Kevin Grange is a Wyoming-based author, paramedic, and firefighter. His most recent book is titled Grizzly Confidential: An Astounding Journey Into the Secret Life of North America’s Most Fearsome Predator, which is a must-read for anyone interested in the evolving relationship between humans and bears. The book follows Kevin’s journey throughout the American West and Alaska as he seeks to better understand grizzly bears, debunk many deeply engrained myths, explore case studies of successful coexistence, and more. The book is part travelogue, part adventure story, and part science– making for a fun and educational read that I highly recommend.
Kevin was born and raised in New Hampshire, where he grew up obsessed with the outdoors and, like many of us, obsessed with kids’ outdoor books such as Old Yeller, Sounder, and Where the Red Fern Grows. He attended paramedic school in California and began his career in downtown LA before landing a job as a National Park paramedic in Yellowstone. As you’ll hear in our conversation, Kevin has managed to successfully merge his love of medicine and adventure with his talent for writing, and with a lot of hard work, he’s enjoyed two successful, simultaneous careers– one in medicine and the other in writing.
Kevin and I connected just a few weeks after the publication of Grizzly Confidential and had a fascinating conversation about his career, his writing process, and his journey to better understand the legendary grizzly bear. We discussed his career path that led him to the West and his first experiences working in Yellowstone. We talk about balancing his paramedic work with his writing work, and how having a full-time job allows him to be more selective with his writing projects. We obviously talk a lot about grizzly bears– grizzly research, poaching, backcountry bear safety, his travels to Alaska, success stories of coexistence, false grizzly myths, overcoming his fear of grizzlies, and much more. Kevin is also a voracious reader, so he offers up plenty of excellent book recommendations.
A huge thanks to Kevin for writing such a fun and educational book, and a huge thanks to you for listening. Enjoy!
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Photos courtesy of Kevin Grange
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RESOURCES:
Topics Discussed:
- 4:00 – Intro and Kevin’s upbringing
- 5:45 – Favorite books as a kid
- 8:15 – First memories of grizzlies
- 9:15 – First encounter with a grizzly
- 11:30 – Becoming a National Park paramedic
- 13:45 – Types of emergencies in National Parks
- 15:00 – Idiotic tourist mistakes
- 16:45 – Balancing paramedic work with writing
- 19:30 – Why Grizzlies?
- 22:15 – How this book’s angle is different from other Grizzly books
- 26:20 – What’s the difference between a “Grizzly bear” and a “Brown bear”?
- 27:45 – Washington State University’s Bear Center
- 32:45 – Grizzly poaching
- 37:15 – Learning bear defense methods, including bear spray
- 41:15 – Basic backcountry safety in bear country
- 44:15 – Examples of good and bad coexistence strategies
- 48:15 – Debunking certain grizzly myths
- 52:45 – Continued learning about grizzlies
- 55:45 – How writing this book compares to the others
- 57:15 0 Favorite writers and books
- 59:30 – How has Kevin changed because of this project?
- 1:05:30 – Learning to switch gears after an intense paramedic experience
- 1:07:30 – Parting words of wisdom
Information Referenced:
- Kevin Grange
- Grizzly Confidential by Kevin Grange
- All of Kevin’s Books
- Old Yeller by Fred Gipson
- Sounder by William Armstrong
- Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
- Thomas Mangelsen
- Morning Glory hotspring
- Grizzly 399
- Washington State University Bear Center
- Brooks Falls
- Nick Mott episode
- Todd Orr
- Surviving the Griz course
- McNeil Bear Sanctuary
- Fat Bear Week
- National Parks Magazine
- Eager by Ben Goldfarb
- The Devils Teeth by Susan Casey
- Peter Matthiessen
- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
- Kevin Fedarko
- Pete McBride
- Kate Siber
- Stephanie Pearson
- On Writing by Stephen King
- The Soul of an Octopus by Sy Montgomery
- What a Fish Knows by Jonathan Balcombe
Enjoy this episode? Then you might like these too:
- Doug Peacock – 50 Years of Fighting for the Grizzlies
- Nick Mott – A Masterclass in Nuanced Storytelling
- 50 Years of the Endangered Species Act – Live in Austin
- Corissa Busse – Tribal-Led Buffalo Restoration in the American West and Beyond
- Dr. Sara Dant Returns – “Losing Eden: An Environmental History of the American West”
- Pete McBride Returns – Exploring & Documenting His Backyard River
Visit the podcast page for a full, searchable list of episodes
