shines@times
Well-known member
Thanks for the update EYJONAS.
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Thanks for the update EYJONAS.
shines@times
Well-known member
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BigHornRam
Nice series of pictures you posted. Together with the concise captions, they tell a story of an enviable adventure.
That's a good looking pack harness in the warming fire photo. By the way, are you a southpaw?
BigHornRam
Nice series of pictures you posted. Together with the concise captions, they tell a story of an enviable adventure.
That's a good looking pack harness in the warming fire photo. By the way, are you a southpaw?
Have Enjoyed all the write ups and pics of everyone's time in so far.
Figured I should put of a few pics of our trip in. No sheep came out but had a great time. Even with the snow that came in.
Gotta love how you can go from summer one day to winter the next!
Looking forward to some more stories of everyone's adventures in the Unlimiteds!!
Hoping to hear a write up from this years tag cutters.
Figured I should put of a few pics of our trip in. No sheep came out but had a great time. Even with the snow that came in.
Gotta love how you can go from summer one day to winter the next!
Looking forward to some more stories of everyone's adventures in the Unlimiteds!!
Hoping to hear a write up from this years tag cutters.
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shines@times
Well-known member
@ kad11
Recognizing the possibility that you might actually be cut-out for adventures in Bighorn country, and simply chose an overwhelming approach for your first attempt, I want to chime in with what I hope will be a few words of encouragement.
"Rimrocked" would have never entered the American vernacular if only experienced by a handful of people. Likely, everyone who seriously enters wildness away from roads and trails, and certainly the regular contributors to this "MT Unlimited" thread, have shared your experience at some point. Personally, I can distinctly recall three times when I feared serious injury, or even death, were only one poorly-chosen or failing foothold away. Two of those instances were encountered during solo ventures. The most recent, when I seriously, though briefly, considered abandoning a traditional-style muzzle loader I had not yet fitted with a sling in order to free both hands for clutching tenuous handholds, was more than 30 years ago. All remain vivid lessons in my memory. None diminished my fondness for wild country. Instead, they intensified the sense of adventure and the satisfaction of learning and adapting, traits we humans have employed to spread from Africa to every conceivable niche on the planet. Along the way, we evolved from fearful prey taking refuge in trees to become the planet's apex predator.
The Beartooth country augmented my own sense of humility with its daunting mix of altitude, snow, wind and cold on my first two attempts to access and hunt the high sheep ranges. I hunted the 502 when that unit was larger and didn't open until mid-November. On my third venture, I was literally blown off my feet three times--twice occurred in a single afternoon. While, admittedly, I cursed those obstacles and assaults at the time, they immeasurably enhanced my sense of accomplishment when I was finally successful, and they likewise enhance the memories of an old man.
The importance of fitness and not over-packing have been previously discussed in this thread. I'd like to contribute a couple additional considerations as advice to you and anyone else contemplating future sheep hunts in the Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness.
Firstly, become proficient in map and terrain reading. Use the wonderful resources available today--I recommend Google Earth Pro in particular (freely downloadable the last I checked)--to facilitate your learning; but do not rely utterly on electronic devices such as GPS units in the field. Traditional USGS topographical maps are also freely downloadable online. However, even the 7.5 minute versions will not show all the obstacles one might encounter on any given route, neither will one-meter resolution satellite images. Both will, however, provide clues to what are likely to be, for all practicable purposes, impassable terrain. The latest US Topo series of maps feature satellite imagery layered over topographical base maps--the imagery can be toggled on and off. They are orthographic (flat) files. Google Earth Pro, by contrast, layers satellite imagery onto a 3D model of the terrain that can be infinitely manipulated to provide amazingly accurate views of the landscape from any conceivable perspective. With clicks of the mouse, one can lay a route down upon the model, then read the heading (true or magnetic North), straight-line distance, distance on ground and see a profile of the elevation along the route.
I won't presume to tell anyone how to find rams in the unlimited units, especially given the changes in unit boundaries and season dates occurring over the decades since I last hunted. However, you obviously had a general objective in mind before your hunt. While there is no substitute for scouting the country in person, for those who live far away, and through the snow-bound, long dark months of Winter, I suggest obsessive study of the terrain via maps, satellite imagery and 3D models before it is time to submit the next permit application. Presuming successful hernia repair surgery this Winter, it is what I'll be doing.
Secondly--and this is something I have not seen discussed much in the thread--I recommend that one get very familiar, comfortable even, with minimalist bivouac camping methods. The nature of the terrain and weather, at least in the district and time of year that I hunted, does not bode well for a hunter trying to tote more than 50-pound packs. Really, for an average height, weight and strength individual, 35 pounds is probably more realistic. Hell, they say, is full of good intentions. So, I know that, should I manage to return to the Beartooths, I will likely overburden myself too for the initial approach. However, the intent will be to get resources cached "on top" from which to extend less-encumbered loops, radiating like the petals of a daisy, in search of rams.
Given proximity to trail systems, no uninjured and reasonably competent hunter should fear starving to death on a hunt in the Absaroka Beartooth country. Water, likewise, is abundantly available even if somewhat physically taxing to access at times. Beyond falling, the primary danger is hypothermia. Living most of my life on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, I can personally vouch for the efficacy, if not the comfort, of bivy bags featuring Goretex or similar semi-permeable fabrics. Wet and wind is a potentially lethal combination. So too, cold and wind; but it is easier to defeat. I recommend a moderately low-temperature rated sleeping bag (synthetic, not down, should rain or wet snow be likely). Add a bivy bag and decently insulated parka and bib-coveralls, combined with a bit of weather sense and bush-crafting skills, and a hunter should be comfortable making 1 to 3-days loops away from his supply cache while carrying a minimum load of food and support gear such as a small backpacking stove, cooking pot, light weight tarp and a light source. On the last item, I have been evaluating both solar rechargeable and crank-up flashlights over the past year. I used a Coleman Peak One lantern in years past; but that product is no longer produced or supported. I am favorably impressed with the Thorfire light--it's available quite reasonably at Amazon--which features both solar and crank recharging. While it doesn't provide the area floodlight that the Peak 1 lantern did (useful for task such as tent pitching or field-dressing game), it does cast enough beam for camp chores or night hiking if the terrain is not too treacherous. Moreover, it is not nearly so fragile as the lantern, and it doesn't require me to carry fuel.
I'll post a few photos of my bivouacs in the "Tooths" after I return from some trips I need to make (I have to recover the files from an old computer or locate and scan the original slides again--if you are under thirty-five years old, Google "35mm Slide"). Meanwhile, reconsider your sheep hunting approach and outlook. I'm willing to bet that the fever relapses before next May.
Recognizing the possibility that you might actually be cut-out for adventures in Bighorn country, and simply chose an overwhelming approach for your first attempt, I want to chime in with what I hope will be a few words of encouragement.
"Rimrocked" would have never entered the American vernacular if only experienced by a handful of people. Likely, everyone who seriously enters wildness away from roads and trails, and certainly the regular contributors to this "MT Unlimited" thread, have shared your experience at some point. Personally, I can distinctly recall three times when I feared serious injury, or even death, were only one poorly-chosen or failing foothold away. Two of those instances were encountered during solo ventures. The most recent, when I seriously, though briefly, considered abandoning a traditional-style muzzle loader I had not yet fitted with a sling in order to free both hands for clutching tenuous handholds, was more than 30 years ago. All remain vivid lessons in my memory. None diminished my fondness for wild country. Instead, they intensified the sense of adventure and the satisfaction of learning and adapting, traits we humans have employed to spread from Africa to every conceivable niche on the planet. Along the way, we evolved from fearful prey taking refuge in trees to become the planet's apex predator.
The Beartooth country augmented my own sense of humility with its daunting mix of altitude, snow, wind and cold on my first two attempts to access and hunt the high sheep ranges. I hunted the 502 when that unit was larger and didn't open until mid-November. On my third venture, I was literally blown off my feet three times--twice occurred in a single afternoon. While, admittedly, I cursed those obstacles and assaults at the time, they immeasurably enhanced my sense of accomplishment when I was finally successful, and they likewise enhance the memories of an old man.
The importance of fitness and not over-packing have been previously discussed in this thread. I'd like to contribute a couple additional considerations as advice to you and anyone else contemplating future sheep hunts in the Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness.
Firstly, become proficient in map and terrain reading. Use the wonderful resources available today--I recommend Google Earth Pro in particular (freely downloadable the last I checked)--to facilitate your learning; but do not rely utterly on electronic devices such as GPS units in the field. Traditional USGS topographical maps are also freely downloadable online. However, even the 7.5 minute versions will not show all the obstacles one might encounter on any given route, neither will one-meter resolution satellite images. Both will, however, provide clues to what are likely to be, for all practicable purposes, impassable terrain. The latest US Topo series of maps feature satellite imagery layered over topographical base maps--the imagery can be toggled on and off. They are orthographic (flat) files. Google Earth Pro, by contrast, layers satellite imagery onto a 3D model of the terrain that can be infinitely manipulated to provide amazingly accurate views of the landscape from any conceivable perspective. With clicks of the mouse, one can lay a route down upon the model, then read the heading (true or magnetic North), straight-line distance, distance on ground and see a profile of the elevation along the route.
I won't presume to tell anyone how to find rams in the unlimited units, especially given the changes in unit boundaries and season dates occurring over the decades since I last hunted. However, you obviously had a general objective in mind before your hunt. While there is no substitute for scouting the country in person, for those who live far away, and through the snow-bound, long dark months of Winter, I suggest obsessive study of the terrain via maps, satellite imagery and 3D models before it is time to submit the next permit application. Presuming successful hernia repair surgery this Winter, it is what I'll be doing.
Secondly--and this is something I have not seen discussed much in the thread--I recommend that one get very familiar, comfortable even, with minimalist bivouac camping methods. The nature of the terrain and weather, at least in the district and time of year that I hunted, does not bode well for a hunter trying to tote more than 50-pound packs. Really, for an average height, weight and strength individual, 35 pounds is probably more realistic. Hell, they say, is full of good intentions. So, I know that, should I manage to return to the Beartooths, I will likely overburden myself too for the initial approach. However, the intent will be to get resources cached "on top" from which to extend less-encumbered loops, radiating like the petals of a daisy, in search of rams.
Given proximity to trail systems, no uninjured and reasonably competent hunter should fear starving to death on a hunt in the Absaroka Beartooth country. Water, likewise, is abundantly available even if somewhat physically taxing to access at times. Beyond falling, the primary danger is hypothermia. Living most of my life on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, I can personally vouch for the efficacy, if not the comfort, of bivy bags featuring Goretex or similar semi-permeable fabrics. Wet and wind is a potentially lethal combination. So too, cold and wind; but it is easier to defeat. I recommend a moderately low-temperature rated sleeping bag (synthetic, not down, should rain or wet snow be likely). Add a bivy bag and decently insulated parka and bib-coveralls, combined with a bit of weather sense and bush-crafting skills, and a hunter should be comfortable making 1 to 3-days loops away from his supply cache while carrying a minimum load of food and support gear such as a small backpacking stove, cooking pot, light weight tarp and a light source. On the last item, I have been evaluating both solar rechargeable and crank-up flashlights over the past year. I used a Coleman Peak One lantern in years past; but that product is no longer produced or supported. I am favorably impressed with the Thorfire light--it's available quite reasonably at Amazon--which features both solar and crank recharging. While it doesn't provide the area floodlight that the Peak 1 lantern did (useful for task such as tent pitching or field-dressing game), it does cast enough beam for camp chores or night hiking if the terrain is not too treacherous. Moreover, it is not nearly so fragile as the lantern, and it doesn't require me to carry fuel.
I'll post a few photos of my bivouacs in the "Tooths" after I return from some trips I need to make (I have to recover the files from an old computer or locate and scan the original slides again--if you are under thirty-five years old, Google "35mm Slide"). Meanwhile, reconsider your sheep hunting approach and outlook. I'm willing to bet that the fever relapses before next May.
shines@times
Well-known member
BigHornRam
Well-known member
The pack is a 10 year old Mystery Ranch, well built but heavy. I'm a screwed up mess when it comes to shooting. Shoot my gun left handed and shoot my bow right handed.
BAKPAKR
Well-known member
Is that a left hand Kifaru Rambling Rifle?The pack is a 10 year old Mystery Ranch, well built but heavy. I'm a screwed up mess when it comes to shooting. Shoot my gun left handed and shoot my bow right handed.
BigHornRam
Well-known member
Yes, 7-08. Also have a 358 Winchester barrel for it.
shines@times
Well-known member
That must be what Mil-Tec copied. We've never met; but I didn't think you'd go sheep hunting with an $80 tent.
kad11
Active member
- Joined
- May 9, 2012
- Messages
- 153
I appreciate and understand your perspective on risk, but I do not embrace it personally. With a wife and two young girls relying on me, I cannot willingly put myself in those life or limb/death situations. I did my fair share of that when I was younger and never thought twice about it, but my life is not my own to do with as I please anymore.
How would the lives of your loved ones be different if you had slipped and fell 30 years ago? I don't mean that question to be disrespectful or snarky - that is just what I was asking myself...
I found the limit of my risk tolerance on a knife ridge in the AB, so I am probably not cut out for adventures in bighorn country. I fully understand there are safe routes around that country and that guys go year after year without issue...but I also know myself and know it would be awfully hard to resist going after a ram on a "probably doable" face, ridge, etc. That line can go from grey to black & white in a hurry.
I'm not trying to argue or save my pride by overstating the conditions, I'm just trying to explain my reasoning for turning around.
shines@times
Well-known member
kad11,
Actually, the point I was trying to make from the perspective of experience was the "doable" and "safe route" aspect of hunting such country. But your point is well taken and appreciated.
I never got into such situations while sheep hunting the Absaroka Beartooth--mine were encountered in the rotten, moss and algal slime-covered rocks of the Olympic Mountains. I was, however, simply overwhelmed by the magnitude of the Beartooth country and its weather during my first attempt. So much so, that I never even even reached the high plateau where, three years and two attempts later, I finally scored.
Please see my earlier comment about irreverent and reckless attitude having the potential to eliminate one's genes from the pool to understand that I was not encouraging you, or anyone else, to ignore danger and take unnecessary risks. I simply thought that you might have been overwhelmed, as I was upon first entering the AB. Thinking the impact might have been greater than the risk, or that a different mindset and approach might bring you back to relish the pursuit, I simply wanted to offer encouragement and let you know that you have much company. It is good that you understand your own propensities and calculate the impact a misstep could levy on your loved ones.
Rest assured, no offense is taken. I wish you good hunting in the future whatever the quarry and conditions.
Actually, the point I was trying to make from the perspective of experience was the "doable" and "safe route" aspect of hunting such country. But your point is well taken and appreciated.
I never got into such situations while sheep hunting the Absaroka Beartooth--mine were encountered in the rotten, moss and algal slime-covered rocks of the Olympic Mountains. I was, however, simply overwhelmed by the magnitude of the Beartooth country and its weather during my first attempt. So much so, that I never even even reached the high plateau where, three years and two attempts later, I finally scored.
Please see my earlier comment about irreverent and reckless attitude having the potential to eliminate one's genes from the pool to understand that I was not encouraging you, or anyone else, to ignore danger and take unnecessary risks. I simply thought that you might have been overwhelmed, as I was upon first entering the AB. Thinking the impact might have been greater than the risk, or that a different mindset and approach might bring you back to relish the pursuit, I simply wanted to offer encouragement and let you know that you have much company. It is good that you understand your own propensities and calculate the impact a misstep could levy on your loved ones.
Rest assured, no offense is taken. I wish you good hunting in the future whatever the quarry and conditions.
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shines@times
Well-known member
WOW! That shot says a lot!
Glad to hear you are alright Gomer. Will you still get to give it another go this year?
Also, if you don't mind my asking here, is your sheep hunting partner also a Hunt Talk member? (I'm guessing, tough as you are, that you didn't set the camera on a tripod then hop down that slope while the self-timer counted down
.)recurveman
Well-known member
Looks like I got out just in time. I Left Thursday afternoon after spending 12 awesome days back in some breathtaking country. Not just breathtaking because of its beauty but I kept loosing my breathe when I was climbing those dang hills. I'll drop in a story and some pics once I get done being exhausted. Didn't want to leave but I think fighting mother nature was going to be a loosing battle........
EYJONAS!
Well-known member
- Joined
- Mar 17, 2017
- Messages
- 6,707
If that picture doesn't get a guy going and wanting to get back in there and pound it I dunno what would. Hands down one of the greatest pics from the ul areas ive ever seen.
WOW! That shot says a lot!
Glad to hear you are alright Gomer. Will you still get to give it another go this year?
Also, if you don't mind my asking here, is your sheep hunting partner also a Hunt Talk member? (I'm guessing, tough as you are, that you didn't set the camera on a tripod then hop down that slope while the self-timer counted down
He checks out the forum a bit. Not sure if he even has a user name.
Hoping to give it another round if it stays open.
shines@times
Well-known member
Thanks for the reply Gomer--I thought perhaps there might be another HT member I ought to follow.
You know I'm rooting for you guys. I'm impressed by your enthusiasm and stamina; and I like your approach to the game. Not to mention how much I enjoy seeing the photos!
Good hunting!
shines@times
Well-known member
Go get 'em EYJONAS!
shines@times
Well-known member
Thanks for placing me in celebrated company Cav1. Although, I have to admit, I was never a big fan of Elmer Keith personally. Jack O'Connor's style, hunting philosophy and demeanor--at least on paper--always suited my taste better. That said, I'm glad to learn that Elmer Keith also had a reverent side.
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