CMT HEADS BACK TO THE BAYOU THIS FALL WITH THE RETURN OF "SWAMP PAWN" AND "SWAMP HUNTERS" BEGINNING SATURDAY, OCTOBER 11 AT 9 PM, ET/PT

NASHVILLE - September 16, 2014 - CMT is heading back to the bayou this fall to catch up with familiar SWAMP PAWN friends in Bayou Pigeon and join the journey of SWAMP HUNTERS in Honey Island Swamp, La. The 13-episode third season of SWAMP PAWN premieres Saturday, October 11 at 9:00 p.m., ET/PT, followed by the season two premiere of SWAMP HUNTERS at 10:00 p.m., ET/PT. A special crossover episode of the two series will premiere Saturday, November 8 at 9:00 p.m., ET/PT.

This season of SWAMP PAWN is filled with new business ventures, a deep sea fishing trip to the Gulf of Mexico, heartache over the loss of a dear friend, and all the daily comings and goings of Bayou Pigeon during the craziness of crawfish and alligator season. With several of his reliable buyers heading into retirement, the loveable Rick Phillips is inheriting even more customers - and the first thing on his very long "to do" list is finding a new delivery driver as soon as possible. It's not all business, though, as Rick and his wife, Patty, take a special trip to the Big Apple to celebrate their wedding anniversary. Patty also decides to throw Rick a small surprise birthday party, but word travels quickly in the small town of Bayou Pigeon, and the bash ends up being one of the biggest events of the year.

Husband-and-wife fishing duo Clayton and Joney return this season as well, spending lots of time in the swamp getting up close and personal with crawfish and alligators. During one swamp outing and special crossover episode of SWAMP PAWN and SWAMP HUNTERS, Clayton meets the SWAMP HUNTERS and later must ask for their assistance when a local fisherman's boat turns over and he needs help recovering his sunken possessions. Clayton also teaches friends and fellow fishermen Austyn and Blake about the art of making crawfish traps, while being the target of their merciless pranks in the process. Meanwhile, fan favorite Coy Gomez reveals to Rick the dismal news that his cancer has returned, and his prognosis isn't promising.

The eight-episode series SWAMP HUNTERS follows father-son duo Dustin and D'Roy Taylor, relic hunters who travel around Louisiana and Mississippi. Joined by their cousins Kacey and Bobo and occasionally Bobo's ex-girlfriend Daina, the group sets out on the quest for items that were left long ago by pirates, outlaws, gangsters and militiamen. When Dustin and D'Roy find something worth selling, they head to the local antique dealers and collectors to hawk their goods, turning muddy artifacts into pure gold.

Each half-hour episode highlights adventures including searching an old, abandoned house to discover it was once used as a halfway point for Rum Runners and other criminal activity, and using a floating metal detector to unearth the remains of an illegally-run casino that sank after it was hit by a large hurricane. The crew always makes sure that each exploration is filled with a little mischief too. In one episode, Dustin, Kacey, Bobo and their cousin Chris travel farther into the Honey Island Swamp than ever before, in hopes that Chris can capture images of the mysterious Honey Island Swamp Monster. The guys deviously plant fake footprints and monster noises to fool Chris into thinking there really may be something out there.

For more information on SWAMP PAWN and SWAMP HUNTERS, visit CMT.com, download the CMT App for exclusive clips and more, like CMT and SWAMP PAWN on Facebook, follow @CMT on Twitter and Instagram and use hashtags #SwampPawn and #SwampHunters.

SWAMP PAWN is produced for CMT by Pilgrim Studios, with Craig Piligian and Scott Popjes executive producing for Pilgrim. Michael Maniaci, Joe Livecchi and Jayson Dinsmore serve as executive producers for CMT.

SWAMP HUNTERS is produced for CMT by T Group, with Jenny Daly and Rob Fox executive producing for T Group. Jordan Harman, Joe Livecchi and Jayson Dinsmore serve as executive producers for CMT.

CMT, a unit of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), is the leading television and digital authority on country music and entertainment, reaching more than 92 million homes in the U.S. CMT, CMT.com and CMT Radio offer an unparalleled mix of music, news, live concerts and series and are the top resource for country music on demand. The network's digital platforms include the 24-hour music channel, CMT Pure Country, CMT App, CMT Mobile and CMT VOD.

Craig Piligian's Pilgrim Studios produces a wide variety of unscripted and scripted programming for television, including hit series Fast N' Loud and Street Outlaws for Discovery; Ghost Hunters for Syfy; The Ultimate Fighter for FOX Sports 1; Down East Dickering for History; Orange County Choppers and Swamp Pawn for CMT; Welcome to Sweetie Pie's and Raising Whitley for OWN; David Tutera's CELEBrations for WEtv; Wicked Tuna and Wicked Tuna: North vs. South for National Geographic Channel; Amazing America with Sarah Palin, Camp Stew and Saving Private K9 for Sportsman Channel; Bring It! for Lifetime; and the upcoming Somebody's Gotta Do It with Mike Rowe for CNN.

Based in Santa Monica and led by Jenny Daly, T Group Productions develops, sells and produces across all genres for broadcast and cable networks, both domestically and internationally. Since its launch in 2010, T Group has produced series such as Storage Hunters (truTV), Invention USA (History), Mystery Diners (Food Network),Container Wars (truTV), House of Food (MTV), Celebrities Undercover (Oxygen), Thingamabob (H2) and Divine Intervention (NatGeo).