Welcome to The Roundup
Every month, we'll share great writing beyond The Westrn, news we deem important, a creative corner, and occasional surprises from friends & pards
Howdy folks.
Loose ends fray, thought trains jump the tracks, and — as our favorite part-time cowgirl Gabby Zaldumbide can attest — errant cattle mosey off. This newsletter is our bimonthly way of keeping things together as we shake things up behind the bucking chutes.
Think of it as a recollection, a counting of heads, and a creative pitstop. It’s also a way for us to amplify the work of our fellow outdoor writers and shed light on anything we deem important to this growing community.
With that, we welcome you to The Roundup. Thanks for being here, don’t mind the dust. We’re under construction.
Your pardners in writing,
The Editors
Our Favorite Reads From ‘Round the Web
There’s a lot of killer outdoor writing going on these days. Here’s our sampling, hand-picked and fresh.
Don’t Let Politicians Convince You That Selling Public Lands Is the Solution to America’s Housing Affordability Crisis Outdoor Life’s Dac Collins takes on Utah’s shoddy track record of trying to wrestle federal lands into state hands. The latest twist in setting this precedent is using the housing affordability crisis to build favor for transfer. Ears up, everyone.
The Attack on Mountain Lion Hunting Is an Attack on All Hunting GearJunkie’s Sean McCoy tackles ballot box biology head-on in this op-ed. We’re paying close attention to what’s happening in Colorado. We think you should, too.
How Natural Are We? It’s not often that The New Yorker goes into outdoor writing, but when it does, you can bet it’s in a book review centered in suburbia — the outdoorsiest place of all. Still, we love the question posed by Joshua Rathman. We’d love to take him backpacking. David Remnick, you’re welcome to join us too.
ICYMI: We Promise Two Long Reads a Month. And We’re Making Good on That.
Last week, we published managing editor Katie Hill’s reported op-ed, “The Skeleton in the Gear Closet.” When Katie first dug into the state of sustainability in the hunting apparel industry, she got answers she didn’t expect. This element of surprise became a viable thread of inquiry on its own. Read the story here.
In August, executive editor Kestrel Keller’s personal essay “The Narrow Trail Between Predator and Prey” turned heads. In the aftermath of the “man or bear” trend that burned hot and fast across social media earlier in the summer, “most choose the bear,” Kestrel writes. “I’ll continue to resist this question because I’ve been choosing both for years.” Read the story here.
Prior to that, in “The Teacher Will Appear,” editor-in-chief Nicole Qualtieri pondered the breadth of wisdom she’s accumulated over years of facing the only guarantee of being an equestrian: falling off. Read the story here.
And don’t forget to check out our earlier long reads:
Killing Animals Helped Me Make Peace with Death Nicole tackles the long-ago loss of her father by finding new meaning in the life-death continuum. Hunting helped write a new story.
The Extreme Sport of Wolverine Research Katie takes us into the high alpine where wolverines thrive. Turns out, you need to be an expert mountaineer to study these creatures.
Coming Up: Gabby takes us day riding amidst good horses, naughty cattle, and working dogs. Nicole takes on the opposition. And Kestrel hunts mountain goats in a (gasp!) national park.
Donate to Deer Camp’s Gear Closet & Get One Year Free
In “The Skeleton in the Gear Closet,” you were introduced to DeAnna Bublitz of Deer Camp in Missoula.
If you donate some used hunting gear to the Deer Camp gear library, send us a receipt for your donation and we’ll give you one year of The Westrn for free.
Get in touch with DeAnna at deercampmt@gmail.com and check out the current inventory to see what gaps you can fill.
We’d love to bring some community into this little newsletter. If you have:
a letter to the editor
a piece of published writing you love
a book that everyone should read
an important bit of news
a great photo or snapshot of artwork
a short story, a poem, or something else creative under 300 words
Send any of the above to editor@thewestrn.com and we’d love to share it in The Roundup — We are jonesing for some ol’ school lit mag vibes around here!
You Got This Far?! You’ve Earned 40% Off For The Next Year!
We want to give our inaugural newsletter readers a mega deal for going this far down the rabbit hole.
From now until the end of September, you can get a year of unlimited access to The Westrn for only $30. This affordable subscription allows us modest funds to continue to build this brand.
Currently, we’re not paying ourselves. All funds go back into things like branding, building the backbone of the business, research and development for stories, and educational materials that aid us in doing our best as writers and journalists. The more we raise, the more we can do, and we really, really want to do a lot more.
It’s a feel-good investment in an editorial team like no other in the outdoor industry.
Keep ‘em comin’, friends! 🤝