BuzzH
Well-known member
I could write a novel about this hunt...but will keep it as short as I can.
This hunt was everything I expected from a Desert Sheep hunt, and just the chance to hunt them is nothing short of amazing.
I arrived in Arizona with a full 10 days to scout. I had planned on 14 days but had some work obligations that slowed me down. I wasnt all that concerned as I'd done a pretty good amount of research prior to getting there, including several phone calls to the local biologist. I'd also been in contact with a previous tag holder who took an awesome sheep last year and he was very, very helpful. In fact, Jim drove 4 hours to spend a day scouting with me. Great guy and really knows that area well.
So, the first afternoon after I set up my camp, I decided to hit an area where many sheep have been taken according to the harvest stats. The second place I look...bingo...8 sheep all rams. I looked them over and the best in the bunch I figured would be around 150, a solid ram. I spent most of the next day just learning the road system and looking for areas that need to be hiked into to glass. From what I was seeing, it was pretty intuitive where to look. But, what I later found is that even though an area may look good, the sheep were not always there. But, for the most part, the areas that looked like they should hold sheep did.
A few pictures of some of the country:
This area I ended up finding a total of 17 different rams, and its in an area where not many rams have come from over the years.
The two most important pieces of gear needed to find sheep in the desert:
On the third day of scouting and seeing quite a number of rams, I found one that I really liked. He is an awesome sheep, and I'm positive still running around out there. I watched this ram for almost 2 hours at close range, even attempting to count his growth rings. I'm sure that he is 9 years old for sure, but I clearly counted 10-11 rings when he layed his horn on the ground while napping.
Once I found this ram, the pressure was sure off for the remaining 5-6 days of scouting. I decided to look over some fringe habitat and in areas where I knew sheep densities were very low. I spent one day in an area that looked great, but even though I covered it as well as I could, I never saw a single sheep. Not even much sign, and what was there was old.
I'd pretty well made up my mind on Wednesday before the hunt that I would be looking for that broomed ram. Thursday morning I left camp early and quickly found a herd of 10 sheep with 9 rams and 1 ewe in it. The sheep fed down to the flats and I went out to a high spot for a closer look. There were 4 good rams in the bunch, but one really stood out.
This guy was the one that stood out, just carried the mass so well, great color to his horns, etc.
...continue on next post.
This hunt was everything I expected from a Desert Sheep hunt, and just the chance to hunt them is nothing short of amazing.
I arrived in Arizona with a full 10 days to scout. I had planned on 14 days but had some work obligations that slowed me down. I wasnt all that concerned as I'd done a pretty good amount of research prior to getting there, including several phone calls to the local biologist. I'd also been in contact with a previous tag holder who took an awesome sheep last year and he was very, very helpful. In fact, Jim drove 4 hours to spend a day scouting with me. Great guy and really knows that area well.
So, the first afternoon after I set up my camp, I decided to hit an area where many sheep have been taken according to the harvest stats. The second place I look...bingo...8 sheep all rams. I looked them over and the best in the bunch I figured would be around 150, a solid ram. I spent most of the next day just learning the road system and looking for areas that need to be hiked into to glass. From what I was seeing, it was pretty intuitive where to look. But, what I later found is that even though an area may look good, the sheep were not always there. But, for the most part, the areas that looked like they should hold sheep did.
A few pictures of some of the country:
This area I ended up finding a total of 17 different rams, and its in an area where not many rams have come from over the years.
The two most important pieces of gear needed to find sheep in the desert:
On the third day of scouting and seeing quite a number of rams, I found one that I really liked. He is an awesome sheep, and I'm positive still running around out there. I watched this ram for almost 2 hours at close range, even attempting to count his growth rings. I'm sure that he is 9 years old for sure, but I clearly counted 10-11 rings when he layed his horn on the ground while napping.
Once I found this ram, the pressure was sure off for the remaining 5-6 days of scouting. I decided to look over some fringe habitat and in areas where I knew sheep densities were very low. I spent one day in an area that looked great, but even though I covered it as well as I could, I never saw a single sheep. Not even much sign, and what was there was old.
I'd pretty well made up my mind on Wednesday before the hunt that I would be looking for that broomed ram. Thursday morning I left camp early and quickly found a herd of 10 sheep with 9 rams and 1 ewe in it. The sheep fed down to the flats and I went out to a high spot for a closer look. There were 4 good rams in the bunch, but one really stood out.
This guy was the one that stood out, just carried the mass so well, great color to his horns, etc.
...continue on next post.
Last edited:
What a ram!! Nice job Buzz! Great to have guys around to come help, nicely done Stan.
