2021 Solo Goat Hunt Film is up!

[Grasp]

Hey guys,

I was fortunate enough to spend a week solo hunting mountain goats in the mountains of northwestern BC. I tried to capture the story as best I could. I hope you enjoy it. As always, if you have any questions or comments please don't hesitate to get in touch or drop them below.


https://youtu.be/Q1RgpMC4prU

I also recorded a semi-live podcast during the trip that tells a different perspective of the same story.
https://www.mindfulhunter.com/podcast/episode-15

[decker9]

Awesome!! I listened to the podcast a few days ago I think, really enjoyed it!

I solo winter hunted goats a lot up until the last couple years, never successful in pulling a trigger, but alway successful in finding an adventure. Looking forward to giving this a watch!

[dapesche]

thanks for sharing. I'll give it a watch. Opening images and edits look great.

Curious what fps you shoot in and what editing software you use?

[AllDay]

As if hunting solo isn't hard enough... bring a camera and document it! Thanks for the video

[huntcoop]

Great video, thanks for sharing. I can't imagine solo hunting let alone self filming, great job.

[Grasp]

Thanks as always for the support guys!

So, funny story, on the second day I thought my main camera, Sony a7iii with Sigma 24-70mm lens was nuked due to moisture so 99% of the footage in this film was recorded on two GoPro 9's. If you know what you're doing with the settings and in post you can actually get some decent footage out of a GoPro. All the slo-mo stuff was GoPro footage shot at 1080 240fps. On my main camera I normally shoot 4k 24fps. I edit in Adobe Premiere and use After Effects, Lightroom Classic and Photoshop when needed.

[walker1985]

I listen to your podcast all the time, some real good content. Can't wait to watch the film!

[dapesche]

Thanks as always for the support guys!

So, funny story, on the second day I thought my main camera, Sony a7iii with Sigma 24-70mm lens was nuked due to moisture so 99% of the footage in this film was recorded on two GoPro 9's. If you know what you're doing with the settings and in post you can actually get some decent footage out of a GoPro. All the slo-mo stuff was GoPro footage shot at 1080 240fps. On my main camera I normally shoot 4k 24fps. I edit in Adobe Premiere and use After Effects, Lightroom Classic and Photoshop when needed.

Thank you!
I just randomly won the WSSBC sitka dewpoint door price and was chating with adam foss. He also recommended 24fps. I was a 60fps. I think I'll shoot in 1080 for file size. Looking forward to the vid and podcast. thanks again for sharing.

[Ride Red]

Great video and beautiful country.

[weekender7]

My head is cold cause my hat is off to you for being able to do that hunt solo and FILM it. That's some TOUGH going.

[Harv]

nice job! love to see other guys carrying cameras on their hunts

[jac]

Good vid thanks for sharing

[Astepanuk]

Great video I really enjoyed watching, that was one heck of a battle not sure I have to the Solo hunter in me but definitely a Hunt I'd like to do with a couple guys.

[swampthing]

Really enjoyed that Grasp! I didnt know what to make of you at first but I came to enjoy your demeaner. I am a soloist as well and its great to see your lust for adventure and your fortitude! I loaded up some of your podcasts too.

[DMD]

Nice video and a great effort! Thanks for sharing.

One thing I like to do when e-scouting is to crank up the vertical exaggeration on google earth. Seems to make time estimates when planning a little more realistic for me.

Cheers

[twoSevenO]

Post some pics!!!

(For us non-video non-podcast guys)

[tigrr]

You the brave dude!! Get better snowshoes.
Thanks for that.

[jaybe14]

I thought the video footage was fantastic considering it was a go pro, and the dialogue was my favorite part. Very insightful.

I have limited knowledge on snow shoes, but I do recall having snow shoes that weren't assigned to my weight and having to spend 3x effort of my peers who didn't sink in as much.

Thanks for your efforts in putting this together.

[jac]

I did enjoy how you didn’t sugar coat it, I like that you kept it real. I was surprised that the snow shoes broke, I bet MSR will fix you up

[decker9]

Winter, backpacking, extended trip, solo, plus film it all, goat or no goat, your an animal! Thank you for taking the time to produce this! I enjoyed every bit of it, especially your take on the gear, those are the kind of reviews that are true.

[whitlers]

Awesome film. Always love your content. That looked super tough. I have always wanted to do that hunt. Trying to convince friends is the hard part.

[mod7rem]

Great video, your attitude and determination are very impressive. Thanks for sharing. The beating the snowshoes took made me laugh out loud. 330lbs in tough conditions is a good stress test.

I agree with you on how loneliness and depression can set in on a solo hunt when you’re tired. It messes with your resolve. I learned years ago to force myself to eat some food and get a good rest before I made a decision. Turns out nutrients are very helpful for me:)

[Alpine Hunter]

The difficulty of executing a hunt like that, “successful” or not, is one thing. To do it solo and film yourself is completely next level. Thank you for putting that film together for our viewing pleasure. I really appreciated your thoughts on “self awareness” when in the thick of enduring a hunt like that. Having done solo backpack hunts, I found that very relatable. Keeping a positive attitude is so important because it sure is easy to convince yourself to pack up or not hunt as hard as you should when your experiencing adverse conditions and you don’t have a buddy there to give you that little push.

Pretty hilarious what you did to those snowshoes. Thanks again!

[hawk-i]

Thanks for sharing...reminds me of solo hunts I've done in the past...way before the days of SPOT, Cell phones, GPS or other electronic devices.

So what's the story with the bent snowshoe?

[Grasp]

Sincerely appreciate the support guys. I try to do my best to share what it's really like out there and I never quite know how it's going to be received. This type of feedback gets me super excited to crank things up another notch.

I've talked with a few guys who have extensive snowshoeing experience and the MSR lightning ascents I had really are teh best the industry has to offer right now. I think that 340lbs between myself and my pack was just too much. I also hike like a pissed off bull which doesn't help matters. They are currently being shipped back to MSR for warranty inspection and I'll let you know their answer when I hear. After looking at everything available on the market, my plan for next year is to go with the same snowshoes but to take them into a fab show and get some additional reinforcements welded on. That was by far the most technical snowshoeing I have done and I just don't see it being possible on a more traditional shoe. I think you need a really aggressive platform like the MSR's. I think it also says a lot about the design as well that they slowly bent before breaking and didn't just catastrophically crack with no notice.

On this week's podcast I went through a detailed review of my pack, sleep system, shelter and clothing. Next week I'll be doing the second half which will include the rest of my gear such as the snowshoes if you are interested in a more through breakdown.

The next hunt will be spring bear. Won't be as hardcore but will be a super fun hunt with a ton of bears on film if things go the way they normally do.

Thanks again guys.

[jac]

Tough to tell in the video but a lot of the hiking to base camp looked like you were along a River bottom. Would you be able to use a pulk sled to get you into base camp? Would keep some weight off the snow shoes?

[nature girl]

Great video. Man oh man watching you in the video I was thinking that sure looks dang cold and wet.
At one point in the video I was thinking you should make a fire and then next thing you made a fire. Its amazing when you are cold and wet and just a little fire and warmth can purk you up.
I hope if you try it again in your future you connect on a goat.
And good for you for recording it. Thats just more gear you have to take when you could take something else.