What does it really mean to be a hunter? Is it about filling a tag, harvesting a trophy, or everything that happens along the way?

On this episode of Through the Gates, Dan Gates sits down with Jordan Budd, a Nebraska-based hunter, guide, filmmaker, and outdoor storyteller known for her work with MeatEater and Rockslide. Raised on her family’s third-generation cattle ranch in northwest Nebraska, Jordan developed a passion for hunting, archery, and filming at an early age. Today, she has built a career around guiding hunters, pursuing big game across the West, producing outdoor films, and helping tell the story of hunting and conservation. Dan and Jordan explore the changing culture of hunting, the pressure to harvest, and the influence of social media and outdoor television on hunters’ expectations. Jordan shares why some of her most meaningful hunting experiences have had nothing to do with whether she filled a tag, and why showing the realities of an unsuccessful hunt can be just as important as documenting a successful one. The conversation also takes a deeper look at the challenges facing today’s hunters, including declining hunting opportunities, increasing difficulty drawing tags, wildlife habitat conservation, and the role of science-based wildlife management. Jordan discusses her family’s ranching legacy, changes in Nebraska’s mule deer and whitetail populations, the impacts of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD), and the growing presence of elk. Dan and Jordan also discuss the importance of hunting ambassadors, women’s growing influence in the outdoor industry, predator management, grizzly bears, wolves, and the need for hunters to stay engaged in wildlife policy and conservation issues. From high-country archery mule deer to the realities of guiding, filmmaking, motherhood, and maintaining a family ranch, Jordan offers a candid perspective on what it takes to build a life in the outdoors—and why protecting hunting opportunities matters for future generations.

In this episode:

• Jordan’s journey from a Nebraska ranch to the outdoor industry
• Why hunting is about the experience, not harvest
• Social media, hunting television, and unrealistic expectations
• The challenges of guiding hunters and managing expectations
• Archery hunting, mule deer, elk, and Western hunting opportunities
• Women’s influence and representation in hunting and conservation
• Ranching, wildlife habitat, and the importance of private land conservation
• Nebraska’s changing deer populations, EHD, and elk expansion
• Predator management, wolves, grizzly bears, and wildlife policy
• Outdoor storytelling and the future of hunting films
• Why hunters need to be engaged in conservation and wildlife decisions

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