Episodes
-
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Federal Ammunition’s Global Shotgun Shell Director Dan Compton and PF & QF’s Vice President of Corporate Partnership’s Chris Kalis for a conversation about shotshell ballistics, patterning a shotgun, and new ammunition innovations on the horizon.
Episode Highlights:
• Compton provides step-by-step guidance on how to pattern a shotgun with different distances, chokes, and shotshells.
• The guys also discuss Federal Ammunition’s creation of Prairie Storm in 2011 and how it almost got named “Ringneck Rocket.”
• Additionally, Compton reveals that Federal Ammunition will be releasing a bismuth and steel blend of Prairie Storm featuring the Pheasants Forever logo next year.
• Finally, Compton explains how Quail Forever members can help get more QF shotshells on store shelves.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click www.onxmaps.com/hunt/r/p56q9fg to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by “The Captain” Billy Hildebrand and his sons Erik and Chad Hildebrand for a discussion about the ingredients making opening day of a bird hunting season so special. The guys also recap the original PF & QF film, Opening Day, featuring the Hildebrand family’s Minnesota pheasant opener traditions.
Episode Highlights:
• “The Captain” Billy Hildebrand recounts the hilarious story of how he became the host of FAN Outdoors radio on KFAN more than 33 years ago.
• The guys share their favorite memories of bird dogs, hits, misses, mixed bags, wild game meals, and practical jokes. They also talk about their own reactions to watching the film for the first time.
• Thanks to SoundGear and SportDOG BRAND for sponsoring our first installment of our annual Opening Day film and podcast.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Episodes manquant?
-
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by veterinarians Dr. RuthAnn Lobos and Dr. Seth Bynum for the second podcast installment of our “Ask a Vet” video series being presented by Purina Pro Plan to recap video episodes 7 through 12.
Episode Highlights:
Ask a Vet Episode 7 – How can I prevent bad breath? tinyurl.com/4uc5mpn4
Ask a Vet Episode 8 – How much should I feed my bird dog? tinyurl.com/56vv9dsf
Ask a Vet Episode 9 – How do I keep my bird dog fit year-round? tinyurl.com/yy43chb3
Ask a Vet Episode 10 – How do I keep my bird dog hydrated? tinyurl.com/5h463aut
Ask a Vet Episode 11 – How do you deal with heat stress in hunting dogs? tinyurl.com/yc835ce3
Ask a Vet Episode 12 – Should I give my dog the rattlesnake vaccine? tinyurl.com/33ns4c4c
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click www.onxmaps.com/hunt/r/p56q9fg to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Quail Forever Journal Editor Ryan Sparks, QF Program Manager Andy Edwards, and Gun Dog Editor and host of Wild Upland on Outdoor Channel Kali Parmley to preview the 2024 quail hunting season. Each participant also offers their top four quail hunting tips for hunting any of America’s six species of quail during the inaugural game of Quail Hunting Battleship.
Episode Highlights:
• Ryan Sparks kicks off the conversation with an overview of Quail Forever’s 2024 Quail Hunting Forecast based upon input from 28 different states. Edwards follows up with the anecdotal reports he’s heard during conversation with biologists and QF chapter members across the country.
• Parmley talks about how she fell head over heels for bird hunting as an adult through the love of her first bird dog. She also discusses starting with a flushing breed and moving to pointers, and what she enjoys about both styles of bird dogs.
• The group covers a wide array of quail hunting tips, but Sparks steals the episode with his “smoke a cigarette” suggestion. How do lung darts and quail hunting go together? You’re just going to have to listen to this one for it to all make sense.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Pheasants Forever Journal Editor Tom Carpenter, PF & QF Director of Communications Jared Wiklund, and Quail Forever Journal Editor Ryan Sparks to preview the 2024 pheasant hunting season. Each individual also offers their top four pheasant hunting tips during the inaugural game of Pheasant Hunting Battleship.
Episode Highlights:
• Tom Carpenter kicks off the conversation with an overview of Pheasants Forever’s 2024 Pheasant Hunting Forecast based upon biologist input from 22 different states. Wiklund follows up with the “word on the street” based upon anecdotal reports he’s heard in conversations with PF members, landowners, and partners across the country.
• The group covers a wide array of pheasant hunting tips from using the wind and being stealthy quiet to the best days of the week and times of the day to chase roosters.
• This also marks Purina Pro Plan’s inaugural episode as the presenting sponsor of On the Wing podcast. Thanks to Purina Pro Plan’s longtime commitment to PF & QF and our wildlife habitat conservation mission.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Quail Forever Journal Editor Ryan Sparks for a visit with Danielle Prewett about her brand new book, “MeatEater’s Wild + Whole, Seasonal Recipes for the Conscious Cook.” Prewett also discusses her love affair with North Dakota, grasslands, and sharp-tailed grouse.
Episode Highlights:
• One of Prewett’s signature philosophies is that every meal tells a story. She writes about that philosophy in the new Fall 2024 edition of the Quail Forever Journal and explains how a meal is the final chapter to a story connecting people to birds to habitat. This philosophy also mirror’s Sparks’ vision for the Quail Forever Journal’s new recurring feature, “The Hunter’s Table.”
• Prewett also tells a hilarious story of ice fishing on Devil’s Lake during a brutally cold and windy North Dakota winter’s day.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre visits with Matt Holland, Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s vice president of grant development and a wildlife biologist, about the organization’s public land creation efforts in celebration of Build a Wildlife Area Week. The organization first created a public wildlife area in 1986. Since that time, PF & QF has worked on 1,810 different land acquisitions covering 229,846 acres of permanently protected habitat for wildlife. Those acres are now open to public recreation, including hunting.
Episode Highlights:
• St.Pierre approximates that Holland has played a role in the creation of 100,000 acres of public wildlife areas during his 28-year career with “The Habitat Organization.” In an oddly funny comparison, St.Pierre goes on to equate Holland to being a Swiss Army Knife and how sometimes he must be the blade and other times the toothpick to help facilitate a land acquisition.
• Holland shares news of $300,000 in matching contributions to help incentivize donations from listeners interested in becoming “Public Land Creators.”
• To learn more about PF & QF’s Build a Wildlife Area program and to get your hands on a new limited edition coffee mug, please go to www.PheasantsForever.org/BAWA or www.QuailForever.org/BAWA to learn more.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Quail Forever Editor Ryan Sparks for a discussion with professional upland photographers Brian Grossenbacher and Aaron Black-Schmidt. The conversation starts with Sparks sharing his vision for a photo essay to capture a quail hunt from the very beginning to the final meal. The final result of that concept appears in the current edition of the Quail Forever Journal and features multiple images from Grossenbacher and Black-Schmidt.
Episode Highlights:
• Grossenbacher kicks things off with the funny story behind the essay’s lead photo featuring a pair of legs wearing brush pants sticking out from under a jacked-up truck with a flat tire.
• Black-Schmidt, who is also PF & QF’s video production coordinator, talks about his philosophical approach to capturing film and still photography, while also offering practical tips for using the camera phone in everyone’s pocket.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Jon Steigerwaldt, the Ruffed Grouse Society & American Woodcock Society’s forest conservation director for the upper Midwest, to preview the 2024 ruffed grouse hunting season. Jon describes the ideal habitat for ruffed grouse and woodcock, and offers plenty of tips to find more birds this season. The guys also discuss new projects in Michigan, Indiana, and Pennsylvania getting underway because of the recent memorandum of understanding (MOU) between PF & QF and RGS & AWS.
Episode Highlights:
• Steigerwaldt talks about the science behind ruffed grouse drumming counts and what they indicate about bird survival through the winter, but what drumming counts don’t tell biologists about the population heading into autumn hunting seasons.
• Steigerwaldt also talks about the 10-year ruffed grouse population cycle and how climate change is influencing swings up and down.
• Learn more about the Ruffed Grouse Society & American Woodcock Society and check out their current membership offer at www.RuffedGrouseSociety.org.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Pheasants Forever Editor Tom Carpenter and Quail Forever Editor Ryan Sparks for a conversation with professional dog trainer Clyde Vetter, who also happens to be husband to PF & QF President and Chief Executive Officer Marilyn Vetter. Each member of this conversation also considers themselves prairie grouse hunting junkies, so they provide a forecast for the 2024 sharp-tailed grouse and greater prairie chicken hunting season and weave their hunting tips into a game of Prairie Grouse Battleship.
Episode Highlights:
• The group plays four rounds of “Prairie Grouse Battleship” in which each participant provides a fresh hunting tip for sharpies and/or chickens in hopes of scoring points for tips the other competitors don’t have on their lists.
• This episode marks the introduction of the brand new “Premium Moments in the Field” stories from Grain Belt Premium, “The Pheasant Friendly Beer.”
• Check out the state-by-state prairie grouse hunting forecast at www.PheasantsForever.org/Primer presented by Sportsman’s Guide.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s newly elected national board chair Jerrod Burke and vice chair Dan Forster. Burke hails from southwest Nebraska where he farms, works on habitat, and bird hunts. Forster is a biologist from Georgia where he chases bobwhite quail, ducks, and alligators.
Episode Highlights:
• Burke and Forster talk about their professional, conservation, bird dog, and hunting backgrounds, then they explain the board of directors’ role in helping guide the organization’s vision for delivering its’ habitat mission.
• Unable to help himself, St.Pierre’s fascination with alligator hunting leads him to keep bringing the conversation back to gator hunting in Georgia, which will likely result in this edition of the podcast being referred to as “The Gator Episode.”
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link: https://www.onxmaps.com/hunt/r/p56q9fg to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre visits with Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever National Board member Thomas Harris about quail, bird dogs, wildlife art, and his commitment to volunteering. A passionate Alabamian, Harris talks about a very personal connection to his quail hunting property, and how his conservation ethic resulted in being named the Alabama Conservationist of the Year for 2019 as recognized by the Alabama Wildlife Federation.
Episode Highlights:
• Harris talks about growing up outdoors and how that upbringing was the impetus for the creation of Alabama Blackbelt Adventures in 2009.
• Harris also previews the Wetumka Wildlife Arts Festival coming up on October 19th featuring PF & QF President and CEO Marilyn Vetter.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
We’ve assembled a special upland bird hunter’s super show episode with Travis Frank of The Flush and Nick Larson of Birdshot Podcast for a conversation focused on the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ new Bird Hunter Diary app and ruffed grouse drumming counts. Joining the conversation from the Minnesota DNR are Assistant Area Wildlife Manager for northeast Minnesota Bailey Petersen and Resident Game Bird Consultant Nate Huck.
Episode Highlights:
• On the Wing host Bob St.Pierre kicks off the show with a recap of his recent visit to Washington, D.C. to moderate a panel focused on the idea of a North American Grasslands Conservation Act and to talk with elected officials about a new federal farm bill.
• The conversation then jumps into Minnesota’s eye-popping ruffed grouse drumming counts indicating the highest adult carryover of birds since 1972. Peterson, a wildlife biologist, explains what those counts do AND don’t indicate for the upcoming hunting season.
• Huck provides an overview of Minnesota’s new Bird Hunter Diary, what the state is looking to measure through the app, and how all upland hunters can help provide better data through citizen science.
✓ The Minnesota DNR’s Bird Hunter Diary is available at https://tinyurl.com/2nbdyz6p
✓ The Flush podcast is available at www.theflush.tv
✓ The Birdshot Podcast is available at www.birdshotpodcast.com
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home.
To get a free month of onX Hunt, go to https://www.onxmaps.com/hunt/r/p56q9fg and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever Vice President of Government Affairs Ariel Wiegard for a conversation in Washington, D.C. with U.S. Senate Agriculture Chair Debbie Stabenow focused on farm bill legislation. A democrat from Michigan, Chairwoman Stabenow talks about the bi-partisan nature of the farm bill’s conservation title II and the legislation’s intersection between farming, ranching, hunting, and fishing.
Episode Highlights:
• St.Pierre plays a fun game of “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” based upon a famous baseball player from Senator Stabenow’s hometown of Clare, Michigan.
• Chairwoman Stabenow explains how her proposed farm bill legislation would increase funding and acres for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP).
• Chairwoman Stabenow talks about the importance of seizing the opportunity to integrate Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding into the farm bill’s conservation baseline before the end of the year or else that opportunity disappears forever.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever Vice President of Government Affairs Ariel Wiegard for a conversation in Washington, D.C. with U.S. House Agriculture Chair Glenn “GT” Thompson focused on farm bill legislation. A republican from rural Pennsylvania, Chairman Thompson talks about the bi-partisan nature of the farm bill’s conservation title II and the legislation’s intersection between farming, ranching, hunting, and fishing.
Episode Highlights:
• Chairman Thompson kicks off the conversation with a story of how his shotgun ended up in Jamaica on his way to a duck hunt in Arkansas that nearly resulted in him bringing home a new Labrador retriever puppy from a Ducks Unlimited banquet.
• Chairman Thompson talks about his work on the House’s farm bill language that includes improved soil rental rates for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and a tripling in funding for Voluntary Public Access – Habitat Incentives Program (VPA-HIP).
• Chairman Thompson also “handicaps the race” to get a new farm bill across the finish line before the current bill expires.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever President & Chief Executive Officer Marilyn Vetter for a conversation in which she reflects on her first year in the organization’s top leadership role. The pair also detail the vision, mission, values, and four strategic priorities comprising the organization’s new strategic plan themed “Building Forever.” Episode Highlights:• St.Pierre asks Vetter to share stories from her first year as “The Habitat Organization’s” leader; including the significant moments, times of frustration, best advice received, and favorite hunt. • Despite the organization already having a strategic plan in place, Vetter explains her philosophy behind initiating a revitalized strategic plan with a larger collection of PF & QF employee executives focused on the following quote from business leader and inspirational speaker Simon Sinek, “If a movement is to have an impact, it must belong to those who join it not just those who lead it.” • Vetter goes on to explain why the organization’s wildlife habitat mission isn’t changing, but how increasing a reliance on science-based decision-making and improving accountability sharpened the organization’s focus on four strategic priorities, which include: a. Increase & improve wildlife HABITAT on public and private landsb. Advance conservation POLICIES and program fundingc. Expand public ACCESS to upland wildlife habitatd. Expand, educate and engage the upland conservation COMMUNITY Learn more about PF & QF’s new strategic plan by reading “Aiming High,” an excerpt from the Pheasants Forever Journal. onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission.
-
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Pheasants Forever Journal Editor Tom Carpenter and Quail Forever Journal Editor Ryan Sparks for the first-ever meeting of the Upland Bird Hunters’ Book Club. The conversation starts with a discussion about Norman Maclean’s A River Runs Through It and how that book, and subsequent movie, changed the general public’s perception of fly fishing. St.Pierre poses the question, “has the upland bird hunting version of that classic narrative been written yet?”
Episode Highlights:
• The “national treasure” Tom Carpenter dives deep into his bookcase of classics with personal tales, including a story of his cherished friendship with renowned bird hunting writer Ben O. Williams.
• Sparks covers a wide array of genres with his selections as his top five picks include a cookbook, a collection of essays, a couple of classics, and even a wacky fiction where a wealthy English hunter is reincarnated as a pheasant on his own hunting estate.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Yia Vang, a Hmong American chef, restaurant owner, and host of Outdoor Channel’s television show “Feral.” Vang talks about growing up as a small game hunter, going on his first pheasant hunt in Wisconsin, and his perspective on the Hmong “balanced” approach to food.
Episode Highlights:
• Vang talks about his journey from college to chef and food truck operator to the owner of a new restaurant, Vinai, in Minneapolis.
• Vang also explains how Andrew Zimmern’s producers “discovered” him, which led to “Feral.”
• WATCH Vang make pheasant fried rice, which is featured in the new PF & QF Upland Bird Hunting Super issue.
onX Hunt is a proud supporter of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever and they want to thank everyone who gives back to the birds we all love to hunt and the places they call home. Click this link to get a free month of onX Hunt and then use code PFQF to get 20% off, and a portion will go back to supporting Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s wildlife habitat mission. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by the husband-and-wife dog training duo Susanna and Ronnie Smith. Ronnie comes from a long line of famous bird dog trainers that includes his father, Ronnie Sr., his uncle Delmar, and his cousin Rick. The couple talk about falling in love when Susanna brought her young German shorthaired pointer pup to Ronnie for training. This is their touching love story filled with bird dog conversation and priceless bird dog training tips.
Episode Highlights:
• Susanna shares her story of growing up as a ranching kid in Texas, moving to Washington, D.C. to work for the House Committee on Agriculture, then coming back home to her roots to work livestock, horses, and dogs.
• Ronnie shares a few fun stories about guiding President George H. Bush, President George W. Bush, NFL Hall of Famer Lynn Swann, and astronaut Eugene Cernan on Texas quail hunts.
• The couple also share how the COVID pandemic changed the way they approached training a bird dog.
• The Smiths are members of the Purina Pro Plan Pro Staff, check out this video about their story and learn more about the Smiths at their website. -
Host Bob St.Pierre is joined by Travis Frank, host of The Flush, to preview the television show’s new 2024 season on Outdoor Channel. The guys kick off the conversation with a fun debate about which characters they most resemble from 1990’s sitcoms, then talk about their philosophical differences in approaching podcast preparations. The highlight of the episode comes with Travis discussing his personal trepidation about filming his son’s first pheasant hunt and the joy he experiences raising two daughters and two sons as hunters and anglers. Travis also shares the horrific experience of getting a fishhook in his eye and his miraculous recovery.
The Flush 2024 Season Lineup
Week 1 July 1 Alberta Huns & Fowl
Week 2 July 8 Superior Trail Ruffed Grouse
Week 3 July 15 North Dakota Sharpies & Huns
Week 4 July 22 Minnesota’s First CRP Farmer
Week 5 July 29 Kansas Quail
Week 6 August 5 Marilyn Vetter as PF & QF’s New President & CEO
Week 7 August 12 Traveling Grouse Guide
Week 8 August 19 A Boy’s First Pheasant
Week 9 August 26 Iowa Pheasant Roadtrip
Week 10 September 2 Idaho Quail Nightmare
Week 11 September 9 Christmas Grouse Camp
Week 12 September 16 Hank Hunt #3 at Prairie Wildlife Lodge
Week 13 September 23 A Young Chukar Hunting Phenom
The Flush airs on Outdoor Channel at the following times (Eastern):
• Mondays at 9:30am
• Wednesdays at 12:30pm
• Fridays at 11:30am
• Saturdays at 8:30am
• Sundays at 6:30am - Montre plus
