Montana Outdoor Podcast

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with the Director of the 14th annual Hebgen Lake Ice Fishing Tournament, Garrett Ostler. With a total prize purse of likely $10,000 or maybe even higher, this tournament is one of the richest and for sure most fun ice fishing tournaments in Montana. Hebgen Lake is a beautiful lake near West Yellowstone Montana. Garrett does a great job of going over all the details about the tournament which takes place on Friday the 16th of this month with pre-fishing and...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale takes you Dogsledding with the owner of Basecamp Bigfork, Mark Schurke! You have got to see this one gang! Folks are having a blast with this, and it is likely because of the way Mark does it. Yeah, you can sit and ride on the dog sled, which is a ton of fun, but Mark actually lets you become the Musher! That’s the person that, for the lack of a better word, drives the dog sled and that makes it...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to a couple fellas that are new to the Podcast from Trout On The Fly, Fly Fishing Outfitters based out of Bozeman. You will meet Nate Sevane the owner of Trout On The Fly and his Lead Ice Fishing Guide Matt Hoff. They tell Rigger about ice fishing on Georgetown and Canyon Ferry lakes plus two other lakes that Rigger has never talked about on the Podcast, Ennis Lake and Harrison Lake. Ennis Lake is of course not far...

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Downrigger Dale talks with Don Wilkins one of the most in demand fishing guides in America! You will learn all kinds of ice fishing tips and tricks. Don also gives some awesome safety tips and you will hear about how Don sets up his tip ups, the kind of rods and reels he recommends as well as jigs that can catch monster lakers and King Salmon through the ice! There is much more as well!

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger went behind the scenes of the Fort Peck Hatchery to find out how a King Salmon can go from a tiny egg to one of the most sought after and hardest fighting fish in Montana’s largest body of water. This Podcastis destined to be a classic so we thought we would call this one “Rigger and the Salmon Factory”! Yes, we are talking about the mighty King Salmon or more accurately known as the Chinook Salmon, which is the...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger start a new series that will preview the most popular ice fishing areas in Montana with top ice fishing professionals. To kick it all off Rigger brings on the top fishing guide in Northwest Montana as well as one of the top guides in the State if not the Country. Captain Matt McComb with Fish On Charters. Matt puts on a masterclass about ice fishing. Matt covers all the best lakes for ice fishing and tells you what species are best to target...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast Downrigger Dale turned over the reins to his buddy Roger Fishwell to do the hosting duties. Ol’ Rigger needed to take a little time off. If you listen or watch the podcast on a regular basis you will recognize Roger he is the one you hear or see introduce Rigger on the podcast every week. Rog also works in our research department as well as many other things. But Don’t worry good ol’ Rigger will be back next week unless he gets lost out th...

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You know it’s true! If you love to fish for Walleye, you just have to pass that 30 plus inch benchmark and until you do things just never feel complete, right? This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to Ken Ault and his girlfriend and fishing partner Amy McComas about Ken’s seemingly never ending quest to get his 30 plus incher! This podcast is A LOT of fun to watch or listen to. You will hear how Ken and Amy decided to switch from bott...

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Get ready everyone! This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale got a hold of the Executive Director of the Montana State Parks Foundation Megan Buecking and asked her if she knew anything about the rumors that some of Montana’s Ghost Towns are actually haunted. Not only did she know about that, but she is a bit of an expert on the topic and took poor ole Rigger on a podcast tour that he will not soon forget. In fact, we are pretty sure that everyone around th...

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Oh boy this is a "good un" as Rigger likes to say! This week your host Downrigger Dale talks with Wildlife Manager Cory Loecker from Region 4 in north central Montana. In this podcast Rigger and Cory will give you all kinds of great info on where to find the game you are looking in Region 4. Some of you may not know this but Region 4 has all 10 of the big game species you can hunt in Montana, so there was lots for Rigger to cover with Cory and yes there were some surprises. So...

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This week your host Downrigger Dale talks with Wildlife Manager Brett Dorak from Region 7 in Southeast Montana. Did you know that Region 7 is the largest hunting Region in Montana? So literally there is lots to cover in this Podcast. Rigger had a great conversation with Brett and in fact, Brett also threw out a few surprises that you just must hear. Here is a little hint; wait and until you hear what happened to the Antelope population there in just one year! As Brett put it, “We were shocked! It is a real he...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast Your host Downrigger Dale continues his annual Montana Regional Hunt Preview Series to bring you the latest on how the hunting will be in each of the 7 hunting regions across Montana. This week your Rigger talks to Region 3 Wildlife Manager, Warren Hansen and  Communication and Education Manager, Morgan Jacobsen and boy did they have lots to say about all the different species you can hunt there in region 3. For starters Warren talked about the strong Elk population that lives throughout the region however he d...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale continues his annual Montana Regional Hunt Preview Series to bring you the latest on how the hunting will be in each of the 7 hunting regions across Montana. This week Rigger talks with Wildlife Manager Matt Ladd in Region 5 located in south central Montana. Rigger and Matt take a deep dive into everything south central Montana has to offer in the way of hunting, and boy is it A LOT! They talk about all kinds of wildlife from Mountain Goats, Bighorn...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast we are doing something for the first time ever! We are doing a Montana Outdoor Podcast Double Feature! That’s right, you will be able to watch  two different podcasts this week. This half of our double feature (the one you are looking at now)  has your host Downrigger Dale talking to FWP Region 1 Wildlife Manager Neil Anderson about what the hunting will be like in Montana FWP Region 1 located in Northwest Montana. This podcast is all about what Region 1 is like, it's terrain, size, how much...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast we are doing something for the first time ever! We are doing a Montana Outdoor Podcast Double Feature! That’s right, you will be able to watch and or listen to two different podcasts this week. This half of of our Double Feature is all about Region 2, located in the central part of Western Montana. Rigger heads to Missoula to talk to MT FWP Regional Access Manager, Trenton Heisel. Trenton gives some awesome advice about gaining hunting access in the region and outlined all the different hu...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale starts his annual series of Hunt Preview Podcasts. That’s when he talks to Wildlife Managers and other folks with Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks to find out what the hunting will be like in each of the 7 hunting Regions across Montana. In this first podcast in the series Rigger talks with Scott Thompson, Wildlife Manager for Region 6 located in northeast Montana. When you listen to this podcast you will be able to find out not only what the hunting opportunities are in...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your Host Downrigger Dale had a great discussion with Greg Lemon, the Head of Communication and Education for the FWP. The main topic they covered was hunting land access. Most all the research on this topic has centered around two main areas, how do we get more land access and how do we keep the access we currently have. The number one reason we don’t get access or lose access boils down to one thing, hunter and landowner relations. The sad fact is it only ta...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale was on a quest to answer a question that not only he has been pondering but so have several other podcast viewers and listeners. Can someone who has never fished in any Mack Days Lake Trout Fishing Tournaments on Flathead Lake, make a decent amount of money fishing their first Mack Days tournament? Rigger got a hold of Tournament Director Cindy Benson and posed that question to her and asked her to find some first timers and ask them to come on...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to angler Audie Stein about is frightening brush with death in one of the fiercest windstorms Fort Peck Montana has seen in a very long time. It was the evening of August 7th and Billings resident Audie Stein was camping on his lot that he had purchased near Fort Peck. He had towed his 40-foot travel trailer on the lot that soon he would be building his new home on. In fact, he was a bit excited as it...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale had a great conversation with Ross Tate who is also known by anglers on Flathead Lake as the Whitefish Whisperer. Click here to watch or listen here and you will understand that Ross is called that for a good reason. There are very few folks out there that know more about how to catch the Lake Whitefish in Flathead Lake. This is a great opportunity for anyone who has ever wanted to learn how to catch the Lake Whitefish also...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale has another great conversation with FWP, Game Management Bureau Chief, Brian Wakeling, this time about Montana's Elk Shoulder Seasons. These seasons are already underway in several hunting districts and will go on and off through February 15th, 2026. Just that statement right there is confusing. Thus, there are a whole lot of hunters that pass on giving these elk harvest opportunities a try. Rigger has received a whole lot of emails from many podcast listeners and viewers complaining about that. Folks have said...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale has a fascinating discussion with Katie Vivian, FWP Region 4 Fisheries Manager. Katie is very intelligent, especially when it comes to the fish in Tiber Reservoir, which is also her personal favorite place to fish.  Tiber can be challenging to get it to give up its HUGE Walleye and other species. When you watch this podcast on YouTube or listen to it here, Katie will explain why and will help you get around that. One of the main reasons that Rigger c...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor podcast your host Downrigger Dale has an amazing conversation with two of the preeminent wildlife biology researchers in the Country! They are located right here in Montana ln the University of Montana Wildlife Biology program. This is one of the highest ranked wildlife biology schools in the Country, if not the world. Rigger talked with Dr. Chad Bishop who is the Director of the program at the U of M and Dr. Andrew Whiteley who is a faculty member there at the U of M Wildlife Biology...

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In this week's Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale continues his no holds barred discussion with Tom Opre the Director of the amazing new documentary film called The Real Yellowstone. In Part Two of the Podcast about the film Tom gives more previews into of this truly groundbreaking film. Again, this is not about Kevin Costner's character in the popular TV series called Yellowstone. Instead, the film tells the REAL-LIFE story of what farmers and ranchers all across Montana are up against and how their challenges continue to increase and...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale has a fascinating conversation with award winning documentary director Tom Opre. Tom has created amazing films like Killing the Shepard and The Last Keeper. Now he focuses his camera on Montana's farmers, ranchers, wildlife and hunters with his latest film called The Real Yellowstone. Of course, most everyone is familiar with the incredibly popular television series Yellowstone starring Kevin Costner, but those episodes are not real. The Real Yellowstone delves into the real lives of ranching families who find themselves...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks about something that has been patrolling much of Montana's Waterways for many years but many of you may not even know about it. No, it is not part of the Montana FWP but works with them quite often. It is actually part of the Department of Homeland Security and more specifically part of the United States Coast Guard. Yes, this week Downrigger has a fascinating discussion with Captain Dave Hansen of the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary. Yeah, that's right the...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale takes over the podcast studios and gets us all caught up on the latest outdoor news, Statewide fishing reports and peek at the future topics he will be covering on upcoming podcasts. He thought it would be nice to let the rest of the podcast staff take the 4th of July weekend off, but we are thinking that maybe he just didn't  get invited to any 4th of July parties. However, that is probably not that case as we all have never s...

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Yes, you read the title of the is Podcast correctly and yes, we meant to say that! All we should say about this one is YOU HAVE GOT TO LISTEN THIS PODCAST.  As Rigger put it, "when one of our audience members told me I should really consider doing a podcast about the North American Trap Collectors Association I yawned right after I read the words Trap Collectors. But I promised when I started hosting this Podcast that I would consider ALL suggestions. So, I looked into it. The next thing I knew i...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with the Executive Director of the Montana State Parks Foundation, Megan Buecking. No doubt many of you may be asking, "is that the formal name for the branch of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks that runs all Montana's State Parks?". We thought the same thing but when you listen to this Podcast you will learn that is a completely different organization. The Montana State Parks Foundation is a nonprofit organization that in essence raises funds for the things that the State...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Fisheries Biologist, Cody Nagel. Rigger and many of you that sent him emails felt it was super important to check in with Cody about how Fresno and Nelson Reservoirs were doing after what we heard Bureau of Reclamation Project Manager Steve Darlinton said on last week’s Podcast. Steve showed us a very large whirlpool that had formed out in Fresno Reservoir caused by the huge amount of water that was being let out of it...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with Steve Darlinton Project Manager for the Bureau of Reclamation. Rigger and Steve have a fascinating discussion about the state of Freson Dam. You may recall back in December of 2023 Rigger talked with Steve about the precarious state that Fresno Dam was in. It was sinking! In fact, it had sunk ten feet since it had been constructed back in the 1930s. NOT something you want a dam to do! So, Steve and his crew set out to go about the...

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There was once a law many years ago in Montana that basically said women were not allowed to fish alone! Well, move over guys because women in Montana are becoming Outdoors Women. This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with Kylie Kembel, Coordinator of the BOW or Becoming an Outdoors Women program at Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Kylie talks about all the different skills that women can learn in the different BOW events that she and her staff put on throughout the year. Ladies can learn how...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale has a very interesting discussion with Brian Wakeling, Game Management Bureau Chief for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Rigger received emails from a whole lot of you wanting more information about the new Mule Deer Management Plan that Brian and his staff are working on right now. Mule Deer are a VERY popular species to hunt here in Montana and a great deal of hunters and outdoor folks in general have been concerned about the decline in Mule Deer populations in many...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale has an incredible discussion with Jennifer Patrick, Project Manager of The Milk River Joint Board of Control for the Milk River Project. This project is beyond remarkable. With over a century of successful operation, this engineering feat diverts water from the St. Mary River on the Blackfeet Reservation, flowing through northern Montana and Glacier National Park, and across southern Alberta, Canada. The project is a testament to the intricate canals, siphons, and diversions designed for a seamless flow of water. The Milk...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to the Captain of the Montana Outdoor Radio Show, one of Fort Peck’s top fishing guides, Don Wilkins and none other than the Salmon Slayer himself Bill Zahradka! The episode title kind of says what this podcast is all about. When you listen to this podcast you will hear some great ideas that will keep you organized and keep your next fishing trip hassle and tangle free! Plus, the Captain, Don and Bill share some very cool organizational ge...

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This week you host Downrigger Dale talks with Fort Peck Fisheries Biologist Heath Headley and Fort Peck Hatchery Manager Wade Geraets about how the annual Walleye egg collection effort went, which wrapped up not long ago. Rigger was also joined by a special guest that has not been on the Podcast for a while. Yeah, The Captain of the Montana Outdoor Radio Show came by and like usual when he and Rigger get together things tend to get "western" as they say. Yes indeed everyone had a great time, but they also got...

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Do you remember about this time last year when we had Kit and Trevor Johnson here on the Montana Outdoor Podcast? Your host Downrigger Dale and his fishing buddy the Captain talked to them about the great big Kokanee Salmon that they had been catching on Holter and Hauser Reservoir. Many of you wanted to know how they were finding and catching those great big, beautiful Kokanee Salmon so we thought we would run that podcast again for those of you that did not get a chance to hear it or who did...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to outdoor reporter, writer and Hunting and Conservation Editor for Outdoor Life, Andrew McKean. Andrew wrote a wonderful article for the 2025 March/April edition of Montana Outdoors Magazine. The title of the article is Double Bacon Cheeseburger with Fins. This fascinating article covers the history and the effect of the introduction of the Cisco into Fort Peck Reservoir over 40 years ago and the effects this amazing forge fish continues to have on the sport fish that live in the Reservoir. Of...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale has a blast talking with Kathy and Jody Goodman. Think about it, how many husband and wives do you see out fishing together? Sure, a lot of couples fish together now and then but you really don't see many that go fishing together a lot. But this couple sure does, and they are living proof that in their case a couple that fishes together stays together. When you listen to this podcast you will have a great time hearing about their first...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with Shaun Jeszenka owner of Frontier Anglers. Shaun and his incredible group of guides cover some of the most famous trout waterways in the world! Rivers like the Big Hole, Beaverhead, Jefferson and more across Southwest Montana. These are rivers and streams that people from all over the world, who love to fly fish, dream of coming to for a once in a lifetime fly fishing experience. In addition to the rivers and streams in Southwest Montana Shaun and his crew...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to Fishing Guide Josh Parrow about fishing for Walleye on Tiber Reservoir this Spring. Tiber is located about an hour or so north of Great Falls Montana. As far as we know Josh is the only one that guides on this legendary Walleye hot spot. In fact, Tiber is the former home of Montana's State Record Walleye and Josh is ready to take you out to find the next State Record which is no doubt out swimming around in Tiber Reservoir...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with the founder of the now 31st Annual Jerry Johnston Memorial Tough Guy Walleye Tournament, Joe Herbold. For those of you that fish the Walleye Tournament Circuit in Montana you'll likely recognize that name. In addition to starting the Tough Guy Tournament, for many years Joe was also the MC of the Super Bowl of Montana Walleye Tournaments, The Montana Governor's Cup. Of course, the Jerry Johnston Memorial Tough Guy Tournament is still very special to Joe and you will hear...

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This week your Host Downrigger Dale talks with Mack Days Tournament Manager Cindy Benson and her husband Mike Benson who has fished the Mack Days tourneys for many years! Cindy will give you all the details about this incredible Tournament which gets underway on March 13th and goes through May 10th on Flathead Lake in Northwest Montana. Downrigger referrs to the Mack Days Tournaments as the most unique fishing tournaments you will ever fish in and are the richest Tournaments in Montana and for Lake Trout tournaments, likely the richest in the world...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale takes you way up to the Mountains of Northwest Montana to a lake that stretches for 94 miles all the way across the Canadian border into the Province of British Columbia. The lake was created when the dam was put across the Kootenay River north of Libby Montana. As manmade lakes go Koocanusa is not that old. It was created in 1972 but boy is it ever a special place. Downrigger caught up with Randy Burch the owner of the Koocanusa Resort & Marina. When...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to Dave Chichester of Plugit Tackle. Dave talks about how he got into the tackle business when he started making lures for himself when the quality of his favorite lures that he used to buy started going downhill. Course little did he know that would turn into a thriving specialty lure company called Plugit Tackle. Why "Plugit"? Well, when you listen to this Podcast you will learn that Plugit makes wooden plug lures using a bit of s high tech lathe...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to Brian Olson about Region 6's incredible ponds located in Northeast Montana. All across Montana's Hi-Line there is an unbelievable number of ponds that can be found if you know where to look. The amazing thing is they are full of huge fish! And even more amazing is the fact that very few folks fish these wonderful waterbodies! Brian goes through the different species that can be found in these ponds ranging from huge, beautiful Trout, monster Walleye, jumbo Perch, and...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your Host Downrigger Dale sits down with the head football coach of the Montana Grizzlies, Bobby Hauck for an exclusive interview about a side of the Big Sky Conference's most winningest head coach that you have likely never seen or heard from before. Coach Hauck talks about how fishing is therapy to him and can relive the incredible stresses of being a head coach and all that comes with that responsibility. So do you know what kind of fishing Bobby prefers? Does he like river or...

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By Popular Demand! Held Over for Another Week!
This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with outdoorsman Scott Arnold about ice fishing on 3 incredible reservoirs near Helena. Plus, Scott also covers ice fishing out on Georgetown Lake located 48 miles west of Butte near the historic little town of Philipsburg. Scott has ice fished these waterbodies for over 40 years so he knows them better than most folks you will ever meet! Scott gives you a TON of info about where to find and how to catch...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with outdoorsman Scott Arnold about ice fishing on 3 incredible reservoirs near Helena. Plus, Scott also covers ice fishing out on Georgetown Lake located 48 miles west of Butte near the historic little town of Philipsburg. Scott has ice fished these waterbodies for over 40 years so he knows them better than most folks you will ever meet! Scott will give you a TON of information about where to find and how to catch the Kokanee, Walleye, Trout, Ling (aka, Burbot) and Perch that...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with another of the top fishing guides in Montana, Captain Matt McComb. This topic is all about ice fishing in NorthWest Montana. Matt literally puts on a Master Class about how you can have great success ice fishing on the 30 plus incredible lakes up in Northwest Montana that are great for ice fishing. Matt gives a list of the best gear to use, including some of his top lures, bait, electronics and...well, the information is just flat amazing. He and...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to Bill the Producer of one of the most anticipated sports shows of the year, The Great Rockies Sportshow! For the last 25 years this show has been bringing outdoor folks together to learn about the latest fishing, hunting, hiking and camping gear. Plus, the show always has the top experts in the world who teach the latest fishing and hunting techniques. Listen now and find out which experts are coming this year to teach the seminars! Not only that but Bill...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast we wanted to take some time to celebrate the New Year with a special Sneak Peek into some new things coming soon just for you! Your host Downrigger Dale talks to the Webmaster for MontanaOutdoor.com. Our very own Website Wonder, Hookem Harry, aka Harry Ward. Harry tells us all about the new changes to our website that are active online right now, plus he reveals a few other surprises that will be coming soon. Spoiler Alert! Yes, there is an app for that! When you...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale is joined by Ice Fishing Pro Eric Magnuson. Eric is an incredible ice fisherman and even does testing for many companies that produce ice fishing gear, like Vexilar, Clam Outdoors, Mack's Lure and others. Eric and Rigger have a great discussion that we are positive you will find very interesting and helpful, whether you are an experienced ice fisher person or just starting out. One thing Rigger found interesting was how Eric uses his Vexilar Fish Finder and how accurate Eric says...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with Bob Loomis from Mack's Lure, inventors of the world-famous Wedding Ring fishing lure. Bob has been on the podcast before and if you listened before then you know if there is one thing Bob knows it is fishing! Bob got his start 43 years ago at the legendary fishing rod manufacturer G. Loomis Fishing Rods working with family there. Years down the road he moved over to Mack's Lure which is another company that has been a legend in the tackle...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast you host Downrigger Dale talks to Racheal Vargas of Montana K9 Safety. If you own a dog and take it with you in the Outdoors or along with you anywhere this winter especially if you could not get to the Vet in minutes, you really need to listen to this podcast. It indeed could save your dog's life and save you from a whole lot of heartache. Racheal is a nurse that has turned into the Florence Nightingale for our four-legged best friends. Years ago, she...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to Matt Rosencrans, Climate Testbed Director with the National Weather Service's Climate Prediction Center. Matt used all the National Weather Service's incredible technology and put together a special winter weather forecast just for all our podcast listeners. So what did he come up with? What is the winter weather forecast for each region of Montana? Well, you are gonna have to listen to the podcast to find out. Now depending on what you like to do in Montana's outdoors I think...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to fishing guide Garrett Ostler of Madison Adventures in West Yellowstone Montana! Often the greater West Yellowstone area is home to the first lakes to freeze and the last to thaw in Montana! In fact, when you listen to this podcast you'll hear Garrett tell the story of the year he started ice fishing right around Halloween and was able to fish on the ice all the way until....you are not going be believe how late into the year he...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to Ed Hebbe from the Montana Trappers Association to get the truth about trapping in Montana. In this Podcast some VERY important information is delivered that will likely surprise you about trapping. Is trapping really necessary? Some say that trapping is actually important to the survival of wildlife in Montana and other states, is that really true? Is trapping really used for wildlife management and research? Did you know that trappers come from all walks of life and are a huge...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale had a great talk with one of Montana's top fishing guides, Don Wilkins. Rigger found out that Don is still out guiding folks on Fort Peck Reservoir, which you don't find many guides that do that this late in the season. So, Rigger figured that he obviously must be catching something out there. Spoiler Alert: yes, he is catching a lot! What he is catching, what is he using to do that and where is he finding them? Well, if you want...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with Heath Headley, FWP Fisheries Biologist for Fort Peck Reservoir in Northeast Montana. When you listen to this podcast you will hear Rigger and Heath cover the Chinook, or King Salmon, egg collection effort that recently was completed as well as several other things about the mighty Kings of Fort Peck. In fact, one of the questions that Rigger was dying to get an answer to was why were the King Salmon that were caught in the reservoir this year so...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale spent an information packed hour with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Wildlife Manager for Region 2, Liz Bradley. Liz and Rigger covered it all from where to find the Elk, Mulies and Whitetail Deer to the best spots to bag some Grouse, Waterfowl and yes even, though rare for the area, the elusive Pronghorn. Liz even covered some great ideas on where to find Black Bears, Mountain Lions and more! Rigger got all the questions he could think of answered, including things like...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale got together with Brett Dorak, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Wildlife Manager for Region 7 in Southeast Montana. Rigger and Brett had a great conversation about ALL the hunting opportunities you can find there in Southeast Montana, and boy are there a lot of them. They went through all the usual big game favorites like Elk, Mule and Whitetail Deer and Antelope or more appropriately known as Pronghorn but they also covered several other things you may not know are in Region 7 as...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale continues our series on where to find the game you are looking for this 2024 hunting season. This time he had an incredible conversation with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Wildlife Manager, Neil Anderson. Neil spilled the beans on where to find the Elk, Deer, Black Bear, Wolf, Upland Game Bird, Waterfowl and everything else you can hunt in FWP Region 1! If you hunt in Region 1 in Northwest Montana, have ever even thought of hunting there or maybe just wondered what all kind...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to Montana FWP Wildlife Manager Cory Loecker to find out what the hunting will be like in North Central Montana Region 4. Cory and Rigger covered that region inside and out and Cory gave information on how healthy the Elk, Deer and Antelope herds are as well as where the best places are to find them. Spoiler Alert: Things are looking pretty darn good for those! But Cory dished out even more! He went over the outlook for success if you want...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale traveled to the FWP Region 3 Headquarters in Bozeman and sat down with Wildlife Manager Warren Hansen and Information & Education Manager Morgan Jacobsen. They went through all the hunting opportunities in Southwest Montana. As Rigger put it; “Wow! I did not realize just how amazing Montana Region 3 really is! There is A LOT of game out there to hunt and Warren and Morgan really know their stuff!”. When you listen you will learn about how healthy the Elk, Deer and Antelope herds are and...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale continues his series about all the hunting opportunities across Montana. This week he talks with Region 6 Wildlife Manager Scott Thompson to find out where the best places are to find Elk, Mule Deer, Whitetails, Antelope, Turkeys, Pheasants, Waterfowl and more! Scott gives all kinds of detailed information about all those things and more. In fact, Rigger and Scott got into a great conversation about landowner participation in the block management program in Region 6 and boy you have to listen to the podcast...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with FWP Region 5 Wildlife Manager Matt Ladd about what the hunting opportunities will look like this year in his region. Matt and Rigger take a deep dive into Region 5 to discover which hunting districts in the region have the best hunting opportunities for Elk, Whitetail Deer, Mule Deer, Antelope, Waterfowl, Upland Game Birds including Pheasants and Turkeys and more! When you listen to the podcast you will find out all kinds of super useful information about animal population sizes throughout the...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with Tom Kobza owner of TKI CNC. Ever since poor old Downrigger has talked with Tom he has been wondering around with his mouth open in a constant state of amazement. Once we got him to snap out of it for a moment his first words were “Holy sh.. that guy is amazing. Each of the things he told me about that he has invented just made me slap my head and say why couldn’t have I thought of that? I kn...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with Ken Schultz, President of the Montana Bowhunters Association or MBA. Ken and Rigger cover a TON of ground all about bowhunting in the Big Sky Country. Things like, what all does the MBA do for Montana’s bowhunters, the advantages of being a member and what issues the sport is facing now and in the future. Another area that they cover is the incredible popularity of bowhunting in the State and why. For example, do you know how many bowhunters th...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale sits down with former hunting guide and all-around amazing archery hunter and elk caller Shawn Plakke. Some of you may recall when Shawn was on the Podcast with Rigger last year. This year he gives us even more incredible advice and instruction on archery elk hunting. Things like when to use cow calls and bull calls, how to understand what the different calls you hear mean and so much more. When you listen to the Podcast you will also hear Shawn actually...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to the owners of two different Montana fishing tackle manufacturers, Gary Rueb of Blackjaw Flies and Dr Don Sawdey of 406 Tackle Company and boy did they give some awesome information! If there was ever a time to go after those huge King Salmon in Fort Peck Reservoir now is the time to do it. According to the reports we have been hearing on the Montana Outdoor Radio Show and MontanaOutdoor.com the big ones are...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale takes a unique approach to learning all about the Fall Mack Days fishing tournament that will take place on Flathead Lake in Northwest Montana, starting September 5th and going through November 3rd. Rigger talked to 4 different competitors and Tournament Director Cindy Benson. When you listen to the Podcast one of the things that will likely standout to you BIG TIME is the amounts of money that all these competitors have made in the past. Not only did they talk about how much...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to Dr. Christopher Guy, Assistant Leader of the Montana Cooperative Fishery Research Unit and Affiliate Professor at Montana State University. Chris is one of the creators of the Fishes of Montana App. This is a great App that everyone who loves to fish or just wants to learn more about the fish we have in Montana should have on their phone. It truly is a wealth of information, and the best part is it is super user friendly and describes the...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks to Ross Tate one of the best Lake Whitefish, aka, Lake Superior Whitefish, fisherman on Flathead Lake located in Northwest Montana. If you want to learn how to find and catch one of the hardest fighting fish in Montana, you HAVE TO listen to this week’s podcast. Ross was a wealth of information giving great advice on where to go on the lake, what to look for on your fish finder and even what rod, reel, line and lures work th...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with FWP Fisheries Biologist Brian Stephens about an incredible chain of lakes in Northwest Montana. These lakes are stunning in appearance and cover approximately 3,000 acres and stretch over 20 miles along Highway 2, halfway between Kalispell and Libby. This includes an extensive State Park that includes shoreline access to 18 lakes including McGregor Lake, Little McGregor Lake, Lower Thompson Lake, Middle Thompson Lake, Upper Thompson Lake, Horseshoe Lake and Loon Lake. Depending on which lake you fish you will find all kinds of different...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale caught up with Owen Willcox to talk about how he and his teammate Ziek Gordon pulled off a fantastic come from behind victory! Owen called in from the banks of Lake Oahe outside of Pierre, South Dakota where he and Ziek had just finished doing some pre-fishing for the 50th South Dakota Governor’s Cup Walleye Tournament. This is a fascinating podcast as Owen goes into great detail about how he and Ziek overcame one of the toughest Walleye Bites that the Go...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale sits down with the Chief Marketing & Communication Officer of the Montana Department of Commerce, Mitch Staley, to talk about the VisitMT.com website and all the amazing things it can do for Montanans and those outside of Montana that want to discover our great state. And believe us when we say they aren’t just talking about the typical trip to Glacier or Yellowstone Parks. Rigger and Mitch get goin down Montana roads that for sure qualify as the “roads less...

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This week on the Montana Outdoor Podcast your host Downrigger Dale talks with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Fisheries Biologist for Region 1, Travis Rehm. They cover pretty much everything there is to know about Noxon Rapids Reservoir and the fish that call it home. Did you know just how diverse the fish population is in Noxon Rapids Reservoir and the fact that it is one of the only places west of the Continental Divide in Montana that you can catch Walleye? Not only that but you can catch as many...