Outdoor Boys YouTuber Luke Nichols is calling it quits after more than 10 years of content creation.
Nichols launched his YouTube channel, Outdoor Boys, in 2015, which focuses on family-friendly outdoor adventure content, such as fishing, camping, survival, and more. It has since grown into a powerhouse, with over 16 million subscribers as of July 2025.

Despite its growing popularity, the Outdoor Boys YouTuber has announced plans to stop making YouTube videos. Below is a detailed look at the real reason the influencer is quitting and what this means for his fans.
The Outdoor Boys YouTuber is concerned about the attention his family is receiving
In a video titled “Goodbye,” Luke Nichols revealed that one of the main reasons he was quitting YouTube was due to the attention his channel had garnered.
His channel experienced explosive growth, gaining 12 million subscribers in just 18 months.
It also enjoyed massive viewership numbers – over 2.8 billion views on YouTube, although Nichols claims over 6.8 billion views, as people also posted his videos on other platforms.
The rising popularity meant fame for Nichols and his family, which was flattering at first.
However, as the family became more recognizable, fans began approaching them for photos, conversation, or impromptu meet-and-greets while they were traveling or engaging in everyday activities, such as grocery shopping.
In his goodbye video, the Outdoor Boys YouTuber admitted that the attention from fans reached a point where it started becoming overwhelming.
“The sheer volume of fans trying to contact me, trying to take pictures with me, or just trying to come up and talk to me in public can be a bit overwhelming at times.”
Nichols and his wife were thus concerned that the attention would worsen as the channel continued to grow, making things difficult for their family.
“And my wife and I, we both have real concerns about what this will do to our family if I keep growing my YouTube channel at this pace. And the time to stop is before this problem gets so out of hand that my family and I can’t live normal lives.”
Too much time and energy spent on creating YouTube videos
The time-consuming demand of running a massive channel is another reason why the Outdoor Boys YouTuber is quitting.
YouTube content creators, particularly those with large channels, often dedicate a substantial amount of time to creating videos.
Besides filming, there is also extensive content planning, scripting, editing, managing social media channels, responding to sponsors, and engaging with fans.
For a channel like Outdoor Boys, there is also a lot of travel, accompanied by all the hassles that come with planning trips, especially when traveling with his family.

In his farewell video, he explained that while it had been an amazing experience, creating YouTube videos required a significant amount of time and energy.
“The amount of time and energy that I’ve dedicated to making YouTube videos is hard to communicate. So many late nights editing, packing and unpacking, camping with pneumonia, [and] building log cabins while injured.”
Things were even harder for Luke Nichols as he had not set out intending to become a YouTube influencer.
Before his channel gained fame, he was a criminal defense attorney. He started dabbling in YouTube videos as a hobby – filming and posting outdoor adventures -but it blossomed into a full-time job with a lot of commitments.
Luke Nichols has commitments, like his family and faith
The Outdoor Boys YouTuber is also stepping away from content creation due to other commitments.
In a YouTube video posted on the Come Unto Christ in Alaska channel, Nichols discusses his faith and family, revealing that they are very important to him.
Luke Nichols is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. At the age of 19, he volunteered for a full-time church mission, during which he spent over two years in Japan.
As for his family, he has been married to his wife for over 20 years, and they have three sons together.
His family is extremely important to him, to the extent that he left a promising career as a political consultant because the time commitment was not conducive to his family life.
Therefore, while Nichols enjoys creating his YouTube videos, he values his faith and family above all else.
“You know fishing’s not the most important thing in my life by a long shot. I enjoy fishing, and it’s a hobby, but you know my faith and my family are much more important to me, and, uh, it’s what brings me happiness.”
In his goodbye video, Nichol states that he still enjoys making videos and going on adventures, but it is time to start focusing on his other commitments.
The Outdoor Boys YouTuber also wants to focus on his sons, who are aspiring influencers
Luke Nichols is also stepping away from his YouTube channel to be more present for his sons, whom he revealed are aspiring YouTubers.
His eldest son, Tommy, is already creating YouTube videos under his channel, Outdoor Tom, which has over 900K subscribers.

In the goodbye video, Nichols explained that he had spent years focusing on himself and his YouTube channel. Therefore, it was now time to focus on others, including his sons, and especially Tommy and his YouTube channel.
“I want to spend more time helping him with his channel and preparing him to be an adult, which is going to be in less than six years.”
You haven’t seen the last of the Outdoor Boys YouTuber
Many fans of Luke Nichols’ YouTube channel are disappointed that he is quitting. However, the good news is that he is not done, at least yet.
When signing off, Nichols revealed that he still has several half-finished YouTube videos. As such, he promised to post all of them (and any other videos he might film in the coming months) at the end of 2025 in one dump.
In addition, the Outdoor Boys YouTuber will likely continue to appear in his son’s YouTube videos, as he has committed to helping run his channel.