Episode 5 - Rattling Big Bucks, Saving Wild Waters, Choosing 2025’s Best Deer Rifles

Unlock the whitetail rut’s most explosive moments with proven rattling tactics from a true legend. Few hunters have rattled in more mature whitetails across North America than Larry Weishuhn, and in this episode, “Mr. Whitetail” breaks down his lifetime of lessons for hunters gearing up for peak rut action. If you’ve ever wondered when to rattle, how to build a realistic rattling sequence, or why bucks react the way they do during the breeding season, this conversation delivers the answers. Larry walks listeners through the biology behind rising testosterone levels, sparring behavior, and the moment when friendly bachelor groups turn into all-out brawlers. You’ll learn how mature bucks circle downwind, the biggest mistakes hunters make during rattling setups, and why staying put for 30–40 minutes after a sequence is critical for success. He also explains how to use natural cover, wind direction, and vocalizations, like grunts and snort-wheezes, to add realism that pulls pressured deer those last few yards. Later in the episode, Field & Stream’s Travis Hall breaks down two major conservation stories impacting hunters and anglers, including a proposed rare-earth mine threatening one of Montana’s premier trout fisheries and a sweeping rollback of Clean Water Act protections that could reshape waterfowl habitat across the country. Shooting editor Richard Mann closes with his picks for the best deer rifles of 2025 and a classic story for our Campfire segment from the F&S archives about how sometimes it’s not the gun, but the ghost that comes with it, that matters. Whether you chase whitetails, spend your spring on trout rivers, or just love the rhythm of the outdoor season, this episode offers hard-earned insight from experts who live it every day. Get more from Field & Stream: https://www.fieldandstream.com/ Get to know your host, Colin Kearns: https://www.fieldandstream.com/authors/colin-kearns Join the F&S 1871 Club and experience a membership dedicated to the outdoor culture of sporting traditions, storytelling, and the conservation of our lands: https://www.fieldandstream.com/1871-club/ Sound effects and sound design for Campfire provided by: AMBForst-Summer_early morning woods, birds, crickets, snapping twigs, 630AM_QCF_Mammoth Cave KY_Zoom H2n Surround Binaural Mixdown by treytatum3 -- https://freesound.org/s/819335/ -- License: Creative Commons 0 Apple_Crunch_13.wav by Koops -- https://freesound.org/s/20276/ -- License: Attribution 4.0 Biting an apple.wav by Elandre01 -- https://freesound.org/s/594383/ -- License: Creative Commons 0 Apple Cut and bite by sonictimm -- https://freesound.org/s/712209/ -- License: Creative Commons 0 A rifle gun shot by 1234Thekrebwgus -- https://freesound.org/s/686074/ -- License: Creative Commons 0 Sniper Rifle Shot Sound Effect by qubodup -- https://freesound.org/s/182051/ -- License: Creative Commons 0 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices