FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  March 18, 2025  Contact:  Kaden McArthur, Director of Policy & Government Relations, mcarthur@backcountryhunters.org  California’s National Monuments a Bullseye, 850,000 Acres of Public Lands Under Threat  BHA calls on hunters, anglers, and public land advocates to speak up in opposition to the unprecedented move    Washington, D.C. – California’s newest national monuments – critical landscapes that support hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation – are under threat, ...

The Colorado chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) appointed Damon DeGraw to serve as a Routt National Forest Habitat Watch Volunteer. Damon grew up in a town of 500 people in northeast Iowa. “I bet my grandpa had me fishing with a bobber about the time I was able to walk,” he said. “By the time I was five I’d grab my plastic gun and go ‘hunting’ in our backyard for whitetail (my stuffed animals)—then I would come in the house saying, ‘Mom, dad, look at my deer!’” That led to ...

The Colorado chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) appointed Sid White to serve as an Assistant Regional Director for the Northern Front Range Group/region. Sid started fishing at 4 years old and hunting around 8 or 9. He grew up in north Alabama and hunted/fished there and in southern Tennessee. “I cut my teeth chasing bream, catfish, the occasional trout, waterfowl, upland birds, and white-tailed deer,” Sid explained. “My primary mentor was my grandfather, and I also spent lots ...

The Colorado chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) appointed Ben Monarch to serve as Regional Director for the Arkansas River Valley Group. Ben was born and raised in Kentucky. He started hunting squirrels with an air rifle when he was 6, bird hunting by 8, and whitetail hunting by 9. “My older brother and father taught me to hunt,” he said. “Now I hunt in Colorado (big and small game), Alaska (big game), and Kentucky (whitetail on my family’s farm). I also fish in these locations ...