WHY "JUST HUNT HARDER" IS BAD ELK HUNTING ADVICE | 🎙️ EP. 158

Backbone Unlimited Podcast · Apr 4, 2026 · 17m

In this episode Matt Hartsky breaks down one of the most common—and misleading—pieces of advice in elk hunting: “just hunt harder.” While effort matters in the mountains, Matt explains why physical grind alone rarely leads to consistent elk encounters and why so many hunters work hard without ever getting into elk. After more than 34 years of hunting Western elk, Matt walks through how elk actually use the landscape. Their movement is not random—it’s shaped by terrain structure, bedding security, wind and thermals, feeding areas, and hunting pressure. When those factors are ignored, hunters…