Frank Ciccone of Fish Hands Franky joins the podcast to talk about his love for Missouri’s native Small Mouth Bass, Fishing with his friends and family, and why you should start a fishing club with your friends.

Bryan Walker, the owner of River Rat fishing rafts, joins Outdoors Podcast to talk about what makes his rafts the most approachable fly fishing boats on the market. Joining the conversation is long time friend of the channel, Fish Hands Franky, who just so happens to own a River Rat boat. We talked about: Why Bryan started the company What makes their boats such a great option for a wide range of anglers Why Bryan is dedicated to making boats that a lot of people can afford Where these boats are getting taken and what they're being used for Exciting news about new products and upcoming adventures You can find more information about the company and these amazing fishing rafts at: https://riverratusa.com/ https://www.instagram.com/riverratus/ Or join the facebook owners group at: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/15qasFPFLY/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Piper Bates, or UrLocalLumberJill on Instagram and Tiktok joins the show to talk about her background in the outdoors and her career as a professional timber faller & tree climber. We talked about how she got her first job in the industry, what a day in her life looks like in both roles, and how she has progressed in the industry. Piper is such a fun person to talk to, and she was just a joy to get to know. Enjoy

Scott Jensen, CEO and Founder of Near Zero Outdoors joins the podcast to talk about a whole bunch of exciting news from Near Zero. We talked about Scott's youth, growing up as an Eagle Scout, and the outdoor skills that he learned through the program. Scott spent the first 15 years of his career in corporate supply chain in the medical device and aerospace industries, which gave him exposure to global manufacturing partners and best practices. With a move back to the United States from China, Scott and his family turned their sights on the outdoor industry and founded Near Zero, to provide high quality backpacking and camping gear to the industry, at a more affordable, and accessible price. We spent time talking about the new 3rd generation of the Dean Backpack, and all of the updates the've made to the backpack, the little dean, their new 10 piece backpacking bundle and more. Finishing up the conversation, we talked about Near Zero's future, including working with more wholesalers, their growth, and even a new rental program they are launching to make backpacking even more accessible. Check out everything we talked about on the episode and more at: www.nearzero.co instagram.com/nearzero_outdoors tiktok.com/@ultralight_backpacking youtube.com/@nearzero_outdoors

Chris McKleroy, Founder and CEO of NOCS Provisions joins host AJ Eads to talk about his background in the outdoors and the events that lead him to starting a Binoculars company that is shaking up the industry.  NOCS Provisions got its start in the Bay Area of Northern California and now operates near the outdoor haven of Lake Tahoe.  Chris and the team have taken a very different approach to most of today's product companies and grown the business organically with their own cash flow, as opposed to the massive investments of private equity and venture capital companies.  This has allowed the business to stay true to its mission of connecting their customers with the outdoors and reducing the waste that is typical with most retailers today. This was a really insightful conversation and Chris really helped me understand what an ethical company can do to make an impact on the world. Enjoy.

Nicole, the host of Dope Kitchen on Youtube, Tik Tok, Instagram and all of the other social media channels joins the show to talk about her love of backpacking and the outdoors in general.  She shared some incredible stories about harrowing tales from different backpacking adventures including being flooded out of a campground, running from wildfires and escaping mountains via helicopter.   I had an absolute blast getting to know Nicole and it might be my favorite episode yet.

Adam Hudson, Founder of Blue Line Co Flies joins the podcast to talk fly fishing, fly tying, and what it’s like running a business in the fly fishing industry.

Maddie of Youtube’s Beer In Beautiful Places joins the show to talk about her recent through hike of the John Muir Trail and her upcoming adventure, through hiking the Appalachian Trail starting in April of 2023.

Chef Corso, owner of OutdoorEats and outdooreats.com sits down by the campfire in St. Genevieve Missouri at Hawn State Park for a conversation about his career in cooking. We talked about his love for food and the family members that helped him along the way. Chef Corso dove into the culinary school experience and his different jobs in the food industry. After leaving a career in the test kitchens at Starbucks, Corso took a chance on himself and his passion for cooking outside. He built his own brand, website, cookbooks and started launching content. He’s developed over 200 recipes that are tested by campers like us and added to his meal plans. I loved learning about how he comes up with recipes and adapts them to the trail. We even spent time talking about how we each overcame our nerves of launching new channels. Chef Corso and I also made a video about our backpacking trip. Check it out here: Chef Corso and I Went Backpacking All of Chef Corso’s meals are 10 ingredients or less, 30minutes or less, no pre prepping, no dehydrating and weigh close to or even less than the dehydrated alternative. All of the recipes are also organized by dietary restrictions and styles of meals. We also talked about the types of ingredients he loves for outdoor cooking and where he likes to source his ingredients from. Chef Corso asked me really fun ranking question that you’ll hear at about 50 minutes in and I’ll be using this question for the rest of my life.

John Lagow, professional fly fishing guide out of the historic Ark Anglers Fly Shop in B.V. Colorado joins the show.  I had an absolute blast getting to know yet another incredible guide, with another super unique story.  John found his way to guiding after coming to Colorado to paddle her storied waters at the young age of 19.

Erica Haller is who we should all aspire to be in the outdoors; adventurous, curious, humble, educated and enjoyable.  Erica is exactly who I have wanted to meet since the day I started this podcast, several years ago. She was fun, smart, inquisitive and lighthearted. Give this one a listen, you’ll love it.

Dan from DC Outdoors on Youtube joins to show to talk hunting, fishing, camping and how to have more fun outside with your family. We also spent some time on cooking, filming youtube videos and the awesome communities we’ve built on social media.

Chris Conant, owner of Morning Dew Fishing Company in Southwest Florida joins host AJ Eads on episode 21 of Outdoors Podcast.  Chris and I had an absolute blast talking about his career as a professional fly fishing guide.  Chris is currently guiding for saltwater fish like tarpon, snook and redfish but just as recently as 2020, he was leading the fly shop at South Fork Lodge on the south fork of the snake river in SouthEast Idaho.   We talked about why chris loves to guide, his career as a corporate attorney that he left to pursue a different lifestyle with his wife Becca. The couple traveled the US in a tiny camper and from the moment I met Chris, I knew I wanted to get both of them on the show.  I'm hoping Becca will join me on a follow up episode as she's quite the character herself! Enjoy!

Ali Boundy is a wedding photographer that specializes in destination weddings.  She’s based out of Lake Tahoe, and travels regularly for her projects.  We found her work through a former podcast guest and mutual friend.  Our wedding went just about perfectly, and according to our simple plan.  Ali was a big part of our success.  We got to spend nearly three days together and I feel like I got to know her even better then we did on this podcast. I invited Ali onto the show because I was interested in how she got into photography in the first place, who helped her along her journey, what type of equipment she shoots on and if she had any advice for other photographers that may be struggling to find their niche. By fostering a culture of inclusivity, Ali has found a great community of clients that help her grow and expand her already awesome customers. This was a really fun conversation with someone I know I’ll be friends with for quite some time.

Craig Stephens has been the single most impactful character in my fly fishing career.  We all know the greats, the Kelly Gallops, The Flip Pallots, The Lefty Krehs…but in St. Louis, I associate two names with fly fishing, Tom Hargrove, the namesake of the store, and it’s manager Craig Stephens. Craig is just about the nicest guy I know and one of the most welcoming humans I’ve ever had the chance to get to call my friend.  Craig has been at T Hargrove Fly Shop on Manchester Road for the better part of 15 years and running the store as it’s General Manager for a decade. He teaches the fly casting lessons and serves as the main connector of experienced anglers with newer fishermen.  Craig also has a big part in running the fly tying class, offered at the shop, where I learned most of what I know about fly fishing from other anglers each Tuesday night. Craig and I talked about his move from banking into the fly fishing industry, his favorite places to fish, how he hires guides and more. You’ll love this episode if you like fishing, customer service, and being a good human.

Instagram's PuristOnTheFly and I sit down for a conversation on Fly Fishing, Outdoor Ehtics, Conservation and the effect of the micro influencer world on our outdoor spaces. I learned a ton from our talk about Tailing Gloves, and their acceptable applications, why not to Fish Redds or spawning fish in general and what it means to be a "Steward of the land" as we talk about so much on this channel.

In the first episode of a new series, Campsite Conversations, my buddy and return guest, Casey Heeter and I talk all things outdoors live from our campsite in the Red River Gorge area of the Daniel Boone National Forest. Casey is a backpacking expert, having spent hundreds of nights in the woods, some of them being under -30 degrees for fucks sake. Casey, my fiance Sara and I along with Casey’s dog Odin and Our dog Yose recently went on a backpacking trip in the Red River Gorge and Casey and I decided we should do a podcast from our back country campsite and I’m glad we did. We talked about Tents, Hammocks, Camping Ethics and Conservations.  We talk about some of our favorite outdoors retailers like T. Hargrove Fly Fishing Shop and Quest in Louisville where Casey is from. We talk at some length about how much we love Cottage Vendors and small producers. And we finish up with a short conversation about the future of the Red River Gorge, and what a new resort that’s being proposed might bring, both good and bad to the area.

In the next installment of Oar Stories, my series of interviews with professional fly fishing guides...Augy Knickmeyer joins the show. Augy is the owner and principal guide for Missouri Fly Life Guide Co on rivers just outside the St. Louis area in Missouri.

James Garrettson of About Trout Fly Fishing Guiding Service Joins The Podcast To Talk Fishing In New Mexico and Colorado

Paul from Aptitude Outdoors is an AT alumni, a kayaker, a hunter and a fellow lover of all things outdoors. We had an incredible talk about how we got our starts on the trail, some in depth convo on hammocks and the ethics of hunting, and how more people could get involved. I think Paul and I are going to do a lot more episodes in the future together and I’m super pumped to meet him in person this fall when backpacking season kicks back up. Enjoy.