Alvaro Mazon + Camino Real || The Helix Program #2

Summary

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Podcast Summary:

The Origins Foundation Podcast – Episode: Alvaro Mazon + Camino Real || The Helix Program #2
Date: May 7, 2026
Host: Robbie (The Origins Foundation)
Guest: Alvaro Mathon, Owner-Operator of Camino Real

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Episode Overview

This episode is part of the Helix Program podcast series, where The Origins Foundation explores the tangible benefits of hunting with outfitters like Alvaro Mathon— for people, wildlife, and rural communities, especially in Spain. The conversation dives deep into how sustainable, ethical hunting can be a catalyst for conservation, cultural continuity, and community economic health both in Alvaro’s home region and internationally.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Background & Introduction to Camino Real

• Alvaro’s Journey (03:13-06:39)
  • Alvaro is a second-generation outfitter; his father and business partner founded Camino Real in 2004, bringing together expertise from veterinary science and finance.
  • In 2018, Alvaro left his previous career to follow his passion for hunting tourism, inspired by his time with Carl Van Zyl at John X Safaris in South Africa.
  • Quote (03:17, Alvaro): “Thank you very much for having us here, Robbie. It’s a great pleasure...what you guys do is fundamental and a way of spreading the word in a different way.”

2. The Structure and Tradition of Hunting in Spain

• Private vs. Public Land & Hunting Culture (10:04-12:58)
  • Hunting in Spain takes place on both private and communal lands. Private landowners invest heavily in wildlife and habitat conservation because hunting gives these lands economic value.
  • Nearly every rural village—no matter how small— has someone with a hunting license, emphasizing deep-rooted cultural connections.
  • Quote (10:31, Alvaro): “If there was no hunting in these private places, there would be no investment or conservation put into these places...every single place relies, even for a small portion of their income, on hunting.”

3. Economic Impact on Rural Communities

• Interwoven Rural Economies (12:58-16:55)
  • Hunting supports local economies beyond outfitters: money flows to guide services, restaurants, bars, accommodations, and even remote gas stations.
  • Stories of hunting parties being the sole guests in otherwise idle hotels highlight the scale of economic influence.
  • Quote (13:55, Alvaro): “There’s always a bar, there’s always a restaurant, there’s always little accommodation where we stay...you’re giving the full experience of being in a very little town, remote place.”
  • Extended impact: Even the most isolated services, like gas stations, see significant indirect support from hunting tourism.

4. Comparative International Perspectives

• Lessons from South Africa & Russia (16:55-20:58)
  • Alvaro’s international experience has shown him that well-run hunting operations can revitalize remote communities worldwide. He shares a vivid story of hunting deep in Russia where the local economy depends entirely on seasonal hunting visitors.
  • Quote (19:45, Alvaro): “The lady that used to take care of us there hadn’t seen anyone for eight months...After a hunt, we would take all the meat so that she could share with her family. The little money we spent there was everything for her.”
  • He describes these regions as more remote than anywhere he’s been in Africa: “It’s like being on Mars.”

5. Community Upliftment & Social Initiatives

• Charity & Social Projects (17:13-21:48)
  • Examples include big game hunts in Spain where all meat is donated to the needy, and large driven hunts (Montería) raising funds for child welfare projects and schools.
  • Alvaro has also contributed to building kitchen/dining facilities for schoolchildren in South Africa, exemplifying hunters’ broader role in community welfare projects.
  • Quote (21:09, Alvaro): “It was an incredible project...as long as the money is put in what we need to do to help as many people as possible.”

6. Reframing the Hunting Narrative

• Challenging Public Perceptions (21:48-23:44)
  • Alvaro and Robbie emphasize the need for hunters to champion their own narrative, focusing on facts and their positive impacts—changing the “killing animals” stereotype.
  • Quote (22:09, Alvaro): “People might not think that’s an important fact of what we do...it’s also important to spread the word of what hunters do.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Alvaro on Cultural Connection: “Spain is a traditional hunters destination...everything related to these remote places and small villages has some kind of relationship with hunting.” (11:45)
• Alvaro on Abandoned Villages: “We drive through villages that are totally abandoned...but the neighbor village with maybe three, five people always has a bar, always has a restaurant.” (13:55)
• Robbie on Economic Impact: “The amount, when you talk about small villages, hunting has a major slice of the pie when it comes to economic impact.” (12:58)
• Alvaro on Russia: “The lady that used to take care of us there hadn’t seen anyone for eight months...the little amount of money we spent was everything for her and her family.” (19:45)
• On Social Projects: “There was a huge event in Madrid...all the meat that was hunted...was given away to the people who really needed it.” (18:19)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:13] – Alvaro’s background & Camino Real’s founding
• [10:04] – Explanation of hunting on private land, Spain’s hunting traditions
• [12:58] – Economic impacts on villages & local businesses
• [16:55] – How hunting supports even gas stations and remote services
• [17:13] – Social projects and meat donations in Spain
• [19:45] – Alvaro’s story of economic dependence on hunting in remote Russia
• [21:09] – Building community facilities in South Africa
• [22:09] – The importance of hunters spreading their true narrative
• [23:44] – Closing remarks and acknowledgment

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Tone & Language

The tone is conversational, informed, and passionate—marked by mutual respect and a shared goal to illuminate the often unspoken positive impacts of hunting. There’s humor and camaraderie (“I have a little wiener dog,” [01:58]), but always returning to the episode’s serious throughline: reframing hunting as a foundation for conservation and rural survival in both traditional and modern contexts.

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Conclusion

This episode provides a nuanced, firsthand look at how ethical hunting, when paired with responsible stewardship, shapes local economies, preserves culture, and uplifts communities—both in Alvaro Mathon’s native Spain and far beyond. It is a call for transparency, advocacy, and pride within the hunting community, inviting listeners to rethink the true footprint of sustainable use.

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Transcript

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[Robbie]

Alvaro Mathon is the owner operator of Camino Real. Camino Real is a part of our Helix program at the Origins foundation and this podcast is a part of the Helix program podcast series in which we get an understanding of the benefits that come from hunting with somebody like Alvaro. What are the benefits to people? What are the benefits to wildlife? What are the benefits to communities? Specifically in Spain, because that's where Camino Real is based on. But you'll hear from Alvaro in some of the places that he's hunted around the world and the benefits that he's seen from hunting with him in these places. So without further ado, Alvaro. So five years ago, there was a reason why I started this movement. And the truth then is the truth now that we need to champion our narrative. We need to champion the truth around what we do and who we are. There's a sweet spot with a gun, you know, too heavy and it's a

[Alvaro Mathon]

burden to walk with. Too light and you whipping it.

[Robbie]

Why is the project so important to the hunting community? It's. It's a. I think it's not only

[Alvaro Mathon]

important, I think it's.

[Robbie]

I think it's vital. I think it's. It's just in time. It's like snakes and ladders. You guys are climbing the ladder and then somebody does something stupid and you just slide. That is such an amazing analogy. Snakes and ladders.

[Alvaro Mathon]

Yeah.

[Robbie]

You know, ivory, in my opinion, was the plastic of its age. Okay.

[Alvaro Mathon]

The expenses are going up. It goes a long way with families. We have families that do need it.

[Robbie]

Let me close this door because I have a little wiener dog. What are you laughing because I said wiener.

[FishingBooker Narrator]

I'm really glad you finished the sentence out.

[Robbie]

I'm sorry the first happened.

[Alvaro Mathon]

What are we doing here today?

[Robbie]

You're telling the whole world. Alvaro Mazon, right? Or am I saying that wrong? Am I saying it? Yes, Correct Spanish. Spanish accent. Alvaro Mazon. Yes.

[Alvaro Mathon]

You guys don't know how to pronounce the Z properly, but that's not a very important thing.

[Robbie]

Tell me, tell me how do you.

[Alvaro Mathon]

It should see, it's It's Mason Mathon.

[Robbie]

Alvaro, Mason from Camino Real in Spain. Welcome to the Origins foundation podcast, specifically the Helix program out for the series that we are doing. You are a member of our Helix program and these podcasts are set up in a way that somebody can get to know you, Alvaro, in what hunting with you does for, for people, for wildlife of communities all over the world or mainly specifically your home territory in Spain.

[Alvaro Mathon]

Right.

[Robbie]

That's where you, you hunt out of the most.

[Alvaro Mathon]

Yes. Well, first of all, thank you very much for having us here, Robbie. It's a great pleasure being part of it and, and contributing to what you guys do, which is fundamental and it's a way of spreading the word in a different way. And I think you guys are doing an excellent job. So thank you very much for considering us.

[Robbie]

You're welcome. And just as a side note, Alvaro is my problem child today. He missed a podcast appointment earlier today. He didn't have signal because he was hunting and so we've made accommodations for him today.

[Alvaro Mathon]

Yes, sorry for that. We are busy in this time of the year. Of the year. We just dropped hunters this today in the airport and we're picking up clients tomorrow. So it's a bit of a hectic time ahead of us, which is something good to have, but sorry for that and yeah, well, as you very well pointed out, we're mostly headquartered in, I mean we're headquartered in Spain. Most of our hunts take place in Spain, but we also do quite a bit of things in Europe, Africa and of course Asia. Mainly focused in mountain hunts all over. So. So yeah, very, very excited.

[Robbie]

You've been outfitting for how long?

[Alvaro Mathon]

For seven years now, time flies.

[Robbie]

I actually had to, but Camino Real had been established already. Right. Your father was an outfit and operator, right?

[Alvaro Mathon]

Correct. Both my dad, whose name is also Alvaro, and Juan Antonio, who's like, I always call him my uncle, he's not actually my uncle, but I've been, I mean both of them established the company back in 2004 for their passion to hunting. They both come from very different backgrounds. One is a very well reputed veterinary and my dad is a guy coming from finance. But due to the experience that they had from hunting all over, they decided it was a very good point to become. They were, they were not actually outfitters in Spain. They would, they, they, they started it as a hunting international hunting agency or consultancy, let's put it that way.

[Robbie]

Right.

[Alvaro Mathon]

Because at the end of the day, and I mean ever since they were very much passionate about, about this job aside of their professional what they really did in the past and in 2015, yeah, 2018, excuse me, I was doing something else and I decided to make a big change in my life and follow my dream which was basically became an outdoor in Spain. And still today I haven't regret my decision. It's been a great decision. I've always have had a good example which as you know was Carl Van Zael from Jon X Safaris. Back when I was a young boy I would spend my summer holidays working with them in South Africa and ever since I said, yeah, I would love to become part of something. So I decided to quit my previous job and do what I do today. I'm very happy to it.

[Robbie]

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[Alvaro Mathon]

I could, from what I've seen in the past, actually have had the, the. I've been very lucky to, to travel a bit with my dog hunting in many places. And I could never imagine with so many problems we had in the past to be able to come across with an outfitter who had everything so much under control like Carl did and his, his pages and everything. I mean, the kind of work they do and the way everything is organized is absolutely brilliant. And I thought it was a very good example of what we all in the industry should be looking forward. They make a big effort in making everything look so smooth and in the end of the day, everyone who hunts there becomes part of a family. It was totally different from what I had seen in the past and I thought it was a good example. I was very young then, I'm still young and I'm trying to follow the example of, of what they do and I, I think they, they do an excellent job and that actually make me like light on my, on my brain and, and wanted to, to follow his path.

[Robbie]

So in Spain, I want to understand a little bit about, you know, what happens as a result of you hunting in Spain. So there's two play, two sort of ways that you hunt in Spain. Number one is you hunt on property that you own or you lease. Your typical roe deer hunting, I assume those private landowners, what are those private landowners doing for wildlife? Are they, are they putting things in place for the habitat for roe deer? What's going on there?

[Alvaro Mathon]

Well, absolutely. I mean, and that could be obviously extra polite or follow the example in the different species that we have in Spain at the moment. We In Spain have 13 different huntable big game species in each of them in various or different parts of the Spanish peninsula or the Spanish country. And yes, you very well point out we have several ways to hunt in these places. One is hunt privately, where we have private landowners who actually take care of everything and they put everything they have to try and take care of those areas just, just for hunting. I mean, if there was no hunting in this private places, there would be no, no investment or no, or no conservation put into these places. But what is more, more important is that that's obviously refers to only private people, but, but there's thousands of little towns and small villages scatter around that country. Every single town or village that you can point with a finger on a map, they somehow rely on hunting. It doesn't matter. There's always someone in these small villages, Whether it's a five people village or a 3,000 people village, there's at least someone who will own, will have a hunting license, will own at least a shotgun or, and, and, and will be a hunter. And I think that's very important for us to highlight because many times in the media we, we hear that there's so much anti hunting going on and blah, blah, blah. But the truth is that Spain is a traditional hunters destination in which every single place relies, even if it's a small portion of their income, they rely in hunting so much that it's part of our culture and it's so important to us all. And in that sense, everything related to these remote places and small villages has some kind of relationship with the hunting world. And that's very important to highlight as well.

[Robbie]

Yeah, you know, it's. When you get into these villages, luckily I've seen some of these villages, obviously there are, there is some sort of tourism happening, right. There's old castles and all those kinds of things and tourists coming in. But you know, the amount when, when you talk about small villages, hunting has a, a major sort of slice of the pie when it comes to the economic impact. Because you know, it's not only you're getting number one, you're getting your quota from the local hunting organization, right. So you're paying the local hunting organization. There's an economic generator there. You've got local guides that go with you, showing you where things are. Afterwards you're having a beer at the local pub in the little village, you're having lunch in the little village. Sometimes you're staying in accommodations in that little village. There's a huge economic generator that happens in these Spanish countrysides, right?

[Alvaro Mathon]

Absolutely, Robbie, you're perfectly right. And what it's very important for everyone to understand is that in many places where we hunt, as you will pointed out, roebucks or even ibex, there's some places where we hunt ibex that we actually drive through. Villages that are totally abandoned, unfortunately. Beautiful villages with hundreds of years old that are falling apart because there's nobody there living anymore. And we are actually there. And even though that specific village might be abandoned, the neighbor village which might hold. And I'm serious, here's Maybe three, five, five people in the village. There's always a bar and there's always a restaurant and there's always little accommodation where we actually stay, which is also very nice for us to offer that kind of experiences to the hunters that we host. Because at the end you're giving the full experience of being in a very little town, remote place. It was very funny with the hunters that we just dropped at the airport. They were saying we went to a very beautiful hotel in the southern part of Spain. We were hunting southeastern ibex and we were just us in the hotel. We were in Easter holidays and everyone was having a great time, close to the villages, close to the beaches on the coast, but no one was in the mountains. And we were the only people in a very beautiful hotel right in the foothills of the south of the Sierra Nevada mountains. And it was just ass. So that gives you a very good idea of how important hunting is. It is for these people. And this is, this was actually a very nice hotel, very. A luxury hotel.

[Robbie]

So it's a, it's a rural economic driver, right, that happens everywhere. It happens in America, happens in Spain, happens in France. It's this, just this. The, the people using the rural countryside would typically are hunters constantly going in there, constantly investing money into the local economy.

[Alvaro Mathon]

So essentially everywhere, everywhere, even if you push it to the furthest point, even the gas stations where you would just drive by. We drive many miles in Spain to drive from one place to the other because all the species are very separated between different mountain ranges. So we drive many miles per day. And many times you just get into your next destination is maybe 10 May, 10pm like you're driving in a very windy road, there's nothing around, and all of a sudden, oh, there's a gas station with a, with a, with an old man that works there. That obviously relies on the people who drive by, which is very, very few people. And most of those will be hunters. So. So, yeah, that gives you a very good idea of what we're talking about. Definitely is a very important thing.

[Robbie]

Alvaro, what else have you seen? You obviously have hunted in South Africa, you've hunted in Russia. Can you give me any specific examples of things that you've seen that hunters have done for people, for communities, Any projects that you've seen?

[Alvaro Mathon]

Oh, absolutely. I mean, there's, there's many, many things going. Going on in Spain. There's, there's, there's a few projects that, that have been going on, but they're, they're very, very focused on Special seasons or special times of the year like Easter or Christmas. And I think there is a lot of opportunity that we have to keep on fighting for and pushing forward so that the non hunting communities can. Can actually see what's going on. Because there's. There's quite a few things. But I think we have to push ourselves to make it even stronger. I'm talking about just staying because I mean as a western country we might be very much focused on other staff and the world goes too quickly and. And there are many things going on like such. For example, there. There was a huge event that took place in Madrid in Christmas time where all the meat that was hunted during a few couple of of treatment hunts were all given away to the. To the people who really needed in. In several places.

[Robbie]

That's cool.

[Alvaro Mathon]

They. There was a very nice big Monteria or driven hunt where all the funds raised were sent to a few organizations that had to do with child racing and schools. And it was phenomenal. But still there is a few things to do. But however, in many other countries that we working, there's. There's many things going on and hunting has become a very important part of it. Last Last August I was hunting in a very remote place of. Of Russia actually. Just to give you an idea. It took us six whole days just to get to the. To the place where we were going to actually hunt and. Six days crazy, six days to to come back. So you can imagine how far east and north of Russia we were. And there everything is. Relies on the hunting, on the hunter hunters that go there. The last village we got to, I mean it was the most remote place. There was nothing. We had to stop there in a little house. They call it hostel. But it was actually nothing close to what a hostel really is. It didn't have any toilets, any bathrooms, any.

[Robbie]

Any.

[Alvaro Mathon]

Any. Any drinkable water. There was nothing but everything that the lady or the. Or the. Yeah. The lady that. That used to take care of us there. She hadn't seen anyone for eight months. Wow. And after. After a hunt we would take all the meat to her so that she could share the. The meat and the. I mean they would take care of everything of course the meat and the skin and the coat and everything of the. Of the animal just to. To have some kind of. Of protein and resources for her. And obviously the. The little amount of money that would we would spend there. It's. It would just be for hair and your family for taking care of us. And that's. That's incredible. Like in you go to the very, it's almost farthest point on Earth, right?

[Robbie]

It's like you don't even think about something like that in Russia, but it's like Africa.

[Alvaro Mathon]

It's way more remote than any place in Africa I've been to, Robbie. It's like being in Mars. And even there everything has to do with the hunting and the hunting community and the hunters are welcome because they know what it's all about.

[Robbie]

That's amazing. Amazing, amazing, amazing. You've also been involved in. You built a school. You helped us build. Not a school, but it's a kitchen area right in John X.

[Alvaro Mathon]

Yes, yes. That was an incredible break that Carl, together with the help of our good friends, ducked from splitting image Taxidermist. They did a fantastic job. And yeah, those kids are having so much fun and such a, I mean such a, such a good project. Of course it's always nice to be part of, of new projects, whether it's in Spain, Europe, Africa. I mean, I don't, we don't really care as long as the money is put in what we, and what we need to do to, to, to make good decisions and good projects to help as many people as possible.

[Robbie]

Yeah, that's what we want, right? And that's what we're showcasing, is showcasing that, you know, hunters are really making a difference. They're really putting their hearts into. Obviously they love to hunt, but there's also the element of economics, the element of community upliftment, the elements of helping people that comes with hunting all over the world.

[Alvaro Mathon]

Well, it's, it's very important. And people might not think that that's also an important fact of, of what we do. And, and, and it's not only important because you're helping people with, with, with, with good facts and, and with, I mean, and, and with, yeah, true facts. But it's also a good way for us as hunters to show the world that it's not just about what people used to think, that it's killing the animal. We do so many things around hunting. I mean, there's social programs going on. We're getting incoming to those places, this place, remote places that we're mentioning that if it was not for hunting or hunters, but there was no way these people would even make a living out of the year. Like this place we're talking about in Russia, the season is just maybe one and a half month after August or September. The temperatures drop to minus 60 degrees. There's no possibility of any human being around. And there's such a remote place so poor people. And it's actually a great gratitude to be part of something that you actually help the people. But it's also, as I say, important to spread the word of what we do and what hunters do and what our features are able to do. And you guys, with all the programs that you're enhancing and that you're promoting, do such a great job.

[Robbie]

Well, thank you, bud. Well, Alvaro Mafon, thank you so much for coming on the Origins Foundation Helix Program podcast series. Camino Real is his operation, his outfit. Check him out if you're going to go hunting in Spain. And obviously, check out what we do at the Helix program in terms of showcasing the proof of what hunting is doing for people, wildlife, and communities all over the world. Alvaro, thank you.

[Alvaro Mathon]

No, thank you very much. That was shorter than what I'd expected.

[Robbie]

Well, that's it for today. I appreciate you listening. As always, leave a review, share it with your friends, and most importantly, do what's right to convey the truth around hunting.