NWWC WILDCAST: James Overstreet on how to take better outdoors photos
POSTED May 14, 2012 / 11:50 p.m.

SEATTLE - If I want advice on how to throw a spinnerbait, I call Kevin VanDam. If I'm looking for tuna tech, I go to Tred Barta. If, however, I'm trying to improve my photo-taking skills, there's a gentleman in the 501 area code whose phone will ring.

Facebook friends of mine and fans of the Wild Country FB page are well aware of my admiration for James Overstreet's work. Ansel Adams ain't got nothing on this cat, and I mean that with all sincerity: J.O. is a master in the craft of outdoors photography, and one of the people I respect and admire the most in this silly little fish/hunt-writing biz I exist in.

XLISTEN TO THE PODCAST AS JAMES OVERSTREET talks outdoors photography and explains some basic rules that'll help YOU take better photos of your outdoors adventures.

NWWC WILDCAST: Catching up with Mr. Palaniuk, the Wild Country Q & A
POSTED May 14, 2012 / 4:30 p.m.

RATHDRUM, Idaho - Perhaps it's fitting that the "Bass Gypsy" comes home for a visit just in time to fish a tournament. Despite the $100,000 check in his pocket from his first career win on the Elite Series, Rathdrum, Idaho's Brandon Palaniuk was on his way to prefish for a tournament on his home lake in Idaho.

The payout might be a li'l bit smaller when Palaniuk fishes the Northwest Bass qualifier next Saturday on Lake Coeur d'Alene then it was two weeks ago on Bull Shoals Lake when he dominated the Trokar Quest, but, no matter: a tournament is a tournament, a fish is a fish, and BP is BP.

8LISTEN IN AS NW WILD COUNTRY CATCHES UP WITH BRANDON PALANIUK to cht about his recent win, and how the world of big-time bass fishing is treating him.

SPRINGER NATION: Spring Chinook don't just exist in the rivers, you know ...
POSTED May 6, 2012 / 5:30 p.m.

S.E. ALASKA - The defintion of "spring Chinook" is a little bit murky. According to the common train of thought, a springer is only a springer if it's running up a river (the Columbia, Umpqua, Rogue, etc.) in the springtime.

The Canadians, though, figured it out long ago: A "spring" is simply a Chinook that you catch in the springtime. Like the 54-plus-pound behemoth in the photo above, caught by Northwest Wild Country buddy Joseph Princen.

8HEAD OVER TO THE NW WILD COUNTRY FACEBOOK PAGE to check out the recent exploits of one of the Wild Country Nation's young superstars.

SHOW PREVIEW: Yes, it's a face only a mother could love ...
POSTED May 4, 2012 / 11:30 p.m.

SEATTLE - The above photo reminds me a helluva lot of a scene in some science fiction movie whose name I can't remember at the moment. You know the one, where the submarine is attacked by a nuclear abberation with massive choppers and an even more massive, gaping maw.

Welcome to the freaky world of the Pacific seafloor, boys and girls, where you're either the king of the food chain or you ARE the food chain. We go hunting big, fugly, gnarly bottom dwellers this week on Northwest Wild Country and you're welcome to join us.

8HEAD OVER TO THE NW WILD COUNTRY FACEBOOK PAGE for clues about a new series of giveaways and info on halibut and lings.

CRASH TEST: Outdoor Research, REI rain gear withstand NWWC Crash course
POSTED April 8, 2012 / 9:50 a.m.

SEATTLE - All it takes is a quick buzz through the NW Wild Country Facebook page (and a glance at a couple of magazine covers and advertisements I've appeared in) to get an idea of how thoroughly I've crash tested foul-weather jackets produced by Seattle-based gear giants Outdoor Research and REI. And I mean C-R-A-S-H tested: Hey, there I am, warm and dry in Outdoor Research's Mentor in a downpour at Kano Inlet! Oh look, that's me in the REI Taku, none the worse for wear in the middle of a fall storm at Rivers Inlet!

Choosing the right rain gear is serious business in this part of the world. When the label says "waterproof", it darn well better mean "bombproof", or you're a candidate for a miserable day on the water.

8CHECK OUT MY CRASH TEST OF REI & OUTDOOR RESEARCH RAIN GEAR and get a couple of excellent suggestions on your next fishing jacket.

NWWC ON TV: Rockin' the new Wild Country studios this Saturday on NWWC
UPDATED March 30, 2011 / 5:50 p.m.

SEATTLE - We've put the first dents in the wall. Shhhhhh, don't tell the program director!

So when ClearChannel moved its Seattle office up Elliott Avenue into a new super-fancy-schmancy building, they put together THE COOLEST STUDIO on the West Coast. I'm not kidding: this place has more bells and whistles than Bill Gates' Medina mansion. You can check it all out live on Comcast SportsNet Northwest.

Here are the channels, and where you'll find us:

nCHANNEL 179: Puget Sound and the Seattle Metro area (from Bellingham to Olympia), Bremerton, Centralia, Grays Harbor and Pacific Counties, Spokane

nCHANNEL 37 (737 HD): Southwest Washington (Longview, Vancouver), Portland Metro area, Salem, Corvallis, Eugene

nCHANNEL 40: Bend ; CHANNEL 82: Ashland

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