2014 BC Goat/Elk Combo

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

I booked with Elk Valley Bighorn Outfitters out of Cranbrook, BC last winter. I've always been in good shape, but I took it to another level for this hunt and am glad I did, actually there were times I wished I had done more. Ran my first full marathon in May with a time of 3:20. At the beginning of August I was wearing my boots, hitting the stepmill and incline treadmill, and adding weights to my packpack almost weekly.

I live in Fargo, ND and the easiest/cheapest was to drive to Winnipeg, MB then fly to Calgary, AB then on to Cranbrook, BC. Everything went smooth and on the morning of October 7th, my guide picked me up at 7:30 and we were off to base camp, arriving at noon.

We went out to glass later that afternoon and I was pleasantly surprised at the number of goats we were seeing. I quit counting at 20. Day 2: My buddy that was with was hunting Bighorn Sheep and it would be his final sheep needed to complete his slam. We went with him and his guide for the day to help him find sheep. We did, but all very far away and/or not legal.

Day 3: My guide, Nathan, and I went for about a 10-11 mile hike, and again saw a lot of goats! They were either WAY too high to get to, weren't in a very stalkable location, or weren't big enough. They seem soooo much closer through the spotting scope!

Day 4: We again went sheep looking for my buddy. For the most part, the goats were't in the same area that we were looking for sheep. We also saw a few grizzlies on this hunt, today was a sow and a gorgeous blonde cub.

Gonna stop here for a bit to make sure the pics are uploading.....

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

Day 5: We spotted a nice goat in a stalkable position about 8:30am. He was 2-3 miles away, and 2,000-2,500 up. Nathan is 12 years younger than I am, in good shape, and experienced for his age. We clicked well together. At 1:00 we had made it to the top and were on the backside of the mountain. Circling back and peaking over we found the billy about 300 yards away. The wind was questionable, and he was bedded almost underneath an overhanging rock. We at one point were within 20 yards of him, but I couldn't see him due to where he was laying. He eventually heard or smelled us and moved out. Here he is a 30o yards. SOOOO close today!

*For some reason now it will only add one picture to a post.

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

This is a view from about where we started, just to the right of the fog is where we went up and over, then came around the top a little further to the right.

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

It was about 2:30 when we started the hike down. Nathan had never been this way before and it got nasty. We got hung up in cliffs, and the thick alders were relentless. Upon getting to the bottom Nathan said "Wow.....not many of my hunters would've made it down that, I would've been calling a helicopter for most of them." That made me feel good.......a few minutes later that changed. He was looking at me funny........then says "I am not kidding you right now, you have no arrows left!" I turned to look at my quiver......empty, gone, all of them. I had my bow strapped to my pack as you can see in this picture which was taken on the hike up that day, I couldn't see what was going on behind my and quite honestly there were times I didn't care as my safety became my major concern many times down that mountain. All I could do was laugh........something I will always remember from this hunt. No worries......I have more arrows back at camp.

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

Day 6: We were up early and were moving to a different camp. Elk Valley Bighorn has 7 different spike camps which was really nice. After about a 40 minute pickup ride, we unloaded the horses and rode in about 2 hours to spike camp. After getting situated Nathan and I headed out to do some scouting. After 7-8 more hours on the horses we returned to camp at dark. One of my biggest concerns that I talked about with the outfitter prior to going is how to carry my bow. He suggested a pack that I would strap my bow onto, which I had. The problem was while riding, the bow stuck up too high and caught up in branches.....A LOT! So I ended up putting it in the scabbard on the side of the horse........this wasn't much better as Gallute (my horse) decided that he would use the side that the scabbard was on as a wrecking ball against any tree that came within 2' of him. I can't tell you how many times that 800lb horse slammed my bow into a tree. My knee was bruised from it getting slammed into as it sat between the scabbard and the horse. This spike camp didn't have a target, plus we returned in the dark and left the next day in the dark so I couldn't double check the sights or anything else before we left early the next day........ Here is a pic of the spike camp.

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

Day 7: Shortly after getting enough light to see, we spotted a nice billy.....and yes, he was a long ways up. Here is a long range shot from where we started and where we needed to go. Can you see him?

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

Here is a spotting scope shot of him taken from the same place. From the previous picture, he is to the right of the tight group of pine trees that are right of the snow patch on the distant mountain.

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

2.5 hours later we are up there and on the other side of the ridge. We move, peak over, nothing. Move, peak over, nothing. Move, peak over, nothing. Move, peak over.......there he is, bedded and facing away at about 75 yards. I want to get down about 20 yards to a "level" shelf that is about 2'x2'. If I can get there, I will feel great about this. I will be in plain sight of the billy the whole way, but off I go. Halfway down, as I'm barely holding on to prevent a nasty slip of several feet, he looks up at me and I'm pegged. He stares for a while as I try not to move or fall to a painful rock below. Finally he looks away. I get to the shelf and range several times. 52 yards line of sight, 35 yards with the angle. Chip shot....at least I thought. He is still looking away and relaxed, but bedded. Nathan says to shoot him in his bed if I feel good. I stand, draw, anchor, tip, tip, tip some more until I find him in my sight. I feel like I'm gonna either fall off this cliff or shoot myself in the foot.....maybe both.
My pin is rock solid on him......the shot is off and I instantly knew I was low......really low. Too low to be "normal". The goat takes off and that is that, my heart sinks as I realize the dream I have had to take one of these amazing creatures just slipped away. It would be the ultimate to take one with a bow.....and I just blew my chance. I retrieved my arrow which is clean as a whistle, and the bhead is bend and dull from the rock or whatever it was it slammed into 3" into the dirt. The hike back down was again not so fun. It was painful cuz of what just happened, and it got nasty again. Upon reaching the bottom, I had lost another arrow.

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

My dream is still a dream.........but I am still in the game!

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

And the views are simply breathtaking!!!

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

We check out a view other basins but don't see a mature billy. We go back to camp a bit early and I pile up a bunch of dirt, get a paper plate from the cabin, range 40 yards and shoot the one bent bhead/arrow. It's a foot low. I shoot 3 more times, each time the shot felt perfect, each time it was a foot low and buried in the dirt without even touching the 8" plate. I spent an hour till it was too dark to see trying to get things back. One shot, walk to the target, pull the arrow, adjust, walk back. Shot one shot, pull the arrow, walk back. Over and over. As darkness overtook the valley.......I had one sharp/good arrow, one dull/bent arrow, and a bow that was not sighted in to where I wanted.........this sucks. I had brought 7 bradheads and arrows on this hunt. Never in my life did I think I would need that many. If I get 7 shots at a goat and miss them all, I don't deserve to get one. What I didn't factor in was this brutal country taking them from me in the form of stealing from my quiver. In hindsight I should have strapped them into the quiver better, but I didn't even think of it. Now 5 of them lay somewhere on mountainsides, cliffs, or waiving back and forth in an alder bush. The end of day 7 was a slap in the face...

My buddy and his guide got to within 175 yards of this ram. They looked at him for 2 hours.......in the end the determined him to be 1/4" too short and had to walk away. (Rams need to be full curl to be legal)

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

Day 8: We are up and on the horses before sunrise. We have a 3 hour ride to get to another place we want to check out and we want to be there at sunrise. The weather is now becoming an issue. The first 6-7 days were PERFECT. Almost too nice as the big billy's all seemed to be way up high as the weather had not forced them low with sun and 60-70 degree days. Well today was off an rain, wind, and temps in the 40's. At sunrise we spotted a a nice billy way up.....again. He was so high and the terrain looked so brutal and steep I could tell even Nathan didn't want to try for him. We decided to ride for another hour and if we didn't find any other billy's, we would come back and try for him.
This picture us not from Day 8, but I post it so you can see how far the bow stuck out from the horse. If I were to do this again, I would probably just go with a bow sling as on previous hunts while on horseback.

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

An hour further we spotted a BIG BILLY way up in the rock cliffs. He was the biggest we had seen in 7 days. As Nathan and I discussed going after him, I questioned the stalk. Nathan said "We can get to him, but it will be a rifle shot." Given I wasn't 100% comfortable with my banged up bow, and the fact that I was down to one arrow. All I said was, "That's fine, let's go." I set my bow on the ground by the horses, and slid the gun out of the scabbard. This wasn't just any gun, it was my Dad's gun. He was my hunting partner and my hero for the first 22 years of my life till God decided he needed him more and took him from us at the age of 48. I have used this gun before and it holds such a special place in my heart. Honestly, if felt good to throw in on my shoulder and start the hike up. Like Dad was with me........again.

2 hours later we are closing in. I wanted to get closer, Nathan thought the goat would bust us and take off. I wasn't aware how spooky goats can be when they see something below them. The day before as we stalked the goat, we had some bolt from over 700 yards away. We saw them bedded and when they took off I asked Nathan if they were spooking cuz of us, he said they were. I was amazed. On the other hand if you can come in from above, they don't seem alarmed much at all. I've been told that their predators usually don't come at them from above, which makes sense. We are at the very outer limits of what I feel comfortable with using a rifle, but to save the details of a rifle kill on a bowhunting forum, I will cut it short. As he lost his footing, he free fell about 100 feet, then continues to slide and roll another 250-300 yards down the mountain. He was pretty banged up when we found him, but nothing a taxidermist can't fix.
For YEARS I have dreamt of hunting these white beasts. And that's all it was and all I thought it would be.......a dream. It was a hunt I couldn't afford, but one I HAD to do. A hunt that I doubt I will ever be able to do again, it truly was one I considered a once in a lifetime hunt. A lot of you can understand and relate. As I walked up to that beat and broken up billy, I was in awe. The size, the hair, the horns, the hunt.......everything. The disapointment I felt just 24 hours earlier was nowhere near my mind. I was humbled.

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

We made quick work of the goat as the ever present thought of a grizzly was in our minds. As it turns out, a friend of Nathans was getting mauled by a grizzly not too far away on this same day. He lost a leg, but did survive after 4 surgery's. Always have someone on bear watch! Here is Nathan and I. Great guide!

Lien2 · Jan 19, 2015

We made it down and about an hour back. At dark we were at a public cabin along a lake where we decided to stay for the night. Day 9: The next morning it was 3 hours back to spike camp, 2 hours back to the road, truck and trailer, and 40 minutes to base camp. As we were leaving early that morning in the rain/snow and fog. I looked back towards where I had killed my goat. There was snow visible through the holes in the fog and I couldn't help but feel a huge sense of relief. Spotting goats would now be a nightmare, and I couldn't imagine trying to navigate those rocks with a slick layer of wet snow on them. The sound of leather rubbing together and the clippity clap of horseshoes on rocks was relaxing as we went down the trail. We spend the day unpacking and organizing, taking care of the goat hide, and relaxing. It had been a long few days with a lot of hiking and early mornings, it felt good to unwind a little. About mid afternoon Nathan and I decided to go out again and do a little glassing. I also had an elk tag...... Here is my buddy Dale (the sheep hunter) and I as we left the morning after I shot my goat.

I will finish this up tomorrow........

Lien2 · Jan 20, 2015

Days 10 and 11: Nathan and I got up early and climbed up mountains to get through the timber which would open up to "slides" the elk feed in. We never did see any elk, but there was a lot of sign. There is a 6 point rule here, so we are looking for a 6x6. We had only saw one in the first 11 days, that was back on day 4. I told Nathan I wanted to kill a goat first, or use up my entire hunt on goat hunting, the elk could wait. Now with my tag on a goat's horn, I was content, but I still had a few days to hunt so what better than to spend it elk hunting in this spectacular yet brutal country!

Day 12: We load up the horses and are on our way early again. After a 30 minute truck ride, we unload and head up on horseback. Up, and up, and up some more.....thank goodness for horses! We get to our glassing knob where we had planned to spend the day about 2 hours later, at about 10:30am. We did see a cow and 2 calf's about 6-700 yards away. We also spotted a bighorn ram about a mile and a half away. About noon we decided the ram needed a closer look. If it was legal, Dale and Mike could come in the next day and try for it. Tomorrow is the last day of our hunt. Under the rainbow is the area the ram was in......pot of gold maybe?

The hike over to check out the ram was brutal. 80% of the way was boulder fields and shale. We slipped, slid, and stumbled our way across. Ryan, the head guide for Elk Valley Bighorn was with us today and he is an animal. He literally could run across those rocks and not touch them. I was amazed...... 2 hours later we were within 3-400 yards of the ram....and he was too short. Dangit. We headed back to our knob, getting there about 4:30 and quite honestly, I was tired. A lot of miles and a lot of climbing the last 12 days......but it wasn't over yet! After reaching the top, I turned around to look back at where the cow and calf's were earlier in the day and immediately saw elk. They were across the valley we had just come up, but much higher on the mountain. Nathan got out his spotting scope and a few minutes later "Bull!" And he was a perfect LEGAL 6x6! With the sun starting to get low we had little time to lose.....we baled off that knob and were climbing up the other side of the valley within minutes. The climb up was harsh, my legs were heavy and my lungs were burning.

The area the elk were in an area mixed with spotty pine trees and brush, but open enough to spot them occasionally. We got to a good vantage point where we thought we were close and got set up. A few minutes later the wind swirled, and I mentioned to Nathan that it was at the back of our necks. Soon.....we say one cow go through an opening that was maybe 8' wide. Then another cow, then a calf, then the bull. He magically stopped perfectly in that little opening and looked back. Dad's trusty gun barked again. The elk ran up the mountain behind some trees about 30 yards, we could only see glimpses of him......a few seconds later we saw him fall and crash! The shot was perfect and he crashed hard! Here he is as we found him.

After cutting down several trees and rolling him out....here he is. My dream hunt that turned out beyond my wildest dreams!

We needed headlamps to load the meat onto the horses, it was dark, and we had a long way to go. I worried our headlamps would go out before we got out and we were on a trail that none of us had been on before.........miles from the truck and trailer. It amazes me how those horses and mules know there way back. 4 hours later, after what felt like miles of steep decline down the mountain, walking on river rocks, several river crossing that we just blew through in our boots......too tired to get on the horses or worry about getting wet, we were back. We were all beat. Between the hike to look at the bighorn, the hike back up to the elk, then the hike out, I hurt. It was a good hurt.......really good. We got to camp and were having supper about midnight. Here is Ryan, me, and Nathan after we reached the horse trailer about midnight.

I had a blast and can't say enough good about the trip!