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

ELK HUNTING SHOT PLACEMENT - THE QUARTERING SYSTEM THAT DROPS BULLS WITH CLEAN KILLS | 🎙️ EP. 192

Elk Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books [https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books]   In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down elk hunting shot placement for bowhunters, with a focus on quartering-away shots and the real path an arrow needs to take through a bull. This is not about simply aiming at hair, the crease, or the outside of the rib cage. It is about understanding elk anatomy, arrow angles, exit points, and how to visualize the arrow’s full path through the vitals before you ever release. After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, Matt explains why quartering-away shots can be deadly when the angle is right, why extreme quartering angles wound bulls, how to avoid the one-lung trap, and why the far-side front leg and exit point matter more than most bowhunters realize. You’ll learn how elevation, steep terrain, leg position, body angle, effective range, shot discipline, and 3D practice all play into ethical elk shot placement. If you bowhunt elk and want to make cleaner shots, recover more bulls, avoid common archery elk mistakes, and become more confident under pressure, this episode will help you think beyond pin placement and start judging the entire arrow path.

MULE DEER HUNTING - ARE YOU ACTUALLY READY TO KILL A HIGH COUNTRY BUCK? | 🎙️ EP. 191

Mule Deer Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/mule-deer-hunting-e-book-series [https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/mule-deer-hunting-e-book-series]   In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down the real question every Western deer hunter needs to ask: are you actually ready for high country mule deer hunting? This is not the romantic online version of alpine hunting. It is the honest version, where the mountain exposes your scouting, fitness, patience, gear system, glassing discipline, weather preparation, stalking decisions, and ability to recover a buck safely after the shot. After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, Matt explains why high country mule deer hunting is not just about hiking high, buying good optics, or marking a few basins on a map. It is about building a real plan, glassing long enough to see mature bucks, understanding terrain and visibility, managing repeated mountain days, packing with purpose, adapting to fast-changing weather, slowing down during the stalk, and thinking through the pack out before you ever pull the trigger. If you hunt public land mule deer and want to become more prepared, disciplined, and consistent in the high country, this episode will help you honestly evaluate what the mountain demands.

ELK HUNTING WEATHER - THE BAROMETER DROP THAT GETS BULLS MOVING | 🎙️ EP. 190

Elk Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books [https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books]   In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down one of the most misunderstood topics in elk hunting: weather, falling barometric pressure, and how mature bulls respond before storms. This is not about weather hype or believing that a storm magically makes elk easy to kill. It is about understanding how elk adjust movement, feeding windows, security, terrain use, bedding locations, wind advantage, and risk tolerance when pressure drops, temperatures cool, clouds build, wind shifts, rain moves in, or snow starts changing the mountain. After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, Matt explains why some of the best elk movement can happen before the storm peaks, how mature bulls use protected terrain during bad weather, why unstable winds can destroy careless setups, and how disciplined hunters can use moisture, snow, cloud cover, and reduced pressure to their advantage. If you hunt public land elk and want to better understand elk weather patterns, barometer drops, storm fronts, pressured bull behavior, and how to position yourself before the movement window opens, this episode will help you hunt smarter when conditions change.

FIND 10X MORE BUCKS WITH THESE NEW MULE DEER HUNTING TACTICS | 🎙️ EP. 189

Mule Deer Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/mule-deer-hunting-e-book-series [https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/mule-deer-hunting-e-book-series]   In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down how to find way more mule deer bucks by changing the way you read country, glass terrain, and make decisions during the hunt. This is not about trying harder, hiking farther, or hoping one magic tactic changes everything. It is about building a better mule deer hunting system around visibility windows, glassing angles, shade, micro bedding pockets, feed quality, pressure, elevation bands, and disciplined decision-making. After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, Matt explains why mature mule deer bucks are not random and why serious hunters need to stop just looking at good deer country and start understanding how bucks actually use terrain, security, light, cover, and pressure to stay alive. If you hunt public land mule deer and want to find more bucks, glass more effectively, avoid wasting time in low-probability country, and become a more consistent mule deer hunter, this episode will help you hunt smarter and make better decisions all day long.

THE DEATH OF EASY ELK HUNTING | 🎙️ EP. 188

Elk Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books [https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books]   In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down the death of easy elk hunting and why the old way of finding bulls is disappearing fast. Elk hunting is not dead, and elk are not impossible to kill, but modern public land elk hunting has changed. More hunters have the same maps, apps, calls, podcasts, trailhead information, and expectations, which means elk are dealing with more pressure, more predictable human patterns, and less tolerance for sloppy hunting. After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, Matt explains why obvious basins, easy trails, pretty meadows, popular wallows, and simple calling setups are becoming less reliable. This episode covers how elk adapt to pressure, why sign alone is not enough, how modern gear cannot replace good judgment, why calling still works when it is tied to position, and how a better system of locate, evaluate, position, execute, and adjust can help you hunt with more purpose. If you hunt public land elk and want to find more bulls, avoid common elk hunting mistakes, understand pressured elk behavior, and become a more consistent elk hunter, this episode will help you adapt to today’s elk hunting reality.