NV Silver State Desert Sheep Hunt
- Thread starter robie
- Start date
txco
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- Apr 27, 2017
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- 285
Thats an awesome looking ram. Congrats on getting an epic opportunity no matter how you got to the end.
Bambistew
Well-known member
I didn't realize Nevada scored the Rams when you check them in. No wonder everybody I know from Nevada that's killed a desert sheep, the first thing they tell me is the score.
Nice ram. Killing a giant isn't easy no matter the tag.
Nice ram. Killing a giant isn't easy no matter the tag.
Valley1320
Well-known member
Beautiful ram! Congratulations!
PonoHunt
Member
The Arizona F&G do a quick score as well when they are inspecting it.
And if you take it to Dustin in Mesa, it will even be correct.
warmer
Well-known member
SD GFP also scores rams when you check it in. Although, last year 3 bio's measured my son's it in 1/4's and 1/2's. Pretty sure it was the first ram for them, ha!
BradA
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- Jan 23, 2021
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Congratulations on your ram.
We also score at check out in California with the department of fish and wildlife and they are typically off on the lesser end.
We also score at check out in California with the department of fish and wildlife and they are typically off on the lesser end.
Congrats on a beautiful ram.
For what it’s worth, the check in form just gives you a ballpark. It’s hit or miss who you get to check in and plug your ram. My ram was several inches larger when officially scored after the drying period than it was at check in.
For what it’s worth, the check in form just gives you a ballpark. It’s hit or miss who you get to check in and plug your ram. My ram was several inches larger when officially scored after the drying period than it was at check in.
Last edited:
LIK2HNT
Active member
My Colorado Mtn. Goat was measured when I checked it in. I had to laugh when they measured the length. They used a soft plastic tape that stretched and did not stay on the curve. Their measurement was about 1” less than the B&C scorer measurement after the drying period.
littlebighorn
Well-known member
I have learned from personal experience that time always heals raw emotions and no number can ever dictate how good or bad an experience is. I ate tag soup on my first Stone sheep hunt and at the time, I had plenty of negative feelings about the outfit and how it all went down. Now, ten years later, I have a much clearer vision of reality.
It's certainly OK to lament but I'd say don't let it linger.
Well done robie. Dang nice ram!
Hawk Tuah
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- Apr 6, 2018
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Nice ram.
Thank you fellas. There is a lot to unpack from an emotional stand point. I know I'll never get a tag like this nor will I have $150k+ to buy a tag like this. I'll do a write up start to finish and tell you all the mistakes I made to hopefully help out the next guy.
It's all said and done and I'm extremely grateful to have had the chance to take a dessert bighorn. I hunted 8 days and learned a little about sheep.
It's all said and done and I'm extremely grateful to have had the chance to take a dessert bighorn. I hunted 8 days and learned a little about sheep.
rmyoung1
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- Jul 12, 2010
- Messages
- 2,442
As others have said, you got to hunt desert sheep longer than you would have otherwise. That’s a trophy experience few will get the chance to experience for themselves. And your ram is gorgeous. There’s always plenty of Monday morning quarterbacking over sheep hunts. Sounds to me like you had the full experience, which is awesome. Congratulations
okie archer
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- Feb 3, 2015
- Messages
- 709
Forget what the tape says. That sir is a beautiful Ram! Congratulations.
OK this will be my wrap up. I'm sure you guys are tired of reading my posts.
I needed to clear up a couple of things. My frustrations from the experience are with myself and not with my guides. I feel like I should have studied sheep and understood more about what I wanted out of this hunt. I was more of a kid just having fun instead of an active participant. My eyes got way to big way to fast. I wanted the biggest ram in the state! lol. It is hilarious looking back how quickly I went from I'll never kill a sheep to I need a giant!
I thought the idea of a getting a buckle ram (top 3 in the state) would just be very cool. This set a very high expectation that looking historically you will need a 175ish ram to make that happen. This caused us to pass up some low 170s type rams in the process. That's all on me, and I would encourage any of you that get a ram tag to just find the look you think is cool and smoke him!
My guide worked his butt of from June through December trying to find a giant. He found some really good ones in July and we ended up passing on a ram one of the heritage tag guys killed. Everyone felt it would have been a low 170's and at that point lets hold out to see what else is out there. He then found 2 great rams that probably would have gotten me the buckle I was after! I flew in a day late and they both disappeared and we never found saw them again. We saw probably over 200 sheep across those 7 days but never something my guides felt was worth it and wanted to keep looking and have me come back in December.
I will tell you that knowing as little as I did about sheep they are all awesome. They all look unique and are just fun to watch. If I was solo I would have shot the first ram I laid eyes on and swore it was a giant.
In the end the guy did every thing they could to find a 175+ ram and the one(s) they found I just didn't get to Vegas fast enough. On the return trip I was ready to shoot just a nice ram and call it a hunt. The guides had God knows how many days and I had 7 days of hunting.
We took a ranger for our final hunt and covered a lot of country. Found two groups of ewes and finally parked the ranger in the middle of a valley with mountains on either side about 2500 yards away. I looked right and found nothing and I look left and see my guide getting out the spotter.
That is always my favorite sign. He says 2 rams. I grab mine and one looks long and good to me! To be honest I've probably said looks good to me about 15 different times on these hunts. My guide videoed for about a solid 30 minutes before determining he was worth a closer look. We took the ranger down into the valley and parked it at a point where the rams couldn't see us.
We had a ridge in between us and the face they were on. We wanted to get to that point and get a final look at the ram before we did the stalk. We crested the ridge and found the ram as he had moved to the left towards a drinker. At about a 1000 yards he looked just as good as he did at 2500! We made a plan! He was up a draw above a drinker and we could sneak up the draw to his right and hopefully crest the ridge and have a 200-400 yard shot. The wind was ok but not great.
We hiked back down from the ridge we were on and made our way up our draw. My sea level acclimation did ok and my guide was nice enough to pause for me along the way! I remember looking at my watch and seeing 170 for the heart rate and just laughing. All part of the fun!
We got to a point where my guide wanted to peak to make sure the ram was still there. He dropped his pack and hiked up. I dropped mine and got my rifle ready and eased up. There was a nice rock face I could ease up to while he was checking the ram and I wanted for THE hand wave! Couple minutes behind the binos and he waved me over and whispered 550. He was getting his spotter setup and asked if I wanted to look. NOPE! He said he look good and I trusted him.
Just a back story for the gun guys. I was shooting a 6.5 PRC I had been shooting all summer out to 600 yards with a 3 shot group at the 5-6" mark. We had talked about it and I felt good out to that but would love a 200 yard shot.
I dialed for 550 and I was prone with a bipod, rear bag and suppressor. My gun was solid and I asked if he was ready. He was getting is Olin setup to record and said ready. First shot was perfect on elevation about about 1-2" right. Either I pulled it or there was a little bit of wind between me and the ram. Ram starts to walk away from us and I jacked another one and pretty sure I just whiffed on the 2nd shot. Ram is hit hard and lays down in the excitement my guide mentioned he walked further away but my brain heard him but my body didn't adjust. I ended up smoking a rock right in front of the ram which caused a large cloud of dust to engulf the ram but he didn't budge. My body made the adjustment this time and I smoked the ram and he rolled about 5 yards and stopped in his final resting place.
We took our time and enjoyed the finality of the moment. I called my wife and let her know I had gotten my ram. I took some pictures and video and then we packed up and made our way up to the ram. Really special moment to walk up to an animal and really get to study a ram for the first time. The head was just so heavy. I still hold it and amazed at how much that head weighs.
We then had a full on photoshoot followed by breaking down the animal. My guide was great and carried the meat I had my gun and the head/cape. My pack had some issues and we had to stop to fix it. At this point it was getting dark and my headlight battery was dying quickly. I let my guide lead and tried to use his light but this eventually ended with my faceplanting but managing to get my hands down first. I couldn't move, had to have my guide come take my pack off and then we readjusted and began again.
My guide casually asked if my cellphone had a light. I had to laugh at not thinking about this from the get go. With 30% battery my phone light got me off the mountain.
I remember how nice it felt to get to the river bottom. Then how nice it was to see the side by side. Here is my advice for the next guy, you don't need a spotting scope, bring your trekking poles and make sure you have a headlamp!
We had a 2 hour ride back to the truck and then a quick stop at a taxidermist buddy of my guides who was nice enough to cut the hide off of the head so I could freeze it for the flight home. Amazing to walk in a taxidermists office in NV and see all of the sheep, elk & mule deer! I'm used to exotics and whitetails.
That night I deboned and froze the meet. I put it in my Yeti soft side in the morning and made my way to the office to check my ram in. Really cool to see how excited everyone is for me and to take their data and measure him. After this I was off to walmart to get a tote, bubble wrap and gorilla tape. Got the head, hide and a deadhead in a top all wrapped up and the hide in my Yeti off to the airport.
Everything made it home and I got to see the look on my sons face when I pulled the ram out of tote that night. Priceless! Amazing opportunity and experience. Great group of guides to spend time in the mountains with. When you get lucky enough to draw a sheep tag it is very cool to share that experience with people who know a lot about sheep and can teach you a thing or two.
Thank you everyone who followed along with the journey. I hope one of you guys will be the lucky one this year!
I needed to clear up a couple of things. My frustrations from the experience are with myself and not with my guides. I feel like I should have studied sheep and understood more about what I wanted out of this hunt. I was more of a kid just having fun instead of an active participant. My eyes got way to big way to fast. I wanted the biggest ram in the state! lol. It is hilarious looking back how quickly I went from I'll never kill a sheep to I need a giant!
I thought the idea of a getting a buckle ram (top 3 in the state) would just be very cool. This set a very high expectation that looking historically you will need a 175ish ram to make that happen. This caused us to pass up some low 170s type rams in the process. That's all on me, and I would encourage any of you that get a ram tag to just find the look you think is cool and smoke him!
My guide worked his butt of from June through December trying to find a giant. He found some really good ones in July and we ended up passing on a ram one of the heritage tag guys killed. Everyone felt it would have been a low 170's and at that point lets hold out to see what else is out there. He then found 2 great rams that probably would have gotten me the buckle I was after! I flew in a day late and they both disappeared and we never found saw them again. We saw probably over 200 sheep across those 7 days but never something my guides felt was worth it and wanted to keep looking and have me come back in December.
I will tell you that knowing as little as I did about sheep they are all awesome. They all look unique and are just fun to watch. If I was solo I would have shot the first ram I laid eyes on and swore it was a giant.
In the end the guy did every thing they could to find a 175+ ram and the one(s) they found I just didn't get to Vegas fast enough. On the return trip I was ready to shoot just a nice ram and call it a hunt. The guides had God knows how many days and I had 7 days of hunting.
We took a ranger for our final hunt and covered a lot of country. Found two groups of ewes and finally parked the ranger in the middle of a valley with mountains on either side about 2500 yards away. I looked right and found nothing and I look left and see my guide getting out the spotter.
That is always my favorite sign. He says 2 rams. I grab mine and one looks long and good to me! To be honest I've probably said looks good to me about 15 different times on these hunts. My guide videoed for about a solid 30 minutes before determining he was worth a closer look. We took the ranger down into the valley and parked it at a point where the rams couldn't see us. We had a ridge in between us and the face they were on. We wanted to get to that point and get a final look at the ram before we did the stalk. We crested the ridge and found the ram as he had moved to the left towards a drinker. At about a 1000 yards he looked just as good as he did at 2500! We made a plan! He was up a draw above a drinker and we could sneak up the draw to his right and hopefully crest the ridge and have a 200-400 yard shot. The wind was ok but not great.
We hiked back down from the ridge we were on and made our way up our draw. My sea level acclimation did ok and my guide was nice enough to pause for me along the way! I remember looking at my watch and seeing 170 for the heart rate and just laughing. All part of the fun!
We got to a point where my guide wanted to peak to make sure the ram was still there. He dropped his pack and hiked up. I dropped mine and got my rifle ready and eased up. There was a nice rock face I could ease up to while he was checking the ram and I wanted for THE hand wave! Couple minutes behind the binos and he waved me over and whispered 550. He was getting his spotter setup and asked if I wanted to look. NOPE! He said he look good and I trusted him.
Just a back story for the gun guys. I was shooting a 6.5 PRC I had been shooting all summer out to 600 yards with a 3 shot group at the 5-6" mark. We had talked about it and I felt good out to that but would love a 200 yard shot.
I dialed for 550 and I was prone with a bipod, rear bag and suppressor. My gun was solid and I asked if he was ready. He was getting is Olin setup to record and said ready. First shot was perfect on elevation about about 1-2" right. Either I pulled it or there was a little bit of wind between me and the ram. Ram starts to walk away from us and I jacked another one and pretty sure I just whiffed on the 2nd shot. Ram is hit hard and lays down in the excitement my guide mentioned he walked further away but my brain heard him but my body didn't adjust. I ended up smoking a rock right in front of the ram which caused a large cloud of dust to engulf the ram but he didn't budge. My body made the adjustment this time and I smoked the ram and he rolled about 5 yards and stopped in his final resting place.
We took our time and enjoyed the finality of the moment. I called my wife and let her know I had gotten my ram. I took some pictures and video and then we packed up and made our way up to the ram. Really special moment to walk up to an animal and really get to study a ram for the first time. The head was just so heavy. I still hold it and amazed at how much that head weighs.
We then had a full on photoshoot followed by breaking down the animal. My guide was great and carried the meat I had my gun and the head/cape. My pack had some issues and we had to stop to fix it. At this point it was getting dark and my headlight battery was dying quickly. I let my guide lead and tried to use his light but this eventually ended with my faceplanting but managing to get my hands down first. I couldn't move, had to have my guide come take my pack off and then we readjusted and began again.
My guide casually asked if my cellphone had a light. I had to laugh at not thinking about this from the get go. With 30% battery my phone light got me off the mountain.
I remember how nice it felt to get to the river bottom. Then how nice it was to see the side by side. Here is my advice for the next guy, you don't need a spotting scope, bring your trekking poles and make sure you have a headlamp!
We had a 2 hour ride back to the truck and then a quick stop at a taxidermist buddy of my guides who was nice enough to cut the hide off of the head so I could freeze it for the flight home. Amazing to walk in a taxidermists office in NV and see all of the sheep, elk & mule deer! I'm used to exotics and whitetails.
That night I deboned and froze the meet. I put it in my Yeti soft side in the morning and made my way to the office to check my ram in. Really cool to see how excited everyone is for me and to take their data and measure him. After this I was off to walmart to get a tote, bubble wrap and gorilla tape. Got the head, hide and a deadhead in a top all wrapped up and the hide in my Yeti off to the airport.
Everything made it home and I got to see the look on my sons face when I pulled the ram out of tote that night. Priceless! Amazing opportunity and experience. Great group of guides to spend time in the mountains with. When you get lucky enough to draw a sheep tag it is very cool to share that experience with people who know a lot about sheep and can teach you a thing or two.
Thank you everyone who followed along with the journey. I hope one of you guys will be the lucky one this year!
jpc01101
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jan 14, 2021
- Messages
- 561
Thanks for taking us along for the ride. Sounds like you ended the experience in a good place and got a dandy ram! You going full body mount?
Thank you.
No way on the full body. That's too rich for my blood. I'm waiting for a free weekend to euro the ram for now. Need to save up for a shoulder mount!
Besides, you have another sheep hunt to take next year....
Lol. I still can't belive the luck.
One really cool thing is how much other hunters and guides root for you with sheep. Everyone wants you to be successful. Guides i didn't pick checked on me throughout this hunt and were very excited when I killed.
We have a great community.
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