Episode 98: Lora Gene Young AKA Gypsy Nomad Hunting

1:01– Podcast start and intro Lora Gene Young a.k.a. Gypsy Nomad Hunting from the Western Hunting and Conservation Expo in Salt Lake City.

2:33– Brandon talks to Lora about where home base is because of her name Gypsy Nomad. Lora talks about how she has traveled all over hunting but home is in North Carolina, drivers license says she’s from Idaho and her car lives in Denver. 

5:43- Lora talks about guiding and what she thinks the percentage is of skill, luck, or experience and what it important to remember when hunting and guiding.

6:19- Lora talks about working with Southern Mountain Adventures and Australian outfitters. She talks about how she’s able to work with both because in New Zealand it is currently fall so she is going to New Zealand to start guiding for March, April and May and then in Australia, they hunt water buffalo where you don’t have seasons because it's either wet or dry.

8:00- Lora shares how she got a job with Australian Outfitters, how she got into guiding and made it a career. She also talks about growing up on a farm, raising sheep and goats and then going to school for agriculture and getting her graduate degree which took her to Australia and New Zealand and that’s how she got to hunting.

12:11- The difference between guiding abroad and guiding in the states. Lora talks about how there’s more competition in the states than there is in New Zealand and they’re very tight knit at all the places she works. She also talks about the different strategies she uses going into guiding knowing that there is a possibility that someone may not get an animal.

15:20- Lora talks about the differences of hunting open range vs. high fence like they do with the red stag. She talks about how the stags are raised and how even though it’s high fence, it’s not that easy to hunt them. She also talks about bringing the meat back to the U.S. and how it can sometimes be a little difficult.

19:57- Lora talks about how there’s no natural predators in New Zealand only feral cats,  stoats, ferrets, falcons and crows but, no large predator animals.

20:34- Lora talks about the contrast of hunting in New Zealand, Australia, and Alaska and the difference in the terrain. She also talks about being a female guide in a male dominated field and some of the difficulties she has faced along the way. She talks about different women in the industry she looks up to including Rachel Ahtila and Chloe King from New Zealand.

27:00- Lora talks about all the things she does in the hunting industry, like guiding, cooking, being a ranch hand and more and starting off in Texas as a ranch hand. She talks about how growing up on a farm has helped her be able to do any job that is put in front of her.

31:08– Lora talks about being involved and Girls with Guns. She talks about how she met them, how she got involved with the brand and how they have inspired her to keep going in this industry.

37:27– Lora talks about what she’s looking forward to most coming up including a trekking trip at the Everest base camp trek in Nepal in 2019. She also talks about some of her favorite things to hunt including tahr and mountain goats.

43:03– Lora gives her advice and suggestions to women and girls who want to get into guiding, being a ranch hand or anything to do with what she is doing.

48:08– Lora talks about some instances in her travels and hunting where she has had some close encounters with animals or terrain. She also talks about what the wilderness means to her and her life.

55:01- Wrapping up and where to find Lora on social. - Instagram - Facebook