Caleb's Journey with Lane R Warenski

Burnin’ Daylight

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I sat down with Western author Lane Warenski, and we ended up covering damn near the entire history of the American West. Lane’s the author of Caleb’s Journey, a gritty, historically grounded frontier novel I’ve been working through lately—and it’s a hell of a read. We talked mountain men, the Mormon migration, the beef industry, and why Louis L’Amour still shows up in bunkhouses across the West. We also got into Native-settler conflicts, the myth vs. reality of the Old West, and what makes a good Western story stick. If you’re into history, cowboy culture, or just a solid frontier tale, this one’s worth your time.

📚 Check out Lane’s books—especially Caleb’s Journey—wherever you get your Westerns. 🎧 Theme song by Matt Wilson: Burnin’ Daylight

0:00 – Intro & Theme 1:30 – Meet Lane Warenski & the story behind Caleb’s Journey 5:50 – Western novels that shaped us: L’Amour, Kelton, McCarthy, McMurtry 10:12 – Cowboy lit in bunkhouses: why the classics still matter 13:40 – Lane’s fascination with mountain men and the Oregon Trail 18:10 – Mental toughness of early settlers 22:00 – The Mormon migration & Hole-in-the-Rock expedition 28:15 – Pioneering Utah: Lane’s family history & Indian raids 33:25 – Clash of cultures: Settlers and Plains Tribes 38:00 – Why the buffalo was everything 43:35 – The Indian Wars, Custer, and the long conquest 49:10 – Kit Carson, food supply, and the logistics of war 54:20 – American beef built the economy 58:50 – History’s complexity, erasing vs. learning 1:02:00 – Rise of the Western genre: books, movies, and TV 1:06:50 – Thoughts on American Primeval 1:12:00 – The Utah War & Johnson’s Army 1:17:45 – The balance of empathy in writing historical fiction 1:21:10 – Writing the West without preaching 1:24:00 – Favorite frontier figures: Carson, Bridger, Jedediah Smith 1:29:15 – Mark Twain and the American West 1:32:10 – Homeschooling and teaching real history 1:34:30 – The Army, Confederate integration, and military bases 1:38:45 – The Crow scouts & blood feuds in the West 1:41:50 – Characters in fiction vs. real-life legends 1:46:30 – Closing thoughts & future projects

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