY trip planning and execution, scouting before and during a hunt, hunting strategies, the challenges each bird presents, worst experiences, favorite memories, finding the right hunting partners, thanking farmers, laughing at each other, and reason to hunt in new places. Presented by Aberdeen, SD (https://huntfishsd.com/) HI VIZ Shooting Systems (https://www.hivizsights.com/) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Adam Nelson & Evan Curtin join the show to discuss the mission at Hunters For Access, a non-profit organization working with private landowners on their private lands to foster positive hunter relationships to create more publicly accessible hunting opportunities. Presented by HI VIZ Shooting Systems (https://www.hivizsights.com/) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Meadow Kouffeld joins the show for another deep discussion into the life of Ruffed Grouse. Meadow explains ruffed grouse mating, nesting, raising chicks, daily patterns, habitat choices, predators, diseases, turkey vs grouse debate, West Nile disease, and hunting techniques. Plus, Meadow answers listener questions about our favorite upland birds, research projects, and life in the outdoor field. Presented by HI VIZ Shooting Systems (https://www.hivizsights.com/) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Tyler Webster, Ben Brettingen, & Scott Fransen join Travis Frank to share brutally honest stories from life outdoors.  Awful, embarrassing, and heartbreaking moments come with life lessons and reminders to be grateful. Presented by Mr. Heater (https://www.mrheater.com) Huron, South Dakota (https://www.hunthuronsd.com) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Ben Fretz from North Country Sporting Dogs joins the show to talk about “spring training” for bird dogs.  Ben & Travis discuss methods to build a strong working relationship to help the dog handler and our dogs work with confidence, enjoy the process, clean up mistakes, retrieve to hand, and remove pressure from performance. Presented by Mr. Heater (https://www.mrheater.com) Huron, South Dakota (https://www.hunthuronsd.com) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Nicolas Lirio & Kent Boucher, hosts of The Prairie Farm Podcast join us for a deep, thought-provoking conversation about our comfortable way of life, working the landscape, making healthy choices, farming practices, and taking our turn on the land.  They also share the inspiring, hard-earned story behind their 5-generation family farm that gave up row crops to grow native seeds. Presented by Mr. Heater (https://www.mrheater.com) Huron, South Dakota (https://www.hunthuronsd.com) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Meadow Kouffeld joins the show for an honest and in-depth discussion about ruffed grouse, spruce grouse, woodcock, wildlife biology, conservation, and her career path through the outdoor world. Meadow has devoted much of her life to the birds and understanding them, earning her Master’s degree studying ruffed grouse in northern Minnesota, working for conservation organizations, and teaching college students about our natural resources. She’s also a dog trainer, upland bird hunter, taxidermist, and stands by the motto “live small, do big things.” Presented by Mr. Heater (https://www.mrheater.com) Huron, South Dakota (https://www.hunthuronsd.com) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Scott Rall shares powerful words of wisdom from his 40-year career as a volunteer in the outdoor world.  Scott explains why he pours his heart into the land for others to enjoy, plus his fiancé said yes at Pheasant Fest, tailgating at the PF’s national banquet, winning volunteer of the year, creating a “Dinner in the Wild” experience, keeping his father’s words alive, a Lorax tattoo, and so much more. Presented by Mr. Heater (https://www.mrheater.com) Huron, South Dakota (https://www.hunthuronsd.com) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

We’re LIVE at Pheasant Fest & Quail Classic in Sioux Falls, SD at Remedy Brewing for our 2nd annual game of Upland Trivia with guests Tyler Webster, George Lyall, Scott Fransen & a room full of listeners. Play along & enjoy the camaraderie, competitiveness, trash-talking, laughter & fun as our guests and the audience compete for more than $1K in upland gear. Presented by Mr. Heater (https://www.mrheater.com) Huron, South Dakota (https://www.hunthuronsd.com) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

We start the party early by previewing Pheasant Fest & Quail Classic in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.  Scott Fransen & Tony Jones play a short version of our upland trivia game to get ready for our Friday night live show at Remedy Brewing 611, Travis gets rear-ended, and we share listener stories that will make your day. Presented by Mr. Heater (https://www.mrheater.com) Huron, South Dakota (https://www.hunthuronsd.com) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)   More on Tony Jone's book at: http://GodOfWildPlaces.com

Mr. Jimmy Bryan, owner of Prairie Wildlife in Mississippi, 2023 Quail Forever farmer of the year and avid quail hunter, shares his legendary story of bringing wild bobwhite quail back to Mississippi. Mr. Jimmy explains why quail populations plummeted, why he took a stand to bring them back on his land, how he balances habitat with agriculture on the landscape, working with the state of Mississippi and university biologists, what he’s learned about wild quail, and leaving a legacy. Todd Robinson, operations manager at Prairie Wildlife shares what it’s like working alongside a living legend, and how the quail research on their property will benefit future generations of quail hunters. Presented by Mr. Heater (https://www.mrheater.com) Huron, South Dakota (https://www.hunthuronsd.com) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Guests from our third annual “Hank Hunt” join Travis Frank & Scott Fransen at Prairie Wildlife in Mississippi to share laughs & stories from their bobwhite quail hunt. They also share touching stories about their bird dogs and each hunter explains why they traveled to Mississippi to be a part of this special bird hunting experience and how their dogs have forever impacted their lives. Presented by Mr. Heater (https://www.mrheater.com) Huron, South Dakota (https://www.hunthuronsd.com) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

We celebrate our 200th episode of The Flush podcast with stories from our listeners.  We turn the microphone around and let our regular podcast listeners tell their stories of inspiration, adversity, highlights from the field, interesting dogs, moving to America, coming face to face with a wolf, and moments that will be cherished forever. It’s a milestone episode filled with more highs than lows. Presented by Mr. Heater (https://www.mrheater.com) Huron, South Dakota (https://www.hunthuronsd.com) Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Bob St. Pierre from Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever joins the show to relive memorable moments from a bird hunting season gone by, discuss current and future goals for our favorite habitat organization, and preview the largest gathering of upland bird hunters in the world – also known as Pheasant Fest and Quail Classic.  Presented by Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

On this episode of The Flush Podcast, we turn the mic around and let our podcast listeners speak, sharing their own personal stories from the field.  We hear the good, the scary, the inspirational and the lessons learned in the field - from taking a bullet in the eye to first birds, rescuing a dog caught under the ice, ER visits, finding history, and so much more. Presented by Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Mike Neiduski the new owner of Ugly Dog Hunting joins the show to talk about his journey through the upland world and why he decided to buy an online retail store that provides gear for bird dogs and bird hunters.  Mike talks about his time working for the Ruffed Grouse Society, Pheasants Forever & Quail Forever, what he’s learned about the upland world, and what he’s working on to help us bird hunters and our bird dogs. Presented by Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Travis Frank joins Ryan Newmarker and his hunting buddies at their remote bird hunting camp in Nevada. The crew recaps our first hunt of the new year flushing big-time numbers of chukar and hungarian partridge before sharing wild stories from a lifetime of chasing birds in the mountains. Find out what happens when they come face to face with mountain lions, how Ryan rescued his dog on a cliff after a 150-foot fall, and more! Presented by Hoksey Native Seeds (https://hokseynativeseeds.com/) Ready Rest (https://readyrest.com/) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/) & OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/)

Come for the grouse hunting lessons, and stay for the rattlesnake bite. Ben Brettingen from OnX Hunt joins Travis Frank in Minnesota’s Northwoods for a late-season Christmas Grouse Camp.  Ben & Travis talk about finding incredible ruffed grouse numbers, birds that won’t hold for points, running grouse, and finding ways to outsmart them. Plus, cameraman, Lance Tangen joins the conversation to share stories from more than 20 years of filming outdoor television, including the time he got bit by a rattlesnake in Montana. Presented by Minnesota Deer Hunters Association (https://mndeerhunters.com/,) Federal Premium Ammunition (https://www.federalpremium.com/,) North Dakota Tourism (https://HelloND.com,) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/,) OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/) & Nutri Souce (https://nutrisourcepetfoods.com/)

Rich Wong joins the show to recap a successful hunting season and talk about late-season lessons learned with a young bird dog, how to read your dog in the field, being present in the moment, helping others break into an outdoor career, and special dogs that forever change your lives.  We also throw out Christmas gift ideas for bird hunters, talk bird-dog first aid, and give thanks for time spent in the field. Presented by Minnesota Deer Hunters Association (https://mndeerhunters.com/,) Federal Premium Ammunition (https://www.federalpremium.com/,) North Dakota Tourism (https://HelloND.com,) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/,) OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/) & Nutri Souce (https://nutrisourcepetfoods.com/)

Trevor & Karissa Geiger are passionate upland bird hunters and DIY bird dog trainers who just celebrated their honeymoon with an upland bird hunt in Idaho. Trevor shares their journey into the bird-hunting world and how they’ve grown together as a married couple, dog trainers, and hunters. Travis also opens the show with a scary eye-opening accident. Presented by Minnesota Deer Hunters Association (https://mndeerhunters.com/,) Federal Premium Ammunition (https://www.federalpremium.com/,) North Dakota Tourism (https://HelloND.com,) Aluma (https://www.alumaklm.com,) Walton’s (https://www.waltonsinc.com/,) OnX Maps (https://www.onxmaps.com/) & Nutri Souce (https://nutrisourcepetfoods.com/)