The Western Huntsman Podcast

As September winds down, we are picking up with some September Dreams series, the episodes that tell the story of successful archery elk hunts! In this first installment, I bring on return guest, Jordan Breshears, who drew a somewhat limited tag in Wyoming and notched a tag on a great public land bull. We talk about the terrain, his strategy, some unexpected moments with elk and other hunters, missed opportunities, and how he was able to slip in and stick a solid bull elk with his bow. Shortly

In this final installment of School of September for this season, I offer up a summary of all the SOS episodes of 2026, key takeaways, and remind us all of the three key things that must happen to put a bull on the ground this year. With all the episodes we do around archery elk hunting, it’s easy to get lost in some of the more technical hunting strategies. Simplify your process, focus on the fundamentals, and remember there's more than one way to skin a cat! Good luck out there this September!

Here we are! September has arrived!! I thought it quite fitting to bring on my friend, Tony Gilbertson, for this installment of School of September. Tony is two-time RMEF Elk Calling champ, Husband, Father, Christian, and serves on the Phelps Game Calls Pro Team. In this episode, Tony shares his key strategies for locating bulls, determining their temperament, and how to call in different bulls with different attitudes to within bow range. It’s an excellent conversation and Tony gets right to t

Joel Turner is a former law enforcement officer, sniper, family man, and founder of Shot IQ and Mountain Whisper (MTNWISPR). He’s also one heck of an elk caller! Joel returns to the show with a vengeance, bringing some serious archery shot strategy and calling techniques. He shares a calf in distress call he used to call in 67 bulls last season and it’s one we all need in our back pocket. Joel is a solid American, excellent trainer, and a dude that I’m proud to call my friend. Do not, I repeat,

I came across Austin’s Instagram a while back and hit the follow button. He kept posting interesting, thought provoking, or just flat out entertaining stuff so I decided to invite him on the show. This is often how I end up with guests, sometimes it’s good, sometimes not so much. In this case, I’m sure glad I did! Austin is a guide, hunter, Husband, Father, and downright great dude. This episode kind of bounces all over multiple topics from mule deer management to non-resident hunters to rifle

Back to the show is Jason Phelps, founder of Phelps Game Calls and one of the planet’s best elk callers. For this School of September, I wanted Jason to talk to us about some fundamentals around getting initial responses to elk calls, and he did just that! Jason walks us through his time-tested calls that he has generated the most elk encounters. He talks about his strategy upon leaving the truck in the morning, locating elk, using sign, cow calls, locate bugles, and some out-of-the-box calling

July’s installment of the Hunt & Tag Planner is a bit late, but better late than never! Jordan Christensen with The Draw is back to get us up to speed on tags, draws, bonus and preference point opportunities, and more. Stay on top of your long and short term tag game! Everything you need in one place, click here. Show Sponsors! Phelps Game Calls - The game call company of The Western Huntsman! Whether looking for bugle tubes, deer calls, predator calls, reeds, anything, Phelps Game Calls is

Logan Erdman is a Wyoming hunter, horseman, knifemaker, husband, and much more. He returns to the show after coming on over five years ago! In this episode, Logan and I discuss hunting with horses, grizzly management, hunting in grizzly country, living in the rural American West, and hunters’ behaviour on social media. It’s a robust discussion between two passionate hunters who have concerns about our future. Logan shares some experience with horses and how being in the saddle offers some advan

Zach Bowhay is a lifelong hunter, husband, father, outdoors writer, and return guest on the School of September! In this installment, we cover some season prep items, common elk calling/hunting mistakes, not blowing your shot when a bull is within bow range, calling strategies, and overall hunting tactics with some great elk stories in there! It’s exactly the kind of content I strive to record for these elk hunting episodes and it’s not one you’ll want to miss. Zach is highly credible and knowle

Jermaine Hodge is a return guest for School of September and he doesn’t disappoint! In this episode, we discuss calling strategies, season prep items, snacks to pack on the mountain, cow calls versus bugling, physical preparedness, and his upcoming sheep hunt. Jermaine is a lifelong athlete and sponsored Phelps Game Calls hunter and this episode is loaded with gold nuggets every elk hunter will benefit from! Jermaine on Instagram Show Sponsors! Phelps Game Calls - The game call company of The

Steve Johnson is an old friend and a returning guest… This time for the School of September! In this installment, Steve and I focus on two critical September elk hunting topics; hunting wallows, and calling. Hunting wallows and intuitive calling skills can greatly improve your odds at killing a bull elk this archery season. We talk about the to-do’s and the what not-to-do’s when hunting over wallows. Then, Steve, who just so happens to be one of the most effective elk callers I’ve hunted with,

Lamar Skinner is an honest man. He is unafraid to publicly be vulnerable about his past and is on a mission to help other men. He’s also a fantastic Couse deer hunter in Arizona! He started a movement called Rebuild the Man and joins me this week to discuss it. In this episode, Lamar and I discuss deer hunting, specifically the differences between Couse, Whitetail, and Mule deer hunting as well as some of the differences in hunting various terrain features. We dive into the distortion that happ