KB90
08-05-2012, 07:16 PM
Well just got back from my opening week sheep hunt. I'll let you know right now we came out lighter than we did going in, so you won't see any dead ram pictures :D
I spent the week hunting with my brother, it was his first sheep hunt. It was a great trip and am glad to have shared the experience with him. Although I'm pretty sure he thinks I am crazy and unfortunately I don't think I've found myself a sheep hunting partner lol! But I wouldn't trade the week for anything.
It was also the closest I have come to killing a ram, and the first trip I actually saw legal rams! We made our way in a couple days before the season opened, it was a long miserable hike as the bush was soaking wet from the thunderstorm the night before. We saw a few sheep on the way in and eventually found the area we wanted to hunt. On the day of the 31st we set up in a awesome looking bowl, hoping something would find it's way to the steep grassy hill, and around 4 o'clock in between dozing off I looked up to skyline to see a couple rams making their way out to feed!
3 rams made their way out and we determined one to be legal by curl but would be a squeaker. I have never been so excited before. The new Zeiss spotter sure makes identifying/ageing sheep a lot easier! We kept watching and before long a 4th ram appeared and as he stood skyline I could immediately tell he was above the nose and a much better ram, and the one I wanted to kill.
We kept watching the rams, thinking that more would slowly filter their way out to feed. It was getting late and a couple of the rams bedded down, I was now getting really excited, I kept thinking I am going to go to bed and in the morning kill my first ram :D
Well that never happened as something ruined my plans. I was glassing around to make sure I wasn't missing any sheep when something caught my attention on the skyline a couple hundred yards up from the sheep. I put the spotter up and and to my dismay it was people! It didn't take me long to notice the wrangler jeans, trench coat and cowboy hat to know it was the guide and wrangler. I knew they would be hunting the area but was hoping not to bump into them….
Well I figured it's not the end of the world, there was no client with them and if we were up early enough we should have no problem beating him to the sheep as we were camped up high and I was sure they were camped in the valley bottom. Also I was pretty sure they did not see us.
But then he did something I still am scratching my head at…. He left the wrangler in the rocks and slowly started making his way closer to the sheep??? We were both easily within 600 yards of the sheep from our glassing points on opposite sides of the bowl and had an excellent view of the rams which were not bothered and relaxed. He had no client with him and the season wasn't open until morning, why is he stalking closer!?! Well as if it wasn't bad enough to try and get closer, he did what I've read on here never to do, He walked across the ridge skylined!
It didn't take long for the big ram to notice him and spook. Shortly after the other 3 followed, and then another 3 busted out from the rocks we had not seen yet, with 2 banana rams and another legal ram. The rams made their way past my brother and I within 150 yards, where we sat and watched in disbelief, and where we also got really good conformation a couple were in fact legal. they continued right on past, across the valley up the other side and over the mountain, long gone!
What the hell just happened!?!? I couldn't believe it 10 minutes ago I was getting ready to put my ram to bed and now there's not a sheep in sight!
The guide made his way back to the wrangler and over the mountain side they went, we never got to talk with them or saw them again. The only thing I can think of is that from his vantage point he was not able to see the one ram that he spooked, but it just seemed so odd to try and get closer, when there was nothing to do until the morning. So we set up our tent and went to bed feeling very dejected.
We hunted the next couple days but never came close to anything else, we saw more sheep, including more rams, but nothing big enough, or within reach. On the last night I did spot another ram that looked to be legal, but it was a long ways a way, very high up and in a spot that did not look accessible for a human.
But as disappointed as I was/am with the outcome it was a great hunt/week to have spent with my brother, and I can't wait to get out and give it another go. I have August 29th-Sept 5th off work and am looking for someone to go for another hunt, if anyone is interested shoot me a pm.
I'd also like to thank the guys on here who helped me out with info, tips, and last minute gear. You know who you are, and I appreciate it!
A couple things, I did not see the opening "gongshow" as everyone describes, in fact there were very few vehicles parked along the highway in "sheep spots" There were a few at 442 gravel pit and macdonald but other than that seemed fairly quiet. On our hunt we did not see any other residents, just the guide and wrangler.
I bought the "In reach" unit from delhorme and iridium and paired it with my iphone. It worked great! Was nice to be able to have 2 way texting communication while in the mountains, and would recommend it to anyone.
Pictures are below: I broke my camera before my trip so borrowed one and it sucked for pictures through the spotting scope, I only managed one or two useable pictures, it's too bad because I could have got some good shots of the sheep & guide with my camera.
I spent the week hunting with my brother, it was his first sheep hunt. It was a great trip and am glad to have shared the experience with him. Although I'm pretty sure he thinks I am crazy and unfortunately I don't think I've found myself a sheep hunting partner lol! But I wouldn't trade the week for anything.
It was also the closest I have come to killing a ram, and the first trip I actually saw legal rams! We made our way in a couple days before the season opened, it was a long miserable hike as the bush was soaking wet from the thunderstorm the night before. We saw a few sheep on the way in and eventually found the area we wanted to hunt. On the day of the 31st we set up in a awesome looking bowl, hoping something would find it's way to the steep grassy hill, and around 4 o'clock in between dozing off I looked up to skyline to see a couple rams making their way out to feed!
3 rams made their way out and we determined one to be legal by curl but would be a squeaker. I have never been so excited before. The new Zeiss spotter sure makes identifying/ageing sheep a lot easier! We kept watching and before long a 4th ram appeared and as he stood skyline I could immediately tell he was above the nose and a much better ram, and the one I wanted to kill.
We kept watching the rams, thinking that more would slowly filter their way out to feed. It was getting late and a couple of the rams bedded down, I was now getting really excited, I kept thinking I am going to go to bed and in the morning kill my first ram :D
Well that never happened as something ruined my plans. I was glassing around to make sure I wasn't missing any sheep when something caught my attention on the skyline a couple hundred yards up from the sheep. I put the spotter up and and to my dismay it was people! It didn't take me long to notice the wrangler jeans, trench coat and cowboy hat to know it was the guide and wrangler. I knew they would be hunting the area but was hoping not to bump into them….
Well I figured it's not the end of the world, there was no client with them and if we were up early enough we should have no problem beating him to the sheep as we were camped up high and I was sure they were camped in the valley bottom. Also I was pretty sure they did not see us.
But then he did something I still am scratching my head at…. He left the wrangler in the rocks and slowly started making his way closer to the sheep??? We were both easily within 600 yards of the sheep from our glassing points on opposite sides of the bowl and had an excellent view of the rams which were not bothered and relaxed. He had no client with him and the season wasn't open until morning, why is he stalking closer!?! Well as if it wasn't bad enough to try and get closer, he did what I've read on here never to do, He walked across the ridge skylined!
It didn't take long for the big ram to notice him and spook. Shortly after the other 3 followed, and then another 3 busted out from the rocks we had not seen yet, with 2 banana rams and another legal ram. The rams made their way past my brother and I within 150 yards, where we sat and watched in disbelief, and where we also got really good conformation a couple were in fact legal. they continued right on past, across the valley up the other side and over the mountain, long gone!
What the hell just happened!?!? I couldn't believe it 10 minutes ago I was getting ready to put my ram to bed and now there's not a sheep in sight!
The guide made his way back to the wrangler and over the mountain side they went, we never got to talk with them or saw them again. The only thing I can think of is that from his vantage point he was not able to see the one ram that he spooked, but it just seemed so odd to try and get closer, when there was nothing to do until the morning. So we set up our tent and went to bed feeling very dejected.
We hunted the next couple days but never came close to anything else, we saw more sheep, including more rams, but nothing big enough, or within reach. On the last night I did spot another ram that looked to be legal, but it was a long ways a way, very high up and in a spot that did not look accessible for a human.
But as disappointed as I was/am with the outcome it was a great hunt/week to have spent with my brother, and I can't wait to get out and give it another go. I have August 29th-Sept 5th off work and am looking for someone to go for another hunt, if anyone is interested shoot me a pm.
I'd also like to thank the guys on here who helped me out with info, tips, and last minute gear. You know who you are, and I appreciate it!
A couple things, I did not see the opening "gongshow" as everyone describes, in fact there were very few vehicles parked along the highway in "sheep spots" There were a few at 442 gravel pit and macdonald but other than that seemed fairly quiet. On our hunt we did not see any other residents, just the guide and wrangler.
I bought the "In reach" unit from delhorme and iridium and paired it with my iphone. It worked great! Was nice to be able to have 2 way texting communication while in the mountains, and would recommend it to anyone.
Pictures are below: I broke my camera before my trip so borrowed one and it sucked for pictures through the spotting scope, I only managed one or two useable pictures, it's too bad because I could have got some good shots of the sheep & guide with my camera.