Spatsizi - LEH August 2018

[tthiele]

Hello,

got a Mountain Goat tag and a LEH one for Sheep for Spatsizi this August. Wonder if anybody did the hunt there and could share some experience in regard to:


- how to best access via car and foot the Klappan Railgrade or McEwan Trail
- would you be able to take an inflatable kayak/boat to travel on the Klappan towards the Eaglnest?
- Best area to find mature goat and sheeps, ie. do you need to go East only for goats - Dawson Area?
- Fishing experience, is there a Salmon run?
- nighttime temperatures in August?
- anything else good to know about that area? e.g. should we expect a First Nations blockade of the Ealue Road again?

Looking forward to some valuable insights!

[Stone Sheep Steve]

You have a mountain goat tag when the draws haven't even been run yet?

[Wild one]

My understanding it’s a fly in hunt from those I know who have had the sheep draw

[Rotorwash]

Crap...I forgot that the sheep draw there runs early.... I missed out :cry: I flew in to that area last year. august 17 or 18 we caught snow. maybe -4 at night at 6000 ft

[puddlejumper]

Hi,

You got a goat tag? Spatsizi is entirely LEH and not sure that the draws have even come out yet. So if you have a regular season goat tag, it isn't valid for Spatsizi.

You can access the grade/McEwan Trail via Ealue Lake Road, long hike in on the McEwan trail though. Using a Kayak or Boat to travel upriver to Eaglenest would be quite a trip and it is a long way from the Klappan Bridge (23km or so). No salmon that far up. From what I recall the trout fishing was fairly good at the lakes. Night time temps can vary, but even if its in the high 20's during the day it gets cold at night, as Rotorwash said, -4 is not uncommon

Fly in is the best. Alpine Lakes Air


Hello,

got a Mountain Goat tag and a LEH one for Sheep for Spatsizi this August. Wonder if anybody did the hunt there and could share some experience in regard to:

- how to best access via car and foot the Klappan Railgrade or McEwan Trail
- would you be able to take an inflatable kayak/boat to travel on the Klappan towards the Eaglnest?
- Best area to find mature goat and sheeps, ie. do you need to go East only for goats - Dawson Area?
- Fishing experience, is there a Salmon run?
- nighttime temperatures in August?
- anything else good to know about that area? e.g. should we expect a First Nations blockade of the Ealue Road again?

Looking forward to some valuable insights!

[Salmon Belly]

Using the HBC search function for "spatsizi" turns up no less than 317 threads, many that cover info you're looking for. A good place to start. Good luck.

SB



Hello,

got a Mountain Goat tag and a LEH one for Sheep for Spatsizi this August. Wonder if anybody did the hunt there and could share some experience in regard to:

- how to best access via car and foot the Klappan Railgrade or McEwan Trail
- would you be able to take an inflatable kayak/boat to travel on the Klappan towards the Eaglnest?
- Best area to find mature goat and sheeps, ie. do you need to go East only for goats - Dawson Area?
- Fishing experience, is there a Salmon run?
- nighttime temperatures in August?
- anything else good to know about that area? e.g. should we expect a First Nations blockade of the Ealue Road again?

Looking forward to some valuable insights!

[SR80]

If you search those 317 threads, you'' find that about 90% of the guys drawn did not even go.

[Confused1]

Hi,

You got a goat tag? Spatsizi is entirely LEH and not sure that the draws have even come out yet. So if you have a regular season goat tag, it isn't valid for Spatsizi.

You can access the grade/McEwan Trail via Ealue Lake Road, long hike in on the McEwan trail though. Using a Kayak or Boat to travel upriver to Eaglenest would be quite a trip and it is a long way from the Klappan Bridge (23km or so). No salmon that far up. From what I recall the trout fishing was fairly good at the lakes. Night time temps can vary, but even if its in the high 20's during the day it gets cold at night, as Rotorwash said, -4 is not uncommon

Fly in is the best. Alpine Lakes Air

Spatsizi park is not entirely LEH for mountain Goat.

[puddlejumper]

Thats true....forgot about the Dawson area!

[tthiele]

Yes, I got a normal mountain goat tag for the Dawson Area, see Synopsis page 69. Map F26 ....The Dawson area (shaded) is general open season for
Mountain Goat (situated in MU 6-19, 6-20).

Thanks for the feedback...probably will try my luck and drive up the Klappan Road and then hike 3-4 days until Cold Fish Lake to set a base camp. From there, mountain goat should be possible to hunt in the Dawson area and sheep..., well maybe around the Eagles-nest?

Anybody else heading up there this summer/fall?

[Caribou_lou]

Cold fish will only be a 2 day hike in. I'd assume your hunting your way in? Your walking right through sheep area to get to coldfish. Be aware of the Eco reserve. You'll see goats off the rail grade. So I'd suggest drawing a tag not hiking to the open areas.

Also. I wouldn't bank on being able to drive in there. Good chance of more wash outs. Big snow year so this spring might have some high rivers.

[the_longwalker]

My wife and I are going to put in for Moose/Cariboo combo up there

[Buck]

Cold fish will only be a 2 day hike in. I'd assume your hunting your way in? Your walking right through sheep area to get to coldfish. Be aware of the Eco reserve. You'll see goats off the rail grade. So I'd suggest drawing a tag not hiking to the open areas.

Also. I wouldn't bank on being able to drive in there. Good chance of more wash outs. Big snow year so this spring might have some high rivers.

I think you can only hunt at height of land of the rail grade so i don't think the Goats you see are shooters ?

[Caribou_lou]

If you see goats from the Rail Grade you can shoot them. LEH to the North of the road.

[Jrax]

what Caribou_Lou said... put in for goat draw this spring in spatsizi, I think the odds are good. Coldfish lake is about 45 to 50km hike, save your legs and fly in or pick an area on the way. Call tatogga lodge and ask about washouts. They might also be an option, if the road is open, for you to pay them to drop you off on rail grade and picked up at Coldfish by floatplane. Most rugged areas in the park hold good numbers of goats.

[Zackmartin]

My understanding is if the klappen isn’t washed out you can drive right to the eaglenest trail head.
also what I’ve gathered so far is there’s no need to hike through the Donahue pass to cold fish because your already in sheep country well before then at ice box and ram creek.

I also drew a sheep tag for 2018 and we’re hiking in regardless if we have to drive to where it’s washed out, float over in a dinghy and then pedal our asses to the eaglenest trailhead�� see ya out there

another thing is info should be readily given as this is a LEH draw and why not help out some resident hunters?right?

[tthiele]

I will have around 10 days and the hike should be part of the fun, even if it takes 3-4 days. Aside for the road condition, there could be a blockage by the first nations although - I read that they rather try to prevent the Moose hunters to enter Spatsizi mid- August. Furthermore, there was some road improvments on the Klappan road due the the industrial activities (https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/british-columbia/clarks-stand-on-klappan-lands-lauded/article6552561/)...Will try my luck to use that road (Plan A) and if blocked or washed out, just drive back and try to catch an air lift in (plan b)...Plan C could be to use an inflatable Kayak and paddle upriver the Stikine River while catching Salmons... Wonder if August 1st will draw up to a hundred LEH drawers to the Eaglenest to shoot and compete for the largest Ram?

[Zackmartin]

I’ll be through there with my brother along with at least half of the people who drew a tag and the guides and clients aswell

[twoSevenO]

If you search those 317 threads, you'' find that about 90% of the guys drawn did not even go.

Yup. I don't know why people apply for tags before thinking whether they're actually even going to go :/ ..... you're just doing a disservice to those that were willing but unlucky.
Things happen and plans change, and that's fine ... but i mean there are guys out there who apply for every tag, every year, and they KNOW they have no time or money to go hunt bison up north in the middle of winter ...

[Mik]

FYI; (and friendly reminder)...you can return the Bison leh and it gets redrawn, so if one cannot go, please return it back to the ministry in time to allow someone else a chance :)
Yup. I don't know why people apply for tags before thinking whether they're actually even going to go :/ ..... you're just doing a disservice to those that were willing but unlucky.
Things happen and plans change, and that's fine ... but i mean there are guys out there who apply for every tag, every year, and they KNOW they have no time or money to go hunt bison up north in the middle of winter ...

[Mik]

Does anyone have any info on this years runoff? is the road there or washed out...again?

[Confused1]

The road was never fixed so it will be washed out for sure, just a matter of how much worse it is. Definitely not passable with motor vehicle, but if water is low enough on the river should be passable with quad.

[Bigbruin]

Dawson in 6-19???

[Billysheep30]

Anyone come out of this area yet with any success this year? Flying in on Friday and wondering how the smoke is? Any sheep taken yet?