← Live Wild with Remi Warren
Live Wild with Remi Warren
Ep. 162 | The 10 Best Hunting Tips of the Year
01:16:54
Remi gives his 10 best hunting tips for this year.
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Remy Warren
Foreign I'm Remy Warren and I've lived my life in the wild as a professional guide and hunter. I've spent thousands of days perfecting my craft. I want to give that knowledge to you. In this podcast, we relive some of my past adventures as I give you practical hunting tips to make you more successful. Whether you're just getting started or a lifelong hunter, this podcast will bring you along on the hunt and teach you how to Live Wild. This podcast is brought to you by Mountain Tough and Yeti. A lot of the tactics I talk about here require you to be in top physical shape. So I partnered with Mountain Tough to help get you ready for the mountain with their science based hunter specific training app. You'll get in shape and mentally tough able to tackle any hunt. Because we really believe this will help you be more successful as a listener to this podcast, we're giving you six free weeks to get you started. Just use code livewild. Well everyone, welcome back to Live Wild podcast. Man, I can't believe this is already the last podcast of 2024. And today we're just going to kind of look at this past year in the rear view mirror. You know, had a lot of awesome hunts and for me, honestly, 2024 is going to go down as one of my best seasons to date. I mean, just thinking about all the things that happened this year and hunts passed, this is, this was definitely one of my better years. I just had some great tags and a lot of things went right for me this year and of course there were some challenges, but things really fell into place. So I'm going to go through the season and look at a few of the wins and some of the biggest lessons and takeaways from this past year. I really want to look at some of the things that I could possibly replicate going into 2025 as we dive into this year in review Foreign it's always fun to kind of go back and think about the past season. I, I think since I've been doing the podcast, I, I kind of always, at the end of the year, do a little bit of a recap because looking at the season as a whole, there's some wins, there's some losses, there's some draws, right? And it, it's always awesome to kind of go back and compare things year over year and, and kind of just be honest and look at, okay, what happened and how can we become better. The whole point of this podcast is to use that time in the field to learn from it and then to just be Better to be more successful overall. And if you guys remember, my Last recap from 2023, it was a rough season. I went in from one of my hardest seasons to kind of skyrocketing into my best season. And comparing the two years is always fun as well, because last year, 2023, it was like the best season on paper. I said I, like, had some incredible tags. For all intents and purposes, it should have been the most epic year I've ever had. And it was just like struggle hunt after struggle hunt, a few unfilled tags, you know, things. A lot of things that went wrong. Well, Murphy kept trying to stick it to me, and then, you know, kind of going into that this year going like, I do not. I can't do another season like last year. Right. Like, you just. Just seem like struggle bus after struggle bus. And then this year, complete 180 for me. And which is actually kind of surprising for this year because not a lot of the conditions were great this season, but yet I kept having phenomenal hunt after phenomenal hunt. You know, when I. When I look back at, like, some of the themes of this year, it was a lot of hot days, a lot of abnormally warm weather, and then the full moon kind of hitting in peak elk rut. Like bad timing for a full moon combined with hot weather. But yet a lot of things went right. And I think that a lot of that was due to maybe some in season adjustment on tactics. Right. So I. I did. I think we'll kind of go through a little bit of, like, the progression of the season. I'll highlight some of my favorite hunts. Maybe not talk about all the hunts, but, you know, kind of just do a little bit of a recap, a lot of the stories I've told in previous podcasts. But also, you know, there's quite a few hunts that I haven't even talked about on the podcast yet. Just kind of been in the middle of the season and moving forward and have podcasts planned to kind of share some of those stories here in the near future. But 2024 started off different. It was like New Year's Day. I'm coming out of 2023. New Year's Day. I had a deer tag that ended on New Year's Day last year. And actually I'm. The film is going to be edited and available for New Year's this year. So if you got some time, you're sitting around, you got a little bit of time off, you can watch that New Year's Day hunt here this week. But one of the things that, you know, I kind of went in, like, I think this particular mule deer tag. I'd hunted over two season, like, so close to 20 days, and just, you know, wasn't turning up what I was hoping to turn up. And just struggling. And it was like New Year's Day. My wife was with me. It's the last day of the season, and we're like, all right. It was just. It's time to. To find a deer and. And be successful and start this year off right and got a buck. And actually, which is funny because it was probably. I've. I think. I don't even know if I've said this before, but I've eaten a lot of game meat in my life, right? Every species. Axis deer, elk, whatever. This particular mule deer was the single best wild game meat I've ever. Like, the single best animal I've ever had. Which is surprising because I was actually. I think I've mentioned this before, but I was, like, cutting this buck up for sausage because I was like, oh, I want. We're out of chorizo. And I wanted to make some more chorizo. We go through a lot of chorizo, and I'm like, prepping this whole thing for chorizo. And then we didn't have anything defrosted, so some of the meat, I kind of like, I'd already cubed it up, and I thought, I'm just gonna make some Philly cheesesteaks for dinner. We'll see how they turn out. And my wife and I are like, is this just that meal deer that we. We just got? Like, this thing is insane. We ate that whole deer before freezing it. For the most part. I. I left a little bit to grind later and ended up freezing, like, some of the stuff. But. But what was going to be an entire sausage deer? Like, this is the best meat. Like, we had. I had some friends over and, like, try this. Just tell. Like, everybody was going, this is insane. Why is this so? I don't know. What did it have? Cwd. Is the CWD deer. The. Like, the. The design? I don't know. That's a joke. I'm just joking. I don't know what made that mule deer so delicious. It was, like, the single best. Probably one of the best game animals I've ever eaten. Probably until the muskox this year. I mean, that. That meat was phenomenal. But, man, I don't know. I would, like, if I could just. Every animal I took was that mule deer. I'd be okay with it. It was phenomenal. So started the year off right. Had to kind of knock the funk off and find some success. And then kind of transitioned into that early part of the year and I had a few hunts planned. I. I was fortunate enough to be able to go on that muskox hunt which just released a video of. And that was like, you know, it was more of an expedition adventure kind of thing. Like just trying something different new. The opportunity presented itself and it was one of those things that I've like. I think muskox are the coolest freaking animal on the planet. Like they just. If I could go back and hunt the ice age, I would. Right. If you. It's like going back in time and such a cool animal and then just such a unique place. Like I, I actually did not. I wasn't really. I think it was like a one and done kind of hunt where you're like, all right, it, this place is freezing, it's barren. It's rough. Like traveling out there. It's just one of those things like where you aren't really looking forward to that portion of it. But I wanted to do it, to experience it. And so it was, it was really cool. I think that like the entire cultural aspect of just being up there was worth the trip. You know, shooting the muskox was great, but it wasn't like. It was in some ways a little bit anti climatic of like the stock and the whole like portion of it. And I've talked about this on, on the podcast before but like the actual being in the Arctic, I would actually like to go back in a weird way. Like it was, it was a really cool just to be up there. I think it'd be cool to do like a, almost like a ski expedition up there or something like that. Like cross country. Go from like a village to a village or what have you. Be kind of interesting pret different. Like it's just a, a wild place up there. And then like I said, I mean that I just finished the last of the musko. Right. Well, this. Yesterday I had a Christmas party and I served some of it at that and then I had the two tenderloins left. It's hands down that is the best meat that I have. Game meat that I think I've had is tender. It's almost like more marbled fat. Like it had this very. I actually, you know, as somebody that primarily lives off wild game, I don't dislike beef. I love beef. It's, you know, it's really good. You know, it's fatty, it's good. It's whatever. It can be pretty tender. And this muskox had, like, that beef flavor. Like, I'd say better than bison steak. And yet it was probably one of the most tender pieces of meat. And I've heard that it could be real tough. And my theory. Maybe I've talked about this. My theory was that it's tough because you shoot them when it's like, negative 50 out and it freezes right away. So I kind of devised a way to take a few of the cuts, the prime cuts, back straps, and tenderloins. To keep my batteries warm, I devise a little, like, warm box where I took a yeti backpack cooler. Is the hopper backflip kind of backpack cooler. And then I put bottle of boiling water in there just out of my yonder bottle so it could radiate that heat. Did a couple of those and then stuffed in that cooler and then stuffed like jackets and killed all the airspace and then sealed it up to keep my batteries from getting cold for the cameras, because it just zaps your battery life, and then you can't film or what have you. And so I utilized that same technique to keep the meat from freezing right away. Some special cuts. And then we got back and then was able to kind of keep it controlled the temperature so it didn't freeze. So what cold shortening is. Is. Is where the meat freezes before the rigor has time to break down. And, like, thinking back, I've had one elk where that happened to. It was just a really cold elk hunt, and it froze pretty much immediately. And that was the worst tasting elk. I've only ever had one bad elk, and that was it. Like, it tasted so gamey. It was just. It was not good. It was tough. It's just like. I did not like it. It was terrible. I ended up grinding the whole thing into, like, sausage and stuff, and it was still barely palatable. Like, it just. I've never had a bad elk, except for that one elk. And so my theory was like, I wonder if muskox gets a little bit of a bad rap sometimes because of that happening. Everything that I had was some of the most tender meat I've ever had for wild game. Like, it was. It's phenomenal. I could still say that because I just, like, crushed it last night. The rest of it. Oh, yeah. I kept those two tenderloins, and I was like, these are. I pretty much ate them myself. I shared them with my. My family. But, man, it was so good. So did that hunt and came back and. And then did a hunt with a hunt winner in New Zealand for fallow deer, which was a lot of fun. I'll have to do another one of those again. Like I don't know if you guys would be interested in a hunt giveaway. Go hunting with me somewhere. It was a lot of fun being able to do it in New Zealand. And while on that hunt I also did had an archery, decided to go hunt faladier with my bow for myself. Like did a little solo film. And it was like the last evening of the last day. I ended up getting a really good buck with my bow. And one of the things that I think this hunt was kind of a blessing in a way to set the season into a good motion, especially bow season, because I was, I was stalking this really good fallow buck. And it was. You guys might remember this from the video or whatever, but this was like a key moment that was continually in my head throughout the rest of the season. And so what it. I'll just kind of recap it of what happened was I saw the buck coming my way. I decided to like drop around and cut him off. I go and there's like this rock pile and I almost thought like oh, maybe stop here. But I ended up continuing around and popping up and the buck came over the hill at the same time. It'd be 20 yards away and caught me and I'm out in the open. And had I just taken a minute to really like assess the situation as I'm moving in, I got kind of hyper focused and I moved in too close. Now if I wasn't filming, I actually would have been able to kill that buck because I could have got down, drawn back and done a like he was curious enough that he would have come right over the rise and I could have got a shot, a frontal shot, but a pretty close, probably like 18 yard shot. Had I just stopped at that rock pile, I would have had a perfect 25, 30 yard broadside shot. As he kept coming over. And you know, in the moment it seemed like that was so far away from where I was trying to get to. But if I would have just stopped and like kind of ranged some things on the way which I would normally do and look at the big picture. I just got so focused in that I really shot myself in the foot and blew a good opportunity. Didn't think I was going to get another chance. And the last evening of the last day happened to, to thankfully get a big buck. And it's a long way to go and, you know, to just have that, like, to come home from that with just the failure portion of, like, dang it, I screwed up bad, would have sucked. But that kind of moment was very pivotal, I think, in the season because I continually thought about that. I was like, dude, you gotta pay attention. Like, I know that I gotta pay a certain level of attention and not get tunnel vision and that, you know, it just like, it happens. And so that happening then really kind of was in my mind throughout the rest of the season. And I think that that led to a ton of success throughout the rest of the year. And one of the things that I kind of highlighted as a good reminder and a good moment in a good time. One of the things that was a little bit different about this season was I actually had a lot of early season elk hunting. It was one of those years, I guess. Like, one of the things about this season which kind of set it apart from others is I had a few hunts planned because in the past, they've been hard. Like, I struck out on tags. You know, it's harder and harder to get tags. But also often there's. I've been applying in nearly every state for. Since I was pretty much 16 years old. So I've got, like, some states, I've got 20 some odd points just built up that I haven't been able to kind of cash in on because I'm always guiding during that time frame. So I was able this year. I have some of my guides kind of take over a little bit more in the outfitting and. And so I didn't have to be guiding every week. And that kind of opened up the opportunity for me to apply for some stuff that maybe I was just doing points only or, you know, the idea of, like, okay, I'm gonna ca a little bit of stuff. And so I had some hunts planned already and then decided to also cash in a few points and then just, I think time and applying, like, some luck as well, drew some really good tags. So my hunt, like, in a way, like, I don't mean, like, sometimes these, like, recaps, you know, like, they can seem like braggadocious, like, look what I got or look what I did. And I don't want it to be like that because, you know, I'm very thankful for every opportunity I've ever been given. But it was one of those crazy years where, you know, I kind of said, like, it'll happen one year and it might just, you know, happen again, because I do have a lot of points, but like, almost like where I kind of drew everything. Like I started checking draw results, being like, damn it, I hope I don't draw this because these are tags that I've been applying for for 20, almost, maybe more years, almost 30 years in some cases. And it's like, well, I get, yeah, 24, 25 years applying for some of this stuff. You're like, dude, I don't want to draw a bunch of these at once and not be able to do them justice. Like, not be able to put in the time because I gotta run from this thing to that thing or have a once in a lifetime tag and not be able to, to whatever. It's a problem. I've, you know, it's like, this is a good problem to have. These are, these are great problems. You know, 99 problems in a tag ain't one this year. Right? Like, that's not the case most years. So, you know, I, I, I did cash in on some points and then I drew some like, some just oddball stuff that like, didn't even kind of really foresee. So my like hunt schedule is pretty stacked this year, which is, you know, almost to the point where it was just too much. I actually did draw some tags and the, the places where I could return tags I actually did to try to get my points back. And so I had this early season hunt plan which was like an over the counter depredation type elk hunt in July and went out with Adam Weatherby and, and we hunted that and it was like one of those, you know, fairly probably low success type deals. But you know, we made good on it. Like we found some good bulls and, and harvested some elk and it was just really cool being able to hunt that early and, and I like that kind of like big glassing. I'm used to like hot weather hunting, early season hunting. And that was one of those where I like passed up a bull the first day and probably should have shot it, but that's just how I am. Right? Like I talked about that this year too, or the kind of passing up and then maybe regretting that decision later or whatever kind of going into the hunt and knowing like, okay, here's what I'm looking for and find it. Let's, you know, make it happen. Sometimes I'm like, oh, it happened too early. Let's keep hunting. And then you're hunting for another week not finding what you're looking for, which kind of happened on my moose hunt as well. But you know, that that hunt was successful and then went into a tule elk hunt, which was a phenomenal hunt, ended up finding a good bull and thinking about that kind of earlier. Like a lot of things built on each other. Generally I don't shoot things on the first day. I, I took that elk on the first day because I had that opportunity and it was a good bull. It was something that I would have been happy with. Five, six days later, it's like, let's go and see if we can, we can get in on him and you know, made it, made a good shot. I think, like it was a windy kind of setup, you know, snuck over the cliff and it just like presented himself. 30 yards away is just like everything lined up perfect from there. Ran into, you know, early mule deer hunt, archery season. So one of the things that, in the off season and during the practice season, so my wife and I both had this tag and we had it as a party tag. So we both had, each had our own tag. And my emphasis was trying to get her a buck with the bow. This was like her first bow hunt where she wasn't pregnant, which was cool. And so we're out there, we're hunting, trying to get her a deer. And I didn't really, you know, plan on doing any saga. Like if we see a good, good mature buck, I'll go after it. But, you know, I was just more focused on trying to get her a deer. And, and honestly, like, we didn't really turn up any of those bigger bucks, but also we were, you know, like seeing nice bucks and she was stalking them. So we didn't really put in the time to, to look for those better age class deer. Like, you got to pass up a lot of good bucks and just continue to look to find those, those better deer. But one of the things that we, you know, I stressed prior to that because she also drew like a, a really good elk tag. And so one of the things that she, I, I had her practice a lot was just shooting in those. I got her a single fixed pin site like myself. I use the Spot Hog Fast Eddie xl. But then I, I actually got the new Boonie. I guess it's called the Boonie. I'm not really sure, but at the same, same concept, like a single pin with two indicators. And then on my dial it tells you what those two indicators are. And then she has essentially the same site, an older version of it. She has the, the Fast Eddie. And so one of the things that I wanted to stress for her, especially for the elk hunt was practicing shooting those kind of off ranges. So like, let's say your. Your pin's set for 30, and a bull's out at 40 or the opposite. Like, let's say your pin's set for 40 and the bull is at 60. Let's say your pin set for 40 and the bulls at 20. Shooting. Shooting that gap, knowing that trajectory. And we practiced that a lot. And while she was practicing it, I was practicing it, kind of just going through the basics. And that's a thing that I like to do a lot, especially if I get a new bow. One of the things that I. I liked about this season was I had a new bow. I had that lift x. But I also was familiar with it because I had the lift the year before. And really, the difference was being able to adjust those cams. So I spent a lot of time broadhead tuning at farther distances. Like, I got my bow dialed and. And tuned the broadheads and my field tips at 60 yards, which, I mean, the amount of, like, being able to have a bow that's shooting perfectly tuned and then broadhead tuning it like that at that distance means that the margin for error on those shots of, like, bad form, bad grip angles, whatever, decreases. And so in. In a lot of ways, that increases your ability to kind of accurately be in the kill zone and make better shots, which we can talk about all this stuff later. Kind of when I go into the 10 things I learned, I think that this is. This is big of something to think about going into the next season. But we practice those a lot. And so last day of the hunt, kind of a recap. But the. My wife didn't end up getting a deer. We're on our way out. I'm like, we had to go pick up the kids. We have somebody watching them. And we're supposed to leave that morning, but we're checking. We're like, let's look at one more spot. And I walk off to go to the bathroom, and she spots, like, the biggest buck of the trip. It's like, you got to stock him. So she watches him. She thinks he's like. She's like, I'm pretty sure he bedded in this spot. I haven't seen him come out. I stalk over there, get into position, sit on him, wait, get the buck up. Because I'm like, we're running out of time. And it was a good deer, but also, like, anything could happen. I could sit there for six more hours. Wind could swirl and blow it anyways. So I decided to huck a little rock, which was a good idea because it Worked, but he blew out. I grunted and stopped him. I'm already at full draw. My pin was set for 30 yards. He was 50, which I, I, I, it was kind of like a estimate, but I'd ranged. I mean, I was sitting there for like at least an hour, maybe longer, ranging around and I mean, just made an absolute perfect, like, could not have placed that arrow any better. Perfect shot. And really, I just attribute that to just being super familiar with the boat and shooting that time and time again. I mean, I have a, it was a downhill shot, I take it actually was pretty perfect because I have a target that I shoot at a lot that's like right at 50 yards. And I had set my pin at 30 and you know, knew the holdover. Like my top pin was 30, my bottom was right about 42. And, and so knowing like, where to hold, I mean, it just made like all the difference. And then the same exact thing kind of happened to my wife's elk hunt and she made a phenomenal shot. So that was like something, you know, kind of a little bit of a takeaway that in those two hunts just paid huge dividends. And then my wife's elk hunt this year was, was definitely one for the books. Like that was if you're in this season, which was a phenomenal year. I had some incredible hunts, like some true once in a lifetime hunts. I, I drew a moose tag, a shirus moose tag, and I got to hunt a tuli elk this year. Like some true once in a lifetime hunts. But out of all the hunts, my favorite was my wife's elk. It was just, I don't even know, like, I was so excited. It's funny too, because we, we talk about it in that video. We just kind of like left it pretty as it happened. I mean, cut out a lot of the sitting and waiting because probably most people wouldn't want to sit there for 15 minutes watching that elk stare at us, which maybe you would. It's, it's a pretty cool, like, encounter. We left it fairly long though, so you could kind of get an idea of that suspense and like, what was going down. But like, you know, like, I just was, I was pretty dang excited when it worked out because you go from like, not thinking it's going to work out to end up. She got like the best bull in that canyon with her bow. Made a perfect shot. Like everything that we, we hoped and prayed for for that hunt and it, and, and it happened. And so like, it was just, it was so exciting. Like, I, I, we We talk about that hunt, every one of those. Like, maybe one of the reasons too, that, like, such a great season, like, the way that. That. That all panned out was. Was phenomenal. But, you know, like, honestly had just a lot of. A lot of good success this season and a lot of things that went right now. Probably one of my hardest hunts, in a way, like the one that took the most time was my moose hunt. I dedicated a lot of time to it, but it was one where I. I passed up a bull the first day, and then just like a comedy of errors in another. A couple other scen kind of led to not harvesting. And then toward the last. What. What would have kind of technically, not technically the last day, like, season continued, but it was pretty much the end for me. Like, I was leaving the next morning. So essentially my last day was I ended up getting a moose, which I wasn't going to go unsuccessful on that hunt. I. I was gonna do what it took, but I did have to leave and then come back and it would just been. It would have been tough. Like, would it. I think the type of moose that I would have got would have drastically gone downhill after that. I talked about it on a podcast of like, you know, thinking about the kind of, like, maybe I shouldn't have passed up bull. But I, you know, I'm glad that I did because I got. I kind of got to see the whole. The whole thing, right? Like, I got to experience that hunt and got the hunt out of it that I wanted. But it was one of those where you're kind of like, kicking yourself every day for 12 days, 13, whatever it was going. Did I just make the biggest mistake ever and it ended up working out. I will say one of my. I pretty much filled all the tags that I had except for one, like, at a Utah muzzleloader deer hunt. And I haven't shared the. The hunt story yet. I. I think I'll do that, like, kind of in the beginning of the year because I've got some podcasts planned out. But spoiler alert, I. I was unsuccessful. And another spoiler alert, I actually did shoot it a buck on the last evening of the last day. And like, not getting the buck was probably a couple things. Like, the shot was very difficult. I'm not like, bummed that I. I took the shot. I'm glad that I, you know, like, I actually thought that I got it, but it just went right over its back. But, like, the. I can't. I don't want to, like, give away the story, but like, an absolute, like, last evening, last day, going after a buck. This should pan out. And, like, what ended up transpiring. You couldn't even, like, I couldn't make up all. I'm just gonna tease that because, yo, it's. It's such a good story that I just want to, like, I really want to give this. I give that story time to breathe. You know, I want to actually dive into that story. But I was unsuccessful on the hunt. And there's a couple of things kind of takeaways on that one. Like, the. It was hot. It wasn't ideal kind of situation, I would say, for the hunt. But I think that, like, my. My major. One of the things that I. I. I took away from that hunt was I wish I would have done a little more research. And I do a lot of research on. On my hunts, Right. But this one, I feel like I probably should have done a little bit more and just kind of understanding what kind of hunt it was, you know, Like, I kind of did, but, like, pretty close to the hunt, and then just understanding, like, what should be reasonably be seeing. There's a lot of good bucks in the area. I never turned one up. I had a lot of eyes out there with friends helping me, and Which I think was imperative. I wish I would have had kind of, like, I had a lot of help earlier, but I wish. And then I was kind of by myself in the last two days, and the last two days were night and day different from the first part of the season. So maybe just having, like, that help later would have. Would have changed the game. I mean, like, just. It was just a timing issue. Like, the last two days were the only two days I needed to be there because I didn't really see anything worth a darn up until then. And it's like it just got closer to the rut, and that's. That's kind of what happened. Like, dough, pocket, dope. A lot of deer, but nothing. We're talking, like, bucks that I wouldn't even classify as bucks, like spikes and forkies. And then that last day just kind of a light switch turned on, and it's like more mature deer started to turn up. If there's two more days in that season, I guarantee I would have been able to turn up something that I was really looking for, but it just didn't, you know, ran out of time. And that. That was one hunt where I kind of like. I mean, if you've been following some of my hunt stories, muzzleloaders have been kicking my Butt, I love it. But dude, inline, I have like traditional muzzleloader. I'm not, I'm like, I don't know the inline muzzleloader thing. I'm just, I've been, I've gone on mule deer. Oh for two, right? Two for. Oh, they've won twice. I've lost both times. So I don't know. Next season I'm going to plan an inline muzzleloader mule deer hunt. And I'm going to, I'm going to find the big buck and I'm going to be successful. I think finding the big buck's the hard part. It's just like, it can be tough in that one. You know, had had quite a few takeaways from that hunt, but had a great time and it was awesome to be able to get out with a bunch of friends and do that hunt. And then I kind of finished the season up with another late season elk hunt, which was a migration area. I, I was kind of like had an idea of a type of bowl that I wanted. You know, I was looking for that big like, I think that next class elk, like anything 350 type for a bowl is a, is a hell of a bowl in my opinion. And I think like a 340 type bowl, 330 type bowls are really good bowl. On this hunt, I was kind of like thinking I could probably turn up a 350 type bull, but ended up passing some elk early and then seeing a lot of busted bulls and then finally found like on day five, I think I turned up like just a perfect elk and was able to get into position, made some calls, made a good shot and finished the season strong. And so, you know, like looking back at this, this past year I had, you know, some other hunts here and there, taking, guiding people, a couple cow hunts, some new hunters, longbow hunt with my, my kids. Like just some, some phenomenal encounters. Just a lot of really cool stuff. Saw a lot of great mule deer this year while guiding and just on other people's hunts other places. You know, it's like fortunate that I had, I had a lot of hunts for myself this year and then also was able to get out with a lot of other people as well. So a lot of, a lot of hunting was had. But man, just like, what, what a great season. And I think one of the things that I, that I mentioned was like, well, you know what I'll do actually we'll go into the 10 things that I kind of learned from this season. So the 10 takeaways that I have from the success that I found this year and trying to think about. Because what I want to always do with this podcast is not. Not just be good stories, not just be good tips, but be things that you guys can take and learn from whatever happened, you know, a good season or a bad season, and say, here's the things that I learned, and these are going to be some of the things that, like, looking back critically, okay, these are the things that I think lended themselves to that, like, good success. Because in actuality, the season, like, the conditions were not great, but the success and whatever was. And so why was it this year? What did I do different? Well, okay, like, what can I repeat? What's repeatable? And we're going to dive into that and try to, you know, dissect that. So when you guys go out the season, things that can be in your mind and thinking about, okay, how do I have. If you got one tag or three tags or whatever, how do I find that continued success year after year, season after season, and make the most out of the tags and opportunities that I have? All right, so these 10 takeaways, we'll just go through them. I mean, I touched on a lot of them in the recap, but I think that, you know, it's nice to kind of break it down in kind of an actionable way. So I think the first thing was essentially my mantra for the season, which came from that fallow deer hunt, and it's that don't get tunnel vision. It's think ahead. Out of the podcast that I did this year, I think that that one, to me, was the most beneficial of, like, setting. Sometimes I'll do this podcast. I'm like, yeah, dude, this was the. The anthem running through my head all season was don't get tunnel vision. You know, I think last year I blew one hunt, a whitetail hunt, by not continuing my, like, go the best way, not the easy way, and ended up busting out a really good buck. And that was, you know, kind of like, oh, yeah, refresh that. And the don't get tunnel vision thing, I kind of told myself that on a lot of stocks. And I really just brought a new level of attention because on a lot of these hunts, like, whether it's a good tag or a general area tag, I still had, you know, quite a few general area tags this year that made good on a lot of those. You might get. You might bust your butt for one opportunity, and you do not want that one opportunity to end in the animal running off. You want it to end in a heavy pack and pack out. And so that thinking ahead, not getting tunnel vision and just being like, even just mentioning it, to be aware of my surroundings made a difference going into a lot of the other hunts for the season. And sometimes it's just a refresher, even for myself. Like, I know these things, but you, you gotta have that, like, dang it moment to be like, okay, time to like, really get your head in the game, dude, and, and not make stupid mistakes. Because the stupid mistakes are the ones that get you. Those are the ones that bite you. And so I think that, like, for this 2024 season, that one was the best tip that I gave for myself. Whether, you know, whether other people latched on to that particular tactic or not. Maybe it's a, in a weird way, like, it's a super high level tactic because when you're just trying to figure it out for the first time, all it, it's all tunnel vision. It's like. But when you get to a certain level, you can start to kind of get out of that tunnel and, and see things how they are. If you're like, listening to this podcast and you missed that podcast, I actually think that that's probably a good one to go to. Like, it's a very hard topic to, to dissect really. But for me, I think that that was like, just even being cognizant of it was huge. And even, you know, when I took out a new hunter this year, like, the mistakes that they made were tunnel vision mistakes. It's like a, it's a super easy. But you just don't know what you don't know, right? But for those of you that are like, dude, I hunt every year. I hunt hard. Like, I'm here, I'm listening to this podcast to make this, like, to, to go that next step, like, to be ultra successful, to fill those tags, maybe on a higher age class or maturity level of animal. And like, that's a difficult thing to do. And then like, that skill that you need to kind of take it to the next level is understanding how to not be in that tunnel, especially in those, like, moments of truth, like the shot and other things, you know, like, really honing in, but not tunneling in. I guess that's. That. That's a huge takeaway for this year for me. And I think that it, it lended itself to a lot of continued success in a really good way. I'm not that I hadn't done that thing in the past, but it's just like I needed that refresher, so that was a good one. Number two, I think a really good takeaway from this season. It's not something that I don't do, but it's something that I had to do a lot this year was up the tactics because the conditions were crap for, like, the. For me, where I was hunting the elk rut was garbage. I've talked about. I've done quite a few podcasts on this when it comes to elk hunting. And sometimes you just got to pick the terrain for the. The tactic. Right. So I changed it up. I love calling elk like I am elk call guy. That's how I hunt elk. Like, I. There's times where I have not shot an elk because I couldn't call it in. But, you know, stocking elk is a really good tactic. And this year, I didn't call in any elk. Well, yeah, for myself, I didn't call in any elk. They were bugling. I had elk bugling in November better than I had in September this year. I'm not lying. Like, this is. I don't know what's going on out there, but you know what I just said, okay, cool. I'm going to go to areas where I can glass, and I'm going to glass and I'm going to sneak in and I'm going to spot and stock these things. And I did, and I was success. Very. It's a very successful tactic. It's almost like for a guy that loves calling elk, it's almost like cheating. But, you know, I said, you know, I'm going to. I'm going to do it this year. I'm just going to go with the tactics and, like, not force this thing because it's just, like, rough conditions and had an absolute blast doing it. I had a great season. I shot two really good bulls doing it. And, yeah, it was just like a. Well, I guess. And then my wife's bowl. So we got three between the two of us, got three phenomenal elk using those tactics and just doing the tactic. That. That worked for the time frame and what was going on. Like, her. Her elk was in a bachelor herd in the alpine, essentially, like in its summer range. We weren't going to bugle that bull in. We did. No. It was just like an ambush. An ambush. So I can't remember if I called a little bit before it, but either way, it was not a calling hunt. It was a stalking hunt. And. And changing up those tactics made a big difference for me this season. I am very, like, apt to do that, and that's kind of what this podcast is about, is like, use the right tactics for the right situation. This season just happened to be a season where you weren't going to be successful using the tactics, like I like to call. But those tactics weren't working. Like, I beat some timber for a couple days, bugling and not getting any responses and said, this is garbage. Like, get me out of here. I'm gonna go find elk and sneak in on them and fill it, like, and do what I need to do. And it worked. So that's just something. Always good to think about, whatever you got, you know, especially too, like, let's say you're somebody that's. I'm going on to my first elk hunt. And you go, you've got all these grandiose visions of being up there in Colorado ripping off some bugles, bugles back, what have you. And, like, that's not the case. Nothing. It's not going down, like, being able to switch it up or the same. The other factor, right? Like, maybe you're out there and you're like, you're glassing and you're. You're in an area where you can glass and you aren't seeing elk. Well, it's because they're all in the timber, run around chasing cows, and you need to be calling, like, being able to adapt to what's going on in the moment, in the. For that season, for all that stuff. Like, by all intents and purposes, I guess say, this is a very tough elk season. And I had one of my best elk seasons because I was able to adapt to the specific conditions and make good on it. Number three, you know, things I learned that whole pass or shoot game. Every time I pass, I'm like, this is gonna bite me in the butt. But I. I am a firm believer of, like, passing up and giving yourself the opportunity you're looking for. Right? Like, I don't think you should go out and shoot the first whatever, because it's there, it's an opportunity. But sometimes it's like something that you're. It's what I'm looking for. And then I decide to pass and I go, dang it. You know, I really wanted to get more hunting experience, and now I. I'm getting that hunting experience. But, you know, I think that that still, like, I don't. I. I did a whole podcast on it when talking about my moose hunt, and I don't know if I have a conclusion to it because the whole, like, don't pass up on the first Day. What, you'll shoot on the last day? Well, yes and no. Like, I. I don't even know. I think I said I'd come back to you guys with, like, a better term, a phrase. Still. I. I kind of forgot about that. But maybe. Maybe sometime this year I'll have the insight to that. But I think really, it's just how you feel in that moment. Like, hunt for yourself. I think that's what I like. And I hope people, like, I don't know. I don't know what people think. It doesn't really matter. Right. That's kind of my point. It's like, I don't really care what people think. To be 100 honest, the way that I hunt is for me, and that's the way. And, you know, I like that about hunting. And when I'm hunting, I don't put, like, an undue pressure because I'm like, oh, I gotta be successful to make a video. Just so you guys know. Like, I'm saying that in 100% honesty. Like, when I feel like it's the right time to harvest something, there's often times where I shoot something that's smaller than I was looking for. And there's times where I hold out or whatever and go unsuccessful. There's times where I'm like, I was planning on holding out. And then, you know, there's this opportunity, and this feels right. And I want to be successful at this particular moment. For me, that's what keeps this entire thing. Like, it's. I do this because I love it and I love hunting. I love every aspect of hunting. I love being out there. Like, I've. I'm used to being out there nearly every day. And then, like, as you get a family, the amount of time out there is less. And honestly, like, I mean, this year, even with the family, like, we spend a lot of time out hunting, whether it's with the family or, you know, what have you. I just. I absolutely love it. And I think for me, the whole pastor sheep thing is it just should be 100% personal. Right? It shouldn't be about what your buddy thinks. It shouldn't be about what? Like, oh, I want to make a video. Like, I make videos. That's what I do. But it's. I'm making the video while doing what I'm enjoying. Okay. I don't know. I don't know if there's no need to, like, justify that or anything, but, like, this. That's just me. So when it comes time to pass or shoot, I Don't put any undue pressure on that outside stuff. It's like, more in the moment. Because on the velvet elk hunt, if I'm making a hunting video, and all intents and purposes, that first day when that six point walked out, I should have shot that elk. And it didn't feel right to me. It didn't feel like the right time. And I passed and the same exact thing happened on the moose. And so, like, for me, I guess kind of looking back, you know, you're like, dang it. Sometimes I would have been stoked on that, that moose, that first moose. But I also didn't know what else was out there. And I got the hunt that I wanted because I held off, right? And it could have gone the other way. I could have gone unsuccessful. And it would have been like, the worst I would have thought about that moment. I was kicking myself a lot on that hunt, but it just didn't feel right to me. Like, I felt like I didn't do that tag justice yet. And on that elk hunt, like, yeah, if I'm trying to make a hunting video, whatever. But, like, I was a lot more excited on the bull that I ended up taking on that velvet elk hunt than the one that I had passed up. And so for me, it was the right time to shoot. Like, everything was in it that I wanted out of it. And. And that was the hunt. And then I. I was successful, which is great, but I was successful because I wanted to be. And, like, everything lined up right. And so I think when it comes to that passer shoot, you just have to hunt for you. That's. That's what it boils down to. And I think that, like, you know, kind of reconfirming that over and over is. Is good. Like, it makes you feel good about the hunt and the way it pans out, right. Sometimes it bites you in the ass, but sometimes it. It leads to more adventure and better opportunity. But I think number four, the broadhead tune thing is hugely important. Some of this stuff's gonna be bow hunting, specific stuff, because I think the hardest form of hunting to be consistently successful in is bow hunting. Well, actually, muzzleloader hunting. To be honest, like, I hate muzzleloaders. I don't know. I love them and hate them. Like, it's kind of my new little pet project because, like, oh, I was at last year, yeah, 20, 23. My brother and I had a muzzle. Traditional muzzleloader hunt, and I was trying to get him a bull, and we climbed the frickin. We climbed Everest to get to these elk and get into position last light. Like horrible weather, horrible conditions, sketchy. Like in the just cap goes poof. And you're like, damn it. Like, at least my bow I know is going off. If I've got an arrow on it, whatever. It's going to go off when I say it's going to go off. Not always the case with the Muslim loader, but I digress. I think the broadhead, like a tuned bow is so important and I just don't think that people put enough emphasis on this. This is like one of my, you know, I think people think I have a beef with mechanical broadheads and I really don't like I use them in certain situations actually. I think that there's certain mechanical broadheads that are better than others. I think that some that get advertised a lot are kind of garbage for western hunting. That's just my personal preference because they aren't designed for stalking around. But there are some that I like. I like any kind of like cam over ones. The grim reaper ones I think are good. I don't know why I'm talking about mechanical broadheads and nothing to do with. Oh yeah. The reason I'm talking about that is because I think like people use mechanical broadheads because they can't tune or don't take the time to tune their bow. And I think you're doing yourself a job disservice in the hunt. We did a complete guide to broadheads episode. Was it 107? I think that was that this year. Yeah. And I think that like that's a, that's a great podcast to kind of go back and listen to for a couple things. But the, the importance of a bow. A good tuned bow is imperative in western hunting because there's a lot of things in condition wise that affected the shot. And so when your bow is perfectly tuned and so some of my gripe with the mechanical broadhead is it you can still shoot well without the bow being like tuned great because it flies more like a broadhead. The arrow is not being steered. So what you're doing is you're, you're choosing a bow that is shooting an arrow that is not coming out of that bow. True. So there's something off about it. Like it's not coming out straight yet. It's still impacting where it should. Right. But what ends up happening? In my opinion, this is all me talking. This is my soapbox. In my opinion, when your bow is not properly tuned in the field, we encounter things that are not those Controlled environments, shooting in our backyard, you can go set that target out at 100 yards and smoke it every time with your field tips, right? But when you get in the mountains, when you encounter wind, when you encounter maybe bulkier gear, gloves, the excitement of a giant animal being out there, all these things. You're encountering all these things, or like, you draw back and the elk is moving, and then you're twisting the hips instead of moving your feet, and things get off, right? It's just like, that's just how it is. And so as things get off, if your bow's not in tune, you're exaggerating what might already be wrong with the way that that air is flying. And so guys will get out there and they're ready, they're dialed. Then they get an opportunity. You know, they're. They're drawn back, They're. They've got even a shot. Maybe they've practiced a lot, and they miss. And why did they miss? Because the bow, like you always say, like, it's the archer, not the arrow. But in some ways, it is the arrow, because that arrow wasn't flying. Like, the bow wasn't tuned. And so the thing that they were doing, the. The bad grip that they put on the bow for that shot, the, like, whatever it is, it. It moves that margin of error greater. And I really learned that lesson with the mouth tab. One of the greatest takeaways for me in hunting was because the form had to be so perfect for that to go off. Right? A little bit of twist here. And it was like, drastically like the difference of hitting a hay bale or not like hitting a. Hitting a dime or missing a hay bale in just slight twists of form. And the grip and like, the body position and all this stuff. Because it's hard is a kind of, in some ways, a hard bow to tune. I mean, I could get it tuned, but not like I can when shooting a release. And so, like, form had to be absolutely perfect all the time. And so understanding that, like, when you're using a bow that's out of tune and it's still shooting okay, and then you're. You're covering that up with a band aid. That's a mechanical broadhead. Or maybe you're. You're not covering it up. You're like, ah, these are shooting fine. They're shooting good enough. Like, it's. It's fine. I can hit the target. I'm within that kill zone. Like, there. It's two inches off from my, you know, field tip. But I'LL just recite my sight instead of fix the tune on the bow. You're doing yourself a disservice because in the moment of truth, when it's, like, time to make that shot, when something's a little off, it magnifies it. And as the distance increases, that magnification is even more. And so with that tuned bow, like, you have more grace within that margin of error, which leads to more success. That's a huge takeaway. And so, like, for me this year, I've always. I've always been pretty picky about the tune on my bow and making sure my broadheads and field tips fly the same. That's one of the reasons that I like a fixed blade broadhead. Because of that. I know. Yep. Like, I broadhead tune it, and it's like, it's. It's hard to. It's hard to get a broadhead to fly right out of a poorly tuned bow. So the bow that I had this year, the lift X, this is like. I mean, if I was ever to make a bow out, I guess this would be it, because, I mean, this is just, like, my true feelings on this thing. Great bow. And I love the fact that, like, I took that bow out and just. I shot it through paper, and it was like, yep, dude, shooting bullets through this thing. This is great. And then get out on the range and start shooting at 60 yards, and the broadheads are a little off. And then just micro tuning those broadheads to the field tips. Broadhead tuning. And what that enabled me to do, even out at, like, further distances, that margin of missing error was, like, you know, from, like, bad form and other things, extremely narrow. And that made for a lot of, like, I made some phenomenal shots this year that I think just, like, everything was so, you know, like, so in that zone where I wanted to hit and everything that it just, like, it leads. Led to a lot of success in a way. So I think that's. That's a huge takeaway. Like, if you're a bow hunter, that should be your focus going into 20, 25. Get your bow and tune the dang thing. Like, you're. You might have to redo your site. You might have to do whatever. You might have to change arrows, you might have to, like, mess with your setup a bit. But it's absolutely worth the time in my opinion. Like, if you want to be consistently successful with a bow, I should just. That, that right there, just cut that out. That's the podcast, like, for bow hunters. That's. Dude, if you Got a bow hunting friend? Tell them ten things I learned. Number four. Absolutely tune in now. Number five, shoot the off yardage because this is that that practice goes back to practice and repetition. Big proponent of that over here on the Live Wild podcast. Shoot that off yardage. That was huge for myself. Like, I'm thinking, I'm trying to think of bow shots I took this year, very few of them. The pin was actually set for what it should have been. And that's like, I'm trying to think, yeah, like I was shooting off pin on almost all my bow harvest this year, which is crazy. Like, but I have that level of confidence in it that I almost even shoot better. Because you're focused, you're even thinking about the pin. You're thinking about like that empty space of the air and you're focused in so hard that like, you just, you make good shots and by practicing that, you really make that efficient. That's if you have a movable single pin type site. But even if you don't, like, if you've got a multi pin site, shooting those gaps big, it's a, it's a big advantage. Number six, more research. More research, More better. That's, you know, whatever's normal. Like the normal amount of research that I put in. I think that for some hunts, especially new ones and ones that are important, you can't do enough research. And I think some of the things that help too is like knowing, am I? This is one of the big things. And this is a question that I get a lot, especially from new hunters. Like, am I doing it right? Like, I think what was probably right on that Utah hunt felt wrong. Like, I'm like, I don't feel like this area is the good area. And I think the, you know, I probably avoided areas that were probably better than others because I just seemed like, I don't know, like really a big buck's going to show up here. But that's like, you know, live and learn. Like, I think if I had I known a little bit more, I might have done things a little bit different. I don't know. I don't know if I would have, but I would have liked to go in with a little bit more like pre knowledge. And I don't think that like, that would have been a hunt where I would have done it. Scouting would have done me any good because it was just like, they're moving into different areas. But I think just knowing, like, yeah, you're doing it right and it's just not working out right now. Like, the. Just the deer that you're looking for aren't here right now. Okay, cool. That's cool. As long as I know that what I'm doing is right. And that's half the battle. Right? Like, you get into an area, you hike up in a canyon. You're like, I'm not seeing anything. Should I move? Or is this just like this every everywhere? We did spend a lot of time moving around, but I did have enough people out there as, like, people were in a bunch of different places, which was huge. I just think maybe I. I should have had more. I should have had my help later on in the hunt, but it just didn't work out like that. Like, everybody's busy or what have you. But doing that research is key. Like, I did research, but I think I could have double tripled that on two hunts. The moose hunt, I wish I would have done even more research. I think if I did more research in a way, like, was able to track down people with that tag ahead of time, kind of talk to them about their experience, what I might expect, I would have known on the first day to go after that moose that I called in, like, I would have been game on, like, this is a good bull for here. I did find that out later, and then they kind of kick myself. But that all that all boils down to the research aspect. And I think we'll probably do quite a few extra podcasts this year on that research aspect because it is. It's a major portion of the hunt, and it's not like something that you see in all the magazine you hear about E. Scouting and other stuff. But I think more like talking to people that have been on the hunt is. Is huge. And that's one of my favorite types of research, is like, actual information from people that have done it. Number seven, cashing in. Take advantage of those draw opportunities. If you've got points somewhere, you know, take advantage of that. I'm glad that I cashed in. I was like, I cashed in my Wyoming points. I had a fair amount of points. I guess not an insane amount. And I just went with a unit that I knew I could draw. Like, I undershot and. And was able to just get out and go because I've been just point getting point creeped up and down, up and down in Wyoming. You just point creeping me. And that's why I have so many dang points, because I keep putting in for that one. That last year took this many points to draw, and then I ended up with like 11 or 12 points and I'm like, dude, I'm missing up, missing on good opportunities. It'll take me three, two to three points for these because I keep chasing this, this whatever. So I'm glad that I cashed in. I took advantage and ended up having a great hunt. So I don't know, I think that just like, if you've got the points and you got the time, make a play, go for it. Also, you know, looking at some other ways to potentially get tags, raffle opportunities, I think that's another, another great way to, to kind of think about. Like I have actually got like a little bit of a raffle strategy going on. I, I've won a couple really great hunts using a air quotes raffle strategy. I try to find like, you know, hey, here's a conservation one. And like, okay, you know, I save a little. Like I actually save up money. It was like nothing else. It's a donation, right? But like at least having an opportunity in that, like it's 20 bucks. Cool. I mean not blowing my kids college fund on it, but like having an opportunity at some hunts that I might not otherwise have an opportunity to go on. I've been on some phenomenal hunts in my life. Like I've been on a lot of great sheep hunts. I'm very fortunate and I've won a couple. Like, he's just lucky. And I'm like, yeah. But I'm also pretty persistent in applying for certain things and try to find a little bit of strategy in that too. It's not just state draws where you can have these kind of once in a lifetime opportunities. There is a lot of cool draws out there where maybe the odds are insanely against you, but not all of them are. Some of them, the odds are almost better than these state draws. So something to think about. Number eight. I'd say sometimes it's better to be lucky than good. But I, I am still a firm believer that you have to put yourself in a position for luck. Like it's better to be persistent than lucky. Like I'm in, we're talking about draws and drawing tags. Like you'll be like, oh, you're so lucky. You know, you drew this tag or you drew that tag. And I don't think that they see the, all the. I've, I've not drawn a lot more tags than I've drawn. I'll damn be shoot you straight. I have not drawn a lot of insane tags. I've put in a lot of time and the persistence has paid off and Even when it comes to hunting. Like, I'm not actually that lucky, but I am pretty damn persistent. This year I had a little bit more luck, I think in some ways, like, oh, cool. I end up finding something early in the hunt rather than later in the hunt. But, you know, put yourself in position for that luck. I think that it, it behooves you to get better than to just play the luck game. And when luck encounters, you take advantage of it. That's, I guess, the other thing, but it's still, you know, it's reaffirming some of my core beliefs that that persistence is king and, you know, just be persistent enough where you can kind of create your own luck or, or make luck run into you. Number nine, be patient. Wait for that high percentage stock, and then move quick when you have one. This is the, I mean, this is the motto of the Live Wild podcast. If you're going to learn anything about hunting, it's that I can specifically think about almost every hunt where I had success. It was like, waiting for the right moment, Waiting for the right moment. The right moment's here. Now I need to move and get there and then make it happen. Like, don't delay when the opportunity's there and, and don't rush into something when the opportunity isn't. For me, like, one of my favorite things is early season mule deer hunting with a bow. Like, if I can find a good buck and like, that's the hardest hunt. And the last few years, like, my percentage on stocks and shots is nearly 100%. You're like, dude, that's. And when most people's is probably like 0.01%, like 0.1%, you do 100 stocks and get the shot one. Like, honestly, like, it's very difficult. It's like, how do you, how do you get into that 100 or 50% stock rate? And it's just waiting for, like, picking the right moves to make. And it, it goes a long way. Like, be patient, wait long, strike fast. That's like, that's a, That's a great thing to think about every time it's time to, to make a move. And sometimes that's, it's like, now's the time. Like, I see them and now's the time. And sometimes, like, I see him. Now is not the time. Just because you see them doesn't mean now's the time. And when. Look, if you're, if you're listening, if you just tuned in this podcast for the first time, you're listening to this you're like, these are all things that we talked about over the year too. So kind of a recap in a way, but definitely some stuff to think going forward into next year. And then number 10. You know, when it comes down to connecting being a successful hunter, consistently successful hunter, a missed opportunity on the one chance is that difference between success and failure in hunting. I hunt for one opportunity and I hunt to make that one opportunity good on that one opportunity not to blow the animal out, not to miss, not to shoot over its back, not to shoot under it, not to whatever, make a Porsche. Like, it comes down to that one opportunity. So all the things I can do to make that shot go right. And that's the preseason practice. Shoot my bow, have it tuned, shoot those off yardages if it's a rifle. Like, know my dopes, understand the wind. Like, really be familiar with what I'm hunting with. Honestly, like the one hunt that I was unsuccessful on, I was the least familiar with my. The muzzleloader. Like, I thought I would have. I shot it fine. But I ended up like, I should have just left my open sight on there because I threw a unmagnified. It's legal to use an unmagnified scope, but the unmagnified scope actually made everything in it smaller than my naked eye. And like the like that I should have, I had before, like a. Was a Western. Oh, Williams Western precisions open peep site. And I'm pretty dang good at shooting open sites. Like I, I actually like open sites. And I should have just kept it. But I was like, oh, I think I'll. I'll like having a crosshair in case it's like. Because it's like winter time. It was a late season hunt. And the problem I ran into last year, late season, it's hard to see the front peep because it's just on that site was just wire. So in those like even not dark, like well before shooting time ends. But like the gray light from snow and inclement weather made it hard to see. So I thought the reticle would be easier to see, which it is. But I don't know. I just. Long story short, I was probably the most unfamiliar with that because I decided to change that setup a little last minute and shot it fine at the range, but like just didn't shoot it as much as everything else. And I think that that also played into the unsuccess on that when I did have an opportunity. So a little bittersweet, but you know, we learn from it. Right. So I think just understanding that and, and when it comes down to connecting, like some, like you might get that one opportunity, make good on that one opportunity. And that involves a lot of that preseason practice. So with those 10 things like going into the season, keeping those in mind, I'm sure things will pop up this next year. Could have a, a great, could do better, could do worse, could keep it the same, don't really know. But as long as we're constantly thinking about those things, I think that we're going to kind of trend in that right direction. Right. It's like an upward trend. Hunting's like bitcoin. Like it goes up and down, up and down, up and down, up and down. But overall we want that increasing trend. So I think that that'll, that'll make a big difference. One of the last things that I wanted to do before we end the podcast today is just kind of go back to, and look at some of the top. Let's go. Top 10 podcasts according to listeners. So number one was episode 142, 10 best elk hunting Tips. You guys like that one? These are ones like, you know, maybe got re listened to more. Number two, episode 118, Elk Hunt Prep. How to Conquer Steep Mountains, Deadfall and Heavy Packouts. That was a great one. I, I really enjoyed that one. Number three, the ultimate mobile base Camp. So a lot of people pretty interested in vehicle type stuff and you know, I think I'm. One of the things that I like, I utilize a lot is off road drive. Like it's just something I take for granted because I've been doing it since I could drive. Driven more off road miles than on road miles in my life probably. And I've traveled a lot. So maybe just diving into a little bit more of that stuff. I think people would benefit from one of my other favorite episodes. This is number four, Coming into it Elk Calling with Corey Jacobson. Such a great episode. Number five, going unheard episode 112. Then we got how to Optimize Mountain Hiking Efficiency. Another great one. So we'll get Dustin back on the podcast. We always have some great podcasts with him. This is another good one. Rifle Caliber selection with Adam Weatherby. That was, that was a great podcast. The beginning of the year started off pretty. This is number nine, New Year Deer. Then the six Habits of Successful Hunters. And then number ten, the Complete Guide to Broadheads. Those were your guys favorite podcasts this season, so appreciate all that. Thank you guys so much for, for listening in. Well, I just want to say you know, first and foremost, kind of thinking back over this year and just say, thank you guys so much for the support of this podcast. We really appreciate it. I really appreciate it, and it keeps me doing these weekly podcasts. I think there's a few things that I want to try this year. So I was kind of thinking, well, I'll just. I'll unveil it and we'll. I'll get some feedback from you guys. But there's a couple things that I want to do to kind of just maybe add a little bit more benefit and timeliness to some of the podcasts, too. Like, a little bit of some stuff that I think you guys are going to like. So we'll try some new things this year, too. Keep the podcast obviously the same and do it in the same way, but add a little bit of. Maybe add a couple podcasts here and there that, you know, just hit on, like, deep dives in. In a specific tactic or whatever. So I just want to say, once again, thank you guys so much. If you listen to the podcast and you aren't a subscriber, go to wherever you listen, subscribe, whether it's Spotify, Apple, whatever, subscribe, and then drop a rating. And it looks like on Spotify, you can leave comments now on episodes and other things. I have appreciated guys that have been doing that because just lets me know, like, okay, cool. They like this because I. I do it right, but I don't know necessarily, like, what hits home, because I want this podcast to really reflect, like, what you guys are interested in, what you want to learn, provide valuable insight into tactics, gear, all that kind of stuff. One of the things I was thinking about doing, I. I don't have it ready yet, but this is just like, an idea that popped up for me was doing, like, some kind of survey and then just ask a bunch of questions just to kind of see where people are at. Like, do. I'm. I'm a. Because you. You know, like, I. Sometimes the people that reach out, or maybe like a vocal minority of, like, okay, this is the. You know, are a lot of people who are listening new to hunting? Have they grown up hunting? Do they live out west? Do they live somewhere else? How do they hunt elk every year? Do they want to hunt elk every year? Whatever. Like, just kind of understanding where everyone's at to help just make this podcast better for everybody. Personally, like, I want this to be, like, a very beneficial thing to you guys. It's the reason that I do it. So I just. Thank you guys so much for doing that. For those that have dropped the comments and the ratings, if you haven't rated it or go back and rate it, whatever, I appreciate that because it just lets, you know. Lets me know, like, okay, cool. Like, people are enjoying this and they like this or they like that. That always helps. And I thank you guys so much. You know, it's. It's been a fun ride to be able to share a lot of this stuff with you guys and. And the people that I run into to. When we do shows, sports shows, other things. It's awesome because the thing that we mainly talk about is the podcaster, specific episodes. Speaking of shows. So I will be at the Wild Sheep show in Reno, Nevada. I'm actually going to be exhibiting again this year. So we'll have a live wild booth. We'll have a lot of the gear and stuff there. I'll be in and out. I'm doing a seminar. I think it's on Friday. Seminars on Friday afternoon, and then we'll be there Saturday as well. So definitely want to check that out. I think I'm doing a seminar with the guys at Mountain Tough as well. And then, like I said, you know, thinking about draws and other things. The sheep show is one that I attend and with like, not. I don't know, like, the intent. I haven't missed one in. I've been going ever since I was a kid. I think a lot of people back in the day used to think like, oh, it's for guys that have only killed grand slams. And that's not the case. It's a show where there's a lot of opportunity to get on a sheep hunt. And by that I mean win a sheep hunt. So there's a lot of opportunity. There's a less than one club, which has been growing a lot. Like, the first time, it was real good odds. Like, the odds are still great because people in that room have never taken a sheep. There's a lot of raffles, daily raffles. There's another thing that's going on this year is Mountain Tough has a workout. And so you register for it. You finish the workout, which it's. It's not geared for you to fail. It's geared for you to succeed. But it's going to be like a lot of leg stuff, body weight, bring your own pack, fill it with weight, and then everybody that finishes the work has signed up, registered and finishes the workout, will be entered to win a doll sheep hunt, which is going to be incredible. I'll be there. I've Got a lot of my family and friends going to do the workout. Like, it's going to be awesome. I think there's a few. There might be a few spots available, but if you aren't registered, you aren't. You haven't planned on going. You're in the area. Make it to the Wild Sheep foundation convention in Reno, Nevada, that is going on January. You get my dates right here, 16th, 17th and 18th, so make sure you're there. It's an incredible event. I think that there's something for everyone and it's a good opportunity too, to win a sheep hunt. I have a feeling this year, like, this is my year. My stone sheep draws coming. I'm in this one more for four drawing. You got three sheep. You gotta be present at the thing. It's a free entry. You can't buy any other tickets for this one. And it's like every year there's people that get drawn that aren't there. I've been there going for 20 years. I haven't. I don't know how long I've been in that drawing. My dad actually finished. He. My dad has a grand slam that he's never bought a guided hunt for. He. He has done it through raffles and other things and like playing the game. And he's drawn every tag is incredible. Like, it. It can happen. It can happen to you, can happen to me, can happen to anyone. So that's cool. And then, oh, also just, you know, a couple awesome supporters of this podcast, Wilderness Athlete. You know, I've been using their stuff pretty much my entire adult life since they started. I've actually got some new flavors with them coming out very soon, which I'm super excited about. We did a couple of them in my 12 days of Christmas giveaway, which just ended. If you guys want to know the winners of that, they're posted on where you signed up on my website. So I'll leave that up for a little bit. So you can just verify, make sure, like, if your name's on there and you haven't seen an email, you know, I think most of the winners have been contacted and replied. But, you know, you can check, see the winners on there. And then as always, you can use code livewild on Wilderness Athlete, get a discount. And you can also use code livewild on an Onyx Elite membership. So if you don't have the Elite membership, you can get a great discount on that if you've bought it through the app and you're like, hey, I just have a single state, but I want to upgrade. You can go on and use that. I tested this out. You can go on and use that code, but you just got to, like, just cancel your current membership and then go re. Sign up for the elite membership and use the code. You'll get the discount. The elite membership's awesome because you get just added benefits in there. You get. You get gear discounts, which pretty much pays for itself. Plus you get multiple states to cruise around in and have all the. The access that you'd have on, like, the single state. But you can use multiple states, which is great for hunt planning and scouting. And we're also going to kind of talk a little bit about how to utilize that for hunt planning in some upcoming episodes. So it's nice to have those other states, whether you're planning on hunting them that year or not. Like, that's how I've found a lot of great hunts and do some research, and I can pop in there and really just start to. I. I look at areas years before I ever hunt them. And it's a really good system because you're. Sometimes you get a tag and you're like, now it's time to do the research. It's better to do the research and then get the tag in a lot of ways. So there's something to think about. I'm gonna say, until next week, Happy New Year and Happy hunting. I'll catch you guys later. Sa.