2012 Solo Goat Hunt

[Rubberfist]

I just got back from this year's goat hunt and have a ton of work to dive into, but I wanted to share some pics. I have a lot of other pics, video and anecdotes, but they'll have to follow at a later date.

It's hard to believe that this is the same area I hunted, at the same time last year:

http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?73778-Region-6-Solo-Mountain-Goat-Hunt-1-simple-step-to-kicking-your-own-ass!

For the impatient, we'll jump to the end:

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Enjoy the pictures and thanks for viewing!

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Rubberfist]

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[Mr. Dean]

Some pretty cool stuff there.

Congrats on the Goat!
A solo hunt for one would be a tough grind.

[Rubberfist]

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[moose2]

Great pictures and a really nice looking goat. I am looking forward to the story that pieces the pictures together. It sure looks like better conditions than you faced last year. I laughed at the feet pictures I do that most years as well, then my nails fall off by spring and the cycle starts again lol. I will post a picture of my feet after packing a moose solo for four days. Congratulations on the fine goat his cape looks incredible, its a tough hunt to do on your own way to go.
Mike

Here is a picture of my feet 3 weeks after hauling that moose and caribou out. Do they look familiar Rubberfist " I feel your pain" lol
Mike
http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/medium/all_hunting_2012_071_Large_.jpg

[BiG Boar]

I'm heading out in 8 days and that is incredible inspiration. Great thread. Great job. Great goat. Not much compares to a goat hunt.

[ram hunter]

Ya I'm leaving in a couple days thanks for the goat pics I hope to lay the hammer down on a nice goat too

[lorneparker1]

I'm leaving tomorrow!! Thank you rubberfist!! Great goat.

[paulgug]

good for you, a solo hunt like that seems daunting to me. awesome looking goat, the cape looks pristine! i look forward to reading the story.

[jaymatter]

Great pictures! Would love to do something like that one day. Also looking forward to reading the story.

[Blainer]

Unbelievable!
That was one deserving,well earned goat!

[Good2bCanadian]

Sexy feet guys! Lol

Nice Looking cape that's for sure.
Good job. Must be proud of that accomplishment.

Is that a Rossi Ranch Hand? I have one in 357mag. Fun to shoot.

[yama49]

Sweet pics Omer, congrtas on a fine billy...

[kitnayakwa77]

Nice pics and congrats on a beauty billy....be careful of the backgrounds in your photos though I can pin down exactly where you went....

[Alpineguy]

Wow, great pictures and a great goat!! Congrats on your solo hunt.

[Tenacious Billy]

Awesome pics!! Goat hunts can get a little hairy even when you're in the company of another person...would definitely take some courage doing it on your own.
Congrats on your billy!

[kennyj]

Awesome scenery photos! Great goat!
kenny

[Husky7mm]

Wow I wish I had the balls for a solo like that!!!! To be fair about background of the photos, I doubt many would line up to do it the hard way, and those that do have their own places to go or would not impact the productivity anyways.

[ianwuzhere]

very nice. good job, congrats!

[Rubberfist]

Moose2 - Nice pics! Nice to know someone else appreciates the humour in sharing the punishment that our toenails endure during hunting season.

ramhunter, lorneparker1, BiGBoar - Thanks fellas. All the best on your coming hunts and be safe. Looking forward to the updates when you boys get back.

Good2bCanadian - Well considering that I am most often told that better looking feet have been seen hanging out of a bird's nest, I appreciate the complement!

kitnayakawa77 - To be honest, with goat hunting, I'm not so concerned about secrecy because spotting a goat, and going up and getting a goat, are entirely different things. Out of respect of other hunters though, I've cropped the picture a bit.

Thanks for the kind words everyone and I'm glad you dig the photography. I am leaning more and more towards taking a course to learn how to take better pics so that I can properly the capture the moments up there.

[EvanG]

sweet pics, i love solo goat hunting.

[goathead]

great job.nice photos goats are never easy. cant wait for the story

[BCbillies]

Beautiful goat and photos . . . looks like the weather was on your side this year! Love to see these posts . . . after 17 straight seasons of chasing goats I may miss a season but I'm crossing my fingers for a February trip.

[BlacktailStalker]

Very nice pictography. Gorgeous goat, you more than earned it, big congrats :cool:
I wont be buying Kuiu anytime soon based on the reviews and pics of their crap on here.

[boxhitch]

Great pics, you clearly are not just out for the killing.
and a white goat to boot ! The last two I've seen this year had more red than white :(

[The Dude]

Great pics, loved the ones of how thick the brush is going up, and the tanglefoot you have to walk through. Also the glaciers calving.
My only addition would be that I would love to see the photos captioned!
Good work, handsome goat, well-earned.

[cas-has-cars]

Scenery looks great, and nice goat!
Get some new boots next time, My Danners would never do that to my feet, thats a partner you want to leave at home!

[decker9]

Awesome pic's, and a beauty billy!! I dream of harvesting a goat by myself someday, what an accomplishment that would be! congrats to you! Looking foward to the story behind him.

Was this a day trip or an over nighter? any measurements?

[Rubberfist]

BCbillies - The weather was gorgeous - almost too hot. I got one hell of a tan (well...the farmer variety at any rate), and if it wasn't for the fact that my SPOT showed exactly where I was, my wife might otherwise think I had snuck off to Mexico.

BlacktailStalker - The Kuiu gear is actually top notch. Those Chugach pants are the result of two seasons of hunting, including three sheep hunts and two goat hunts. The reason they are so shredded is because I like to glissade when the terrain permits it. In contrast, neither my Sitka Stormfront or Coldfront pants survived a single goat hunt. Considering the Chugach are half the price of the Sitka and a third the price of the equivalent Arc'teryx, they are very good.

Cas-has-cars - I've never tried Danners. I've been using Lowa Sheephunters and Kenetrek Mountain Extreme (the ones on this trip) for a few years now. I never get blisters, but have been losing my big toenails every year for five straight years now. Which model of Danners have you used?

decker9 - I spent eight days in the field, and I eventually took my goat in my "Plan C" spot. This year, my single biggest issue was fricking grizzly bears. I saw five grizz, and twice I had to abandon ascending a mountain for a goat because I saw grizz (first a sow and a cub, and then a juevenile boar) roaming benches on the same face. The worst part was the fact that I glimpsed a grizz on a bench below me while I was caping out the goat, which made for an extremely tense situation. As a result, I hiked straight up to the glaciers on the walk out. However if you look at the pictures you will see the pics of the bear tracks I found while walking out, which were right up by the glaciers, where I figured the bears wouldn't go. The tracks were extremely fresh, and I've wondered if the f*cker circled up and around behind me, which I was getting the F out of there.

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The amusing thing is that I didn't get video of any bears, because when I did spot them, I was typically pissed-off and wanting to get out of the area.

The billy that I spotted in my Plan A area was truly choice and I made two attempts to get to him, but they were not to be. Hopefully he'll be in the area next year!

I haven't put a tape on the billy yet, but he's going to be around 9 & 3/4. I was gunning for a 10+ this year, but any goat is a good goat.

[Stone Sheep Steve]

Rubberfist-You do one helluva a job documenting your goat trips! Actually, probably TOO good of a job. You capture everything that, for anyone that had done this sort of thing, would rather forget about. The memories of pain usually fade away as time goes on and all that we remember are the good things about our successes.
Well done, if you're trying to have those mountains all to yourself:mrgreen:.

Congrats on a beautiful and well earned billy!!


SSS

[decker9]

8 days solo, that would be epic!

Damn Grizzlys! Im having the exact same problem with the G bears this year, the whole mountain im hunting is infested! The one billy i found that was worth a better look, got 15 mins from the truck, spooked a G bear, who ran the direction i was going, so since i was alone, needless to say that goat was safe from me that day... this weekend will hopfully be a diffrent story!
Again, congrats on a amazing hunt!

[rocksteady]

Damn you got hairy toes!!! May wanna get some Nair on those puppies before oyu post new pictures :)

Congrats on a beut of a goat...

[kootenayelkslayer]

Great job man, congrats!

[d6dan]

Nice billy goat Rubberfist. Congrats. As usual you take some killer pics. He certainly has a great coat on him..:-D

[Wild Images]

Sweet pics, great job showing the reality, not everyone gets to shoot a mature billy from the truck ( Right KES :mrgreen: )

Ken

[Call of the Wild]

Looks like the bushwacking was the hard work!!! Great pictures, insane hunt and crazy hunt, thanks for sharing. I want an other goat but a late season too, thanks for more inspiration.

[sherpa-Al]

Congrats on a beauty Billy! It's sure nice to see all of the photos, can't get enough of those mountain views. Too bad the grizzlies put a bit of a cramp on things, those %$#@ers have a knack for showing up when they're not invited!

Al

[Rubberfist]

So I finally got around to assessing the damage that my rifle suffered from the little header that I took:

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I suppose this barrel will be good for shooting around corners now.

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=o(

[MOUNTAIN MAN - TOYOTA/ATV]

Nice photos of your hunting time in the mountains. Really nice billy goat!

[horshur]

god that is an awful expensive and fine rifle for Goat hunting.....I had a hunter drop his Blaser Lux a few years ago...he cried.

[whitebirch]

awesome! makes me want to get out again for another goat hunt already! mine looks easy in comparison lol

[2wheellifer]

Great hunt. I also got back 6 days ago from a solo goat hunt. Will lose 1 toe nail. No goat. Lots of snow and -10 temperature. Hunt was not the first solo goat hunt but it was everything I wanted..did not see a soul for 6 days ....perfect