Backbone Unlimited Podcast

Backbone Unlimited
  • 5.0 (3)
  • Wilderness
  • Updated Weekly

Backbone Unlimited is a western hunting podcast for public-land hunters who want to stop guessing and build a better system for finding elk, mule deer and black bears, beating pressure, reading sign, understanding wind and thermals, and making cleaner decisions in the mountains. Hosted by Matt Hartsky, Backbone Unlimited combines 34+ years of western big game hunting experience with decades of strength, conditioning, and nutrition coaching to help hunters prepare smarter and hunt more effectively. Episodes cover elk hunting strategy, mule deer hunting, bear hunting, public land tactics, archery elk hunting, rifle hunting, e-scouting, scouting, glassing, calling, bedding areas, feed, water, transition zones, mountain fitness, hunt planning, field decision-making, meat care, gear, pack-outs, and the mindset it takes to keep improving season after season. If you’re serious about becoming a more capable western hunter, Backbone Unlimited is built to help you train harder, hunt smarter, and never settle.

  1. 13 hrs ago

    THE OFFICIAL HIGH COUNTRY ELK HUNTING CHECKLIST (AVOID MISTAKES!) | 🎙️ EP. 199

    High country elk hunting isn't just regular elk hunting with more elevation — and the hunters who treat it that way are learning that lesson the hard way. In this episode, Matt Hartsky breaks down exactly what the high country demands: the right kind of fitness, smarter basin selection, wind discipline in steep terrain, purposeful glassing, access planning that protects the hunt, calling strategy tied to position, real meat-care logistics, and the mental control that keeps everything from unraveling when the country gets big and the answers don't come fast. 🦌 Elk Hunting E-Book Series (the complete system — 34 years in the mountains) → BackboneUnlimited.com If you've ever climbed into a beautiful basin and come home empty wondering what went wrong, this episode is for you. In this episode: — Why usable fitness matters more than raw fitness, and the difference between getting to the top and still being able to hunt when you get there — Why basin selection has to go beyond what looks good on a satellite image — and the questions you need to be asking instead — Why high country pressure doesn't always look like a crowded trailhead, and how elk respond to predictable human movement patterns — How thermals work in steep, broken country — and why checking the wind once is never enough — How to glass with purpose instead of just staring at mountains and hoping something moves — Why access planning is about protecting the hunt, not just shortening the hike — How calling fits into high country hunting — and why position is always the foundation — What a real meat-care plan looks like when you kill an elk high and deep — The mental reset process that keeps good hunters making clean decisions when the country beats them up 📋 Elk Hunt Plan Audit — Matt reviews your specific maps, terrain, zones, access, and strategy before season → BackboneUnlimited.com 👥 Team Backbone — Weekly guidance, accountability, and a community of serious western hunters → BackboneUnlimited.com "The hunters who are ready in September are the ones who start tightening the plan now." Build the plan at BackboneUnlimited.com

    18 min

  2. 1d ago

    THE HABIT THAT CAUSES 90 PERCENT OF ELK HUNTERS TO FAIL EVERY SEASON | 🎙️ EP. 198

    In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down the habit that causes most elk hunters to waste days, burn opportunities, and stay stuck in the wrong country. If you want to become a more consistent elk hunter, stop hunting the elk you hoped would be there. Start hunting the elk today’s conditions are creating. Elk Hunting E-book Series — 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books

    13 min

  3. Jun 16

    HOW TO FIX "I CAN'T FIND ELK" (EVERYTIME!) | 🎙️ EP.197

    If you can’t find elk, the answer isn’t always to hike farther, call louder, or abandon the unit. In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt breaks down a repeatable elk hunting system for locating public land elk by reading current sign, diagnosing pressure, narrowing the seasonal elevation band, and connecting feed, water, bedding, wind, thermals, and security cover into a real hunt plan. This is how you stop hunting old information and start finding elk right now. Elk Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books

    17 min

  4. Jun 15

    ELK HUNTING ALTITUDE - THE CONDITIONING SYSTEM THAT PREVENTS MOUNTAIN FAILURE | 🎙️ EP. 196

    Elk Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books   In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down elk hunting altitude and the conditioning system that helps prevent mountain failure. Altitude does not usually beat hunters all at once. It starts with heavy legs, short breathing, poor sleep, low appetite, headaches, high heart rate, and bad decisions until the hunt turns into survival instead of execution. After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, and more than 30 years as a strength, conditioning, and nutrition coach, Matt explains why general fitness is not enough for elk country and why altitude exposes weaknesses in aerobic base, uphill power, pack tolerance, downhill durability, breathing control, hydration, nutrition, and recovery. You’ll learn how to pace the first 48 hours, train for repeated mountain days, build loaded strength endurance, control your breathing after hard climbs, recover better at elevation, and prepare your body for the real demands of public land elk hunting. If you want to hunt harder, think clearer, avoid burning out by Day 3, and stay effective in steep elk country, this episode will help you train for the mountain instead of just surviving it.

    19 min

  5. Jun 14

    MULE DEER HUNTING - THE GLASSING SYSTEM THAT USES LIGHT TO EXPOSE MULE DEER BUCKS | 🎙️ EP. 195

    Mule Deer Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/mule-deer-hunting-e-book-series   In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down how to use light and shadow to your advantage when glassing mule deer. Mature mule deer bucks do not just use terrain for security. They use shade, contrast, sunlight, shadow lines, and broken light to disappear in country many hunters glass right past. After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, Matt explains why hunters miss bucks by glassing too fast, staring only at bright open country, and failing to re-check high-probability bedding areas as light changes throughout the day. You’ll learn how to pick apart shadow pockets, focus on the edge where sunlight meets shade, use morning and midday light more effectively, recognize small visual clues like ear flicks, antler tips, backlines, and face patches, and avoid glare that destroys your ability to see detail. If you hunt public land mule deer and want to glass more effectively, find mature bucks in hidden bedding cover, understand how light affects visibility, and stop missing deer that were there the whole time, this episode will help you slow down, see more, and hunt smarter.

    15 min

  6. Jun 13

    ELK HUNTING PREDATORS - THE WOLF EFFECT THAT CHANGES HOW TO HUNT BULLS ON PUBLIC LAND | 🎙️ EP. 194

    Elk Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/elk-hunting-series-e-books   In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down the wolf effect on public land elk hunting and how predator pressure changes where mature bulls bed, move, and survive. This is not a political or emotional discussion. It is a practical elk behavior breakdown focused on how wolves and hunting pressure reshape elk security patterns, terrain use, bedding choices, movement windows, wind strategy, and vocal behavior. After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, Matt explains why wolves do not always simply push elk out of an area, but often force elk to become more unpredictable, more terrain-focused, and more disciplined in how they use security cover. You’ll learn why mature bulls may shift away from old historical bedding areas, how broken terrain and escape routes become more valuable, why wind and thermals matter even more in predator country, and how hunters can adapt instead of blaming wolves for every hard hunt. If you hunt public land elk in wolf country and want to understand pressured bull behavior, predator-influenced elk movement, terrain security, and how to find elk where they feel safest now, this episode will help you hunt smarter and adapt faster.

    16 min

  7. Jun 12

    MULE DEER HUNTING BENCHES - THE TERRAIN FEATURE THAT PUTS YOU ON MATURE BUCKS | 🎙️ EP. 193

    Mule Deer Hunting e-Books 👉 https://backboneunlimited.com/collections/mule-deer-hunting-e-book-series   In this episode of Backbone Unlimited, Matt Hartsky breaks down why mule deer bucks love benches and how serious Western deer hunters can use this misunderstood terrain feature to find more mature bucks. A bench is not valuable just because it is flat ground on a mountain. It matters when it gives a buck security, wind advantage, visibility, shade, escape routes, energy conservation, efficient travel, and access to feed. After 34 years of Western big game hunting and guiding, Matt explains how mature mule deer use benches as bedding zones, travel routes, staging areas, and survival systems that help them detect danger before danger detects them. You’ll learn what separates a productive buck bench from a dead one, how wind and thermals affect bench bedding, why broken cover and shade matter, how benches change by season, and how to glass these subtle terrain features without blowing deer out. If you hunt public land mule deer and want to read terrain better, locate mature bucks more consistently, and stop wasting time on benches that only look good on a map, this episode will help you understand why old bucks choose the terrain they do.

    19 min

  8. Jun 11

    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   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.

    13 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Backbone Unlimited is a western hunting podcast for public-land hunters who want to stop guessing and build a better system for finding elk, mule deer and black bears, beating pressure, reading sign, understanding wind and thermals, and making cleaner decisions in the mountains. Hosted by Matt Hartsky, Backbone Unlimited combines 34+ years of western big game hunting experience with decades of strength, conditioning, and nutrition coaching to help hunters prepare smarter and hunt more effectively. Episodes cover elk hunting strategy, mule deer hunting, bear hunting, public land tactics, archery elk hunting, rifle hunting, e-scouting, scouting, glassing, calling, bedding areas, feed, water, transition zones, mountain fitness, hunt planning, field decision-making, meat care, gear, pack-outs, and the mindset it takes to keep improving season after season. If you’re serious about becoming a more capable western hunter, Backbone Unlimited is built to help you train harder, hunt smarter, and never settle.

Information

  • Creator
    Backbone Unlimited
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    100
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2025 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Backbone Unlimited Podcast

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