Backbone Unlimited Podcast

8 ELK HUNTING SECRETS THAT HELP YOU FIND BULLS FASTER | 🎙️ EP. 187

Elk Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books
 
In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down eight elk hunting secrets that can help you find bulls faster on public land. This is not about shortcuts, gimmicks, or recycled elk hunting tips. It is about learning how to read bull country with more precision so you can eliminate dead country quicker, understand pressure gaps, interpret fresh elk sign, use wind from the bull’s perspective, identify transition zones, and recognize how mature bulls adjust their risk tolerance when hunting pressure builds. After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, Matt explains why finding bulls is not just about looking for elk country, wallows, rubs, or bugles — it is about understanding security, terrain, bedding cover, cow movement, wind advantage, escape routes, and current bull behavior. If you hunt public land elk and want to find more bulls, make smarter decisions, avoid wasting time in low-probability country, and become a more consistent elk hunter, this episode will help you hunt with a better system.

GIVE ME 15 MINUTES, I GUARANTEE I'LL CHANGE THE WAY YOU HUNT ELK | 🎙️ EP. 186

Elk Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books
 
Give me 15 minutes and I’ll change the way you hunt elk. In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down why consistent elk hunting success is not about hiking harder, calling louder, or hoping to get lucky. It starts with asking a better question: not just where are the elk, but why would elk be here right now? After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, Matt explains how elk make decisions based on food, security, wind, terrain, bedding cover, breeding pressure, and human pressure. You’ll learn how to read elk country with more purpose, understand what hunting pressure really does, use wind as part of the elk’s security system, build better calling setups, and stop reacting emotionally to every bugle, track, or blown opportunity. If you hunt public land elk and want to find more elk, make smarter moves, avoid common elk hunting mistakes, and become a more consistent elk hunter, this episode will change the way you think about elk hunting.

ELK HUNTING BURN AREAS - POST FIRE HABITAT THAT CONCENTRATES BULLS | 🎙️ EP. 185

Elk Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books
 
In this episode, Matt Hartsky breaks down elk hunting burn areas and explains how post-fire habitat, fresh regrowth, burn edges, water, bedding cover, terrain, and hunting pressure all work together to concentrate mature bull elk on public land. After 34 years of Western hunting and guiding, Matt explains why a burn scar alone doesn’t guarantee elk, how bulls use burned timber differently as habitat changes over time, why patchy burns and edge cover often create better daylight opportunities than wide-open burn zones, and how to e-scout burned country with a complete elk hunting system instead of just marking fire perimeters on a map. If you’re trying to find more elk, understand bull elk movement, hunt post-fire habitat, locate bedding areas near burns, and improve your public land elk hunting strategy for archery or rifle season, this episode will help you read burned country with more confidence and purpose.

THE MULE DEER HUNTING SYSTEM FOR BREAKING DOWN A BASIN TO FIND MATURE BUCKS OTHERS MISS | 🎙️ EP. 184

In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down the complete mule deer hunting system for analyzing a basin step-by-step to consistently find mature bucks other hunters miss. After 34 years of Western hunting and guiding, Matt explains how experienced mule deer hunters identify feeding zones, bedding layers, transition routes, pressure pockets, wind advantages, and hidden terrain features that allow mature bucks to survive in plain sight on public land. This episode covers mule deer basin breakdown strategy, glassing tactics, mature buck behavior, scouting mountain terrain, pressure-based deer movement, and how to stop randomly glassing big country and start understanding how mule deer actually use the landscape. If you want to become more effective at locating mature mule deer in Western terrain, this episode will completely change how you read a basin.

ELK HUNTING WATER SOURCES - THE WATER SOURCE STRATEGY THAT FINDS BULLS OTHER HUNTERS MISS | 🎙️ EP. 183

In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down how to elk hunt water sources the right way and why most hunters completely misunderstand how bulls actually use water during elk hunting season. This episode covers the difference between destination water, transition water, and hidden security water, how pressure changes elk movement around ponds, creeks, wallows, seeps, and springs, and why the best elk hunting setups are often away from the water itself. Matt explains how wind, thermals, bedding cover, approach routes, and hunting pressure all affect daylight water use, while also teaching how to scout hidden water sources using topo maps, satellite imagery, terrain features, vegetation clues, and elk sign. If you want to become more consistent at finding public land bulls during archery elk season, this episode delivers a complete elk hunting water strategy built around real elk behavior, not guesswork.

THE REAL REASONS MATURE MULE DEER BUCKS FEEL INVISIBLE | 🎙️ EP. 182

In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down why mature mule deer feel invisible and why big bucks can live in the same country hunters glass every day without ever being seen. This mule deer hunting episode explains how mature bucks use security cover, broken terrain, bedding areas, wind, pressure, shadows, escape routes, and narrow movement windows to avoid exposure on public land and across Western hunting country. If you are trying to find mature mule deer, improve your glassing strategy, understand buck bedding behavior, hunt pressured mule deer more effectively, or stop wasting time in country that only looks good from a distance, this episode will help you read the landscape differently and start seeing the hidden details most hunters miss.
 
 
 
 

THE ELK HUNTING CONDITIONING MISTAKE THAT CAN END YOUR SEASON BEFORE IT STARTS | 🎙️ EP. 181

In this episode, Matt Hartsky breaks down the conditioning gap that ends too many elk hunting seasons before they ever really start. Elk hunting fitness is not just hiking, jogging, or getting in better shape before September. It is the ability to climb, carry weight, recover, control your breathing, think clearly, and execute when the mountain gets hard. Matt explains why general cardio is not enough for Western elk hunting, how altitude exposes poor preparation, why loaded strength endurance and downhill control matter, and how hunters can train smarter before the season. If you are preparing for archery elk hunting, public land elk hunting, backcountry hunting, or mountain hunting, this episode will help you understand what real elk hunting conditioning requires and how to close the gap before it costs you an opportunity.

THE MONTANA ELK HUNTING PREPARATION SYSTEM THAT FINDS BULLS ON PUBLIC LAND | 🎙️ EP. 180

In this episode, Matt Hartsky breaks down how to prepare after drawing a Montana elk tag and how to build a real elk hunting plan before the season starts. Instead of showing up with a loose idea and reacting when pressure, access, weather, terrain, and elk movement change, Matt explains how to approach Montana elk hunting with structure, clarity, and confidence. This episode covers public land elk hunting preparation, archery elk hunting, rifle elk hunting, access strategy, pressure planning, terrain-specific decision-making, backup hunt zones, elk movement, and the physical and mental preparation needed to stay effective when conditions shift. If you drew a Montana elk tag and want to hunt smarter instead of guessing your way through the season, this episode will help you show up ready. Find all the links on the YouTube version of this episode.

THE PACK WEIGHT STRATEGY THAT KEEPS YOU ELK HUNTING | 🎙️ EP. 179

In this episode, Matt Hartsky breaks down the hidden cost of carrying too much weight in the elk mountains. A heavy pack can feel like preparation before the hunt starts, but once you are climbing, sidehilling, fighting deadfall, and trying to stay sharp for multiple days, every unnecessary pound starts taking energy, mobility, focus, and opportunity. This episode is not about going dangerously light or leaving essential gear behind. It is about building a smarter pack system that keeps you safe, capable, and functional when the mountain starts wearing hunters down.

BREAKING THE PATTERN THAT KEEPS ELK HUNTERS STUCK SEASON AFTER SEASON | 🎙️ EP. 178

In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down how to go from your first elk hunt to becoming a more consistent elk hunter faster than most hunters ever will.
After 34+ years of hunting and guiding Western big game, Matt has seen the same pattern over and over again: two hunters can hunt the same unit, during the same season, with the same amount of effort—and one starts figuring elk out while the other stays stuck for years.
The difference is not always experience, luck, or working harder.
A lot of times, it comes down to how a hunter is learning while they are actually in the field.
This episode is for elk hunters who are tired of repeating the same season, making the same mistakes, and wondering why more effort is not leading to more consistency. Matt talks through what actually helps hunters improve faster, how to think differently in elk country, and why awareness, feedback, and better decision-making matter more than simply covering more miles.
If you are preparing for your first elk hunt, trying to become a better public land elk hunter, or looking for a more structured way to improve season after season, this episode will help you understand what separates hunters who progress from hunters who stay stuck.