Talk Is Sheep

Kyle Stelter and Greg Rensmaag
  • 4.9 (13)
  • Wilderness
  • Updated Biweekly

Welcome to Talk is Sheep — the official podcast of the Wild Sheep Society of British Columbia. Join host Kyle Stelter and the Directors of WSSBC as they sit down with passionate guests from the mountain hunting and conservation community. From unforgettable backcountry adventures to in-depth conversations about wild sheep and the future of habitat conservation, this is where storytelling meets stewardship. Contact: kstelter@wildsheepsociety.com The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Wild Sheep Society of BC. Listener discretion is advised.

  1. 17h ago

    More Than a Ram with Ben and Harper Berukoff

    On this episode of Talk Is Sheep, Kyle sits down with good friend Ben Berukoff and his daughter Harper for a conversation about a summer adventure neither of them will soon forget. At 15 years old, Harper is already chasing big goals. A competitive hockey player preparing to move away from home for another season, she understands commitment, hard work, and pushing through discomfort. This summer, those lessons followed her from the rink into the mountains when she joined her dad for her first true backpack sheep hunt. Ben and Harper take us inside their father-daughter adventure — flying into the backcountry, carrying everything they needed on their backs, climbing into remote sheep country, enduring heavy rain, cold temperatures, sore feet, steep terrain, and discovering just how far the body and mind can go when you keep putting one foot in front of the other. They also recount an unforgettable encounter with a mature ram. After working their way into just 110 yards, Harper was set up and ready. But when Ben couldn't confidently age the ram beyond seven years, they made the decision to let him walk. It was a powerful lesson that success in the mountains isn't always measured by pulling the trigger. For Harper, the experience became about much more than hunting. It was about disconnecting from the noise of everyday life, learning what she was capable of, spending uninterrupted time with her dad, and discovering lessons in the mountains that she can carry back onto the ice and into life. The conversation also turns to conservation and the Berukoff family's long-standing connection to the Wild Sheep Society of BC. Fresh off winning the 10th Anniversary Jurassic Classic, Ben reflects on years of involvement with the event and his hands-on commitment to the Fraser River California bighorn sheep recovery effort. This episode is about wild sheep, but even more importantly, it's about family, mentorship, conservation, resilience, and creating opportunities for the next generation to fall in love with wild places. And when Kyle asks Harper whether she caught the sheep hunting bug, her answer says it all: She'd do it again. One hundred percent. Presented by @sitkagear This episode is supported by our conservation partner @precision.optics. Thank you to Sitka Gear and Precision Optics for investing in healthy wildlife and sustainable ecosystems.

    More Than a Ram with Ben and Harper Berukoff

  2. Sep 9

    When the Hunt Goes Sideways | Kelli Poole of Global Rescue

    On this episode of Talk Is Sheep, Kyle sits down with Kelli Poole of Global Rescue for a wide-ranging conversation about hunting, wildlife conservation, international adventure—and what happens when the trip you spent months preparing for suddenly goes sideways. Kelli’s path into the hunting industry is anything but ordinary. With a background in wildlife biology and management, she has worked with wild sheep, contributed to wildlife management projects in Montana and Colorado, and spent time in Central Asia working around Marco Polo sheep, ibex and community-based conservation. Today, she leads the hunting vertical for Global Rescue. Fresh off a safari in Zambia, Kelli shares stories from Africa, her passion for predator hunting, the incredible biodiversity found on the continent and how different wildlife management models around the world can contribute to healthy wildlife populations. Then the conversation turns to something every mountain hunter and international traveller should be thinking about: what is your plan when something goes wrong? A broken leg deep in the backcountry. A serious medical emergency overseas. An accident hundreds of kilometres from appropriate medical care. We spend countless hours preparing our equipment, rifles, bows, fitness and logistics—but emergency planning can easily become an afterthought. That is why the Wild Sheep Society of BC is proud to be a Global Rescue Safe Travel Partner. Global Rescue provides medical, security, travel risk and crisis response services around the world, including 24/7/365 medical advisory, field rescue from the point of illness or injury, and medical evacuation to a member’s hospital of choice when required. Their medical memberships do not place limitations on activities—an important consideration for hunters and adventurers heading into remote country. Without the right protection, an emergency evacuation can cost well over $100,000. More than one million members trust Global Rescue when the unexpected happens. Global Rescue also offers access to IMG Signature Travel Insurance℠ as an add-on to a Global Rescue membership, helping protect the financial investment you have made in your trip against a variety of unforeseen circumstances. If you hunt, travel internationally or spend time in remote country, this is a conversation worth hearing before your next adventure. Learn more about the WSSBC / Global Rescue partnership and explore membership options here: https://partner.globalrescue.com/wildsheepsociety/index.html Travel prepared. Hunt hard. And make sure you have a plan for getting home. Presented by: @sitkagear This episode is sponsored by our Conservation Partner: @stoneglacier

    When the Hunt Goes Sideways | Kelli Poole of Global Rescue

  3. Sep 2

    Mapping the Edge | Trent Woloschuk

    On this episode of Talk is Sheep, Hana Erikson sits down with Trent Woloschuk, CEO and co-founder of Atlas Edge Mapping, for a conversation that starts with an idea between two hunting partners and ends deep in some of the nastiest sheep country British Columbia has to offer. Atlas Edge was born after Trent and his business partner, Cole, found themselves searching for a backcountry mapping platform that gave them everything they wanted in one place. Neither came from the tech world—Trent is a pipefitter and Cole a welder—but their passion for mountain hunting, mapping and building something genuinely useful for hunters pushed them to create their own solution. Trent shares the story behind Atlas Edge, the importance of listening to users, offline mapping, the features still to come, and why keeping the platform accessible to everyday hunters matters to their team. Then the conversation heads into the mountains. Trent tells the incredible story of returning for a massive, unmistakable Stone’s ram they had nicknamed Paddles. The hunt became a full-on sheep hunting sufferfest involving brutal elevation, knife-edge ridges, thick alders, dwindling water, heavy packs and a night spent on the mountain without sleeping bags or pads. It resulted in a truly remarkable old ram—and the culmination of a hunt that had started a year earlier. Trent also shares an unbelievable story from his childhood when, just before his seventh birthday, he survived a black bear attack near Powell River, BC—an experience that shaped his relationship with wildlife and the outdoors for years afterward. Most importantly, Atlas Edge has stepped forward as a supporter of wild sheep conservation. Use promo code SHEEP when signing up for Atlas Edge Premium and receive one free month of Premium. Atlas Edge will also donate 20% of the value of qualifying annual subscriptions using code SHEEP directly back to the Wild Sheep Society of BC. And during WSSBC's Mountain Hunting Expo and RAMFEST, Atlas Edge plans to donate 100% of qualifying subscriptions using the SHEEP code back to WSSBC. That is hunters supporting hunters—and helping put more resources back onto the landscape for wild sheep. Presented by: @sitkagear Conservation Partner: @frontiersmengear Thank you to Sitka Gear and Frontiersmen Gear for investing in healthy wildlife and sustainable ecosystems.

    Mapping the Edge | Trent Woloschuk

  4. Aug 26

    Fuel the Hunt: Backcountry Nutrition That Works | Kyle Kamp

    Sheep season is here. You’ve trained, dialed in your gear, studied maps and prepared for the mountains—but have you put the same effort into how you’re going to fuel your hunt? Kyle Kamp of Valley to Peak Nutrition returns to Talk Is Sheep for another installment in our backcountry nutrition series, and this time we take the conversation directly onto the mountain. We dig into what a real food plan looks like for a multi-day sheep hunt: how much food to carry, balancing carbohydrates, protein and fat, why “calories per ounce” doesn’t tell the whole story, and how to keep your body fueled when the intensity ramps up. Kyle shares practical strategies for building your daily food bags, making your own high-performance breakfasts and bars, staying ahead of hydration and electrolyte needs, and eating consistently throughout the day rather than waiting until you’re already running on empty. We also get into bonking—what’s actually happening when your body runs out of readily available fuel, why trying to simply push through it is a mistake, and how fast-acting carbohydrates can help get you back in the game. Whether you’re heading into the mountains for 3 days or 14, this episode is packed with information you can put to work immediately. Valley to Peak Backcountry Nutrition Resources Backcountry Nutrition Course Use discount code SHEEPBC for 50% OFF: Backcountry Nutrition Course DIY Backcountry Snack, Bar & Breakfast Recipes: Backcountry Recipes Backcountry Nutrition Calculator / Pack Planner: Backcountry Pack Planner If you’re preparing for a mountain hunt this fall, this is one you’ll want to listen to before you pack your food bag. Talk Is Sheep is the official podcast of the Wild Sheep Society of British Columbia, brought to you by SITKA Gear. This episode is sponsored by our Conservation Partner YETI.

    Fuel the Hunt: Backcountry Nutrition That Works | Kyle Kamp

  5. Aug 19

    Lead From the Front: The Fight for Hunting’s Future | Charles Whitwam | HOWL

    On this episode of Talk Is Sheep, Kyle Stelter is joined by guest co-host Jann Demaske for a timely and important conversation with Charles Whitwam, Founder and Executive Director of HOWL for Wildlife. Charles has emerged as one of the leading voices in North America when it comes to mobilizing hunters, anglers, conservationists, and sustainable-use advocates around the issues shaping the future of wildlife management. What began as an effort to make it easier and more effective for everyday people to communicate with decision-makers has grown into a powerful grassroots movement focused on advocacy, education, collaboration, and making sure the hunting community has a meaningful voice when wildlife policy is being decided. Kyle, Jann, and Charles dive into Oregon’s Initiative Petition 28, an extraordinary proposal with implications extending far beyond hunting and fishing into agriculture, livestock production, commercial fishing, and the broader relationship between people and animals. Charles also shares his experience sitting down with one of IP28’s chief proponents and discusses the documentary HOWL is producing to bring this conversation to a much wider audience. The discussion also turns to Colorado, ballot-box wildlife management, Proposition 127, the movement to constitutionally protect the right to hunt and fish, and what can happen when the hunting community stops playing defence and begins thinking proactively. But this conversation is bigger than any single ballot initiative. It is about telling our story. It is about reaching people outside the hunting community, helping the public understand science-based wildlife management and the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation, and recognizing that if hunters do not tell their own story, someone else will tell it for them. Charles challenges the hunting industry to think differently, invest in communicating with the non-hunting public, work together across organizations and interests, and recognize the opportunity in front of us. Engage. Connect. Educate. Show up. The future of hunting, fishing, sustainable use, and wildlife conservation may depend on it. Presented by SITKA Gear. This episode is supported by WSSBC Conservation Partner Precision Optics.

    Lead From the Front: The Fight for Hunting’s Future | Charles Whitwam | HOWL

  6. Aug 12

    Beyond the Hunt with Justin Kallusky

    On this episode of Talk is Sheep, we continue our series introducing the people behind the Wild Sheep Society of British Columbia with WSSBC Director Justin Kallusky. Justin is a lifelong hunter, mountain wanderer, writer, deep thinker—and the hunter behind a world-record Rocky Mountain goat. But this conversation quickly becomes about something much bigger than records, inches or animals on the wall. Justin shares how hunting has been woven into his life since childhood, how harvesting his incredible mountain goat ultimately changed the direction of his life, and how finding the conservation community gave him a renewed sense of purpose and belonging. We dive into the evolution of a mountain hunter: ego, intuition, risk, maturity and learning that success in the mountains doesn't always mean pulling the trigger. Justin recounts a solo Stone's sheep hunt where worsening weather, a massive grizzly and a series of warning signs forced him to make one of the hardest decisions a hunter can make—turning around. The conversation also explores Justin's upcoming Rocky Mountain bighorn hunt, the extraordinary privilege of hunting wild sheep in British Columbia, and why he believes hunters have a responsibility to give something back to the wildlife and wild places that give us so much. At the heart of the episode is community. Justin talks about finding his people through the Wild Sheep Society of BC, the friendships and mentorship that exist within the sheep hunting community, and why conservation needs more than followers—it needs members, volunteers, advocates and leaders willing to have conversations and bring others into the fold. It's an honest, thoughtful and occasionally hilarious conversation about mountain hunting, conservation, responsibility, belonging and what happens when the hunt becomes about far more than the animal. Presented by: @sitkagear Supported by: @gunwerks Join the Wild Sheep Society of British Columbia and become part of the community working to put conservation on the ground and protect wild sheep, wild places and our hunting heritage.

    Beyond the Hunt with Justin Kallusky

  7. Aug 5

    Guarding the Gate: Defending Sustainable Use with Doug Chiasson

    On this episode of Talk Is Sheep, Kyle welcomes back Doug Chiasson, Executive Director of the Fur Institute of Canada and co-host of The Truth About Fur podcast, for a wide-ranging conversation about conservation, advocacy and the future of sustainable wildlife use. Kyle and Doug begin with the growing Canadian Wildlife Conservation Partnership and its mission to unite hunters, anglers, trappers, outfitters, falconers and conservation organizations behind a stronger national voice. Doug draws on his experience working in federal and provincial politics to explain what truly influences decision-makers—and why personal conversations, original letters and meaningful relationships carry far more weight than another form email. The conversation then turns to the growing pressure on science-based wildlife management. From proposed fur restrictions in Colorado and Oregon’s IP28 initiative to the loss of British Columbia’s grizzly bear hunt and mink-farming industry, Doug explains how emotional campaigns and politically motivated decisions can quickly override wildlife science. This episode is also a reminder that the sustainable-use community cannot afford to fight among itself. Whether it is trapping, hunting, angling, firearms ownership, predator management or the use of wild fur, every loss weakens the entire community. The message is clear: protecting our hunting and trapping heritage is not someone else’s responsibility. Every one of us has a role to play. Show up, build relationships, tell better stories and make sure elected officials understand that wildlife, conservation and sustainable use matter to the people they represent. Presented by: @sitkagear Sponsored by our conservation partner: @gunwerks Thank you to Sitka Gear and Gunwerks for investing in healthy wildlife and sustainable ecosystems. Supported by: @yeti @zeisshunting @frontiersmengear @onxhunt @stoneglacier @gunwerks @schnee_hunt @precision.optics

    Guarding the Gate: Defending Sustainable Use with Doug Chiasson

  8. Jul 29

    RAMFEST 2027: Conservation, Community and One Epic Weekend

    Something big is coming to Prince George—and this episode of Talk Is Sheep delivers the official reveal. Kyle is joined by Tanner Dannish of Frontiersman Gear and WSSBC's own Kris Wrathall to unveil RAMFEST 2027, an entirely new hunting, conservation, and outdoor experience taking place April 29 to May 2, 2027. RAMFEST is not simply another banquet or trade show. It is being built as a high-energy celebration of wild sheep, mountain hunting, conservation, family, and community. Expect outdoor experiences, interactive demonstrations, shooting and archery events, local artists, leading outdoor brands, food trucks, live music, a Friday night dance, beer gardens, family activities, and a Saturday night conservation banquet for approximately 500 guests. This is a chance to learn, participate, meet the people and businesses driving conservation forward, and have one incredible weekend with the wild sheep community. Most importantly, RAMFEST has a mission. Funds raised will support northern conservation projects benefiting Stone’s sheep and the historic Coming Home project—an ambitious effort to return approximately 100 California bighorn sheep from Oregon to British Columbia. These sheep are descendants of animals originally translocated from BC more than 70 years ago. Now, they are coming home. This is conservation you will be able to see on the mountain. Every ticket purchased, raffle entered, auction item won, membership sold, and donation made will help put more wild sheep on the landscape. The inaugural RAMFEST banquet will be intentionally limited, and demand is expected to be high. Get the dates on your calendar, secure your accommodations early, and prepare to be part of Wild Sheep Society of BC history. RAMFEST 2027 April 29–May 2, 2027 Prince George Conference and Civic Centre Prince George, British Columbia Learn more at wildsheepsociety.com/ramfest. Presented by: @sitkagear This episode is sponsored by our conservation partner: @stoneglacier Supported by: @yeti @zeisshunting @frontiersmengear @onxhunt @wild_tv @schnee_hunt @precision.optics @gunwerks

    RAMFEST 2027: Conservation, Community and One Epic Weekend
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Ratings & Reviews

4.9
out of 5
13 Ratings

About

Welcome to Talk is Sheep — the official podcast of the Wild Sheep Society of British Columbia. Join host Kyle Stelter and the Directors of WSSBC as they sit down with passionate guests from the mountain hunting and conservation community. From unforgettable backcountry adventures to in-depth conversations about wild sheep and the future of habitat conservation, this is where storytelling meets stewardship. Contact: kstelter@wildsheepsociety.com The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Wild Sheep Society of BC. Listener discretion is advised.

Information

  • Creator
    Kyle Stelter and Greg Rensmaag
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    298
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Talk Is Sheep
  • Show Website
    Talk Is Sheep

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