{"podcast":{"title":"Mountain & Prairie with Ed Roberson","slug":"mountain-prairie-with-ed-roberson-323217","podcast_index_feed_id":323217,"rss_url":"https://mountainandprairie.libsyn.com/rss","website_url":"http://www.mountainandprairie.com/","image_url":"https://static.libsyn.com/p/assets/3/0/4/a/304a8951c4f4e3ab/MP_Main_Reduced.jpg","author":"Mountain & Prairie Media","episode_count":307,"summary":"Long-form conversations with remarkable people connected to the land, communities, and culture of the American West. • For 10+ years, host Ed Roberson has talked with writers, ranchers, scientists, artists, historians, and adventurers. Every episode is substantive, relaxed, and rich with wisdom — offering listeners fresh perspectives and a deeper connection to one of the world's most compelling places. • Past guests include Yvon Chouinard, Kris Tompkins, Nick Offerman, and Sebastian Junger. • Top 0.5% of all podcasts globally. Featured by Patagonia, The Aspen Institute, SXSW, and MeatEater.","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/mountain-prairie-with-ed-roberson-323217"},"episode":{"title":"Devon O'Neil — On Nature's Power and the Price of Adventure","slug":"devon-o-neil-on-nature-s-power-and-the-price-of-adventure","published_at":"2025-11-11T22:25:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/mountain-prairie-with-ed-roberson-323217/devon-o-neil-on-nature-s-power-and-the-price-of-adventure","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/mountain-prairie-with-ed-roberson-323217","url":"https://mountainandprairie.libsyn.com/devon-oneil-on-natures-power-and-the-price-of-adventure","audio_url":"https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/mountainandprairie/Devon-ONeil.mp3?dest-id=1600085","summary":"Devon O'Neil is a journalist, author, and longtime friend of mine whose new book \"The Way Out: A True Story of Survival in the Heart of the Rockies\" is one of the best pieces of outdoor nonfiction I've read in years. The book tells the harrowing true story of a backcountry ski trip near Leadville, Colorado, that turned tragic—and the years-long process of understanding what really happened, and how a mountain town wrestled with loss, resilience, and the complicated relationship we all have with risk and wild places. It's gripping, deeply reported, and beautifully written—equal parts survival epic, community portrait, and meditation on how we find meaning in the aftermath of tragedy. Devon has spent more than two decades as a writer and reporter based in Summit County, Colorado, covering everything from adventure sports and avalanches to the cultural and emotional undercurrents of life in mountain towns. Before turning his attention to this book project, he worked in newspapers, wrote for Outside, Men's Journal, and ESPN.com, and somehow managed to balance all of that with being a hardcore athlete and a dedicated dad and husband. He's one of those rare writers whose empathy and endurance match the people that he writes about. In this conversation, Devon and I dig into the story behind \"The Way Out\"—how he first heard about the tragedy, earned the trust of a close-knit community, and spent years piecing together a complete and compassionate account. We talk about the ethical tightrope of telling other people's hardest stories, how his own brushes with danger shaped his perspective on risk, and what this project taught him about the fine line between adventure and recklessness. We also get into his childhood growing up on a sailboat in the Virgin Islands, his evolution as…","meta_description":"Devon O'Neil is a journalist, author, and longtime friend of mine whose new book \"The Way Out: A True Story of Survival in the Heart of the Rockies\" is on…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3893,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/mountain-prairie-with-ed-roberson-323217/episodes/devon-o-neil-on-nature-s-power-and-the-price-of-adventure/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/mountain-prairie-with-ed-roberson-323217/devon-o-neil-on-nature-s-power-and-the-price-of-adventure.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}