Set in a variety of remote mountain regions of the US, there’s no doubt that “Mountain Men” remains one of the most unforgettable and unique reality shows of the last decade.
Nonetheless, more than just showing stunning landscapes and survival methods, what really sets “Mountain Men” apart from most shows of the genre it’s its colorful, out-of-the-box and sometimes eccentric cast, including game changing adventurers such as the Alaska Range-based Morgan Beasley, who is deeply missed in the show since his exit in the eighth season.
So where is he nowadays? What is he doing since his exit from “Mountain Men”, and is he planning on ever returning to TV? Stay with us to know all about the whereabouts of Morgan Beasley, and other former stars from the show!
What Is Morgan Doing Now?
Living off the grid in some of the most remote places in the world is unsurprisingly hard, that’s why there aren’t many people as courageous – some would say foolhardy – to adopt such a lifestyle as Morgan Beasley has, but it is usually a deliberate choice. While the pilot didn’t establish himself in Alaska until 2015, his story living in the wild already stood out enough for him to gain a spot in the fourth season “Mountain Men” back.
Though his sudden exit from the show after the eight season in 2019 was never explained, Morgan’s fans would be relieved to know he’s doing great nowadays. By taking a look at the Instagram account of his homestead Apricity Alaska, it’s safe to say that Morgan spends his days taking care of business, trekking and farming includingd taking care of his animals, a life he shares with his longtime partner, Margaret Stern.
While Morgan doesn’t seem interested in talking about his past TV exploits, he’s still on a mission of expanding the word about living in the wild through his social media posts and YouTube videos on the topic. All in all, it’s safe to assume Morgan enjoys his life in Alaska just as much as back when he still appeared in “Mountain Men”.
Business
The Apricity Alaska Homestead is a project Morgan Beasley and Margaret Stern have been working on for years. Though the homestead was still in its initial phase by the time Morgan and Margaret debuted in “Mountain Men”, nowadays the business has grown to stand out on its own for its services and unique experiences offered to their visitors.
While Apricity’s mission as an agricultural homestead is to offer its customers a wide variety of vegetables and fruits harvested by Morgan himself, some remarkable adventures they offer exploring the Alaskan wilderness riding icelandic horses, guided hiking, botany and birding, and teaching homesteading skills for those who want to follow in Morgan and Margaret’s steps in adopting an off-the-grid lifestyle.
Although the experience of homesteading isn’t exactly fit for anyone, it’s great to see Morgan continuing his dream of a self-sustainable alternative lifestyle.
https://twitter.com/ak_homestead/status/1336197053672693761
Social Media, Music & Series
Even though Morgan Beasley is mostly focused on his homestead nowadays, that doesn’t mean he’s stopped pursuing his other passions.
As seen on his social media, Morgan’s deep love for music encouraged him to share his original songs on his YouTube channel. Often surrounded by nature and the stunning Alaskan landscapes seen from the Apricity Homestead, Morgan isn’t shy about letting his subscribers observe his passion for singing and playing guitar, while telling some of his most entertaining stories through his lyrics.
However, music isn’t the only hobby Morgan dedicates his time nowadays. As it happens, Morgan started “Alaska Range Homestead”, a completely self-produced series centered on his life on the homestead, in an effort to teach his audience the skills necessary to survive in such an environment before adopting a similar lifestyle. Though his audience can see sneak peeks of the project on Morgan’s YouTube channel, the series’ full episodes are only available through the subscription website Patreon, the monthly plans of which also include exclusive content and features such as poems, music, behind the scenes recordings, and even directly contacting Morgan and Margaret.
While Morgan’s current projects still have lots of room for growth, it’s great to see he hasn’t disappeared from the public eye as sometimes happens to former reality TV stars.
Who Is Morgan Beasley?
Despite owing his popularity to his appearances in “Mountain Men”, Morgan Beasley is certainly more than just a man who happened to be on TV. According to his business website, Morgan is actually an Environmental Science graduate from the University of Idaho, though his knowledge of nature goes beyond academics, tracing his experience in the field to his jobs constructing cabins, in fishery, and as a guide in remote environments.
As well, Morgan’s background as a homestead caretaker in Idaho made him the right guy to start the Apricity Alaska Homestead, knowing where to start when it came to taking care of the land and animals, exploring the land, and planning which direction he wanted the project to go. Last but not least, the Apricity Alaska’s focus on agriculture, and providing its visitors with a wide variety of natural food options is further proof of Morgan’s knowledge of nature, botany and land usage.
Who Is Margaret Stern?
The name Margaret Stern isn’t unknown for good fans of “Mountain Men”, as the professional pilot and survivalist appeared alongside Morgan Beasley from the fourth to eighth seasons.
While Margaret’s homesteading skills are outstanding on their own, her professional background is also as impressive. She’s a Botany and Natural History graduate from the Maine-based College of The Atlantic, has studied Ethnobotany, and in recent years enrolled in a Fisheries and Wildlife Management degree. The latter has been a key factor in obtaining jobs in some of Alaska’s environment protection offices, such as the state’s Department of Fish and Game, and in the Susitna River Coalition.
Besides working as a guide in North and South America, Margaret’s outdoors experience extends to farming, cabin building, taxidermy, rafting, tracking and collecting plants, as stated on her business’ website.
Unlike Morgan, Margaret doesn’t seem interested in posing in front of cameras as her partner, spending her days managing the Apricity Alaska Homestead, outdoors photography, and piloting her plane.
Why Do They Live In Alaska?
While Morgan and Margaret’s love for the environment and nature is evident, more than that is needed to adopt an off-the-grid lifestyle.
That being said, living remotely in Alaska in a self-sustainable way was a dream that Morgan and Margaret always had. As they wrote on their website’s blog: ‘we had talked, dreamed, and thought so much about this lifestyle and how we wanted to take on the adventure together… but it seemed to be simply a dream’.
By a chance of destiny, they found a property for sale located miles away from civilization, and without thinking it further, they bought it totally unseen. The following four months were spent preparing all the necessary tools needed to make the big move, but the dream wasn’t a reality until in February 2015, when a private plane left them to their business with over 4,000 pounds weight of belongings on their new property.
After spending a couple of weeks marking their property’s limits, building a small cabin and exploring the land, Margaret and Morgan were finally set up, Though it’s fair to admit that they have been so successful in their quest thanks to their previous outdoors experience, lots of determination, patience and willingness to make their dream come true is exactly what has taken them so far now.
Who Else Left The Show?
While it’s great to see Morgan Beasley accomplishing his dreams of living off the land, he isn’t the only former “Mountain Men” whose life after leaving the show we should be closely following.
Marty Meierotto
Any good fan of “Mountain Men” knows who Marty Meierotto is. The Alaska-based survivalist is one of the original cast members of series, and unsurprisingly is still considered a fan favorite as well, even though his exit from the show happened back in the eighth season, aired in 2019.
Prior to leaving the show for good, Marty had just retired from his 31-year-long career in the Alaska Fire Service as a smokejumper and pilot. Back then he stated that his reason for leaving was wanting to do what he enjoyed the most: ‘I’ve always loved to just be in the woods, so I’m going to try and spend more time out there’, as he said in an interview with the Alaska Bureau of Land Management.
Back in his last “Mountain Men” appearance, Marty also talked about spending more time with his family, as well as exploring the land, just as he has been doing for the last three decades. Marty fulfilled his promise to himself, and apparently spends lots of time outdoors, even publishing in 2020 the book “In The Land Of Wilderness”, which reveals some preferred trapping and hunting techniques, also offering a deeper insight into his adventure in the wild.
Although Marty hasn’t been very active on social media in the last couple of years, here’s only hoping that he’s in good health and still does what he loves.
George Michaud
Those who have followed “Mountain Men” from the start, surely remember George Michaud, a survivalist located somewhere adjacent to Idaho’s Snake River and the Teton mountain range. The influence of traditional techniques was evident in his trapping, fishing and especially in his craft methods.
As seen in some of his Facebook posts from mid-2021, he was having some leg problems, originating from an affected sciatic nerve, leaving him no option than to undergo physical therapy. However, George’s lack of social media updates stop us from knowing how he’s doing health-wise these days, but there’s hoping he had a smooth recovery.
Rich Lewis
With appearances in “Mountain Men” from seasons two to six, Rich Lewis is remembered for being the mountain lion hunter of the cast. His fearless attitude in defending his community from wild animals in Ruby Valley, not only turned him into somewhat of a local hero, but also gained him enough recognition to be cast in the show.
Unfortunately, not a lot is known about Rich Lewis since he left the show in 2017, leaving us to wonder whether he still lives in an off the grid way, or has simply adapted to a less exacting lifestyle in recent years.
Charlie Tucker
Based in Maine’s Great North Woods, Charlie Tucker is remembered for being just what one would expect from someone who lives all year long in a remote location. He was fearless and hard-working, with an attitude which turned him into a “Mountain Men” fan favorite when he debuted in the second season.
Charlie left after the fourth season wrapped up, and though he didn’t explain much about his exit, his admission of hating ‘when you don’t have reality’ during an interview with Bargon Daily News could be a clue as to why he decided not to continue in “Mountain Men”.
Unfortunately, not much about Charlie’s whereabouts is known nowadays. Just like some of his former co-stars, the trapper doesn’t have social media, and hasn’t given another try to TV since his exit in 2015.
Kyle Bell
The father and son team formed by Kyle and Ben Bell was definitely a fan favorite during the two seasons they appeared in “Mountain Men”. Although they ultimately left the show for unknown reasons in 2015, Kyle and Ben were ready to try out new things with their project “Survival Sense”, an online series they started in 2016.
However, despite setting up a website and sharing a video for their project on YouTube, the father and son disappeared from social media soon afterwards, and unsurprisingly, there hasn’t been any news about their whereabouts since then. Here’s only hoping that Kyle and Ben are in good health, and still doing what they love the most.
Jason Hawk
Unlike most of his former co-stars in “Mountain Men”, the survivalist and bladesmith Jason Hawk is quite active on social media, following his exit from the show in the ninth season.
Unfortunately, in early 2021, Jason announced that he’d just been diagnosed with cancer, and an online funding campaign was set up to help him afford medical treatment. Given that Jason’s contract with “Mountain Men” hadn’t been renewed according to his family, he didn’t receive any income other than that resulting from his job as a bladesmith, selling his creations through his website Jason Hawk Knives.
Jason has since been receiving medical treatment to overcome his cancer. The most recent procedure took place in November 2022, and his wife Mary Fricchione announced on Facebook that the surgery result was good.
That being said, there’s nothing else for us other than to wish Jason a smooth recovery and hope to see him, Morgan Beasley and many other former “Mountain Men” stars back on TV sometime in the future.
