Episode Details

Regional Biologist Greg Heydeman (California Waterfowl Association) joins Jeff Smith and Carson Odegard for a deep look at habitat work and hunting realities in the high desert of Modoc, Klamath and Shasta Valley.

In this conversation you’ll learn:

• Why the 2025-26 season starts with optimism—heavy snowpack and strong water deliveries are putting more acres back under flood across the Northeast Zone
• The Butte Valley makeover—over 2,000 acres of former ditch water converted to managed seasonal wetlands and improved hunter access
• Public-first project strategy—roughly 80-85 percent of CWA habitat dollars in Greg’s region go to state and federal areas, not private clubs
• How ice drives every decision—from property acquisitions to draw systems, one hard freeze in early December can shut an entire ranch down
• New migration quirks—summer-resident snow geese and specks are now common sights, underscoring shifting flyway patterns

Pull up a chair and hear how smart engineering, targeted grants and on-the-ground hunting experience combine to keep birds—and opportunity—on the landscape.

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