6 Ranch Podcast

Local rifle company Seekins Precision has established itself as a premium rifle company based on customer care. They got my attention after they honored their warranty by replacing a rifle that had burned up in a house fire. Recorded at their manufacturing facility in Lewiston, Idaho— this episode discusses military leadership, product innovation, long range shooting, high pressure shooting, and a major announcement from Seek...

How do animals know what to eat? This is the fundamental question that Fred Provenza studied for decades and wrote a book about that should be read by everyone who eats food. His work is simultaneously that of rigorous natural science, and of deep person introspection. The greater question is maybe this: do you naturally know what foods you need? And if not, why? And here’s the curve— you can do something about it. ...

If you didn’t know there was a July bear season in Idaho, that’s the first of many things you’ll learn in this episode. Ben Vidal from Mammoth Outfitters is a mountain man. He makes his living in the woods with his dogs hunting bears, cougars, bobcats and wolves. This isn’t the type of houndsman you might be imagining. Ben will take off on foot with his dogs and spend multiple days just getting to an area to...

Madi Woodward and her Dad Matt Andresen are a case study in epigenetics. Is high end shooting skill learned or is it in our genes? Matt is a law enforcement shooting instructor and Madi works in the bullet industry and has become one of the top female precision rifle shooters in the country. They’ve hunted together Madi’s whole life and this season they are preparing for what will be the hunt of her Dad’s life, a ...

Austin Smith is a USMC veteran and is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. He is the natural and cultural resources manager of the 640,000 acre Warm Springs Indian Reservation. In this episode we talk about tribal warrior culture and history, the treaty hunting rights of tribal members, and the natural resources and wildlife management strategies and challenges on and off the reservation. I learned a lot d...

It’s 3:30 in the morning, you clamber out of your bedroll, pull on cold cowboy boots and amble over to the chuck wagon where whisps of steam curl off biscuits in a Dutch oven. You wash it down with a cup of coffee then saddle your horse and ride out with the rest of the cowboys in the dark— three or four hours later as the sun crests the ridge you find the cattle, gather them up, sort off the calves and start branding. ...

Juan grew up in Venezuela and after the political turmoil in his country where he was held at gunpoint multiple times he left and has since taken up work running an old steel sailboat for expeditions of many kinds around Central America. In this episode we discuss the science that’s being conducted on the reef through his boat, sailing stories, and what it means to live on the sea. Check out more of what he does by searching ...

Nate Illingsworth is a breath of fresh air. He seriously enjoys hunting but doesn’t take himself seriously. Thanks to a sedentary lifestyle and close proximity to a Buckeyes Nate found himself on the scary side of 300lbs. Now he runs marathons and is prepping for his first full Ironman. We talk about the reality of fitness for backcountry hunting and you don’t want to miss the story of his absolutely chaotic debacle of ...

The two most successful wildlife conservation models in the world are the North American and African models, both of which rely upon hunting. However, hunting North America is increasing in cost and is more and more reliant upon lottery systems with many hunts requiring decades of applications to get the state’s permission to hunt. Cliff Gray is a professional hunter and guide with a lifetime of hunting experience and recentl...