4-24B Goat Advice Please

[rcar]

Seeing as everyone is in a helping mood...:razz:

I have done a reasonable amount of research on the area I planned on hunting, right down to the specific drainage and got my Goat draw.

I am planning on camping the first night at Whiteswan as the 12 hour drive will not leave me enough time to camp closer.

My plan is to hunt the Quinn Range accessing the eastern slopes off of Thunder Creek FSR. I will be looking for a base camp site towards the south end of the valley. The alternative is the western slopes but they look significantly steeper and less accessible???

Any thoughts on this plan or words of wisdom with this specific area or Goat hunting in general would be much appreciated. I have not selected the exact dates yet but as I am planning on a solo hunt, I would like to avoid the snow if possible. I am not as interested in a trophy cape as I am being safe. My thought at this point is the last week of Sept & first of October. I would like to try to avoid the Elk hunter horde but wouldn't mind having a few Elk rut days if possible.

I am going to bring my quad so hopefully I can gain some elevation via the logging roads I see on google.

Cheers

[GoatGuy]

Lots of goats in that area. Check the synopsis for road closures (usually a pretty good indication of goat populations). Also a good sign of very few hunters. Quad probably won't do you much good, neither will a base camp. By and large billies will still be high, just have to wait for the right opportunity when you get on one. End of October will have snow and can be -20 with the wind blowing sideways.

Steeper, less accessible pretty much defines goat country.

Take your time id'ing, make sure it's a billy. Good luck.

[835]

That was carefully worded!
My 2 bits,,,,,,,, goat hunters are crazy! The go right in the same slot as Grizz hunters!! :)

Joking,,, sort of.
I hope you get your goat. The one thing i fully understand about those critters is you earn them. There is nothing like that, when you bust you butt to get an animal.
Good luck!

[BiG Boar]

Goat hunting is nothing remotely close to grizzly hunting....Grizzly hunting I would call safe.

So let me get this straight, this isn't a trophy hunt, this is a meat hunt? You are crazy....

[Trophyslayer]

I have hunted that area a few times and maps and google earth do no justice on showing you how steep and treacherous the terrain is there is a few spots that access is doable but you better be in really good shape and in that country you wanna pack the whole thing out in one trip the grizzlies are thick and mean in that country a shot means dinner to them and they will be on your kill quick

[rcar]

Goat hunting is nothing remotely close to grizzly hunting....Grizzly hunting I would call safe.

So let me get this straight, this isn't a trophy hunt, this is a meat hunt? You are crazy....

Me Crazy? yeah that goes without saying....but this isn't a meat hunt either....although the meat will be a fine result. For me this is nothing but an adventure hunt. Getting to the age that pretty soon a solo hunt like this will not be possible so I want to do it while I still can.

[Ron.C]

My comments are based on hunting goats solo twice, but never connecting. So take it for what it is, a goat hunting newbie.

I've hunted goats in 4-25, just to the north of where you are going and will be agian this year. My first effort was with a bow during the first bit of September. "I definitely bit off more then I could chew". I did find goats, and did get pretty close, but I wouldn't of been able to get to the goats even if they died on the spot. Very rough country and very dangerous. No room for taking chances up there. My second effort was extrremely hampered by bad weather, fog, snow...... everything seemed to work against me.

As far as all the Griz talk, 4-24/4-25 is full of them. But don't let that deter you from going anywhere out there. You are far more likely to hurt yourself trying to get to a goat then getting into it with a Griz. And like Goat Guy said, take your time ID ing the Billy. This is very hard for a new goat hunter without someone there to mentor him or confer with. And to be honest gave me fits. The ones I got close to were what I believe to be two sub adult Billy's. Like I said at the start of the post, I have little experience with this. I had a tons of time to watch them and make up my mind. And from what I hear from other guys, this is normal. no need to rush. But remember, its not illegal if you do shoot a Nanny you thought was a Billy. I'm sure it has happened in the past and will happen again. As long as you do your best to make an accurate ID, I see no rerason for beating yourself up about it if it does happen.

[deeks1989]

Hunt there every year for goats. Keep it basic and dont flinch when pulling the trigger.

[boothcreek]

Sheesh I hope my family doesnt read all this stuff about grizzlies in 4-24, I got a goat draw for 4-24C this fall and they are not happy about that one already(going out in the big bad woods ya know, gotta love a non-outdoorsy family that thinks everything is out to get you), add grizzlies to the mix I may get locked in my cabin until after the season:roll:

Good luck on your hunt! Even tho I dont even live that far from there I have never hunted around whiteswan, so next weekend I am taking a drive out there and maybe hike around a bit to get an Idea what my college signed me up for when he said "I enter you in this zone and I help you get a goat"....

[Goat Hunter]

good time i find to start hunting goat is oct 10th, their hair starts to thicken up real nice and is getting fairly long, it is griz country for sure, but like someone said previously, your more apt to get hurt tryin to get to your goat than dealing with a bear! try to chose a spot closer to the timber if possible, ive never lost a goat over a cliff ( knock on wood) normally u will have lots of time to decide, take ur time be safe hang on and enjoy the ride! goat hunting is alot of fun!! i drew in 4-23 this year!!! cant wait

[jtred]

Best of luck to you. I'll be doing a lot of the same as I got a mtn goat draw for 406 zone A. I plan on backpacking into the Kianuko Provincial park every weekend until I'm either successful or can't get back in there. Leave Friday morning at 4:00am and come out Sunday afternoon will be my season. I'll also be hunting mule deer is the plan. I can't wait for the season to start. New to goats also, been doing lots of research online and studying different goat ID programs.

[Farmer]

I recall the name Thunder creek from when we hunted the area, but my partners hunted for goats in Stork creek. I am not sure if that is in 4-24B or not. The top ends of these drainages held quite a few goats. I recall seeing a couple of hunters coming over the top from the Bull river side, but we hiked up Stork itself. 25 years ago it was a reasonable hike into the back bowl.
One hint when shooting a goat- They have a lot of hair.Keep your bullet placement in the middle of the chest. You dont want to have to follow one uphill into some really nasty country.

[rcar]

I recall the name Thunder creek from when we hunted the area, but my partners hunted for goats in Stork creek. I am not sure if that is in 4-24B or not. The top ends of these drainages held quite a few goats. I recall seeing a couple of hunters coming over the top from the Bull river side, but we hiked up Stork itself. 25 years ago it was a reasonable hike into the back bowl.
One hint when shooting a goat- They have a lot of hair.Keep your bullet placement in the middle of the chest. You dont want to have to follow one uphill into some really nasty country.

"Me and the Farmer" Great song and your advice is as good. TY.

Ray