Steve Weldon is a self-described “adventure nut and a hiking fool.” From his start in radio to finding a love of the outdoors in Arkansas, Weldon’s career has brought him numerous opportunities, including hosting “Walkin’ West” as he discovers hidden gems in California, Alaska, Hawaii and many other states west of the Continental Divide. “Walkin’ West” airs Saturdays at 11:30 a.m. on Arkansas PBS.
I grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas. I began going on hikes and camping as a Boy Scout. I am proud to say that I became an Eagle Scout at age 14, and which is the proudest day of my life.
My first job was as a deckhand on a commercial fishing boat in Corpus Christi Bay at age 14. We took tourists (mainly from San Antonio and Austin) on fishing trips. Working for a bunch of salty, wonderful, proud World War II veterans, I learned how to take orders, be respectful and how to cuss!
A CAREER ACROSS THE DIAL
At age 16, I recorded a song I wrote about my girlfriend at the time and entered it in a contest sponsored by a local radio station and Billboard magazine. I’ll be darned if I didn’t win locally! After winning in Corpus Christi, my song was sent off to the national competition where I didn’t win, but my parents were so excited they paid the bill for me to record the song, a 45-rpm record, and have 500 copies pressed. At that point, I started bringing the record to radio stations around the state. I was lucky that three South Texas stations began playing the song as well as San Antonio, Waco and Harlingen, Texas, stations. It was called “Carrie.” It sold all 500 copies, charted in Corpus Christi and got up to No. 18 on the local charts, I believe.
While plugging the song, I was interviewed by the KEYS morning show host and program director, Bob Tucker. After the interview, he asked me if I had ever thought about being a DJ. I said, “No, sir, but I would love to be a DJ.” He then said, “OK, Steve, I’ll show you how our format works and get you practicing everything we do on air. Record all your practice sessions, and when I think you are ready, we will put you on the air.” Six months later, bingo. I was a 17-year-old radio jock on the No. 1 station in South Texas.
My radio career took me to many markets over the years: from Corpus Christi to Austin, then to Houston, where I graduated from the University of Houston, then Los Angeles, then back to Houston.
The reason I switched stations frequently was because after the FCC deregulated the industry and made it OK for huge broadcast companies to buy as many stations as they wanted in a market. Anyone making a decent wage was on the bubble. I was never let go by anyone who hired me, but three times over my 30-year career, when a station sold, the new owners cleaned house and brought in their team. They thought they could do it just as well at a cheaper cost. We called it “K-Marting.” Never a dull moment.
LIVING THE NATURAL STATE DREAM
While at a station in Houston, KILT, I drove for the first time to Arkansas to fish with my best bud on the White River. This was around 1983. We camped near Flippin (home of Ranger Bass Boats) at a primitive site called Wildcat Shoals Public Access. There is a boat launch there, and back in 1983, there were three primitive campsites. Was I a happy camper? OMG! Growing up in South Texas where the highest point in the county was the pitcher’s mound at the Little League park and the nearest river was way too muddy to swim in, I was (pardon the pun) in hog heaven.
After about five days there, we splurged and spent two or three days at Gatson’s White River Resort lodge near Mountain Home. Then we camped at Greers Ferry and the Little Red River, below the dam. I was hooked, to say the least.
On that trip, I also went into my first-ever Walmart store in Russellville. It was one of the first stores Sam Walton opened. I needed a sleeping bag. The whole store was maybe a hair bigger than a Denny’s restaurant. I asked this kid (salesman) if he could pick out a sleeping bag for me. He pulled a cardboard box off the shelf and said, “Let’s see. It’s late October, and the low tonight is supposed to be in the mid to upper 40s. This Coleman bag is rated down to 32 degrees, and it’s $9.95.” I said, “Wow. You know your stuff. You are a big help.” He then pointed to his name tag that said “Bill, associate owner,” and said, “I better be. I’m part-owner of this store.” I was blown away. I told my buddy out in the car that if all these Walmart stores were like this one, they were going places. The rest, of course, is history. To say the least, Sam Walton knew what he was doing.
A TEXAN WITH AN ARKIE HEART
I was a Texan who sure wished he was an Arkie. Well, guess what? Seven years later, my wish came true! In December of 1990, I was offered a job as program director and morning personality of a start-up country station called KIX 103 in Little Rock. The call letters were KXIX 102.9 FM. My competition would be from the number one station in the market, KSSN. Their morning man was the infamous Bob Robbins.
My air name at the time was not Steve Weldon, but a name an old boss gave me at KILT Houston. They called me the “Horse Doctor.” We started with a bang. The station sounded great; the personalities were entertaining; and professional as well. It was while at KIX 103 that I met the most beautiful woman in the world – my soon-to-be wife. She was our receptionist. We never really dated. We just worked together and fell in love. The marriage is now 33 years young and still going strong. I was a happy man.
I was also very proud of the station, the overall sound and the pride the employees all took when we entered the market. The only problem was that KSSN had twice the signal size (100k Watts to 50k Watts) and 10 times the budget. Our owner at the time didn’t have deep enough pockets to hang in there long enough to make a big dent in the ratings. If we could have hung on another year, we would probably still be on air today. We lasted 19 months before we were sold.
RAISING A MOUNTAIN MAN
My new wife, Lorie, showed me a lot of Arkansas. She was born and raised in El Dorado. Her brother still lives part-time in Louann, Arkansas. We honeymooned in Hot Springs, camped throughout the state, bought a home near the Arkansas River, hiked many of the nearby trails and were ready to live our lives as Arkansans, but I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.
I stayed in the radio business until 2002, where I did mornings in the small rural town of Sonora, California, about 40 miles due north of Yosemite National Park. It was here, around the year 2000, that my backpacking adventures went into full bloom. I have backpacked on many high Sierra trails with my wife and my son Zack.
Zack is now a mountain guide and has guided trips up Mt. Whitney, Mt. Shasta, Yosemite, Joshua Tree, raft guided in Colorado, climbed the 3,100 ft face of El Capitan at Yosemite, Mt. Kilimanjaro and has hiked on five continents. He is living life others only dream of.
“WALKIN’ WEST” IS BORN
Around 2018, a dear friend of mine suggested that I create my outdoor hiking program. He said, “Steve, you love the outdoors, and you certainly have the gift of gab to make it happen.” I said, “I don’t know about that, but I sure do like to talk.” I finally decided to give it a try. I wanted to create a program with a mission to get folks off the couch, out of the office, off the computers and cell phones, and away from politics, to hike and explore the American West in a respectful, responsible way, and to leave it better than you found it for the next generation.
The result was a hiking show that ended up airing in 50% of America’s homes. It’s called “Walkin’ California.” We filmed seven episodes. At that point, I wanted to hike in more states out west, so we created our new series, “Walkin’ West.” We have hiked in Oregon, Colorado, Wyoming and California to date, with hikes planned for Big Bend National Park in West Texas, Slot Canyon hikes near Kanab, Utah, and Bryce Canyon, Sequoia and Kings Canyon in California and more.
I am tickled to death that Arkansas PBS is airing “Walkin’ West”. I hope you will tune in and look at one of our hikes. If I can get a viewer away from all the daily stress that we have in today’s world, then I will feel pretty darn good inside. It’s my job to put a smile on a face or two. I hope I can get it done. Have a great day “outdoors” and remember, “Walkin Beats Ridin’ Every Time.”
Your Bud,
Steve Weldon
HOW TO WATCH
Watch “Walkin’ West” live Saturdays at 11:30 a.m., starting May 3.
Visit pbs.org/show/walkin-west/ for more.