Ep. 939: Fat Buck, Wet Buck, and The Strangest Bad Public Land Idea

October 1, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

Fat Buck, Wet Buck, and the Strangest Bad Public Land Idea

The MeatEater crew covers a packed news roundup anchored by a Wyoming elk hunter's not-guilty verdict after a grizzly bear claimed his kill, a 329-pound Minnesota whitetail that required a tractor to move, and what might be the worst idea anyone has had for Grand Teton National Park: an MLB baseball stadium.

Grizzly Takes the Elk, Hunter Takes the Stand

Ron Niziolic, an experienced bowhunter from Cody, Wyoming, shot a bull elk late in the afternoon on September 19 of last year. He and his hunting partner watched the elk bed down about 100 yards away as darkness fell and decided not to risk field dressing it at night in grizzly-dense country. When they returned at first light with pistols drawn, the bull was dead but partially consumed—grizzly bite marks, guts ripped out, bear scat everywhere. Concerned about contaminated meat and the bear potentially returning, they photographed the bull, cut off its head, punched his tag, and left the carcass. He warned other hunters and cowboys on his way out but did not report the incident to Wyoming Game and Fish.

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What you'll learn

1 Timestamped Outline
2 (00:00) **Show Open & Host Introductions** - The crew welcomes listeners and previews the episode's stories: a fat buck from Minnesota, hunter harassment justice in Alaska, a strange public lands proposal, and a pre-recorded interview about a "big wet buck."
3 (03:57) **Wyoming Elk Hunter Cited After Grizzly Claims Carcass** - Brody recounts the story of bowhunter Ron Niziolic, who shot a bull elk at last light, left it overnight, and found it partially consumed by a grizzly the next morning.
4 (10:54) **Roundtable: Was the Hunter Wrong?** - The crew debates whether Niziolic made the right call and whether the citation was justified.
5 (17:20) **Introducing Brian Burrow & The Gunfighters Podcast** - New MeatEater podcast host Brian Burrow joins the studio to discuss his show "Gunfighters," a narrative history of the gunfighter era from 1865 to 1901.
6 (23:59) **White Tail Week Kickoff & Kansas Buck Preview** - Yanni announces White Tail Week at MeatEater and shows trail camera footage of a buck he's targeting in Kansas.
7 (34:21) **Listener Email: The 329-Pound Minnesota Buck** - Brody reads an email from listener Max, who shot a massive-bodied buck near Minneapolis that weighed 329 pounds field-dressed.

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Show Notes

Randall Williams and the MeatEater Crew discuss: putting a baseball stadium in a national park; a very fat buck; a grizzly bear stealing an elk; Steve and Rob Sand discuss his very wet buck; Bryan Burrough shared about his new podcast Gunfighters; and more!

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