Just before 10 the doors on the truck were shut. The hike begins as usual hiking up a creek bed for 15mins or so. I needed to gain just over 600 vertical meters. This would get me above the goats and to the only place that looked like a feasible crossing; a spot just above the confluence of 3 chutes. Upon leaving the creek it was 20mins in a disgusting alder slide. Thanks to a goat trip into 7-18 7ish years ago I bloody well hate alders. It had been raining since I started this hike so I was soaked clean through at this point. I debated turning around...Maybe it was just some nannies and kids? That rubbish quickly left my thoughts as I proceeded up.
Once clear of the slide the hike was real steep. Back again to using 4 limbs to climb but the wet snow made it especially slippery. Just to give you an idea..... Looking at the mountain, I'm going up a treed ridge on the right which angles towards the goat bluff. Wind predominantly runs left to right. Below the goats is cliffs then a band of scree and sparse trees that looks accessible from above. Below that band is another inaccessible cliff..... This part of the hike was quite the thigh burner but it didn't take long. In the mature trees it was easy to gain 150+ vertical meters in under 15mins. The total hike was just over an hour to gain the 600+ vertical meters to where I wanted to cross the chutes. I use a GPS app on my phone to watch the contours.
The 3 chutes weren't as intimidating as I'd thought. They had enough snow to solidly hold your steps in place. As with all hikes the terrain is surprisingly different than how it appeared from the bottom. I did my best to recognize where I wanted to be as I headed into the timber. This bluff was relatively flat but had a few minor dips in it. Goat tracks, trails, beds and sh*t everywhere. The place even had the glorious goat musk lingering in the air. Glassing as I would if still hunting mulies I scanned the timber but nothing. I made my way through a dip and slowly stuck my head over, but binos weren't needed. I could see the back end of a goat sitting on the edge. I ever so cautiously got up to a tree, straddled it and sat down in wait. The goat was a mere 56 yards away, I was completely crosswind and a slight drizzle dulled their senses. I had them.