Athens Outdoors based in Rochester, NY is excited to announce it has completed the acquisition of Athens Archery, which is headquartered in Rochester, IN. 

GSM Outdoors, LLC, a multi-brand manufacturer and technology innovator of premium, specialized hunting and shooting products, has just announced its acquisition of CoyoteLight, Inc.

Whitetails Unlimited has named Jamie Merckx of Appleton, Wisconsin, as Field Director of the Year for fiscal year 2017-18. 

The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation calls on Congress to renew and permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) with full, dedicated, annual funding.

Field to Fork, a hunter recruitment program for adults from non-hunting backgrounds, is expanding into seven new states this year after two successful seasons of pilot testing near QDMA Headquarters in Georgia. 

Every two years the Pope And Young Club gathers to celebrate North America's rich bowhunting heritage. We honor outstanding examples of this continent's wildlife, discuss issues relevant to the Club's role as a leader in the bowhunting and conservation communities, do a little fundraising for the Club's Conservation and Outreach Fund and talk with old friends and meet new ones.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation® (NSSF®) continues its longtime support for National Hunting and Fishing Day® (NHF Day) by returning as a sponsor for 2018.  

Be ready for your next hunt with the Scent Crusher® Travel Closet provides an easy and effective way for hunters to eliminate odors on clothing and equipment. 

Just in time for fall hunts, the Mac Daddy Caddy from Hunter’s Edge is now available in America’s No. 1 Camo. The Mac Daddy Caddy is a multi-use chair designed to ease a hunter’s load while out in the fields and woods.

An ideal early season top, the Field & Stream Men's Quarter Zip Tech Tee in Realtree EDGE keeps odors at bay thanks to antimicrobial fabrics that deter the growth of odor-causing bacteria.

The Field & Stream James River Hunting Pack is the perfect size for a day in the field. Featuring a side water bottle pocket, padded shoulder straps and a front cleanout pocket for dirty and wet items, this pack is loaded with useful features every hunter will appreciate. 

Field & Stream, a specialty outdoor retailer and product brand owned and operated by DICK'S Sporting Goods, offers a new line of hunting packs designed to keep your gear protected, organized and easily accessible throughout the hunt. 

Mossy Oak teams up with Alaska Guide Creations to bring outdoor enthusiasts binocular packs in Mossy Oak Break-Up Country and Bottomland. The packs are available immediately and are being offered in a variety of styles.

The Women's Realtree Crush Full-Zip Hoodie by Colosseum is the perfect go-to hoodie for casual every-day wear or your outdoor adventure. 

Yamaha Motor Corp., USA, the powersports leader in supporting outdoor recreation, today announces the Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative (OAI) awarded more than $130,000 in funds and equipment to 11 grant applicants in the second quarter of 2018. 

Whitetails Unlimited awarded a $6,828 grant to the Mid-America Special Sportsman’s Association in Rocheport, Missouri. 

To celebrate the opening days of elk season, Mossy Oak recently launched an all-new digital series featured in its free, on-demand video library.  Coming off of the intense action of the first episode of “Bull Rush,” the latest episode contains four of Mossy Oak’s most action-packed archery hunts.

Into High Country’s Jason Matzinger talks to Steve and Jodi about how he got into producing outdoor television – but more importantly, he talks about his three-year journey to produce #ProjectMuleDeer which will premiere on September 22.

Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever announce and welcome Marissa Jensen as the organization’s Nebraska Outreach and Communications Coordinator. 
 

RubLine Marketing brings on Michelle Smith to their social media management team.

The release of the new Tactacam 5.0 takes filming your hunt to the next level. Endless mounting options for any weapon, 4K resolution, 8X zoom and a high sensitivity 360-degree microphone makes this the best POV camera on the market.

Scrape hunting is probably the overall most effective way to harvest quality Whitetail bucks. Due to the extreme interest in mock scrape hunting and the high consumer demand for the Magnum Scrape-Dripper®, Wildlife Research Center® has introduced The Super Charged® Scrape-Dripper.

Odin's Innovations explodes onto the whitetail attractant scene with a product never seen before in the woods.

 Delta McKenzie introduces the CHUNK layered target for broadhead and field-point practice.  

Be prepared this season with the Próis® Torai Midweight apparel line in Cumbre camo for serious women hunters who demand gear that fits superbly, and functions even better. 

As bowhunters across North America head afield for challenge and adventure, Victory Archery and Backcountry Hunters & Anglers are launching a corporate partnership that underscores Victory’s commitment to the wild public lands and waters on which its customers depend.

Houston Safari Club Foundation (HSCF) is pleased to announce the Marine Military Academy as its newest Foundation Partner.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) has helped support and secure the United States’ wildlife heritage since 1964 by supporting anglers, hunters, and outdoor recreation, according to a new report out today from the National Wildlife Federation. However, the Land and Water Conservation Fund is at risk of expiring unless Congress acts by the end of September to reauthorize and fully fund this critical conservation program.

Remote fish and wildlife habitat in America’s largest national forest, the Tongass in Alaska, soon could be crisscrossed by a network of roads and other inventoried roadless areas left vulnerable to similar development under a proposal greenlighted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. 

Through modernizing the Pittman–Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act, legislation would help to get more sportsmen and women back in the outdoors while generating more funds for wildlife conservation.

Melissa Bachman, host of Winchester Deadly Passion  previews Deer Week on both the Outdoor Channel and the Sportsman Channel.  

Host Rob Keck will be in pursuit of waterfowl and big game this week with Justin Martin, General Manager for Duck Commander of “Duck Dynasty” fame, and Bob Foulkrod, television host and pro hunter.

Beat the crowds and fill that freezer early by tuning in to The Revolution with Jim and Trav as they hand out seasoned tips to make your 2018 deer hunts more successful and discuss #DeerWeek. Joining us will be Lee and Tiffany Lakosky of “Crush with Lee and Tiffany”, Mark Drury from “Bow Madness” and “Drury’s THIRTEEN”, and Jill Gechter with Cinch Jeans. 

Since 2010, Southwick Associates’ Media Monitor (SAMM) has provided outdoor media insights to subscribers. In the latest issue, SAMM now includes greater insight into social media influencers of the sportsmen and women community.

Tree stands get hunters out of sight and smell of wary deer, but they can also get hunters into trouble.  Read on for tips from the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department to help stay safe and get the most out of your tree stand hunting experience

Outdoor enthusiasts can gear up for camping adventures with the Motorola line of LUMO lanterns, on sale for 50% off. 

Gov. Asa Hutchinson signed a special proclamation today in the Governor’s Conference Room at the state capitol recognizing Sept. 15-22, 2018 as Arkansas Hunting and Fishing Week.

TrueTimber has partnered with Taco John’s, Mountain Dew, Cabela’s and Yellowstone Vacations to give fans a chance to win the adventure of a lifetime during the Camo Up Sweepstakes. 

Outdoor Sportsman Group is excited to announce that the first six seasons of MeatEater will return to Sportsman Channel and be featured during its own programming block Monday-Friday, 6-7 p.m. ET.

With seven consecutive nights of deer hunts for outdoor enthusiasts, this annual celebration of deer hunting programming will begin airing on Monday, September 17 at 7 p.m. ET and continue through Sunday, September 23.

The Mule Deer Foundation (MDF), as Title Sponsor, is proud to present #PROJECTMULEDEER, produced by filmmaker Jason Matzinger.  This feature film, set to air September 22 during Deer Week on both the Outdoor Channel and the Sportsman Channel, highlights mule deer and showcases their struggles for survival across the rugged western landscape.  

Bruce Pettet, President & CEO, Leupold & Stevens, Inc.

Bruce, I am infatuated with Marcus, the Llama. The outfits! The hair! Did I just see him ride a jet boat?! In all seriousness, I know this is a big campaign for Leupold and your partners (Randy Newberg and onX Maps) to reach people about our public lands – from everything on how to access them to showcasing a few of the lesser known, but yet strikingly beautiful – places in these United States. With that said – how on earth did this come about? A little birdy told me (Randy) that you are a big factor of this campaign happening – can you share more about how you came up with this idea? Why the name Marcus? Why a llama???

Randy and I were hunting together last year in New Mexico and he couldn’t stop talking about how versatile and useful llamas were in the backcountry. He’d recently had a chance to work with them through Wilderness Ridge Trail Llamas, an Idaho-based organization run by Beau and Kristin Baty. He was impressed with how much weight they could carry and how low-maintenance they are. When he mentioned that he intended to use them to help traverse the remote public land backcountry that he’s renowned for hunting, I offered to sponsor the lead llama, so long as we could name it. The name Marcus pays homage to Marcus Leupold – son of our legendary co-founder Fred Leupold and the man who changed the course of the company more than 70 years ago by vowing to build a better riflescope when he had one fog up on him during a hunt.

As to why a llama – horses are great pack animals, but the smaller body on a lama means they eat and drink much less in comparison. They’re an easier companion to care for, and you lose none of the benefits of a larger-bodied pack animal. That we’ve been able to build a campaign out of Randy’s experience with Marcus is just a bonus – this isn’t a publicity stunt. Randy was going to use llamas on his hunts this year regardless. They’re bonafide pack animals that all backcountry hunters should be taking a closer look at.

What has been the response from the public on Marcus? I can imagine seeing a llama showing up in their social media feeds has made people stop and look – and click?

We’ve gotten very positive feedback on the campaign that our team has built around Marcus. And while it’s definitely a fun human interest piece, there’s a lot more to it. Many of our core consumers are relentless hunters, anglers, and explorers in their own right. They’re excited to be able to engage with a campaign that’s designed to highlight and call attention to the public lands and activities that they’re passionate about.

What are your goals for the campaign? Action? Awareness?

No optics company does more for sportsmen's rights and conservation across the United States than Leupold & Stevens – and we’re excited to partner with onX Hunt and Randy to continue that tradition by raising awareness for public land opportunities with a little help from Marcus in 2018. Over the next several months, our team will be chronicling Marcus’ public land adventures through our social media platforms – notably Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube – and will check in with him and Randy throughout the fall as they tackle new public land hunts.

Can you share with us where we’ll see Marcus heading later this year?

Randy’s planning on spending most of the fall with Marcus at his side. Together they’re going to be hunting elk in the Cibola National Forest in New Mexico, bison in the Henry Mountains of Utah, mule deer in the Gallatin-Custer National Forest in Montana, elk in the Beaverhead-Deer Lodge National Forest in Montana, and elk in the Kaibab National Forest in Arizona. Every trip is a fair chase hunt on publicly-accessible lands – places that our consumers, who are known for their own relentless pursuits, could hunt just as easily.

What will 2019 bring for Marcus and this campaign? Does Marcus have a younger brother or sister ?

Marcus is very much in his prime, as he’s only just started serving a lead pack llama. He has years of hiking, hunting, and fishing ahead of him, and I know Randy intends to keep utilizing llamas on his own adventures. We’ll probably check in on Marcus somewhere down the road – but either way, you can count on Leupold to continue its relentless commitment to conservation and encouraging our consumers to utilize their public lands.

Editor’s Note – if you are as curious about Marcus as I am, follow Randy Newberg at http://instagram.com/RandyNewbergHunter, Leupold Optics at http://instagram.com/LeupoldOptics and oXMaps at http://Instagram.com/onXHunt Who knows, the llama might get his own Instagram handle one day….

• Michelle Scheuermann, editor, Archery Wire