Ep. 669: MeatEater Radio Live! Bloated Gators, Feral Apples, and The Price is Right

Summary

Episode Summary: The MeatEater Podcast – Ep. 669: Bloated Gators, Feral Apples, and The Price is Right

Release Date: February 28, 2025
Hosts: Spencer Newharth, Ryan Callahan, Corey Calkins
Guests: Kim Titterington, David Ben Scotter, Christy Holmes
Podcast Network: The MeatEater Podcast Network

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Introduction and Travel Debrief

The episode opens with Spencer Newharth recapping the hosts' recent journey home from the Northwest Tournament Federation (NWTF) convention. The trio shares amusing and chaotic anecdotes about missed flights and last-minute airport scrambles. Ryan Callahan humorously admits, “[03:20] Ryan Callahan: First thing that we need to address is I think either Phil actually has volume in my headset for the first time in a long time, or your announcer voice is just getting so much better every day.” This light-hearted banter sets a relatable and engaging tone for the episode.

Interview with Kim Titterington: Reptile Rehabilitation and Bloated Gators

Reptile Rehabilitation

Kim Titterington, founder of Swamp Girl Adventures Reptile Rehab, joins the show to discuss her dedication to rescuing and rehabilitating reptiles and amphibians. “[09:12] David Ben Scotter: So I specifically work with reptiles and amphibians. So that's turtles, tortoises, snakes, alligators, lizards, frogs, toads, you know, all those fun things.” Kim elaborates on the types of injuries she encounters, primarily from car strikes and dog attacks. She showcases a gopher tortoise with fractures, explaining the meticulous care required to ensure its recovery and eventual release back into the wild.

Bloated Gators Phenomenon

The conversation shifts to a concerning trend Kim has been documenting: bloated and emaciated alligators in Florida. “[14:10] Spencer Newharth: And Phil is showing us an X ray there of one of those bloated gators.” Kim describes these gators as appearing "like a balloon," with gas buildup caused by fecaliths—hardened feces in the colon. “[14:38] David Ben Scotter: [...] the feces had been in the stomach not moving or passing for so long, possibly even up to a year with this one particular case.” The bloated condition leads to severe discomfort and often death, with Kim emphasizing the urgency of understanding and addressing this phenomenon.

Kim attributes the issue to poor environmental stewardship, urging listeners to “pick up after yourself” to reduce pollution and waste that may contribute to such health problems in wildlife. “[16:21] David Ben Scotter: I think the biggest thing is, you know, picking up after yourself.”

Notable Quotes:

• “[10:47] Spencer Newharth: Well, he's looking healthy right now. I think you're doing a good job.”
• “[14:38] David Ben Scotter: [...] the feces had been in the stomach not moving or passing for so long, possibly even up to a year.”

The Price is Right Segment

In a lively and humorous segment, the hosts engage in “The Price is Right,” guessing the prices of quirky outdoor and hunting-related items presented by Phil.

Key Highlights:

1. Half-body Mount Taxidermized Brown Bear
   Phil describes a half-body mount: “[19:18] Phil: Well, how would you like to scare every man, woman, child, and beast who enters your home? [...] listed on Craigslist ten days ago.”

   • Guesses: Cal – $75.01; Corey – $1,450
   • Correct Price: $950
   • Result: Cal earns the first point.

2. Mossy Oak Camouflage Sofa
   Phil introduces a 7-foot camo sofa: “[22:30] Phil: [...] The entire thing is wrapped in mossy oak breakup camo.”

   • Guesses: Cal – $400.99; Corey – $850
   • Correct Price: $1,449
   • Result: Cal earns his second point.

3. 41 Drury Outdoors DVDs
   “[26:34] Phil: [...] From Whitetail Madness 12 to Whitetail Obsession 7.”

   • Guesses: Cal – $49.99; Corey – $699
   • Correct Price: $61.09
   • Result: Cal earns his third point.

4. Michigan Whitetail Hall of Fame Admission
   “[31:27] Phil: [...] Guess the price of adult admission.”

   • Guesses: Cal – $4.99; Gianni – $1; Corey – $10
   • Correct Price: $6
   • Result: Cal earns his fourth point.

5. 1989 Alumacraft John Boat
   “[36:45] Phil: [...] 16ft Alumacraft John boat with a 2015 four-stroke engine.”

   • Guesses: Cal – $801; Corey – $699; Gianni – $22,000
   • Correct Price: $3,399
   • Result: Cal secures the final point, winning the game.

Notable Quotes:

• “[21:21] Ryan Callahan: We all know that taxidermy, like is the most valuable to the person that got the critter or somebody related.”
• “[24:16] Phil: We have one person. Get it. Get it right on the 1449 up here.”

One Minute Fishing with Christy Holmes

Christy Holmes from Maine participates in the “One Minute Fishing” segment, attempting to catch sea-run rainbow smelts on the Kennebec River. “[45:11] Christy Holmes: Yeah, we are actually on a tidal river, the Kennebec river, near, kind of near the capital of our state, Augusta.” Equipped with jig poles and sandworm bait, Christy shares insights into her fishing strategy. Despite her enthusiasm and preparedness, she doesn’t manage to land a fish within the minute, highlighting the unpredictability of fishing.

Notable Quotes:

• “[47:22] Christy Holmes: All right, Chrissy was a little pessimistic. She said this is better done in the evening.”

Hot Tip Off

In the “Hot Tip Off” segment, listeners share innovative and practical hunting tips, which the hosts evaluate for effectiveness and ingenuity.

Listener Tips:

1. Tyler Harm’s Tip: Tent Rainfly Utilization
   “[50:18] Ryan Callahan: For those of you who hunt out west, keep an old tent rainfly in your pack. [...] It works great for keeping that meat clean.”

   • Benefit: Multifunctional use as shelter and meat staging area.

2. Dylan Sunderland’s Tip: DIY Scent Checker
   “[51:01] J: [...] Make a cheap, affordable, yet very effective scent checking system using Altoids containers and milkweed seeds.”

   • Benefit: Cost-effective and efficient for maintaining hunting scents without relying on commercial products.

Outcome: Dylan’s tip is declared the winner, earning him a new MeatEater Gnome T-shirt and a signed MeatEater Trivia board game.

Notable Quotes:

• “[52:36] Spencer Newharth: And you can see these hot tips on our YouTube video right now.”

Listener Feedback and Q&A

The hosts address listener-submitted questions, providing advice on dog training and hunting strategies.

Questions Addressed:

1. Training a Five-Month-Old Chocolate Lab
   “[55:18] Ryan Callahan: Just, I mean it's just consistency. Like get a routine in place [...] start with the basics—sit, stay, come.”

   • Advice: Emphasizes the importance of routine and basic commands.

2. Turkey Hunting Challenges
   “[55:48] Kim Titterington: Man, keep at it. I've been there four years not tagging out. Then the next year, well, bam.”

   • Advice: Encourages perseverance and strategic adjustments.

Notable Quotes:

• “[56:29] Kim Titterington: Yeah, sit and call. Commit. See what happens.”
• “[55:48] Ryan Callahan: [...] the most turkey killing son of a gun I know he says kill him with your ass.”

Interview with David Ben Scotter: Lost Apple Project

David Ben Scotter delves into his ambitious project aimed at rediscovering lost and heritage apple varieties in the Pacific Northwest. Starting from an accidental encounter while pruning an old orchard, David and his team have identified 30 unique apple cultivars previously thought extinct.

Project Insights:

• Origins: “[60:39] Corey Calkins: [...] the Wall Bridge was entered by six different people in Whitman county between 1900 and 1910.”

  • Challenge: Misidentification of apple varieties initially halted progress in finding specific lost varieties.

• Successful Rediscoveries: “[67:47] Corey Calkins: [...] the Shackelford was one of the most popular apples in the late 1800s, early 1900s.”

  • Importance: Preserving these varieties adds biodiversity and historical value to modern agriculture.

• How to Contribute: Listeners can assist by locating lost apple trees, submitting samples for identification, and donating to support the project. David emphasizes, “[70:39] Corey Calkins: [...] contact me at [e-mail].”

Notable Quotes:

• “[60:37] Corey Calkins: [...] only 5,000 of those apples exist today.”
• “[67:29] Ryan Callahan: So. Still haven't found it.”

Closing Announcements

The hosts wrap up the episode with announcements about upcoming events and activities:

• MeatEater Movie Club: Returns next week with a review of the 1988 family film "The Bear," available on various streaming platforms.

• Conservation Concerts: Promotion of the Pheasants Forever and Quails Forever concert in Kansas City on March 6th, featuring performances by Chester and attendance by Ryan Callahan.

• Upcoming Events: Details about the North American Grouse Partnership event, bird dog parade, and fundraising lunch focused on habitat programs and conservation efforts.

Notable Quotes:

• “[73:18] Corey Calkins: They look under Whitman County Historical Society. We're under the Whitman County Historical Society. [...] You can donate to our cause.”
• “[76:14] Spencer Newharth: I especially love honeycrisp because they come from the University of Minnesota.”

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Conclusion

Episode 669 of The MeatEater Podcast masterfully blends informative interviews, interactive segments, and engaging listener interactions. Hosts Spencer Newharth, Ryan Callahan, and Corey Calkins create an entertaining and educational experience, highlighting critical issues like wildlife health and agricultural heritage. With expert guests like Kim Titterington and David Ben Scotter, the episode not only entertains but also inspires listeners to take action in conservation and preservation efforts.

Final Notable Quote:

• “[77:22] Phil: And one of my favorite celebrity sightings was we went mini golfing out outside of the Twin Cities. [...] I felt like. Yeah. I was starting starstruck.”

Transcript

[Stephen Rinella]

Hey, American history buffs. Hunting history buffs, listen up. We're back at it with another volume of our Meat Eaters American History series. In this edition, titled the Mountain Men 1806-1840, we tackle the Rocky Mountain beaver trade and dive into the lives and legends of fellows like Jim Bridger, Jed Smith and John Colter. This small but legendary fraternity of backwoodsmen helped define an era when the west represented not just unmapped territory, but untapped opportunity for those willing to endure some heinous and at times, violent conditions. We explain what started the Mountain man era and what ended it. We tell you everything you'd ever want to know about what the mountain men ate, how they hunted and trapped, what gear they carried, what clothes they wore, how they interacted with Native Americans, how 10% of them died violent deaths, and even detailed descriptions of of how they performed amputations on the fly. It's as dark and bloody and good as our previous volume about the white tailed deer skin trade, which is titled the Long Hunters 1761-1775. So again, you can buy this wherever audiobooks are sold. Meat Eaters American History the Mountain Men 1806-1840 by Stephen Rinella.

[Ryan Callahan]

Smell us now lady.

[Spencer Newharth]

Welcome to Meat Eater Trivia Meat Eater.

[Corey Calkins]

Podcast.

[Spencer Newharth]

Welcome to Meat Eater radio live. It's 11:00am Mountain Time on Thursday, February 27th and we're live from Meteater HQ in Bozeman, Montana. I'm your host, Spencer Newharth, joined today by Ryan Callahan and Corey Calkins. On today's show, we'll interview Kim Titterington about sick bloated alligators in Florida. Then we'll play the Price is Right followed by one minute fishing with Christy Holmes in Maine. After that, we've got a hot tip off about recycled tent tarps and dip can window indicators. And finally, we'll talk to David Ben Scotter about hunting for lost varieties of apples. But first, Cal, Corey, I think we need to debrief on our travel home from the NWTF convention. It was sort of an adventure for all three of us.

[Kim Titterington]

Oh, flying in the winter is always an adventure. I really dislike traveling through the air. I don't mind airplanes, but airports. Trying to get your connection.

[Spencer Newharth]

Sure, it's just a headache. Cal, let's start with you. We had an Uber leaving the hotel for us three. And Yanni, at what time was it? 5:30am yeah, Cal was nowhere to be seen, calling his phone, trying to find someone at the front desk to tell us what room you were in. I Even called the hotel. Nobody answered at the hotel. So we could just, like, come pound on your door. Cal was nowhere to be seen. Cal, what happened?

[Ryan Callahan]

First thing that we need to address is I think either Phil actually has volume in my headset for the first time in a long time, or your announcer voice is just getting so much better every day.

[Spencer Newharth]

One. The second one.

[Ryan Callahan]

Leaps and bounds. Leaps and bounds. I missed the first flight of my entire life.

[Spencer Newharth]

Really?

[Ryan Callahan]

Oh, that was the first time I've ever missed a flight. And I'll tell you, in the past, in my. My wilder days, I had plenty of excuses to miss flights.

[Spencer Newharth]

Just a little sleepy this time.

[Ryan Callahan]

Well, I don't. I woke up, like, an hour before, as you do. Like, if you're. You're anxious. Traveler. Right. I woke up an hour before the alarm was supposed to go off. We had another big day in Salt Lake City.

[Spencer Newharth]

Sure.

[Ryan Callahan]

So I was like, I'm gonna try to sleep this extra hour. And had just, like, the whole anxiety dream thing of, like, you're gonna miss your flight.

[Corey Calkins]

You're gonna miss your flight.

[Ryan Callahan]

And then I was like, I have an alarm set. You know, the normal thing. And then I was like, by God, my flight is boarding right now. As I got out of bed to no alarm.

[Spencer Newharth]

Sure.

[Ryan Callahan]

Right. But I made it to the airport in time to see you guys take off.

[Spencer Newharth]

That's special. Yeah.

[Kim Titterington]

Because we were delayed because there's firing. There's lightning on the Runway, so we were probably 30 minutes late.

[Spencer Newharth]

I felt extra bad, Cal pulling away in that Uber because you saved me in Philadelphia. Coming home from the live tour because I was a sleepy head, had too much champagne the night before for celebrating the end of the live tour.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah.

[Spencer Newharth]

And I woke up to Cal pounding on my hotel room door.

[Ryan Callahan]

Wasn't going to leave a man behind.

[Spencer Newharth]

Get up. Let's go. We got to go. We got to go. And Cal saved me from missing a flight after a very long week on the road, or 10 days on the road.

[Ryan Callahan]

Literally on the road in the tour bus.

[Spencer Newharth]

And I couldn't return the favor for you.

[Ryan Callahan]

Believe me, that popped into my head. And when I saw the text from Spencer, I was like, I'm not even going to bring it up.

[Spencer Newharth]

I was thinking about it the whole time. I was trying to do everything I could to wake you up.

[Phil]

I've heard her. I've heard a recounting of this story. And in the story, Spencer is just silent, like. Like, you just kind of walked down, walked into the elevator, walked out of the lobby. Just didn't Say anything to anybody.

[Spencer Newharth]

Boy, I felt bad. I was holding up an Uber outside the hotel, and then because of this lightning delay. Corey, you were running through an airport.

[Kim Titterington]

Yeah, I think I had a 50 minute layover. And then we were 30 to 40 minutes delayed. So Yanni and I were on the same flight. Cal, you were supposed to be on that one.

[Spencer Newharth]

The red flash is what people called you to moving through the airport so quickly. Getting to that next flight.

[Kim Titterington]

I was walking, making it, had to pee. So certainly I had to make that pit stop. And then I looked down at my watch and realized I need to run the last, probably quarter mile all the way to the very end of the terminal. And the lady's like, are you Corey?

[Stephen Rinella]

I'm like, yep.

[Spencer Newharth]

She's like, you better hurry up. Whoa. You don't want to hear your name at an airport. No, definitely not.

[Kim Titterington]

I like the.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah, it's, it's the, the whole thing. Like air travel is just not. There's, there's, you know, there's plenty of anxiety. And then you're signing up to sit and like a recycled germ and fart filled tube for hours. Yeah. Trying your best not to make too much physical contact with strangers next to you.

[Spencer Newharth]

My adventure didn't start until we were about to land. We were coming into Bozeman. We're dropping into the Runway, and the wheels hit the Runway for about one or two seconds. And then the pilot hits the throttle and pulls the nose up and we go back into the air. And everyone in the airplane was very confused. Folks are looking around each other and nobody like panicked, but you could tell there were folks that were like on the verge of panicking. If it would have started somewhere else in the, in the airplane, it would have been a chain reaction. So nobody knew what was happening. And about a minute later, the pilot comes on the speaker and he says that, sorry, folks, we had a wind shear at the last second there that was gonna, was gonna prevent us from landing, so we had to pull her back up. We're gonna circle around and try this again. And so then 10 minutes later, they don't just go up in the air a little bit, they like get way up again in altitude. And he circles back and we come in and we have a safe, normal landing. But he said we had a wind shear, which is like a gust of wind that totally affected the plane and made it unsafe. But there was no wind that day. I looked on my phone, it was one mile per hour wind. And so then I was on my phone also reading about, like, what. What's this mean? It's called an abort. And I had read a pilot's account saying that they have no obligation to actually tell you what happened. But that's like a common excuse. It's either the Runway wasn't clear or there was a wind shear. But sometimes it's just they're coming in too hot and they made a mistake and they gotta lift off again to try it a second time. I. I didn't even know that was an option in airplane travel, and especially with all the recent news. Yeah, that was genuinely scary.

[Ryan Callahan]

We had just like, a shaky flight coming back because we flew the day after, you know, that collision, and the plane went down the Hudson, which was, you know, horrific.

[Spencer Newharth]

And was it the Hudson or the Potomac?

[Ryan Callahan]

Was it Potomac? Yeah. So, yeah, sorry, Potomac. That was a different plane in the Hudson. But anyway, yeah, folks, you know, it was just like a. What to me is like a very normal winter flying amount of turbulence. And I had multiple people comment on, like, boy, people were very nervous. Sure, very nervous.

[Spencer Newharth]

But we made it here today to host Meat Eater Radio Live. All right, let's get on the show. Joining us on the line first is Kim Titterington, the founder of Swamp Girl Adventures Reptile Rehab. Kim, welcome to the show.

[Christy Holmes]

Hi.

[David Ben Scotter]

Thanks for having me.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah, thank you. First thing, tell us about the types of animals and injuries you work with at your rehab facility.

[David Ben Scotter]

So I specifically work with reptiles and amphibians. So that's turtles, tortoises, snakes, alligators, lizards, frogs, toads, you know, all those fun things.

[Spencer Newharth]

And what's in your rehab facility right now?

[David Ben Scotter]

We have a couple gators, we have a couple snakes, and I have quite a few turtles and tortoises because that's really what we get the most of.

[Spencer Newharth]

And what is, like, the most normal injury that you deal with?

[David Ben Scotter]

Typically, it's from either hit by car, so car strikes are the most often. But then our second one to that is actually dog attacks on turtles and tortoises, believe it or not. So that's our second one. So we get a lot of both of those.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay. And do you have any of your clients around that you could show us for the interview today?

[David Ben Scotter]

Yeah, I actually. I have a gopher tortoise. Here, let me grab. This is. Go for tortoise. And you're gonna see he's got some stuff going on here. This is called the hooks and wire method. So it's not permanent. It's basically. It's kind of the same stuff as they use for nail acrylic helps keep the little clasps on, and that reduces and supports the fracture so that it has time to heal. So this poor guy, he was hit by a car, but he's doing a good job healing right now with those fractures.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay, and is the end goal then, to have him released back into the wild?

[David Ben Scotter]

Correct? Yep. As soon as he's done with all of his rehabilitation, he'll go back to the area he was found. Obviously not in the middle of the street where he was found, but the as close by safely to the area he was found.

[Spencer Newharth]

Well, he's looking healthy right now. I think you're doing a good job. Kim, what's the rarest animal that you've had at your facility?

[David Ben Scotter]

The rarest would actually be the eastern indigo snake, and they are federally protected by law. They're very rare throughout their whole eastern range. But I've actually received two into care, which is pretty rare.

[Spencer Newharth]

And what was going on with those snakes that they had to come to you?

[David Ben Scotter]

So, one, the first one was actually had been hit with some lawn equipment and. And survived. It was, you know, some nasty scars were going on there, but that one survived. And then the second one was actually a zip tie that the snake had crawled through. And then obviously, it couldn't come off. So it was literally cutting into the flesh and had been there for quite some time. But that one was also successfully rehabbed and released.

[Spencer Newharth]

And what's your favorite rehab success story from Swamp Girl Adventures?

[David Ben Scotter]

You know, there's a ton of them, but one that stands out that I feel like is the most unusual and just is actually pretty rewarding, was one where we had a golf snake, had swallowed a golf ball. And so the golf ball. Yeah, the golf ball has to be surgically removed because it had been in there so long, it was adhering to the stomach lining. So it had to be a surgery. We couldn't, like, just, you know, push it out. But the surgery was a success, and the snake was released. So that was probably one of the most unusual but rewarding.

[Spencer Newharth]

Is it safe to assume that snake thought he was eating an egg?

[David Ben Scotter]

Correct. Yeah. A lot of people will actually use golf balls or false eggs in their in with their chickens, and that helps kind of keep them, I guess, from going off into other places and keeping the eggs in one spot. But then I've also heard that people will put golf balls in there or fake eggs, because then they end up, you know, not being able to digest it and will die later, which is kind of cruel because that's a long Nasty death. But. But yeah, that's.

[Ryan Callahan]

Do you feel appreciated by your clientele?

[David Ben Scotter]

You know, even though they're reptiles? You know, I think that a lot of times I get some. That they realize, okay, this person's just kind of helping me out, I'm just going to chill. But then, you know, I have those that, that they don't. They're just like, just stop touching me. I don't care. Just go away.

[Spencer Newharth]

Now the big reason I want to talk to you, Kim, is about this bloated gator phenomenon that you've been documenting in Florida. Can you tell us about that?

[David Ben Scotter]

Yeah, so back. Some of the first reports that went into FWC were actually back in 2023. And after that it just kind of seemed like people had seen them, but nobody really said anything or the reports weren't going through. Whatever the reason, it kind of just fell off the radar. So just this year, all of a sudden, you know, I was getting as a reptile rehabber, people are like, hey, well can you help? And I'm like, oh, all right, well sure, you know, let me go take a look. And we captured the first one and which you can kind of see on the screen now, and she definitely was severely bloated, extremely emaciated. And then not even three days later, I got a call about another one in a completely different part of the state, in all the same bloated, very emaciated. So this is something that is seems to be on the uprise, or at least we're hearing more about it now that people know to look. But definitely a concern.

[Spencer Newharth]

And Phil is showing us some photos of these bloated gators. And when I say bloated, I mean like they look like a balloon. They look wildly uncomfortable.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah, this, this current photo is like two like oversized beach balls coming out of each side of the gator, like, like it swallowed a cartoon dumbbell.

[Spencer Newharth]

Kim, do you have a hypothesis for what's causing these gators to get so bloated and ultimately die?

[David Ben Scotter]

Yeah, so it's one thing we were able to rule out is that there was not a physical blockage like a lot of people, like, oh, it ate a ball or you know, maybe it's a plastic bag or something like that. We were able to rule that out on both these cases. Sadly, both of them did pass away. What you're seeing here on X ray is what we first saw. And it looks like a lot of stones, but what they're called is fecaliths. And it's basically when the feces Turns to stone. So the feces had been in the stomach not moving or passing for so long, possibly even up to a year with this one particular case. And then gas just starts to build up in the colon. And so on necropsy, we found that basically their colons were just, you know, all distended with these fecaliths.

[Spencer Newharth]

And have you heard of this happening in other states or other countries?

[David Ben Scotter]

Not really. Usually when something happens like that, they contribute it to a piece of litter or something that's incidental. But at this point, we're seeing these cases throughout the state and we just cannot seem to find a common denominator yet. Some of the symptoms like we're seeing here were common, like the fecalus and those buildup and then the gas, so the progression of the disease. But it's actual cause.

[Spencer Newharth]

We.

[David Ben Scotter]

We have a ton of labs out right now. We're just waiting on results. And we're going to be doing a lot more testing here this coming year on various gators as well throughout the state.

[Spencer Newharth]

And Phil is showing us an X ray there of one of those bloated gators.

[Ryan Callahan]

That's wild.

[Spencer Newharth]

Most of the folks listening to this show were hunters and anglers who spend a lot of time. So how can we be better stewards of the land and help out the reptiles and amphibians that you work with?

[David Ben Scotter]

I think the biggest thing is, you know, picking up after yourself. I actually one of the things is one of the X rays that I had also sent you, that gator had a lead toxicosis as well, and that was because the gator swallowed a lead weight from fishing. Now, was that the actual cause? Probably not, because it seems like we're finding gluted gators that don't have lead toxicosis. It's just that was an added thing. So that's something that we see a lot in both, like aquatic turtles and alligators. Any animal that might ingest something like that accidentally through fishing lures or, you know, things that were disposed improperly and they pick it up out of the environment. So I think those are the biggest things. And then the next thing is awareness. You know, just be aware if someone's looking for reports like say we are on sick gators or sick turtles. If you see something that just doesn't seem right and you see it happen often, go ahead and report it. You could be the first one who's noticing that there's a problem and people need to research it. So if you are out there, that's one of the best Things you can do is just be aware and help make those reports and observations.

[Spencer Newharth]

Now, Kim's rehab facility is a nonprofit that relies on donations. You can support her project by going to swampgirladventures.org Kim, thanks for joining us and thanks for doing the work that you do.

[David Ben Scotter]

Not a problem. Thanks for having me.

[Spencer Newharth]

Just good reminder for everyone, pick up after yourself when you're out in the woods.

[Kim Titterington]

Absolutely, man. I'm not going to complain next time. I have one too many hazy IPAs and feel a little bloated.

[Spencer Newharth]

Those. Those gators look so wildly uncomfortable, man. And then you see the x ray of the blockage. That's next level stuff.

[Ryan Callahan]

It is. Yeah. That was shocking.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right, our next segment is the Price is Right.

[Phil]

Here it comes from Bozeman, Montana media to radio's most exciting 15 minutes. It's the Price is Right.

[Corey Calkins]

Yes.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right.

[Phil]

Ryan Callahan, come on down.

[Spencer Newharth]

Whoa. Yeah.

[Phil]

Corey Calkins, come on down.

[Spencer Newharth]

His second appearance. All right, you're the first two contestants.

[Phil]

On Meat Eaters Meat Eater Radios. The Price is Right. Now here's your host, Spencer Newhall.

[Spencer Newharth]

Wow, Phil, that was Cal's first time seeing that performance. I think he's impressed.

[Ryan Callahan]

I. Yeah, I feel. I actually feel special.

[Spencer Newharth]

Oh, good.

[Ryan Callahan]

That's amazing.

[Phil]

That's the idea.

[Spencer Newharth]

Now, this game is really simple. Phil is going to tell you about a product from the meat eater universe, and you need to guess its price. The player with the closest answer without going over will be declared the winner. If both players go over, then you'll both be told to try again. And the chat should play along as well because whoever has the closest answer will get a shout out from Phil. All right, there are five products for today's show. Phil, tell us about the first item up for bid. Sick.

[Phil]

Well, how would you like to scare every man, woman, child, and beast who enters your home? Well, we've got just the thing for you. This brown bear is a half body mount that hangs on your wall. It's posed with its arms extended out as though it's getting sucked into a portal or is about to sack a quarterback. And the owner says he'll cut you a deal if you also buy his javelina shoulder mount or shark jaw.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah. This beautiful piece of taxidermy is located in west Houston and was listed on Craigslist 10 days ago. Now you need to guess its price. Phil is now showing us some photos of this half mount taxidermied brown bear. Again, I found this on Craigslist in Houston, Texas. Houston, Texas. That's right. Not half bad.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah, this, this is one of those things like do you have one of those roadside attraction type shops? Then it's worth some money.

[Spencer Newharth]

Sure.

[Ryan Callahan]

Do you live in an apartment in New York City?

[Spencer Newharth]

Well, you can sort of get a glimpse into this person's home. You see a fella there with some suspension suspenders on.

[Ryan Callahan]

Oh, he's a suspenders guy. Might be trustworthy.

[Spencer Newharth]

Brent Reeves sitting in the background of this photo. And we've got a few pictures here of this half body mount of a brown bear in Houston, Texas.

[Kim Titterington]

Is he trying to get rid of it or is he trying to make some money?

[Spencer Newharth]

It was listed 10 days ago.

[Kim Titterington]

That's hot.

[Spencer Newharth]

So factor that into your calculation again, you can't go over. If you both go over, you'll be told to try again.

[Kim Titterington]

Cal really likes his answer.

[Spencer Newharth]

Really? You ready, Corey?

[Kim Titterington]

I'm ready now.

[Spencer Newharth]

Ready, Cal. Go ahead and reveal your answers. We have Cal saying $75 and 1 cent. We have Corey saying. What's that say, Cory?

[Kim Titterington]

$1,450.

[Spencer Newharth]

1,400 with a comma so big that it looks like a seven. Cory saying $1,450. That's a big swing between you two. Now Cal, was that a safe answer or do you think it's actually like an eighty dollar item? Were you just trying to go under?

[Ryan Callahan]

No, I mean we all know that taxidermy, like is the most valuable to the person that got the critter or somebody related.

[Spencer Newharth]

Sure.

[Ryan Callahan]

Right. And so then it like devalues greatly beyond that.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay.

[Ryan Callahan]

Unless you're like a curio person. Right. Or like I want to have a weird hip vrbo.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah, yeah, that would fit into one of those. Nice. We have Cal saying $75. Corey saying $1400. The correct answer is $950. Giving Cal the first point of the day. Phil, how does the chat do fast math?

[Phil]

Oh, we have three people get it right on the money. Cody, Canadian Hunter and Ian McKenzie said 950.

[Spencer Newharth]

Well done, Cody. Cody, Canadian Hunter and Ian McKenzie. We trust that you're not googling this.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah, I don't know.

[Phil]

I don't know if we should trust that you're not.

[Ryan Callahan]

We remove where you found the item from your next next question.

[Spencer Newharth]

That's pretty quick Googling though that. You know what if they got it that fast to put it in the chat for Phil to find that they earned it. Sure.

[Ryan Callahan]

Well, don't listen to that, kids. Cheating's wrong.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right, Phil, tell us about the second item up for bid.

[Phil]

Sure thing. Well, Your living room with the taxidermied brown bear won't be complete until you bring home this camouflage sofa from Cabela's. Snuggle up for a meat eater marathon. With the whole family on this best home furnishing outdoorsman sofa, the entire thing is wrapped in mossy oak breakup camo, making it impossible to spot whatever stains you might create. This 7 foot sofa doubles as a recliner, allowing you to kick your feet up and relax after a long day of being a redneck.

[Spencer Newharth]

Hell yeah, Phil. And that camo sofa has a perfect 5 star rating from 6 reviews on cabela.com.

[Ryan Callahan]

What are those people sitting on? They're just floating there.

[Spencer Newharth]

Wow. That's right. You'd sure think so. All right, Cal and Corey, what do you think that elegant piece of furniture costs? Don't flip over your answers quite yet. Hold on.

[Ryan Callahan]

Didn't you just ask us?

[Spencer Newharth]

Well, I'm like prompting you to write it down, but we got some time to, you know, banter and allow you guys to, to think long and hard about what your answer is. This.

[Kim Titterington]

Give the chat a little time to.

[Spencer Newharth]

Look at fully, fully camo. When I say fully camo this. There's not a square inch of this sofa that is not covered in the mossy oak breakup infinity.

[Ryan Callahan]

If you wear the same pattern, all that's going to show is your face.

[Spencer Newharth]

So you could, you could take this thing turkey hunting and then you just wear the mossy oak.

[Phil]

We've got people who are definitely googling in the chat. So I don't know. I don't know who to trust anymore.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah. Are you boys ready?

[Kim Titterington]

Yep.

[Spencer Newharth]

Go ahead. And Ruby, reveal your answers. We've got Cal saying 400. $405. And we've got Corey saying $850. The correct answer is $1,449. Giving Corey our second point. All right, Phil, tell us about the cheaters in the chat. Well, we have.

[Phil]

We have one person. Get it. Get it right on the 1449 up here. I don't even want to call people out. I don't trust anybody. Shut the whole thing down.

[Spencer Newharth]

Did they put 99 cents afterwards? They did not.

[Phil]

But who's going to guess 1449 unless they looked it up? We had some people guess 1450 and a couple people in the 1300s. I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt here, but no, I'm, I'm, I'm sorry.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right, cheater.

[Ryan Callahan]

I'll tell you right now, retail pricing is just not something I'm familiar with ryan Kimbrell.

[Phil]

Said 1499. 99. He's got three of them.

[Spencer Newharth]

Got three of them.

[Ryan Callahan]

Awesome, Ryan.

[Spencer Newharth]

I love that. And I'm sorry for writing that mean line about kicking your feet up after a long day of being a redneck. I bet you're a good guy.

[Ryan Callahan]

We need to go back to used pricing. That's something I'm familiar with.

[Spencer Newharth]

I bet I could find one of these sofas on Craigslist somewhere in the nation.

[Stephen Rinella]

Hey, American history buffs. Hunting history buffs, listen up. We're back at it with another volume of our Meat Eaters American History series. In this edition, titled the Mountain Men 1806-1840, we tackle the Rocky Mountain beaver trade and dive into the lives and legends of fellows like Jim Bridger, Jed Smith, and John Colter. This small but legendary fraternity of backwoodsmen helped define an era when the west represented not just unmapped territory, but untapped opportunity for those willing to endure some heinous and at times, violent conditions. We explain what started the Mountain man era and what ended it. We tell you everything you'd ever want to know about what the mountain men ate, how they hunted and trapped, what gear they carried, what clothes they wore, how they interacted with Native Americans, how 10% of them died violent deaths, and even detailed descriptions of how they performed amputations on the fly. It's as dark and bloody and good as our previous volume about the white tailed deer skin trade, which is titled the Long Hunters 1761-1775. So again, you can buy this wherever audiobooks are sold. Meat Eaters American History The Mountain Men 1806-1840 by Stephen Rinella.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right, Phil, tell us about the third item up for bid.

[Phil]

Oh, yeah, give me one sec while I get everything lined up here. I'd love to. Oh, where's the music? Hey, there it is. Hey, if you're looking for a movie marathon to watch from your new camo sofa or three, how about reaching for all 41 DVDs from Drury Outdoors? That's right, the Big Butt Killers over at Drury Outdoors have dozens of DVDs for sale on their website, with titles ranging From Whitetail Madness 12 to Whitetail's Extreme 4, all the way to Whitetail Obsession 7. These videos will give you hundreds of kill shots, thousands of inches of antler, and endless opportunities to ask yourself, what the hell am I going to do with 41 hunting DVDs?

[Spencer Newharth]

Well, Phil, I'd hope those DVDs come with a time machine, because that's the only way I'm watching a movie from a disc. Cal and Corey, what do you think those 41 jewelry outdoors DVDs cost?

[Kim Titterington]

Where are we purchasing this now?

[Spencer Newharth]

From their website Outdoors. I think it's like store. If you want to buy the store.drew outdoors.com you can buy all 41 of their available DVDs. Phil, when's the last time you bought a DVD?

[Ryan Callahan]

Act now. Inventory is limited.

[Phil]

Oh, man. Well, I mean, if we're going to count 4k steel books. Spencer, I don't know what that means. You know, 4K is like Super HD. But what a steel book. You know, you sometimes. Well, back in the day, you used to buy like collectible steelbooks. It wasn't just a plastic case. It was like a nice metal thing.

[Ryan Callahan]

And usually I've never heard of this bill.

[Phil]

You've got to as well got to be more. You got to listen to more movie podcasts.

[Spencer Newharth]

So the last time you bought a DVD is.

[Phil]

It's been over a year. I don't. I'm. I'm really bad. You'd think I'd be like a physical media forever guy. I'm just not, man. I'm too lazy. I just. Everything's on digital now. Video games, movies, TV. It's. It's bad. I feel guilty.

[Spencer Newharth]

How many DVDs are in your home? You think, oh, I've got a. I've.

[Phil]

Got a couple hundred, but I haven't added to the collection in a long, long time.

[Spencer Newharth]

Do your kids find that like. Like they're looking at a caveman when you grab one of those?

[Phil]

Oh, 100%. Well, actually, no, because we've got a DVD player in our min.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay.

[Phil]

So they, they associate DVDs with. This is what we can watch in the car. So they still would see. See a DVD in the store and say, well, I want to watch this in the car. So let's, let's pick.

[Spencer Newharth]

Cal does the same thing.

[Ryan Callahan]

What type of minivan you rocking? All wheel drive.

[Phil]

It's a Plymouth Montana or Pontiac Montana.

[Spencer Newharth]

Maybe it'll show up on a future meteor prices. Right, Corey? Cal, do you have your answers?

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah. So is this the last one?

[Spencer Newharth]

No. We got five of these. All right, go ahead and reveal your answers. We've got Cal saying 49.99, saying 29.99. Again, that's for the price of 41 jewelry outdoors DVDs.

[Ryan Callahan]

I'm assuming shipping is free.

[Spencer Newharth]

The correct answer is $61.09. Giving Cal our third point to the.

[Ryan Callahan]

Game give away that Big buck knowledge for nothing.

[Kim Titterington]

You could probably find those on YouTube.

[Spencer Newharth]

That's a $49 per DVD.

[Ryan Callahan]

Mark Kenyon's gonna get a nasty phone call from the Drury boys. Being like, Corey Calkins does not think much of us.

[Spencer Newharth]

Hey, we just. I bet we sold their whole inventory. I'm being serious now. If I had a deer camp in, like, the Great Lakes region that didn't have, like, cell service and an old box TV sitting there with the DVD player, you best bet.

[Yanni]

I feel so left out.

[Spencer Newharth]

What's up, Yanni?

[Phil]

What is. What is happening?

[Spencer Newharth]

Yanni, grab yourself a whiteboard. Put on a headset.

[Phil]

What the hell?

[Spencer Newharth]

Spencer? I'm here.

[Yanni]

And no invite.

[Spencer Newharth]

I thought you were recording a TV show today. Whoa.

[Ryan Callahan]

Is that a fresh new lid?

[Yanni]

It is. I actually had Corey give it to me because I'm going to give it to a buddy of mine.

[Ryan Callahan]

Oh, that thing's sharp.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yanni, we're playing the prices right. We just had Cory and Cal.

[Yanni]

What is it going to take?

[Spencer Newharth]

You got about 10 minutes.

[Yanni]

All right, I'm in.

[Spencer Newharth]

Grab yourself a whiteboard and a marker. Cal has two points. Corey has one point. They just guessed the price of all 41 jewelry outdoors DVDs that are for sale on their website. What do you think that would cost?

[Yanni]

Total.

[Spencer Newharth]

Total for all 41 DVDs of them killing big old giant whitetail bucks.

[Ryan Callahan]

If folks want to know something funny about Giannis, if his. The text on his screen, if the font gets any larger, he's going to have to scroll for every sentence.

[Yanni]

850.

[Spencer Newharth]

$850. $61.09. What? Yeah, you can buy all of them in a package where you want. You should have these at your hunting camp in Wisconsin.

[Phil]

You just got a new customer. Drury Outdoors.

[Yanni]

No. Well, we don't have televisions there.

[Phil]

Okay. By the way, Sean Pettit or petite? Yes. 60.

[Spencer Newharth]

I think that was the question.

[Phil]

60 bucks.

[Spencer Newharth]

Well done, Sean. I bet you didn't Google that one.

[Kim Titterington]

Professional skier Sean Pettit.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yes. All right, Phil, tell us about the fourth item up for bid.

[Phil]

Sorry, it's taking me a while. Hey, if you're feeling Inspired from those 41 dreary outdoors DVDs, how about taking a trip to the Michigan Whitetail hall of Fame? Conveniently located just off I94 in the charming town of Grass Lake, Michigan, the museum is full of family fun. The Michigan Whitetail hall of Fame features taxidermy of some of the state's biggest bucks. Live deer that you can feed apples to in an awe inspiring Collection of antique two man chainsaws. The venue would also love to host your next special occasion, such as a wedding or family reunion.

[Spencer Newharth]

That's right, Bill. And the owners of the museum also have a tennis and pickleball court in the building where they teach private lessons. But for now, you just need to guess the price of adult admission to the Michigan Whitetail hall of Fame. Yanni, did you know this place existed?

[Yanni]

No, but I definitely want to go there.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay, and as a Michigander, give us a review of Grass Lake, Michigan. What do you know about that place?

[Yanni]

I don't know anything about grass.

[Spencer Newharth]

Have you ever heard.

[Yanni]

Never been there. Never heard of it.

[Spencer Newharth]

On the men. I don't know. Someone in the chat will tell us what they think of Grass Lake and then, yeah, I'm guessing it's near Detroit. So again, we need the price of admission for one adult to the Michigan Whitetail hall of Fame. And Phil is showing us some photos of that hall of Fame with those big old giant whitetail bucks, the live deer that you can feed, and their collection of antique two man chainsaws.

[Yanni]

Is it more or less than $10? I don't think it's over 20.

[Spencer Newharth]

Giving you any hints, but if you do go over, it doesn't matter how close you are to the right answer. You're just disqualified. Three of you will go over.

[Yanni]

You gotta be under. Huh?

[Spencer Newharth]

You gotta be under. These are the prices, right?

[Corey Calkins]

Yeah.

[Ryan Callahan]

Pickleball option.

[Kim Titterington]

I wonder if that's extra.

[Spencer Newharth]

That's not part of the admission. That's just like, hey, I got a whole day to kill in Grass Lake, Michigan. I'm gonna go feed these big old whitetail bucks and get a private pickleball lesson in the back for folks who.

[Ryan Callahan]

Are scared of privately owned museums. Like, there is just no better way to spend your money. It is so much fun.

[Spencer Newharth]

Is that a thing people are scared of? Privately owned museums?

[Ryan Callahan]

I think so too, because they look. I mean, they look exactly like the place that you get killed in a variety of cheap horror films.

[Yanni]

Oh, buddy, I got a great story about one that you should all. Everybody should visit. This one out in eastern Colorado, and I think it's Genoa, Colorado, and it's wild and wacky, man.

[Spencer Newharth]

And it's often just like a husband and wife who. Who curated everything in there. And that's how you wind up with a Whitetail hall of Fame that has a collection of antique chainsaws in it. Are you boys ready?

[Yanni]

I'm ready.

[Spencer Newharth]

Go ahead and reveal your answers. We've got Cal saying 12.99. Giannis says $12. Corey says $21.

[Ryan Callahan]

I'm feeling good.

[Yanni]

You're high, bud.

[Spencer Newharth]

All three of you are too high. All three of you are going to try again. So write down a new answer, and we'll give someone a point after this.

[Ryan Callahan]

So much drama.

[Spencer Newharth]

Get under the correct answer. The price of admission for one adult to the Michigan Whitetail hall of Fame. Yeah, he's going back to his drawing board.

[Yanni]

I'm gonna go.

[Spencer Newharth]

We know it's lower than $12.

[Ryan Callahan]

Fantastic one. I've been there several times, but I finally took my folks to the Ice Caves Museum out of Shoshone, Idaho, and it's. It's phenomenal. I encourage everybody to go, but when we went there, you know, it's like taking the folks someplace special. The two kids, family members wouldn't get off. They had a little tiny TV that they were watching, and they wouldn't get off the couch to even take the money. They're just like, huh? And they're just kind of pointing. They're like, just put the money in the bucket and there you go.

[Yanni]

Yeah, it was amazing, this place we would go to. I think I've been there twice, taking a couple different friends there. Went on our travels between Michigan and Colorado, but it was only a dollar to get in. But there was what year there was. The first time I went, there was probably, I don't know, late 90s or early 2000s. But there was a case of oddities. And at the end of the tour, he would grab one thing out of the case of oddities, and if you could guess what it was, you got your dollar back.

[Ryan Callahan]

Amazing.

[Spencer Newharth]

That's great. I went to the Creationist museum in eastern Montana.

[Ryan Callahan]

Glendive.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah, exactly. They have little diagrams in there of humans hand feeding dinosaurs, so that's a.

[Ryan Callahan]

Special place to visit short dinosaurs.

[Spencer Newharth]

Do all three of you have an answer? Go ahead and reveal your answers. Wow. Okay, we've got Cal saying 4.99. Giannis says $1, Corey says $10.

[Kim Titterington]

And I'm stuck on Bozeman prices. Everything's expensive here.

[Spencer Newharth]

The correct answer is $6, giving Cal his third point and making him the winner of the Price is Right. But we'll finish out the game anyway. Phil, how did the chat do?

[Phil]

Well, first we had copy guy coming with $5.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay, good job.

[Phil]

Brian came in with six. And then after we all found out that it was less expensive, copy guy somehow, for some reason, raised his price 6.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right, Brian. And copy. All right, Phil, tell us about the Fifth and final item up for bid.

[Phil]

Yeah, I just want to do a little vamping here, Spencer, for a second while I bring this up there. Get rid of this comment. And then I look at the script and then I say, hey, if whitetails aren't your thing, then how about a brand new boat? This 198916 foot Alumacraft John boat is located in Rockville, Indiana. It comes with a 2015, 25 horse, four stroke engine, trolling motor, batteries, trailer, and a badass camo paint job. You'll be able to catch all the catfish and kill all of the ducks on the Wabash river with this nifty little skiff.

[Spencer Newharth]

And she's available right now on boat trader.com for the low, low price of. Well, not gonna tell you guys. What do you think that 1989 John Boat costs? And I'll point out the script says, how about a not brand new boat? This boat is not brand new.

[Ryan Callahan]

It's a 2015 four stroke though.

[Spencer Newharth]

That's what it says. But it's also been painted, eliminating basically any chance you have of figuring out precisely what that motor is. But they say, dang, brother, I know. 2015. 2015 force, 25 horse, four straight.

[Yanni]

Yeah, I mean, that's where the cost of that whole kit is, right there in that engine trailer anywhere.

[Spencer Newharth]

She's a little trailer. She's got bicycles.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah, the donut wheels on there. I love it.

[Spencer Newharth]

Now back to the Michigan hall of fame. It's $2 if you're a child. And it's $1 for a bag of feed to give to the deer. So everyone should stop in Grass Lake, Michigan and check that place out. And then you can play some tennis afterwards with some D1 athletes that are in that family. All right, do you boys have a price for this not brand new boat? It's a 1989 John boat that is 16ft long. It's an alumacraft and has a 2015 four stroke.

[Yanni]

Oh, chat is way low.

[Ryan Callahan]

They call me Cal. Heartbeat of America, Callahan.

[Spencer Newharth]

Cal. That's right.

[Ryan Callahan]

I got got my finger on the pulse here.

[Spencer Newharth]

We'll see what he knows about boat prices. You boys ready? Go ahead and reveal your answers. We have Cal saying $801. What? Giannis says 22,000. Corey said 699.

[Yanni]

I see a lot of value.

[Spencer Newharth]

How do you boys have a twenty thousand dollar difference in it?

[Ryan Callahan]

If you're listening one of these gotta be honest patelists to come straight wandering in like, oh geez, I was gonna.

[Yanni]

Go get a loan.

[Spencer Newharth]

The correct answer is $3,399 giving Cal his fourth point a dominant performance.

[Phil]

I can tell you why.

[Yanni]

There's no way that that's a five year old four stroke engine.

[Spencer Newharth]

Listen, Charging painted over it.

[Ryan Callahan]

Giannis, let me tell you how this works. If you're not deeply uncomfortable and embarrassed with your first offer on something on Craigslist, you are doing it wrong.

[Spencer Newharth]

Implying you should lowball them. Is that what you're saying?

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah. Yeah, that's what it's for.

[Yanni]

I understand that, Ryan.

[Spencer Newharth]

Man of the people. Callahan with four points in the Price is Right.

[Yanni]

Hey, thanks for letting me play, Spencer.

[Ryan Callahan]

All right, I gotta keep.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay, we'll see you later, Yanni. Now, thanks for playing, Yanni. And remember, to help control the pet population, have your pets spayed a new.

[Phil]

Oh, really quick. We had Skyler Guess. Aptly named by the way. Skyler. You guessed 3300. Chase Wolf. If you're a dirty cheater, cut it out.

[Ryan Callahan]

You know, I almost bought. I was hanging out with a bunch of commercial fishermen a long time ago, and I almost bought a boat on Craigslist. It was fresh off guidance season, had a bunch of cash, and the dude got so pissed at my offer that I kind of had to be like, well, I guess me and my stack of cash are just going to go cry in the corner. But that guy's insult is what separated me from being a successful commercial fisherman.

[Spencer Newharth]

But you didn't buy it.

[Ryan Callahan]

I didn't.

[Spencer Newharth]

Didn't buy it. All right, let's take a break and get some listener feedback. Phil, what's the chat have to say?

[Phil]

Yeah, sure. Let's see. I never know how to pronounce this name. I'm sorry. Hova, Jova and Figueroa. Question for the guys. Do any of you have any untraditional or unusual pieces of kit that you've adopted into your hunting setup over the years? Anything that you've stopped bringing?

[Spencer Newharth]

H I. This is untraditional, but are you guys familiar with the app All Trails? Sure.

[Phil]

Oh, yeah, I've.

[Ryan Callahan]

I've.

[Spencer Newharth]

I've reserved saying this for a future hot tip off, but I'll say it right now. All Trails is primarily used by people who are not hunters and anglers. And so they'll go on there and they'll do some specific hike, and then they'll. They'll share photos and write a review afterwards, and. And they give out details that no hunter would ever say. They'll say, I saw 10 elk and a black bear. And then they'll even have pictures to show it and so you can go on there and mine little information. If you're looking at doing a hunt somewhere that has like named trail heads, download all trails. There's a free version. You can get a lot of this information. People are willy nilly sharing a lot of really good information that hunters are not going to tell you, you know, on other apps that exist for this kind of thing.

[Ryan Callahan]

And Spencer built a little AI crawler that automatically scores the bucks that people see. So you can be like, yeah, boy.

[Spencer Newharth]

I wish I did. So I say that's an untraditional thing that I've used for hunting.

[Kim Titterington]

Yeah, I do something similar on Facebook. There's like hiking forums and whatnot.

[Ryan Callahan]

Like, oh, watch out, there's a black bear up this trailhead.

[Kim Titterington]

Like, oh, okay, well maybe I'll go spring bear hunting up there.

[Spencer Newharth]

I saw him two days ago about a mile from the trailer.

[Ryan Callahan]

I'll do a thing I stopped bringing and for my backpack trips like it used to just be like a really common thing that you would hear see in all the hunting articles or backpacking articles of like trying to pack light is like eliminate redundancies and even if you're in a group, right. It's like you don't bring three Leatherman tools. Like you may be one person packs a Leatherman tool. Right. Even sharing a rifle or you know, sharing a sleeping bag, depending on how ultralight you want to get. But yeah, I've quit packing like my, my beanie, my toque because every, everything I have typically has a hood on it. So you know, it's a real common like sleeping kit. It's like, but I just put my hood on and, and have not found any, any need or want for the, for the toque on the big backpack tours these days.

[Kim Titterington]

Hood's double just as good.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yep.

[Spencer Newharth]

Well, nice thing about all trails, a lot of people take photos so you can see exactly what the area looks like. You get, you get an idea that you know something that Onyx can't really provide you these on the ground photos. And that's super helpful to show you where water is, what that stream looks like if you think you can cross it. So it's, it's valuable for people in the west. Phil, what else you got?

[Phil]

We'll do one more since we've got a couple people waiting on the line. I just had. Oh yeah, here it is. Question for Caleb Spencer. How are you feeling about Denver Nuggets repeat championship this year?

[Spencer Newharth]

I knew it in my bones in 2023 when they were Going to win the championship. That was one of the most satisfying things, is like, I knew this all along the Nuggets were going to win that. I didn't have that feeling last year. I don't have that feeling this year. But they have a chance. They. I would say in the entire NBA, they have. They're one of the four best teams. They will be competitive. It's just about how far Joker, Jamal and MPJ can take us.

[Ryan Callahan]

Wow. First name basis. Listen how you got those fancy pants seats. I saw you down there on the court.

[Spencer Newharth]

I love the Denver Nuggets.

[Ryan Callahan]

Wow.

[Kim Titterington]

Heck, yeah. I love chicken nuggets.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right, moving on.

[Ryan Callahan]

Something in common.

[Spencer Newharth]

Our next segment is one minute fishing. Do I feel lucky? Well, do you, punk? Go ahead, make my cast. One Minute Fishing is where we go live to someone who's fishing and they have one minute to catch a fish. And if they're successful, we'll make a 500 donation to a conservation group this week. Our angler is Christy Holmes in Maine, and she's fishing for a donation to the Down East Salmon Federation. Christy, welcome to the show.

[Phil]

Hi.

[Christy Holmes]

Thanks for having me.

[Spencer Newharth]

Christy, tell us about what you're doing out on that icy lake today.

[Christy Holmes]

Yeah, we are actually on a tidal river, the Kennebec river, near, kind of near the capital of our state, Augusta. We are fishing for sea run rainbow smelts. You guys are probably familiar with the little smelts. Well, these ones are about 7 to 9 inches and some people use them, some people catch them. Catching some smelts in the background.

[Spencer Newharth]

Is that. Is that a good. Is that a good holler we're hearing behind you?

[Christy Holmes]

Yes, yes, those are good hollers.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah, but don't they kind of like push through and runs? So are you missing your opportunity right now?

[Christy Holmes]

No, we've already caught about a dozen, so we're doing okay. But this is like a commercial smelt operation. So you rent a shack for about six hours. And, you know, the most people use the smelts to eat. They're wicked good. They're my favorite. Chop the head off, take the guts out, fry them whole. So you eat the bones, eat the fins. Some people keep them for, like, toague and pike. But it's just a really fun way to enjoy Maine winters.

[Spencer Newharth]

And tell us about the tactic you're using today to try to catch these smelt.

[Christy Holmes]

So come on in in our stack and I'll show you.

[Spencer Newharth]

Christy is walking us into this ice hut and the ice huts are so close that they're Dang near touching each other.

[Christy Holmes]

Yeah. So we've got raceways, so holes in the ice here. And then we've got jig boards, we've got jig poles, and we've got the smelts we've caught so far right there. And a couple heads are missing because my friends Kathy and Jill here, it's tradition. When you catch your first ever sea one smelt, you have to bite the head off.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah.

[Ryan Callahan]

All right.

[Spencer Newharth]

I like it. And Christy has a baby on her hip right now. That baby gets a limit of smelt as well, right?

[Christy Holmes]

Oh, of course. Yeah. The limit is one gallon per person.

[Spencer Newharth]

That's bigger than the child that she's holding. All right, Chrissy, your one minute of fishing starts as soon as your tackle hits the water.

[Christy Holmes]

All right, well, they're already in, so we can just start.

[Spencer Newharth]

She's. Okay, well, we're gonna start.

[Christy Holmes]

So we're. We're watching for any little movement here or these jig poles.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay.

[Christy Holmes]

We're in about 20, 27ft of water.

[Spencer Newharth]

And are you fishing on the bottom or are these suspended?

[Christy Holmes]

The whole river is going to change by about seven.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay, you are 20 seconds into your one minute. Christy, is there any by catch while you're doing this?

[Christy Holmes]

Yeah, I've caught a tawny pod before, and I've caught a headlamp before. You use pieces of sand worms as your bait, and they do have fangs.

[Ryan Callahan]

So they will bite sandworms. Terms are cool.

[Spencer Newharth]

You've got 15 seconds left.

[Christy Holmes]

Are you guys catching any.

[Ryan Callahan]

Tension?

[Spencer Newharth]

Chrissy was a little pessimistic. She said this is better done in the evening. So we. We put her in a tough spot. All right, Chrissy, your one minute is up. We couldn't make it happen today, but thank you for joining us and showing us how a smelter does it in Maine.

[Christy Holmes]

I hope you guys make it out to come smelting sometime.

[Spencer Newharth]

That's. That looks like a ton of fun. Thank you, Christy.

[Christy Holmes]

Thanks, Cal.

[Spencer Newharth]

Have you ever. Have you ever eaten smelt?

[Ryan Callahan]

No, I, you know, I had, like, a scan to Whovian Grandma. Great Grandma, and she was. That's how Gramp said it. That would get, like, very upset over the fact that I used smelt for pike bait here in Montana.

[Spencer Newharth]

Very upset because she wanted to eat him.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yep.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah.

[Spencer Newharth]

Scandihuvian. Is that. Is that a derogatory term, you think, from your grandpa?

[Ryan Callahan]

Well, I. I never took it that way, but it's possible. It's possible.

[Kim Titterington]

As a Norwegian, I don't take any offense.

[Spencer Newharth]

Okay, we're safe. All right, our next segment is hot Tip off.

[Corey Calkins]

Joe T I V off.

[Phil]

Turn your head and give cough. What's that face? Don't use golf. There aren't many words that rhyme with off.

[Spencer Newharth]

H o t T I P A let's all do a happy bop H O T T I P I let's all do a happy bop.

[Kim Titterington]

Well done, Phil.

[Spencer Newharth]

Phil, I trust the next time we go to karaoke you're gonna sing some chapel roan. Can we, can I count on you for that?

[Phil]

You have my word.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right, Hot Tip off is where two listeners go head to head with competing pieces of advice. And after we hear each tip, we'll declare which one is hotter. If you have a hot tip, take a one minute video on your phone and email it to radio the meat eater.com with the subject line hot tip off. All right, let's hear this week's hot tips.

[Corey Calkins]

Tyler Harm.

[Ryan Callahan]

I'm Tyler Harm and this is my hot tip off. For those of you who hunt out west, keep a in old tent rainfly in your pack. It'll serve two purposes. One, you can tie it between trees and use it as a rainfly if you get caught out in the rain without your rain gear. Or you can lay it out.

[Spencer Newharth]

When.

[Ryan Callahan]

You'Re cutting up your meat. Gives you a good, clean staging area for your meat and it's lighter weight than a tarp and works great for keeping that meat clean.

[Kim Titterington]

Crucial.

[Ryan Callahan]

Nice.

[Spencer Newharth]

Dylan Sunderland.

[J]

Welcome to another Hot Tip off. My name is Dylan and I'm here to tell you how I make a cheap, affordable, yet very effective scent checking system. You're only going to need a few things. For those who don't chew, you can always use, you know yourself, an altoids container or you know, a film canister. Those who like to, you know, dabble with the old devil's dirt there and put your big old lipper in upper decky. You take one of these, you drill about a quarter inch hole right in yonder.

[Spencer Newharth]

Oh.

[J]

If you want the picture, you know you like the deer. Put it on the back side. Doesn't matter. After gathering this stuff, which is called milkweed, which we all probably know love it. Pull off the seat twister up and try to make a long, almost like a length of rope with twisting. Okay? Then you take it, you pack it down in. Then the more the merrier. Pack it right down in there, okay? So if you want to get it out of the hole and you just take your drill bit, okay, you pull it up. There's that now instead of using powder or wow, check in a flag. Yeah. This right in your pocket. Cost you absolutely nothing. It's a piece of something we're going to throw out in the trash or recycling. And yeah, you can even get one with cool pictures on it.

[Spencer Newharth]

Oh, he's got a few handy.

[J]

That's my hot tip off.

[Spencer Newharth]

And you can see these hot tips on our YouTube video right now.

[Corey Calkins]

I love it.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right, Cal and Corey, do you like Dylan's hot tip about the homemade windicator or Tyler's hot tip about the tent rainfly Man, I love to recycle.

[Kim Titterington]

They're both very smart and useful.

[Ryan Callahan]

Windicator, 100%. I mean, nobody's wrong in this.

[Spencer Newharth]

Sure.

[Corey Calkins]

Right.

[Ryan Callahan]

It's just. I mean, it's. It's great.

[Spencer Newharth]

I agree with the windicator. I also carry milkweed when I'm whitetail hunting. What I do differently than him, though, which is. Is worse is I just like shove it in a loose spot in my bag and then If I have 100 little seeds from milkweed in there, you see all 100 of those. But he, he has those very tightly packed in that dip can that's real clean and he can just pull out little strands at a time. I love that.

[Ryan Callahan]

And he said he's pulling the seeds out too, which is like, I'm not spreading milkweed every right key there. There was a company that had a very similar deal and it was like polyester fibers and I just hated it. Yeah, I'm like, you literally made trash.

[Spencer Newharth]

I'm voting for the windicator. Cal's voting for the windicator. Corey, what's your vote?

[Kim Titterington]

Tyler, I love your tip, but Dylan wins.

[Spencer Newharth]

I also like Tyler's tip. I would say that sounded pretty dang loud to be hauling around in your backpack.

[Kim Titterington]

Yeah, you stuff it in the bottom. You never know it's there.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah. But I love the idea of sliding your meat on that thing instead of just whatever's convenient nearby. Now Dylan is our winner and he is going to get a brand new treat up gnome T shirt. You can see it here on the camera. This is dropping today in the meat eater store and they sell out very fast. Last time I was told, they sold out the day of. So Tyler is getting exclusive one of those as well as a meat eater trivia board game that has been signed by the crew. We're going to get those in the mail to you. Dylan.

[Ryan Callahan]

That's a big win.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah. So, Ty, I'm sorry I said Tyler won. Dylan won. Dylan Won the board game and he won the T shirt. You're going to hear from Corey about how to get those sent to the mail.

[Stephen Rinella]

Yep.

[Phil]

Really quick, just so we don't have any sort of technical hiccups for you. Spencer, we had Dave on the line. He was hanging out for a while. Our next guest and I'm not seeing any video or audio from him. So Dave, if you're, if you're around, if you turn anything, your mic or camera off, go ahead and turn that stuff back on now. Otherwise we might just have to have him on.

[Spencer Newharth]

Well, can, can we hear from the chat for a little bit, Phil? And then maybe, maybe in the meantime we'll hear from David.

[Phil]

Yeah, we're live folks.

[Kim Titterington]

We're live.

[Phil]

It's. It's what it's all about. It's what we're doing here. Cal, I have a five month old chocolate lab. Any advice on a training program? I know it's kind of a big question, but maybe someplace to start.

[Ryan Callahan]

Just, I mean it's just consistency. Like get a routine in place and it all. Everything is structured off of sit, stay, come, you know, and for, for me really like sit should also mean stay. So start basic, always return to the basics. Don't add too much too fast. There's not a whole lot of secret here is just consistency and do not over complicate things. You'll be, you'll be great.

[Phil]

Cool. And this is another kind of big general question, but maybe, maybe some words of inspiration or someplace to start. Free crank says that he's been hunting turkey for four years and he hasn't been able to seal the deal. Any advice? He's located in western Pennsylvania.

[Kim Titterington]

Man, keep at it. I've been there four years not tagging out. Then the next year, well, bam.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah, yeah. I mean do you do your, your due diligence so you know you're hunting good areas? And then as my buddy Jim, who's like the most turkey killing son of a gun I know he says kill him with your ass Frank or free crank.

[Kim Titterington]

Yeah, sit and call. Commit. See what happens.

[Ryan Callahan]

Yep.

[Phil]

Cal, I think you might be able to answer this one. This is from Harrison. Cal, do you still have your own podcast and what GPS collar do you use for snort? Thanks.

[Ryan Callahan]

I've been running Garmin like a tracking collar like you use for hounds or like real lanky pointing dogs which you know is definitely overkill for a lab. But I just like the data. It's pretty fascinating to me how, how much a working dog can move. So. And Then, yes, Cal's week in review. It's the cow, the wild feed these days. A little bit of a rebrand, but yeah, tons of stuff happening right now in the world of conservation and legislation. So give her a listen. Thank you.

[Spencer Newharth]

Phil. Are you seeing Dave in the weight room at all?

[Phil]

I am not. I, I, I saw that he tried to hop back in, but it said they were still having trouble connecting to his camera.

[Spencer Newharth]

Let's get answer a few, and if he's not there in a few minutes, we'll just end the show.

[Phil]

Yeah, sure. Keep sending those questions in, guys. Trav says, hey, guys, someone wants to hunt and collect firewood on some property I own. I'm fine with it, but wondering if I should have him sign a contract or a waiver or something.

[Ryan Callahan]

Check with your state. A lot of states, if you provide a free public access, the state's liability will cover. We'll cover you. But yeah, I, you know, I'd definitely do a little due diligence. And obviously if they're knocking trees down, that's a little more severe than if they're just picking stuff up off the ground.

[Spencer Newharth]

I, I have knocked on hundreds of doors, Trav, asking for hunting permission. I've never had anyone ask me to sign a contract or a waiver, but I wouldn't scoff at it if they did. It totally makes sense, especially if they're a stranger to you like I am to most of these people. I'm actually surprised it hasn't happened at this point. I think it's. National Deer association provides a contract that would cover you. I believe they have one maybe for when you're leasing a property and for one, when you're just like hunting on private land. So go check out the National Deer Association. They might be able to help you out. And Phil, it looks like you got Dave is now in the chat. So I think we're going to do that interview and then call it a show.

[Phil]

Sounds good.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right. Joining us on the line last is the founder of the Lost Apple project, David Ben Scotter. David and his network of Apple detectives have found 30 varieties of apples that were previously lost. David, welcome to the show.

[Corey Calkins]

Hi. Thank you. Thank you for letting me be here.

[Spencer Newharth]

First thing, tell us about the lost Apple project.

[Corey Calkins]

Okay. Yeah. The lost Apple project began about 10 years ago and kind of by accident. I'm retired law enforcement and I was taking care of a disabled neighbors orchard, and one day she came and asked me what could I go and pick some apples for. She lived on her family's property. And they had been on the property since before 1915. And so I grabbed a bucket, I grabbed a. A ladder, headed over to her orchard, came back 10 minutes later. I said, I can't pick a single apple. Those trees haven't been pruned, you know, probably 50 years, maybe more. And I said, but I do know how to prune apple trees. So I'll. This, this winter when they're dormant, I'll go prune the apple trees. And I said, within two, three years, you'll have lots of apples. So that winter we get quite a bit of snow here. We're butted right up against Idaho and about 200 miles from the Canadian border. And I was probably on a winter day, and I was thinking, you know, those apples not going to be the same kind of apples that I go and eat today. And so I called her up and I said, I was just curious, you know, do you know what's growing up there? And she remembered.

[Phil]

Should come back in a sec.

[Corey Calkins]

One apple, Yelder's first apple that, that you eat during the summer, it ripens in July. And she didn't know any of the other apples, so she called her brother. He remembered that there was four trees at the very top of the orchard. They were called a wealthy, which just happened to be the first bread apple tree in America. And it was bred in Wisconsin because it was such cold temperatures up there, they couldn't get any apples to live Wealthy was a wonderful apple and it solved that problem. And I got. Did the biggest mistake of my life. I got on the Internet and I started typing in, you know, apple for our area and stuff like that. And I was just fast. Tough connection for Dave Made it by in Washington. Everybody knows that Washington grows the most apples in the United States. Those are all along the Columbia river and the tributaries of the Columbia river where they can irrigate the orchards. And they've got really hot summer days, cool nights. We're over in eastern Washington where it's rolling hills, nothing is irrigated, and we. But we do have deep soils and a lot of ravines and things like that. And so to make a long story short, I just started researching. I found out that there was a book by a fellow by the name of Lee Calhoun called Old Southern Apples. And this book listed. The first half of the book was all old Southern apples that still exists today. And the last half of the book were extinct old Southern apples. And that was the first time I even knew there was any such a thing as extinct apples. And it Just so happens. Excuse me. It just so happens that there have been about 17,000 apples that originated in the United States and Canada. And fellow by the name of Dan Bussey just wrote a book about that. I think it came out about five, six years ago listing all 17,000 apples there and whatever is known about them. And out of those 17,000 apples, only 5,000 of those apples exist today. And so anyway, I started looking at the list of apples, and then I also was kind of curious about a famous, at least locally famous fellow. He was a nurseryman about. I live near Spoke.

[Phil]

Spokane.

[Corey Calkins]

He was saying, Dan Wash, 70 miles. Excuse me, Colfax, Washington, which is really close to Washington State University in Pullman, Washington. And I was reading old, old newspapers about him and, and apples that he had introduced and things like that. And I. I was reading there was a little article about county fairs. This was back in the early 1900s. I thought, well, that's interesting. They're listing the county fair winners. And I started looking at that, and I immediately knew that I was onto something that was important. And the reason for that was they listed every apple that was entered in the fair. So I thought, if they do this over a course of, let's say, 10 years, I will know pretty much what was growing. And this happened to be Whitman County, Washington, in the early 1900s. I started writing the names down of these apples. Turns out about at least four of the apples that were. Were entered in the county fair were listed in Lee Calhoun's book as extinct apples. And I thought, oh, gosh, you know, this is. I'm the only person that knows this. You know, there's nobody here. There are other apple hunters around the United States. There's John Bunker up in Maine. There's Tom Brown in North Carolina. Lee Calhoun, he was in North Carolina. But if you, if you happen to notice that all those people lived on the east coast, I had no idea why. Figured there must be some, some reason why that nobody ever hunted apples out west, but there must be a logical explanation for it. But, but I thought, you know what? I'm going to just try a little bit to find one of the apples. And that apple that I was looking for is the Wall Bridge. And the Wall Bridge was entered by six different people in Whitman county in between 1900 and 1910. So I called some apple identification experts that I knew who were over in Oregon, and I said, would it be okay if I sent you like, like, you know, three, four, five bags of apples and, and you could see if they're the Wall Bridge apple. And they said, yeah, go right ahead. And I chose the Wall Bridge, not only because it was entered more times than any other apple in the fair, but also because it was rather distinct looking. It was a red apple with very crimson stripes on the apple. So this was, I believe this is about 2013. And I started looking around Whitman county, which again, 70 miles south of me, I went through a little town of Colfax, which had three nurseries. In that town, I had found little catalogs of the apples that they grew and nurseries nearby that grew apples. Walbridge, again, was very popular. I found a few trees, ended up finding, I believe, three or four trees with apples that were red with very crimson striping on them. And they look like to me, somebody who doesn't. I still can't identify apples worth beans, but I thought these might be the lost Walbridge apple. Put them all in a box, getting ready to ship it off. And I happened to drive by a water pump station in Colfax, Washington, and hanging over this water pump station was the weirdest apple I'd ever seen. It was an apple that had corners to it. They call it ridges. But I thought it was just a really strange looking apple. And so I picked some of those apples too. Stuck them in a plastic bag. They had the experts want you to send like six or seven apples that you pick them, where they were picked from. All these are important things. They sent those apples off. To make a long story short, all the Walbridge apples were not Walbridge. And that's still kind of our white whale. We're still looking for that.

[Ryan Callahan]

So. Still haven't found it.

[Corey Calkins]

What's that?

[Ryan Callahan]

Still haven't found it.

[Corey Calkins]

Still have not found that apple. But the other apple happened to turn out to be the yellow. Let's see, it's the fall genetic. And the fall genetic was the first lost apple we found and just got us off. Got us off to a good start.

[Spencer Newharth]

And what's the strangest place that you found one of these 30 lost apple varieties?

[Corey Calkins]

Well, the strangest place was, is the apple closest to where I live. I always thought that these apples were going to be in at least a few counties away from me. And then I. I knew about this apple tree. I had gone hunting, and I knew this was my. One of my favorite places to hunt because there was an old apple tree right next to a swamp. And although that apple Tree was probably 130 years old, it was in really good shape. The apples were wonderful. I actually have one of the apples here, and this, this was determined to be the Shackelford. And the Shackelford was one of the most popular apples in the late 1800s, early 1900s. It, unfortunately, I think probably the reason it became lost was it was just a red apple. Nothing remarkable about it, but it was. It's an excellent apple. And actually, I think it's one of my top three apples. And I think it actually could compete to be a grocery store apple today, a commercial variety. I don't think it's as good as apples like Crimson Crisp or Honey Crisp or some of those, but I think some of the other app.

[Spencer Newharth]

And Dave, what. What is the best tasting lost apple that you found?

[Corey Calkins]

Well, I'm gonna, I'm gonna. I, I'm. I'm. I wish washy. I can't tell you that. But I've got three thrift favorites. There's that one, the Shackelfelford, and another one's called the Gold Ridge. And finally the last one is called Kitagasky, and this is a little Kitagasky. And again, this would not make a very good commercial variety today because it's too small. I think it's. Stark Brothers has a, an apple that they advertise as a lunchbox apple. It's a small apple called a Pixie Crunch. This is about the size of a Pixie Crunch, and it could go in. If you had a child in school, you stick that in their lunch. But commercially, I don't think it could ever make it, but it has a wonderful taste to it. And it was, it was from, from the south, and it's just a wonderful apple.

[Spencer Newharth]

Now, how can listeners help with the Lost Apple Project? And what should they do if they think they know about a lost apple tree?

[Corey Calkins]

Well, I can tell you a few things. First of all, if you live in Oregon, Washington or Idaho, get a hold of me and I'll give you some information about that in a minute. And, and I will, I will get your apples to our apple identification experts. Now, if you're not in Oregon, Idaho or Washington, there's another thing that we can do. And we, we're working with Washington State University, and they're doing an apple DNA project. And if you contact me, I will send you however many little tubes you want. And DNA from an apple tree is actually not obtained from the apple itself. It's from a leaf of the tree. So you don't have to wait till fall to do this, you know, in, in May or June when the, the tree is fully leafed out. I'll send you instructions on on how to take a leaf and put it in this tube and mail it to us. And Washington State University has over 3,000 apple cultivars in their database. And we've had success, I would say about 50% success rate in identifying apple apples that way. Patient experts who, who use the basically 50 different characteristics of an apple, including how long the stem is, what shape the seed is, all the things that I'm totally unable to do and that they can do. We, that's how we send local apples to, to at least the first stage. And then if they can't identify the apples, then we move on to the DNA testing.

[Spencer Newharth]

Also, you can learn more about David's story and apple haunting in his new book called Lost Apples the Search for Rare and Heritage Apples in the Pacific Northwest. It's available right now on kyokibooks.com David, thanks for joining us.

[Ryan Callahan]

Thank you. That was awesome.

[Corey Calkins]

Yes. Could I just, could I just mention one thing?

[Spencer Newharth]

Sure.

[Corey Calkins]

They look under Whitman County Historical Society. We're under the Whitman County Historical Society. You can donate to our cause and if you have any questions, you can also reach me at D D b e n s23gmail.com.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right. Good luck with your apple hunting this year. Have a good one, David.

[Corey Calkins]

Thank you.

[Kim Titterington]

Thanks, Dave.

[Corey Calkins]

Thank you, Art.

[Spencer Newharth]

Phil, I think we're gonna skip the chat that's left unless there's anything really pressing since we're running over on time.

[Phil]

Oh, no, nothing. Nothing super newsy or pressing.

[Spencer Newharth]

All right, well, next week the Meat Eater Movie Club returns with a review of the 1988 family film the Bear. You can stream it on Prime Tubi Roku YouTube TV or Peacock. Watch it before the show if you want to participate in the discussion. Also, Chester will be performing at the Pheasants Forever and Quails Forever concert for conservation in Kansas City next Thursday, March 6th. Cal's going to be there too, right?

[Ryan Callahan]

Well, yeah, actually, starting that Wednesday in DeSoto, Kansas, we got a Kansas BHA slash North American Grouse partnership event that's open to the public and, and will be great. It's called BHA at the Barn. And it's just open forum. Learn about a bunch of stuff that's going on in the organization. And then, yeah, Wednesday, Concert for Conservation where Cheddar's gonna kick things off for Muscadine Bloodline.

[Spencer Newharth]

Now, in the script here it says Thursday. Is the concert Thursday?

[Ryan Callahan]

Yeah. Sixth, right? Yep.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah, Thursday the sixth.

[Ryan Callahan]

And then Friday there's the Bird Dog parade that kicks off Pheasant Fest and Quail Forever there. And. Which is pretty, pretty darn cute.

[Spencer Newharth]

Will Snort be there?

[Ryan Callahan]

Snort's been there two years in a row now, so she's taking a break. And then, yeah, we'll have a first light booth and. And an awesome, just an awesome conservation event. Like, PFQF does a really, really, really good job of getting people up to snuff on what they need to know for all the habitat programs and farm bill and stuff. That may not sound super sexy and fun, but they make it fun. And. And if you need a little, little lube to get that going, there's a bar on every corner in the. On the show floor. And then Sunday, we have an awesome fundraiser lunch to kind of wrap things up with North American Grouse Partnership. And we're talking about the lesser prairie chicken and the fact that the North American grasslands are the most threatened ecosystem in, in North America.

[Spencer Newharth]

So happening in Kansas City next week. Last question. What's your favorite apple? California. Are you loyal to any variety when you're in the grocery store?

[Ryan Callahan]

I have not personally purchased an apple in many, many years.

[Spencer Newharth]

How do you acquire your apples? You just don't eat apples.

[Ryan Callahan]

No, I mean, I'm like, not a big sugar guy.

[Spencer Newharth]

I gotta ask someone else. Corey, what's your favorite apple?

[Kim Titterington]

I'm a big apple snob. Like, I don't let my wife buy apples for me.

[Spencer Newharth]

Tell me more. Are you agreeing?

[Phil]

No, because Adrian is. And if I buy anything other than a honeycrisp, she gets mad.

[Spencer Newharth]

Let's make this show 10 more min. What's your favorite apple then, Corey?

[Kim Titterington]

Yeah, I'll second the honeycrisp or Pink Lady.

[Spencer Newharth]

Those are my 2 favorite.

[Kim Titterington]

I'm going through the whole bushel and feeling everyone.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah.

[Kim Titterington]

And I'm that guy who will go into a grocery store with apples on my grocery list and I'll walk out if I can't find the right one.

[Spencer Newharth]

Buddy. I'm with, man. I worked the produce section of Walmart my freshman year of college. I didn't really care for making minimum wage, so I got my money back by grazing on apples in the freezer back there. And I really became like a small yay for apples. At that point. I feel like you could handed me one and I could have taken a bite and been like, that's a jazz apple. Now that one, there's a gala apple. That one's a honeycrisp. My favorite. To the pink lady in the honeycrisp, you can't go wrong. I especially love honeycrisp because they come from the University of Minnesota. They were created there.

[Phil]

That's right.

[Spencer Newharth]

I have. You know that, Phil.

[Phil]

Oh, yeah. Adrian's from there. So that might. That might have to do with her honeycrisp. You know, I feel like an honorary.

[Spencer Newharth]

Minnesotan and an honorary Coloradan, as well as a Montana and South Dakotan. So I claim four states, two I never lived in. But that's. That's one thing I really like about honeycrisp apples. They came from the U of M. Yeah.

[Phil]

And one of my favorite celebrity sightings was we went mini golfing out outside of the Twin Cities. It was this really cool course that's in the. In in the middle of the woods. And we drove by the farm where the honeycrisp apple was. Was, you know, invented. Seems like a weird word. What's the. What would be the word to use?

[Ryan Callahan]

Sure.

[Spencer Newharth]

And they like, they collect a patent on it. So it is like something you invent.

[Phil]

Yeah, yeah. And they, they had signs everywhere, like, home of the honey crisp apple. And it was. I felt like. Yeah. I was starting starstruck.

[Spencer Newharth]

Yeah. How about them apples? All right, we'll see you back here next week. More apple talk on Media Radio. Thanks for listening.

[Stephen Rinella]

Hey, American history buffs. Hunting history buffs, listen up. We're back at it with another volume of our Meat Eaters American History series. In this edition, titled the Mountain Men 1806-1840, we tackle the Rocky Mountain beaver trade and dive into the lives and legends of fellows like Jim Bridger, Jed Smith, and John Coulter. This small but legendary fraternity of backwoodsmen helped define an era when the west represented not just unmapped territory, but untapped opportunity for those willing to endure some heinous and, at times, violent conditions. We explain what started the mountain man era and what ended it. We tell you everything you'd ever want to know about what the mountain men ate, how they hunted and trapped, what gear they carried, what clothes they wore, how they interacted with Native Americans, how 10% of them died violent deaths, and even detailed descriptions of how they performed amputations on the fly. It's as dark and bloody and good as our previous volume about the white tailed deer skin trade, which is titled the Long Hunters, 1761-1775. So, again, you can buy this wherever audiobooks are sold. Meat Eaters American History the Mountain Men, 1806-1840 by Stephen Rinella.