2010 Stone sheep hunt: a son with his father

[Brew]

This is great! Take your time I’m enjoying it thoroughly

[fuzzybiscuit]

There will be a few reading for sure...

Good read and the makings of an epic hunt!

[ydouask]

Wow !!! You and your Dad are real machines. Great story telling, I'm enjoying every word, thank you.

[180grainer]

That's a trip to remember.

[eatram]

We needed to take care of all of the meat and the sheep and goat hides. This is a real chore when you are in bear country, and the weather starts to warm up as well. Luckily, my dad grew up in a country that is hot for much of the year (40 degrees hot). He knew his way around keeping meat (as well as eating some that smells too rancid for most of us). I let him take over the meat chores while I worked on the hides and heads. A leisurely camp life was ahead of us for the next few days. We caught some fish, spotted more animals, and just rested our feet and backs. What a great feeling there is when the work is done, and the campfire is burning hot. We both had smiles on our faces, like the Sunkist commercials of old. We talked about life, about nature and about God. Life was good.

My dad mentioned wanting to go for a leisurely hike the morning of day 11. We started our hike to a spot where there is a large muddy area close to the lake. He wanted to check out what kind of tracks were left in the mud. It was about a 30 minute hike from our basecamp. We got there quickly, and he started to walk around and check out the tracks. I, on the other hand, laid down and started to spot the hillside with my binos. I put them up to my head and pointed them way up hill, up to the tops of the mountains… and then I saw them…

I could only make out that there were 4 shapes up there in the shady part of the top of the mountain; that was it. But I know what sheep look like. The look of a shortened version of a caribou. White rump, stocky, blackish… no other animal looks like a mature ram from far off. I couldn’t believe it! I called my dad over and said to him, “Should we shoot another animal?” Immediately, he responded with “No! We have enough meat for the winter. But show me the elk you see up there anyways.” I told him that it is a band of rams, and quickly he changed his tune. He wanted me to have an opportunity at something, but he knew that my goal was for a sheep. He looked at me and said “I’m in”! That’s the kind of partner I have. I am so blessed!!!

So we hurried back to our basecamp where my spotting scope was. We looked through it and confirmed one of them to be deep and heavy. Too far to see lamb-tips, but structure could be made out with my swaro’s. We through together our backpacks and started the grueling 4.5 hour hike straight up to where we saw them last.

My dad is a trooper. A man that does not quit. Like a diesel engine, the old kind. Slow, steady, consistant. To be a sheep hunter, you don’t need to be fit. You don’t need to train. You don’t need Kuiu. You don’t need to handload. What you need is that qualities that my dad has. Sure, all of the other things help, but un-necessary. I highly respect my father; who he is and how he does things.

[eatram]

So we took off after those rams. It was warm, bugs were hatching again, and the moss was thick. There was no good trail or route up to these sheep. I know this, as I have hunted that spot a few times in the past. After what seemed like an eternity, we got to the top on the opposite side of where the sheep were last spotted. We started to creep now; boulder to boulder, bump to bump. I knew that they were here, somewhere, but where. The hunter in all of us took over. The thinking had stopped and the stalking took over. Eyes, ears, senses, all heightened. Slowly, arduously, I held myself back from just bursting onto the scene. They could be anywhere, but they would be here. Within 200 yards. Close…

[eatram]

Movement caught my eyes first; I hit the ground, dad followed my lead. My rifle came up, this would be quick, quicker than I like. The first ram half jogged infront of me, some 50 yards away. Not what I was looking for. My gun lowered a few inches. Looking over my barrel, I scanned the surroundings from where this guy came out, and it didn’t take long. The first thing I saw, with my naked eyes was the lamb tips WELL over his bridge. My heart stood still. I couldn’t breathe. This was the moment. I’ve been there before, but not like this. I’ve seen this before, but not like this. I’ve shot sheep before, but not like this. My first reaction was truly, “this is my last stones sheep”! That is what went through my mind as my rifle came up to my shoulder. Bang!

I had to follow up the first shot with a bit of lead, I will admit. I’m not trained in the jungle, I proved it that day. But nothing a taxidermist could not fix! I was over the moon. We did it! It was finished! 2 more days of meat/cape runs ahead of us. But that was ok, we had 3 to go. We hiked him down in the pitch dark; the midnight mile we call it.

Looking back on this trip some 8 years ago now, I can’t believe how time flies and how some details fail me. Much has changed since this trip. The year after, my brother passed away. Though this was a difficult time of our lives, we persevere. I am very blessed to have had such great trips with my father, and the success we shared (though the goal of the trip), is actually quite irrelevant. The bonds hunting helps foster is wonderful. I am thankful for the opertunity BC gives us to have these experiences. Hopefully, this resource will be available for my children, and my children’s children.

Sorry to say, that this sheep bug does not leave once you've shot a good one. It actually gets worse. But the good thing is that with every trip I go in on, the more experience I receive. This allows us to be (maybe not much more, but a bit more) selective in the animal we harvest. I've got a significant respect for the animals we take, and an equal respect for those who endure the hunt. Sheep hunting is horrible! Yet it is just so so so dang good!!!

[eatram]

upload image

Note the old Kuiu patterns

[eatram]

post pics

[northernbc]

So very happy you had this trip of a lifetime with your father. Great post