It’s late November and we’re back in the blind for another Road Hunter Podcast hunt. The ducks were slow, but the coots kept things interesting: we ended the morning with 3 coot, 2 ducks, and plenty of laughs.

Related: duck blind talk.

While we wait on birds, we break down the final days of elk season: what went right, what went sideways, and what we learned as we close the book on another year in the mountains.

If you like duck hunting, real talk, and end-of-season storytelling, you’re in the right place.

If you’ve never hunted Oregon coot, here’s the deal: when the ducks go quiet, the coot flotillas don’t. They sit out in the open like they’re daring you to shoot, and Oregon lets you take 25 a day, on top of your regular duck limit since coot don’t count against it. So when the action slows, we water swat a few just to keep the morning interesting. Logan even shot one with no bullets in the chamber on his first try: failed outdoors, folks. That’s the brand.

Logan water-swatted his first duck of the season, a hen mallard, the only legal bird that day, and we’re counting it. First duck’s a first duck, no matter how it gets in the bag. We’ll admit we stole a couple of his earlier opportunities too. When they’re landing right in the spread, instinct takes over before manners do.

Eastern Oregon elk season was tough: lots of hiking, almost no sightings. The coastal side wasn’t much better; we busted a herd in heavy fog and never got a shot lined up. The one bright spot: Logan capped off the season with his second blacktail buck in two years, a fork-and-spike (a “spork,” if you’re keeping track of our nicknames). There’s guys who can’t say they’ve shot two bucks in ten years, let alone two seasons.

• Coot don’t count against your duck limit in Oregon: 25 a day, separate bag
• Public-land duck blinds mean you’ll lose some birds to the blind next door, that’s just the game
• A legal buck is a legal buck: a spike punches the same tag as a 6×6

No. Oregon allows up to 25 coot per day as a separate limit from ducks, making them a good option to keep busy when duck action is slow.

Crowded blinds mean birds get flared by neighboring hunters before they reach your decoys. It’s part of public-land hunting: spreading out and being patient helps, but you can’t control everyone else.

Absolutely. A legal spike fills the freezer and the tag exactly like a trophy buck does. Trophy hunting is fun, but meat in the freezer is the real win.

Catch us in the next episode: we’re heading into duck season hard and chasing crab and steelhead before the year’s out. Thanks for listening, and get outside even if you come home with tag soup.

The post Duck and Coot Showdown and Elk Season Wrap Up appeared first on Failed Outdoors.

Join us in the Eastern Oregon backcountry as we chase elk, glass the ridges, and talk through one of the biggest moments of the season: Eli missing a big buck on the very last day of deer season.
In this episode of The Road Hunter Podcast, we break down what happened, what we learned, and how those tough misses shape us as hunters. Plus, we share fresh elk sign, strategy talk, and the highs and lows of being deep in the timber.

Related: Ryan’s trophy elk bow hunt.

If you love real hunting stories, honest conversations, and the raw beauty of Eastern OR, you’re in the right place.

We spent the better part of two weeks in Eastern Oregon chasing elk, and the weather never cooperated. It felt like June for most of the hunt, 65, 70 degrees, sunny, which is about as far from “elky weather” as you can get. Lots of miles on foot, plenty of deer sign, even a monster mule deer buck with antlers like a field goal post, but elk stayed scarce. A wolf moving through the area probably didn’t help.

On the final day of deer season, Eli and his mom spotted a big buck standing in the trees with a few does, got set up on a tree limb for a rest, and were just about ready to shoot when, you guessed it, the Jeep’s car alarm went off because a door wasn’t shut all the way. The buck bolted. By the time they circled back, someone else had already found him; drag marks told the story. That’s failed outdoors right there.

More often than not, when you bump a deer like that, it doesn’t just vanish, it does a big loop and circles back toward where it started. The lesson: when you bump one, sit tight and let it settle instead of chasing. Eli did the loop and came back to last-known location, but someone else beat him to it.

• Hot, dry weather kills elk movement: they hunker in timber until temps drop
• Bumped deer typically circle back to a familiar area: give it time before pushing in again
• Park, walk, and keep quiet: elk in eastern Oregon will hear a vehicle from miles out

Elk move most when temperatures drop. In warm, dry conditions, they bed deep in timber during daylight and barely move, which makes them far harder to locate even with heavy scouting.

Don’t chase it immediately. Deer that get bumped commonly circle back toward the area they came from. Back off, give it time, and approach from a different angle later.

Yes, especially in quiet, dry conditions, elk can hear vehicles and voices from a long way off. Walking in instead of driving close gives you a much better shot at staying undetected.

Should’ve, would’ve, could’ve, that’s elk hunting. Thanks for following along, and we’ll see you in the next one.

The post Eastern Oregon Elk Hunt and Eli’s Last-Day Buck Miss | Road Hunter Podcast appeared first on Failed Outdoors.

This duck blind public land sit on Savvi Island turned into an unforgettable hunt. 🦆 We double up on two birds while calling in ducks and swapping stories about the season. As deer season winds down, we talk about shifting gears into elk season: what we’ve learned, what’s next, and why the grind never stops for The Road Hunter crew. Tune in for good laughs, duck calls, and real talk from the blind.

Related: duck and coot season wrap-up.

This sit on Savvi Island started slow: lots of teasing ducks that circled and flared off, a couple of close calls stolen by the blind next to us, and Ryan still chasing his very first duck. Then a pair came in low, turned, decoyed straight over the spread, and we doubled up. Two gadwalls, a mated pair, both down. Not skunked anymore.

If you’ve never hunted Savvi Island’s west side, here’s how it works: hunters line up early, draw a numbered poker chip, and that number determines blind order. We pulled 48 out of 45 available spots: right in the middle of the pack. Get there early if the west side is your only plan, because if you draw a high number, you can still bail to the east side’s leftover draw hunt.

Both kids closed out deer season with spikes, not monsters, but meat in the freezer, which is the whole point. Now it’s full send into duck season, with elk and steelhead still on the books before the year wraps.

• Get to the lottery line early if you want first pick of blinds on a draw-hunt area
• A high draw number? Boogie to the leftover side instead of wasting the morning
• Don’t sleep on a spike, it’s still meat in the freezer

Hunters line up before shooting light and draw a numbered chip determining blind selection order. Lower numbers get first pick of available blinds; if you draw late and the good spots are gone, some areas let you move to a different unit’s leftover draw.

A shotgun, waders, and a basic set of decoys covers it. You don’t need a dog or a kayak to get started, though both make retrieving easier.

Yes. A legal spike fills a tag the same as any other buck and is a great confidence-builder for a young or new hunter.

Thanks for listening: get out and chase some birds, even if it takes a few cold sits to get your first one.

The post Duck Blind Talk on The Road Hunter Podcast appeared first on Failed Outdoors.