Mountain Men fans will soon bid farewell to one of the show’s longest-running stars.
The show’s upcoming 14th season will mark Tom Oar‘s last on the series, the History Channel confirmed in a Monday, August 4, press release.
“For 81-year-old icon Tom Oar, this season could mark the moment he decides whether to keep going or hand off the torch,” the season’s description reads. “Legacies hang in the balance as each mountain man confronts a defining crossroads.”
Oar has starred on the reality series since its 2012 premiere. The show follows people who have traded in the comforts of the modern world in favor of building a life off the grid. Left to their own devices, the show sees its cast navigate the ups and downs of life in the wilderness.
In a teaser for the new season, Oar hints at his exit by stating, “It’s hard to quit anything that you really like to do.” While the exact reason for Oar’s departure is unknown, his exit will help make way for the show’s new cast of survivalist who will make their debut this season.
“Newcomers Chance and Soraya Painter, both just 28 and raising two young kids, begin carving out a homestead in remote Alaskan bush country,” the season’s description states. “As they face unpredictable terrain and daily survival, seasoned legends like Marty Meierotto and Mike Horstman continue their tireless fight against the elements, refusing to let go of the rugged independence they’ve spent a lifetime building.”
According to the press release, the season premiere will see Marty guide his daughter, Noah, “through her first bush plane landing at a remote caribou camp.” Additionally, “Mike hauls a 50-foot gangway across land and sea to his Kodiak homestead; Bret [Bohn] and Ivy [O’Guinn] fend off a hungry brown bear raiding their salmon nets; Lauro and Neil use an age old technique to hunt moose by boat on an isolated river; Chance and Soraya insulate their log cabin with sod and moss from the surrounding forest.”
Oar worked as a rodeo cowboy before moving to Montana’s Yaak Valley around half a century ago, per his History Channel bio. “With his wife, Nancy, by his side, he makes his living by trapping, tanning hides, and creating unique primitive crafts from materials found in nature,” the bio reads. “Tom and Nancy live in the same log cabin they built by hand more than forty years ago and have no intention of ever leaving.”
Now in his eighties, Oar’s age brings along “new challenges” for life in the wilderness, his bio states. However, he “continues to fight to live wild and free in the mountains.”
New episodes of Mountain Men will be available to stream the next day on the History Channel app, history.com, and video on demand.
Mountain Men, Season 14 Premiere, September 3, 8/7c, History Channel