Rookie needs advice

[Bigbob]

I'm taking the plunge and going sheep hunting in the NWT in the beginning of August. I've never done any kind of backpack hunt before and I don't have people in my circle that have either, so I need some help and advice from people with experience.

Boots- I decided to go the custom route and try the Lanthrop and sons. The measuring kit should be here next week. Hoping this is the best route to take?

Gun- I have a 7mm Rem 700 long range with a 5x20 scope. I love this gun and it shoots great, with no wind I have full confidence out to ~600 yards. The problem is that it is huge and heavy. Not sure if I would be crazy to pack that big thing for this hunt, but I know when it comes time to make a shot I will have full confidence in that gun.

clothing- did some buying on Black Friday/cyber Monday and got the Sitka thunderhead jacket and pant (for rain gear and wearing). Kuiu pro down jacket (black). Kuiu attack pant. Kuiu stalker 500 back pack. What else if anything do I need?

optics- have swaro 10x42 el range and swaro stx with 65 and 95 objectives. Need a Bino harness, thinking KUIU pro. Not sure if I should bring spotter with big or small objective or not bring it at all?

pack- don't have one, thinking Kuiu pro series, not sure what size. Open to suggestions. I will need a sleeping bag and pad too

luggage- not sure what to do here, would like to bring Sheep and possibly caribou (if I get one) back with me if possible.
I have some things I need to get bought and obviously want to be as cost efficient as possible.

I'm open to any and all advice and suggestions so please share what you know o
and feel free to ask any other questions.

 

[littlebighorn]

Merry Christmas BigBob! An NWT Sheep hunt is as good of a present as I can think of!

Your outfitter should give you a packet with good info on your questions, but here's my take.
My first advice is get yourself in as good of shape as humanly possible! My son and I went to the NWT 9 years ago and I thought I was fit, but the first few days physically kicked my butt! Train with a loaded pack (after you've worked up to it) and put 50-60lbs in in by the end. (That's what we were carrying on moving days.)

You're on the right track with boots. I have really weird wide short feet and Lathrops were great at getting me set up with boots that worked.

Because of weight, I went with a light rifle. (300WSM) A few pounds make a big difference when hefting a heavy pack every day. If you have an option, I'd find something lighter. You do need to be able to shoot, but you can usually get within reasonable range of sheep. The guide will usually need to get you in close enough for him to age the ram anyway. (We took Kifaru gun bearer attachments for quick access to our rifles in grizzly country.

Your optics sound good. Take your lighter spotter with you, in case your guide doesn't have a good one. Most of them will have a good scope, and if so you can leave yours in base camp. Again it's just one less thing to weigh you down. White sheep are not hard to spot and it's the guide's job to make sure you find one worthy of a bullet.

We used Mystery Ranch packs, but we have since gone to KUIU pro series because they are so much lighter. We have thermarest pads and down bags for weight reasons. (get waterproof compression bags to keep everything dry.)

We packed our packs with our stuff for luggage and put them in big duffles to protect them in baggage handling.

One other must for us is trekking poles. When packing that heavy they help you balance and once you get used to them you can pull yourself up the hill some and relieve stress on your legs.

PM me if you want more. I'm always happy to give an opinion.

Congratulations

 

[ddsflyfisher]

+1 for littlebighorn

Couple of suggestions- train, train, train... you don't want your hunt ruined because you couldn't physically hack it. I would suggest that a few weeks before you go, take your pack with all its gear and your rifle and do a 8-10 mile hike to cement in your mind you are ready. With that mental piece taken care of, the rest of the hunt will be a blast. Take merino wool if you can- it isn't a must, but it sure takes care of you.

Have a great hunt! Enjoy the process! It is going to be a challenge preparing, but keep working at it- it will be worth it!

Cheers- Dave

 

[MTShasta]

Bob,
The guys before me hit the nail right on the head, here is my 2 cents worth, learned the hard way:
Boots, Lathrop and Sons Mtn. Hunter are the best boots I have ever had. In fact I ordered a second pair so I would never be without them.
Rifle, shoot what you are comfortable with, lighter is better, but I found that I don't shoot extremely light rifles very well, my mtn rifles are a bit over 7 lbs.
Clothing, you are good with sitka and Kuiu, don't forget Merino long johns and socks.
Sleeping bag, I find the Kuiu bags to be too tight on my broken down old fat body. I like the Montbell down bags with built in stretch, 15 degree bags cover just about everything,
Spotting Scope, I always bring my Leica 65, but hardly ever use it unless it's better than the guide's. Let the guide carry the spotting scope, you need to go as light as possible
Pack, I just replaced my Kuiu Icon with a Kuiu Pro 6000 and really like it, the Kuiu quick release gun carrier works great, especially in grizzly country. I also like the Stone Glacier packs, but the rifle carrying system on Kuiu works better for me. the waist belt on the Kuiu Pro packs tightens up better too.
Next to your boots, TREKKING POLES ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT.
As far as bringing your trophies home, it is very hard to do it yourself. I always use a taxidermist/expediter to ship them. Be prepared for a financial screwing as it is the last chance they have to get in you wallet.
Hope this helps, If you think you are in good enough shape, you are not. There is no such thing as being in shape for the country sheep live in. That is why they can live there and we can't. Sending you my 2 cents has gotten me all excited for my upcoming sheep hunts in the Yukon this year and NWT next year.
Hope this helps.

 

[MTShasta]

Bob,
In my previous message I forgot to mention Gators. They protect your lower legs and boots in stream crossings, rock shale, brush, and snow. I like the OutDoor Research Crocodile gators. Mine are black, I think they might make a different color but I have never had a problem with the black ones.

 

[Bigbob]

Thanks, I will plan on trekking poles.

Weighed my rifle and it is 12 lbs. ouch

What is the best way to get the trophies home?

 

[MTShasta]

Before your hunt, contact your Outfitter about shipping your trophies home. He will most likely have a taxidermist/expediter he uses. If you only have a sheep and cape, it is possible to put it in a duffle bag and check it as excess baggage. But it is difficult to coordinate getting the horns plugged and lining up the export permit and make your flight at the same time. It's expensive, but easiest to use the expediter.
12 lbs is pretty heavy for a mountain hunt. I like to shoot a 12 lb.rifle, but like to carry one about 1/2 that much weight.

 

[littlebighorn]

I'd definitely look for a lighter rifle.

Transporting horns/cape: I know one guy that brought a big plastic tote with all his gear in it for luggage, and then put his horns and cape in the tote as extra baggage to ship home. you'd still want a duffle for your gear if you did that.

Caribou horns are tricky, especially if they are velvet covered and you want to keep the velvet. Normally they cut them in half to ship, but they used to have to be inspected by a taxidermist , dried etc. I don't know what the current law is, but as was mentioned your outfitter will know. All said and done, it is cheaper to have a Canadian taxidermist do your Caribou and ship the whole thing home than it is to bring it home and then have your local taxi do it. My outfitter had a Canadian taxidermist who did lots of Caribou for him and then shipped finish heads to the states.

 

[Bigbob]

A Canadian taxidermist sounds like the ticket but a life size sheep and caribou head would be one heck of package to ship.

 

[ddsflyfisher]

My two cents on light guns- I have looked at almost all makes, and aside from custom, the Browning Hell?s Canyon Speed rifles are pretty darn good. The gun is light, has a muzzle break, can take a beating, is ergonomic, and shoots nickel size groups with factory ammo- can't complain to much.

Cheers- Dave

 

[sticksender]

Best of luck on your hunt. NWT is a fantastic destination, which is why I'm doing my 4th trip up there in 2021 (Gana River this time). You have plenty of time to prepare, but as others have said, your physical condition can make or break the hunt. Hiking hills with a loaded pack year 'round is the way to go IMO.

As far as some of the other questions you asked, and assuming this is a backpack hunt, not a horseback hunt....

Sleep system....for August, a 20-degree Western Mountaineering bag with a good inflatable insulated pad would be my choice.

Backpack....Kifaru makes super quality packs, and a something in the 5000-6000 ci range should be plenty fine.

Optics....I carry quality binoculars and no spotting scope. Any sheep guide in the NWT will have a quality tripod and scope. I consider an extra scope a luxury item that is not needed....just more weight that can be saved. But that is up to you.

Tent....You might consider taking your own high-quality lightweight backpack tent. Just as a back-up in case the pack tents the outfitter has are not up to snuff. You can always leave your's at base camp if you find out they've got you covered.

Rifle....I cannot advise you here as I am strictly a bowhunter. But in my experience, it would be rare that you couldn't get to within at least 200-300 yards, with proper patience, of virtually any ram you find.

Luggage...recommend one of the big Cabelas waterproof duffles. With your rifle in a separate hard-case, you should easily be able to get everything else you're packing into the duffle. Your luggage might be sitting outdoors in the weather for a while, waiting for the bush flight, after off-loading at base camp, and etc, and waterproof is peace of mind for that. Other than your binos, camera, and other electronics that you can keep in your small carry-on backpack (either a Kifaru Door-gunner or Kifaru Quandary daypack would be a good choice).

BTW, you probably won't be allowed to take a hard gun case on your bush flight, so you might want to bring a soft case for your rifle, or just plan to hold onto it during the bush flight.

Boots...you're good to go with the Lathrops.

Clothes....don't take too much. One pair of hunting pants, two at most. Maybe a couple sets of base layer, and one insulated puffy mid-layer. One outer shell layer/jacket. If that's not rainproof, take some lightweight packable rain gear top and bottoms. Plenty of socks and briefs, as they don't take up much room. Ball cap, insulated beanie, good quality lightweight gloves.

Getting trophies home....for sheep, most of the outfitters make arrangements with the wildlife office in Norman Wells (if that's where you're flying through) to be available (even on a weekend when they'd otherwise be closed) when you arrive by bush plane, prior to your commercial flight out. Just plan for an overnight stay in Norman Wells, and there is usually enough time to get your horns plugged and the export paperwork done prior to flying out. Take one of the small fold-up duffles, and pack/cushion the horns and cape well in the duffle, then you can check it as a bag on your commercial flight. For Caribou, I'd probably leave it with the outfitter, if they offer that service, and they can arrange to have it sent to you via an expediter. Otherwise you can leave it with an expediter/shipper in Edmonton if that's your connecting city. Your outfitter can advise you on all of this.