You've got the land, you've got the deer, but the season's closing in and your mind's racing

with more questions than answers. I'm Jake Hofer, and this is Back 40, a limited series show

on Wire to Hunt, part of Meat Eaters podcast network. Each episode, I'll be asking eight

wide-tail hunting pros, a focused, thought-provoking question about hunting and land management.

How do I hunt the best part of the farm with less than ideal access?

Should you, that's what the real question is.

Stand without good access is not a good stand.

Search wire to hunt and hit that follow button to listen to Back 40 now.

Welcome to Backwoods University, a place where we focus on wildlife, wild places, and the

people who dedicate their lives to conserving both.

I'm your host, Lake Pickle.

Today, I want to talk to you about one of the most iconic species in all of North America,

bison or buffalo.

But we're going to explore their history in a place that is often forgotten, the eastern United States.

It's mid-April, and the sound that you're hearing is me and my friend Jeremy French from the southeastern Grasslands Institute,

hiking down a hill towards a large flowing creek.

It's slightly overcast, but besides that, it's a beautiful spring day, and the vegetation that we're walking through is showing it wildflowers starting to bloom trees along the creek beginning to leaf

out we even heard two turkeys gobble on our journey down here as we make it

down close enough to hear the fast-flowing water of the creek that will eventually

dump into the red river we see what we came for. Man, what a cool place.

See this cut through?

Yeah. That's your bison trail.

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