Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Podcasts and Blasts

Backcountry Hunters & Anglers

Hunting. Angling. Public Lands. That's the meat of what BHA's Podcasts & Blasts is about, and we cover the gamut. With guests that range from outdoor writers to backcountry hunters to legendary anglers, we seek to uncover the stories, the truths, the controversies, and the epic conversations that our public land heritage provides.

  1. Sep 24

    Backcountry Conversations - Ep. 3: Floating the Koyukuk Before the Ambler Road

    This week on Backcountry Conversations, host Trey Curtiss is joined by two BHA staffers: Mary Glaves, BHA's Alaska Program Manager, and Jack Polentes, who works on federal policy out of Washington, D.C. They recently joined members of BHA's Alaska chapter on a five-day, roughly 53-mile float down the Middle Fork of the Koyukuk River to document a landscape at the center of one of Alaska's biggest conservation fights: the proposed Ambler Industrial Road. The 211-mile, gated industrial road would run west from the Dalton Highway to the Ambler mining district, crossing 11 major rivers and requiring more than 2,900 culverts across permafrost. Mary and Jack describe the drive north from Fairbanks, a moving launch ceremony on the river, finding safe gravel-bar camps during a a 24-hour rainstorm that flooded the river, and the signs of development they saw along the way, including 37 helicopters in five days, freshly cut landing zones near a proposed bridge site, and a reactivated mining camp. The conversation also covers what they heard from the people who live, work, and hunt in the region, including trappers and residents in Bettles and Evansville, a longtime big-game guide, and even a career mining surveyor who called the project "in the wrong place." Their concerns range from disrupted moose hunting and risks to bush-plane traffic to the road's lack of public access and a proposed hunting and trapping ban along the corridor. Jack contrasts these on-the-ground views with the conversation in Washington, D.C., where he sees a wide disconnect. Both guests explain why this corner of the Brooks Range deserves national attention and how listeners can stay informed and speak up, including through the Hunters & Anglers for the Brooks Range coalition and by taking action today at BHA's Safeguard the Brooks Range campaign.

  2. Sep 17

    Backcountry Report - Ep. 7 Public Lands, Fisheries & Conservation News from the Road

    In Episode 7 of the Backcountry Report, Chris reports from the Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies Annual Meeting and covers major conservation news, including Minnesota's Boundary Waters mining debate, NOAA's revised recreational fishing data, proposed Clean Water Act changes, and the future of the Roadless Rule and Forest Service travel management. The episode also features updates from Colorado, Massachusetts, Maine, and Texas, plus ways to support public lands during Public Lands Month.  Show Notes:  Help Us Get to 1 Million Signatures and Save Our Public Lands - https://www.savepubliclands.us/  Roadless Rule: A Closer Look at the Record: https://www.backcountryhunters.org/news/details/roadless-rule-a-closer-look-at-the-record  Roadless Rule: Take Action - https://takeaction.io/bha/maintain-national-forest-roadless-areas/  Travel Management: Take Action - https://takeaction.io/bha/speak-up-for-responsible-travel-management-on-our-national-forests/  Outdoor Life - EPA to Reopen Comment on Clean Water Act Rewrite That Could Leave 80 Percent of U.S. Wetlands Unprotected https://www.outdoorlife.com/conservation/epa-wotus-public-comment/  Colorado's Ammendment 83 - https://www.backcountryhunters.org/news/details/amendment-83-colorados-right-to-hunt-and-fish Texas BHA Adopt-An-Access Initiative: https://www.backcountryhunters.org/news/details/texas-bha-chapter-and-tpwd-enter-agreement-for-adopt-an-access-initiative  Forged & Found Online Auction - https://go.bhafundraising.org/forgedandfound26/Campaign/Details  Join Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, the voice for your wild public lands, waters, and wildlife to be part of a passionate community of hunter-angler-conservationists.  BHA. THE VOICE FOR OUR WILD PUBLIC LANDS, WATERS AND WILDLIFE.  Follow us:  Web:  www.backcountryhunters.org Instagram: @backcountryhunters  Facebook: @backcountryhunters

    Backcountry Report - Ep. 7 Public Lands, Fisheries & Conservation News from the Road
  3. Sep 4

    Backcountry Report - Ep. 6 A Farmer's Death, a Park for Sale, and a Billion-Dollar Barricade

    Chris kicks the show off with a tribute to Wendell Berry, who died this week at 92, and the language he gave hunters for understanding their place in the food chain. In conservation news, Governor Walz signs an executive order blocking mining near the Boundary Waters, juvenile silver carp are found closer than ever to Lake Michigan while the Brandon Road barrier sits idle under administrative review, and the Trump administration pressures the Park Service toward an unprecedented land exchange inside Yosemite. Policy Watch covers the Roadless Rule DEIS, the Travel Management rewrite, and a questionable 20,000-acre land transfer in Alaska. Plus: Minnesota BHA wins the Outdoor Leaders Award, voices from the Kankakee Jamboree, and a roundup of Public Lands Month events and giveaways.  Show Notes:   Help Us Get to 1 Million Signatures and Save Our Public Lands - https://www.savepubliclands.us/  Roadless Rule: A Closer Look at the Record: https://www.backcountryhunters.org/news/details/roadless-rule-a-closer-look-at-the-record  Roadless Rule: Take Action - https://takeaction.io/bha/maintain-national-forest-roadless-areas/  Travel Management: Take Action - https://takeaction.io/bha/speak-up-for-responsible-travel-management-on-our-national-forests/  Proposed Alaskan Land Transfer - https://www.backcountryhunters.org/news/details/opportunity-to-comment-on-the-proposed-land-transfer-in-houston-ak  Minnesota Chapter Wins Outdoor Leaders Award - https://www.backcountryhunters.org/news/details/minnesota-bha-chapter-wins-2026-outdoor-leaders-award-for-public-lands-stewardship  Forged & Found Online Auction - https://go.bhafundraising.org/forgedandfound26/Campaign/Details  Join Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, the voice for your wild public lands, waters, and wildlife to be part of a passionate community of hunter-angler-conservationists. BHA. THE VOICE FOR OUR WILD PUBLIC LANDS, WATERS AND WILDLIFE. Follow us: Web: www.backcountryhunters.org Instagram: @backcountryhunters Facebook: @backcountryhunters

    Backcountry Report - Ep. 6 A Farmer's Death, a Park for Sale, and a Billion-Dollar Barricade

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Hunting. Angling. Public Lands. That's the meat of what BHA's Podcasts & Blasts is about, and we cover the gamut. With guests that range from outdoor writers to backcountry hunters to legendary anglers, we seek to uncover the stories, the truths, the controversies, and the epic conversations that our public land heritage provides.

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