Gear or Grit: Your First Elk Hunt on a Budget
No, you don’t need the newest, most expensive gear for your first elk hunt. Solid boots, layers that keep you dry, and a gear list built from hunters who’ve done the trip will get you there.
Read MoreNo, you don’t need the newest, most expensive gear for your first elk hunt. Solid boots, layers that keep you dry, and a gear list built from hunters who’ve done the trip will get you there.
Read MoreFor most big game hunters, September is the beginning of their season. There’s been months of preparation and daydreaming of bugling bulls and cagey old bucks, but now it’s time to make it happen. Anticipation is high, and we’ve already dreamt of the success that lies ahead. Here at RuckList, the stoke is at an all-time high.
Read MoreSolo archery elk down in the worst drainage on the mountain. Shot at 3:30pm, first load to the jeep at 11pm. This is what you train for.
Read MoreEveryone preps for hunting season. Not everyone scouts. Here's a real scouting strategy and the one-day gear checklist our team uses in the field.
Read MoreSolo backcountry elk hunting isn't for the soft. One last-minute tag, 4 days to kill, and a herd bull screaming from a hole he shouldn't be in.
Read MoreThe ultralight-everything approach isn't the only way to hunt out West. Heath cuts through the gear noise and talks about what your pack actually needs — and what you can leave at home.
Read MoreGear lists and tag draws get most of the planning attention. The part that gets people in trouble is showing up physically and mentally unprepared for what the mountain asks of you. Heath covers both.
Read MoreMost first-timers focus on maps and gear and skip the scouting work that actually puts them in position. Heath covers what pre-season scouting looks like when you can't walk the ground beforehand.
Read MoreBefore you set foot in the field, you need to decide what counts as a win. Heath talks through how to define success before you go — because how you answer that shapes every other decision.
Read MoreOTC tags, draw tags, preference points — western license systems are their own language. Heath breaks down how tags work in the West so you're not applying blind or missing the window.
Read MoreElk and mule deer demand different terrain, different physical prep, and different tag strategies. Heath walks through the trade-offs so your first western decision is one you won't regret.
Read MoreEvery western hunting trip starts with a question nobody answers straight: where do I even begin? Heath breaks down what first-timers actually need to know before they ever pull a tag or buy a boot.
Read MoreCold water, colder mornings, and browns staging before the spawn. Brian Trainor on the clothing that keeps you on the river when other anglers have already called the season.
Read MoreNot every piece of gear worth having costs what the top-shelf stuff does. Heath Hansen picks five items that earn their spot in the pack without the price tag that usually comes with field-proven gear.
Read MoreResisted sled work builds the kind of leg and posterior chain strength that keeps you moving at elevation when other hunters are sitting down. Adrian Guyer from Ridgeline Athlete breaks down how to program it.
Read MoreGood hunters aren't just better shots — they make better calls under pressure, when tired, when the conditions change. Heath Hansen on how to build that skill before you need it.
Read MoreBrian has hunted this same stretch of wilderness for 13 years. This fall, his kids came with him. What that trip looked like — the gear, the miles, and what it means to hand something like this down.
Read MoreMost hunters plan their trips. Few plan their physical capacity to keep taking them. Adrian Guyer from Ridgeline Athlete on what your hunting health span actually is and how to extend it.
Read MoreRuckList started on a mountain, with a shared spoon, and a conversation that went: "You know what we need, man?" Heath Hansen on how that trip became the product.
Read MoreIn the winter of 2023, Colin Johnson took a crew of men spanning decades in age and experience into Colorado public land for elk. What happened in that country is harder to explain than the miles they covered.
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