# Stansbury Sheep Hunt - WOW!



## MWScott72

So last week someone on here had a question as to whether or not they should turn in or keep their Henry's bison tag due to work/family/whatever issues. My advice was to hunt it and figure things out from there.

Enter today at about 2pm...the DWR calls me and says that someone turned in their Stansbury Sheep tag and that the tag is mine if I want it. Talk about a bomb shell! You could have heard a pin drop, and I bet the woman thought we may have gotten disconnected or something. I'm still in shock, and my head is spinning. I'm 98% sure I'll take the tag, but without any previous scouting, I'm starting from ground zero with a week to go, weekends, and 3 days over the Thanksgiving holiday, plus a couple extra PTO days to hunt if needed. I did speak to one member of this forum last fall about the unit / hunt, but if anyone else has useful info, I'm all ears. Feel free to PM me. 

I have until 4pm tomorrow to accept the tag. I intend to make that final decision by noon. Like I said, I'm 98% certain I take the tag, but would sure love to hear others thoughts or insights. B/t/w - I had 13 points going in. Max is 17.


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## johnnycake

Do it!!!! I seem to recall a guy or two in here who knows that unit incredibly well... Wish I could help but I know diddly squat about the area! I still want pics though!


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## middlefork

johnnycake said:


> Do it!!!! I seem to recall a guy or two in here who knows that unit incredibly well... Wish I could help but I know diddly squat about the area! I still want pics though!


+1 Get after it._O\\


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## Shaunlarsen'sgirlfriend

Shaun knows the unit very well. He said absolutely take it. If you want, I'll PM you his phone number and you can ask him any questions and he said he will give you info on where he's found sheep before


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## Fowlmouth

Take the tag!
I'm sure Katorade, Shaun L. or Ridgetop can help you out. I can also tell you what I know.


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## Clarq

Best wishes with the decision (and hopefully the hunt). What an opportunity!


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## 3arabians

Woo hoo!! Dude that is awesome congrats!! I wish I could help personally (never hunted out there at all) but I do happen to have a buddy who has a buddy that pretty much does all of his hunting out there. I will start hitting him up for info and you know I have your back with the horse factor if needed. Turning out to be quite the year for you...


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## Wes

TAKE THE TAG
With the scarcity of sheep tags you may never draw another one. I live at the base of the Stansburry's and can show you where the sheep are .
Good luck
Wes


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## MWScott72

Thanks for the positive reinforcement and offers to help where possible...keep it coming!!!


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## ridgetop

Got your PM. Take the tag. We'll talk later.


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## Spotandstock

I was just out that way deer hunting and ran into about a group of 13. Take the tag.


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## DoubleWhammy

Is this the same as the new Founland hunt? I have a close family member with a late tag there and we could really use some help with the area. We've scouted a little on the north end but haven't had a ton of luck. Is there anyone that knows the area that could possibly share some knowledge? We would like to take camp trailers but aren't sure the north end would be the greatest to get them in and out.


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## Kwalk3

DoubleWhammy said:


> Is this the same as the new Founland hunt? I have a close family member with a late tag there and we could really use some help with the area. We've scouted a little on the north end but haven't had a ton of luck. Is there anyone that knows the area that could possibly share some knowledge? We would like to take camp trailers but aren't sure the north end would be the greatest to get them in and out.


Different area I believe.


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## 3arabians

Different country I believe.


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## 300 Wby

Take the tag!!!!! I am positive folks that know the unit will step up and provide assistance.


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## Bob L.

I say don't be 98%, I say be 105% in!
Do it, do it.
Congrats


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## doublehaul

I've seen many sheep out there- I'd take it.


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## devobrodie

Congrats! Seems like you have good offers of help, enjoy for the rest of us who will probably never live long enough to draw a sheep tag!!! My wife has been 1st alt and 2nd alt in CA for a Tule elk tag in the past 3 years, but we had no such luck, I was wondering if it was wrong to hope for someone else to have bad, bad luck so they would turn in the tag when they let us know (here they tell you and you have to send in a CC number in case someone forfeits the tag)


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## goofy elk

Christmas, 2 months early!


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## longbow

YOU LUCKY BASTAGE!!!!! I'd jump all over that. There's some A#1 guys on here that I bet are aching to help you out. Keep us posted and good luck.


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## Vanilla

How is this even a question? The OIL hunts are more like a 'never in a lifetime' hunt for most of us. If you decline the tag, I'm sure the next guy will be grateful for that poor decision. 

Only way I would even think about considering declining this is if I had max points. Even 1 less than max and I'm hunting, even if they call me the day before the season starts.


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## martymcfly73

With an offer from THE Shaun Larsen you are GOLDEN!


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## Shaunlarsen'sgirlfriend

martymcfly73 said:


> With an offer from THE Shaun Larsen you are GOLDEN!


I didn't see you offering to help with your infinite wisdom that you so evidently have... He knows the unit, knows where the sheep are and offered to help. other than a chitty comment, what have you contributed to this aside from that fact that you are trying to hi jack this thread and turn it into another war?


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## martymcfly73

Shaunlarsen'sgirlfriend said:


> I didn't see you offering to help with your infinite wisdom that you so evidently have... He knows the unit, knows where the sheep are and offered to help. other than a chitty comment, what have you contributed to this aside from that fact that you are trying to hi jack this thread and turn it into another war?


It was a compliment. But I'm sure with the chip on your shoulder you can't see past that. Carry on. I'm sure you two make a cute couple.


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## MWScott72

Tag paid for and in the mail - time to go sheep hunting! I'll make sure and put up pics and story lines as the hunt progresses. Thanks to all that have offered encouragement, information, and help. I'm sure will be returned in spades!!


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## Shaunlarsen'sgirlfriend

martymcfly73 said:


> It was a compliment. But I'm sure with the chip on your shoulder you can't see past that. Carry on. I'm sure you two make a cute couple.


The only one with a chip on your shoulder so far in this is you. Grow up and act like the adult you claim to be


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## martymcfly73

Meow!


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## Shaunlarsen'sgirlfriend

martymcfly73 said:


> Meow!


My point exactly


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## Packout

So glad you took the tag. Ridge will be the best asset you could hope for.

I can also show you how to get a free sheep mount. PM me if you are interested.....


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## MWScott72

Well, 10 days into the hunt and there is still a living, breathing ram walking around out there that doesn't know that time is short. Work obligations have only allowed for Saturday hunts to this point, and more of the same is in line for this Saturday. However, after this Sat., if there isn't a ram on the ground with a hole behind his shoulder, the gloves are coming off and significantly more time will be put in to the hunt.

Up to this point, I don't think you could ask for much better. The weather has been great on the days out, there have been multiple rams (albeit younger ones) in range, an old ram has been spotted, and Ridgetop and Katorade have put up significant time with me on the hunt just showing me around (for which I am VERY grateful). The experience has been wonderful, and I'm actually kind of glad that it didn't end at 8am on opening day - especially since it took 14 years to draw the tag and I won't ever get to draw it again. Might as well soak in the experience!

This past Saturday was a bruising one. We went up high, hiked roughly 10 miles (through some really stark and STEEP country), and probably came within a hour or so of shooting a ram that was likely one of the original transplants from Antelope Island. The mountain was just too d*mn steep and unforgiving to allow us to get into position before he exited the scene - of course leaving his younger buddy at 400 yds to taunt / make fun of us. There were several times that afternoon where the mountain was getting the better of me (thank goodness I had plenty of water and food), and I had the thought several times of "how in the world do these animals make it up here". That thought really crystallized when, attempting to negotiate around some cliffy stuff, I realized that if I slipped off of the 3 foot wide trail, there was going to be a 100 foot tumble that I would likely not wake up from after landing. That's a sobering thought if ever there was one!:shock:

So, here are a few more photos. Had 3 or 4 younger rams in range during the day. Distances can be deceiving when looking down or across the canyon on the animals. What looks like a really long shot may only turn out to be 200-300 yards on the horizontal.


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## LostLouisianian

Just contact Shaun Larsens whole family they will take you and put you on the biggest sheep out there ;-)


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## utahgolf

looks like some dandy chukar country!


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## Vanilla

You just wouldn't realize that area would be so rugged like that. Those are great pictures for a little perspective. Really cool stuff! 

It's awesome you took this tag and are giving it a go. It's even more awesome that members on here are helping you out like this. Great work all around guys! 

Please keep sharing. These are the threads that I will always look forward to and keep coming back for. Hopefully you find the ram you're looking for.


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## ridgetop

Here's a couple scenery shots from last weeks adventure.
First one shows the cliff on the left side that had a 3' ledge that we crossed on, that was exciting.
Second pic. was just as we were beginning to hike the 2 hours back to the trucks, what a great way to end the day.


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## Dunkem

Wow, quite a hike!! Pretty country.


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## rockroller

Rugged country,nice photos


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## utahgolf

ridgetop said:


> Here's a couple scenery shots from last weeks adventure.
> First one shows the cliff on the left side that had a 3' ledge that we crossed on, that was exciting.
> Second pic. was just as we were beginning to hike the 2 hours back to the trucks, what a great way to end the day.


That pic on the right looks like mars or something. Great shot!


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## MWScott72

And here is the weekly update...

Another Saturday, lots of sheep, still trying to get in on a "big" one. This weekend's action actually started on Friday afternoon. I was finally able to get away from work for a couple hours of spotting on the mountain. The first two hunts were primarily on the west side of the Stansburys. This weekend, glassing was concentrated mostly on the eastern side of the mountain. We weren't to be disappointed - lots of sheep, and some rutting activity. Unfortunately, we weren't able to bed a big ram before I had to leave right before dark to get back to West Jordan for a previously planned date night with my wife. I know...priorities, priorities. It seems there are many of those these days!

Anticipation was high on Saturday morning. There were a couple other good folks that knew the mountain and that were on board to glass. Plus, my regular hunting buddy Josh was able to break away for the day. Whenever Josh is around, good things usually happen. Needless to say, I was excited for the day's prospects.

We split up and Ridgetop and a friend hit the west side of the range while Josh and I, along with a couple other Grantsville regulars hit the east side of the range with glass. I'm starting to believe that everyone in Grantsville watches these sheep as several other people stopped by and broke out spotting scopes or just wanted to talk and share their knowledge during the day. The sun came up, and we were immediately into sheep. Unfortunately, only ewes and younger rams were lower although a couple of those rams will make someone happy in a couple years!

Finally around 8am we saw a good 160s ram high up in the cliffs. This guy was moving quite a bit, so we decided to try and keep tabs on him in hopes the he would bed so we could make a move. This ram was with a younger ram, so over the next hour and a half...maybe 2 hours, we tried to keep tabs on the ram. Long story short, how do four guys with spotting scopes on one animal lose track of him? That's exactly what happened though. We thought we were on the big ram, but when he popped up out of a chute, suddenly he was the younger ram. Dang thing gave us the slip!! Well, at least there wasn't going to need to be any canyoneering...always a silver lining somewhere! 

Action tailed off around 11am and stayed slow through about 3pm. Hazy conditions set in and it got harder and harder to glass up into the canyons; however, about 3 pm, one of our group spotted three rams fairly low in one of the canyons. Having to be back in Salt Lake for my daughter's 10th birthday, and Josh having his daughter's birthday as well, we were under strict orders to not be home later than 5pm (just some background, Josh and I are always late when it comes to hunting.). We wanted to get a better look at the rams though, so Josh and I headed up the canyon with the others spotting from the bottom. So as not to burn all the goodwill with our wives, I told Josh "You are not letting me shoot this ram unless he is a complete monster". So, up the canyon we go. After 30 minutes of climbing, we were able to pop up on the ram and his group which had grown to two other smaller rams and 2 ewes. Unsurprisingly, after hunting 3.5 days, a 7-year old, 150ish ram looks pretty good...especially when looking at him through a spotting scope at 200 yards! We took some photos and video and just soaked up the moment, but before long, Josh told me "hey man, it's 4pm - we'd better make tracks", so down the mountain we went. After a quick goodbye to our help, we hit the road and made it back home by 5:10. I think both of our wives were impressed!!

So, the hunt continues. Now it gets a bit more serious. No longer just Saturdays or an hour or two after work. Vacation days will be burned. Hoping we get some snow to drive some of the sheep down lower, but if not, we'll climb up to get to them. Here are some of the better spotter photos. 1st is of a good, not great 140-150ish ram. 2nd is of the bigger ram (sorry, even with a Swaro 1.5-2 miles away doesn't allow for a ton of detail), 3rd is of another ram (closer but still a mile away), and the last photos are of the "end of day ram" - another 150ish ram.


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## MWScott72

One last photo the uploader didn't catch for some reason...


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## ridgetop

Here's a common sight this time of year on the North end of the Stansburys.


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## DallanC

ridgetop said:


> Here's a common sight this time of year on the North end of the Stansburys.


Should relink that picture every time someone asks if they should get a "angled or straight" spotting scope hehe.

-DallanC


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## CPAjeff

Awesome animals! I think it is really neat that you are updating this thread as the hunt progresses. Good luck!


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## MWScott72

I am sore this morning. The last two days have been a hiker's paradise. I really believe that I've seen some of the most rugged territory that Utah has to offer, and never would have believed that the Stansbury's would have provided that. So many times in life, we pass by things and don't give them a second glance. This has always been the case with the Stansbury's. I'd look at them out my window as I was driving past them on I-80 never giving them a second glance. Now, towards the end of this sheep hunt, my opinion has completely changed of this range and the sheep that it holds.

Having just finished my 4th weekend hunting, I've come to the realization, that pretty much anyone can kill a sheep if they have the tag in hand. If you want a bigger, mature ram though, you either have to get really lucky or put in a crap load of time behind the glass to find one and then hike your tail off in some of the roughest country on earth to try and put it down. So far, luck has not shined on me (at least in the sense of getting to hold a rams horns in my hands, but I did get the tag, right?), but there has been a ton of glassing and hiking trying to catch up with the big guys. I thought that I was becoming more patient as I get older, but with sheep, it seems (at least in my own case) that you better have the patience of Job. So it was this weekend.

Friday found me on the east side of the range looking up into a canyon that has held several nice sheep during the hunt. As luck would have it, a good ram was spotted below a band of cliffs, and he, along with 6-7 of his closest buddies, was hounding a hot ewe. These ewes bounce all over the mountain, and this one was no different. She finally tired of running for her life and slowed down with the sheep tucked into a fold in the cliffs. Now was my chance! All I had to do was climb umpteen thousand feet, come around on top, and shoot down on them and the ram would be mine. Yeah, best laid plans! The climb just to their level was 1.5 hours, and the peak that I was going to circle to get above them turned out to be a cliff that a mountain goat would fear. So, cliffed out, I backtracked to a saddle on line with the sheep, and found a sheep trail into the basin. 100 yards into the stalk, I see a white butt 50 yards below me. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a younger ram that proceeded to bed 75 yds from me...so the stalk continued. Into another saddle, another peak to circle to get above the sheep...again cliffed out!! I thought then, if the sheep are still below me, I'll just work down through the ledges and get to the top of the cliffs they are in and still shoot down on them, so working down the ledges I get to where the sheep were (4 hours ago now), and of course they are gone, I again get cliffed out, and have to climb back up and circle back around the way I'd come in. I decide to go out the middle of the canyon, and in so doing run into several more younger rams, but nothing to pull the trigger on. Needless to say, I was SORE that night!!

So round two on Saturday morning finds me and 3 of my new closest friends on the west side of the range. All of us are seeing sheep, but again, no real shooters. That changes at 9am when I get a call that a good ram has been located and he's in a great spot for a fairly easy stalk. Hallelujah!! All four of us converge on the area, and it does look like an easy 1,000 yard hike across the flats, about 300 yds of moderate climb to get to a bench, and a 300-400 yd shot into the canyon, and the ram will be mine. Again, best laid plans. I think these sheep have a 6th sense. There was a scout troop in the flats making all sorts of ruckus, and the sheep could have cared less, but about the time we started the stalk, they turned tail and started heading up the mountain. What turned into an easy hour or two stalk, became a day long march trying to catch up with them. About four hours into the hike, we finally caught them, but only a small ram and a few of the ewes shot over a ridge 250 yds out with no shooter. Then a second respectable ram popped up and gave us a 325 yd shot across the canyon. Hope I don't regret it, because I was a hair's breath of pulling the trigger. It was a very respectable ram in the low 150s...had it all except mass, but would look great on the wall. My hunting partner for the day Kade made the final deciding comment "it is OIL, are you sure you want to shoot him?" With that, we watched him go over the hill. That ram doesn't know how lucky he is. If he were smart, he'd send Kade a Christmas present! 

By this time, the day is running long, and we don't have too much time to go further. The decision is made to hike over to the ridge the sheep just crested and see what's on the other side. We reach the ridge about 2pm and start glassing down into a hellacious canyon (I believe they call it Hell's Kitchen or something like that to the locals) and it is nothing short of hell incarnate. We have to tell ourselves to stop glassing across the canyon because there is no way we can pull an animal out of there and hike out safely in the dark. Well, again, best laid plans. Kade spots a ram...300 yds and 500 vertical feet below us. He's not a shooter, but pretty close when all of a sudden another 3 rams and 2 ewes pop up and the big boy is with them! Unfortunately, they get spooky and go behind the toe of a ridge leaving a small ram and ewe as sentries! Kade and I talk it over and think that we could easily get above them for a shot by working to the NEXT ridge (further from the truck of course), but time is running short. If I shoot that ram, we won't get to him until an hour or so before dark, pics and boning will take a couple hours, and we'll be stuck hoofing full loads up a snowy slope in the dark just to get where we are at the moment and then have another 3 miles in the dark thru ledges and numerous ankle breakers to get out. As much as we didn't want to, the decision was made to leave the sheep. No animal is worth putting yourself or others in danger. So, with that, we turned around and headed back out the way we came making it back to the truck about 40 minutes before dark. The hike out was hard enough in the daylight with light packs. Can't imagine what it would have been with 75-80 lbs on our backs.

So, if you draw a tag and want to kill a good ram, this is what you can expect. I know there are exceptions, but that has not been the case for my hunt. Now, I'm down to my last weekend, and while I'd absolutely love to put the hammer down on a 160" ram, my standards are lower going into the Thanksgiving holiday. Just need to find one of the up and comers that will look good on the wall. Would love to find that 8+ year ram, and it could still happen, but I won't hesitate too much on a sub-150 if he looks good.

This hunt has been one of the best I could ask for. I've met some of the best and generous folks off this forum as well that have shared their time and experience. It's made the experience that much more special. Got to be honest that with the hunt closing in a week, some nervousness has set in, but have to just keeping on. Can't shoot a big one if you shoot a small one...I'm hoping that lady luck will shine on me over the Thanksgiving weekend.

Ok... first could photos are terrain shots. Next is a curious, young ram looking down on me at 50 yds while hiking up Friday. 4th is a selfie...hate'em but when you don't have much time, beats setting up a tripod and camera. Kade's behind the glass. Next is a high 140s ram from Fri. Could have killed him 3 times that day under 200 yds. Last sheep pic is of the group we chased Saturday. Big ram in the middle. Last is another scenery shot. Rugged country!!


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## Blackie6

Favorite story to follow! As I will be hunting sheep next year with my wife's grandpa, gets me very excited. Keep looking foward to your success!


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## ridgetop

I ran out there Friday afternoon and took this picture as Mike was all ledged up looking for that bigger ram.
At the time, I didn't want to rub it in and tell him that there were 12 sheep with 4 or 5 rams feeding 50 yards from his truck.:mrgreen:
In the picture, you can see one young ram straight below his truck and the others off to the right.
Those sheep can be very rude!:-?


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## MWScott72

Those buggars! Guess I'm doing things the hard way. Just need to drive to the end of the road and wait them out!


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## ridgetop

MWScott72 said:


> Those buggars! Guess I'm doing things the hard way. Just need to drive to the end of the road and wait them out!


Maybe we can market a "truck blind".


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## ridgetop

We are starting to see a lot more up and coming blonde rams than ever before.
They all seem to have a more of a flared out look to the too.


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## MN Hunter

Thank you for continuously updating us on how things are going! It's been great to at least live my sheep hunting dream vicariously. I hope you have a great final weekend!


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## Clarq

Let me just echo what MN Hunter said. Since vicarious sheep hunting is the best I'll be able to do for at least the next decade, I really appreciate it. I wish I could offer the help and experience that other fine folks on this forum have offered, but I can't. 

All I can offer you are my best wishes as you enter your final week. Make it count, and most importantly, make it fun. Make sure that when all is said and done, you have no regrets.


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## AF CYN

It sounds like you've put in enough work and had enough great experiences that any decent ram is going to be a real trophy that will capture the essence of this experience. That said, I hope you smoke a monster. 

Don't let the stress get to you. Stay loose and have fun. 8)


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## katorade

I'm gonna chime in and add a few photos from this adventure, and say Mike is going to shoot a really nice Cali, this weekend!

Always on the move









Koby & Mike in the Skyline, searching for a Ram that gave us the slip


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## ridgetop

AF CYN said:


> It sounds like you've put in enough work and had enough great experiences that any decent ram is going to be a real trophy that will capture the essence of this experience. That said, I hope you smoke a monster.
> 
> Don't let the stress get to you. Stay loose and have fun. 8)


I know Mike has worked really hard to shoot an older ram, which really needs to be done.
It has nothing to do with what a rams scores but how old a ram is.
Anyone with a sheep tag should not kill a ram younger than 10 if at all possible but far too many hunters are killing younger rams on the first or second day.
All that does is give an older ram a higher chance of dying of old age and taking away that younger rams ability to get older for another hunter to kill down the road.
It's like killing two rams with one tag, when younger ones are taken.
I know Mike will kill the oldest ram that he possibly can during the last couple days of the season, even if its not the oldest.


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## Clarq

I must say, the suspense is killing me here. Any updates? 

If you're hunting tomorrow, good luck.


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## ridgetop

The party is officially over.;-)


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## DallanC

-DallanC


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## LostLouisianian

DallanC said:


> -DallanC


GPS coordinates or it didn't happen....


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## MWScott72

Ridge is right. We got it done Saturday afternoon about 3pm...whew - just under the gun! Wasn't able to put down one of the bigger rams, but got a nice representative ram with a DARK chocolate coat. Been crazy busy the past day and a half, but I'll update the story and load pics tonight.


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## MWScott72

Sorry LL - no GPS coordinates, but if you ever draw the tag, I'd love to help out


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## MWScott72

Well the hunt has finally come to a close. I've got to admit, it was pretty nerve wracking after not getting a ram the weekend before Thanksgiving break. Thoughts of "this is a 100 percent success unit, and you still haven't tagged out...what's the matter with you?" started to float around in my brain. Having only 3.5 days to hunt during and after the break can and did add a certain amount of urgency to the situation. 

Thanksgiving morning dawned cool and crisp...a decided difference from the prior week's hunts. I only had the morning to hunt and since I was alone that day, I decided to do a lot of glassing and moving along the base of the west side of the range to try and turn up a decent ram. Unfortunately, Thanksgiving was the day I saw the absolute fewest sheep during the entire hunt. By 11am, I had only spotted two ewes and a young ram...and this after looking over 4-5 canyons that had held plenty of sheep previously. Knowing the rut was winding down, I started to wonder if the sheep were changing their patterns...and all this with only 3 more days to hunt. I did spot two rams on the way out well north of where we had seen most of the sheep, so it was decided to concentrate in this area the following morning.

This photo is the view I had of the Skull Valley Thanksgiving morning. Absolutely beautiful.


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## AF CYN

Congrats! I'm sure you must feel relieved. Can't wait to see pics!


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## MWScott72

Friday morning found Koby (Ridgetop), 3 Arabians (Jake) and his twin brother, Ty, and Rick Ellison and his son Spencer pounding the west side of the Stansburys with glass as soon as the sun came up. We were spread out along about 5 miles of the mountain, and surprisingly (to me), guys were seeing sheep in canyons that were void of animals the day before. It is amazing to me how Ty, for example, could pick out sheep miles away, and at times I couldn't see them when they were right in front of me. Maybe the sheep had been there the day before, and I'd just missed them. :-?

About 8:00 a really good ram was spotted, and it was time to try and keep tabs on him in hopes that he would bed in a spot that 1) we could get to and 2) that he would stay in. This ram had it all! He was a lighter color on his back and flanks and dark along the base of his flanks and belly. We estimated that he was in the 160s range with great length and mass, and he had a nice, wide curl that flared out slightly. I can still see this ram standing on the ridge in the morning sun three miles away with his breath coming and going through the spotting scope. It was a surreal moment.

The problem was that he was a good hour or hour and a half climb up the mountain, and there was no way to know if he would stay bedded. You have to try right? Right before go time though, a strange noise is heard and, "you've got to be kidding me, the Division is doing helicopter surveys today?" What the...with that, sheep are running all over the mountain. This went on for a good hour and a half with the helicopter dipping into every nook and cranny of the mountain pushing out sheep. Amazingly enough, the big ram, his buddy almost as big ram, and a smaller ram, stayed put and bedded in almost the same spot from where they'd been spooked. 

Now it's finally go time. Koby and Ty would go up the mountain with me while the others stayed low to try and keep tabs on the rams. We made it up to the cliffs where we had decided to peek around, and sure enough, the rams are not there but a smallish ram is on their ridge and blocking our path. He's not going anywhere either and beds down at 256 yards, so we decide to try and go around and up over the cliffs. Nothing is ever as easy as it seems on this mountain range, and our quick detour around turns into a minor mountaineering challenge as we finally find a narrow chute up through the cliffs that the sheep have been using. Finally! All we have to do it get to the top of the chute and the rams will be bedded below us. Uh, not so. We get to the top and there are no sheep to be seen, but we are looking down into a large basin the locals call "Hells Kitchen" (surprisingly, the same place Katorade and I backed out of the weekend prior). There is a nice sheep trail about midway up the canyon and about 150 yards below us, so we decide to make our way down to the trail and keep pursuing. Once to the trail, I mention to Koby that we should check the ridge to the left just in case the rams are still bedded in one of the folds we can't see. At the same time, Ty goes right and around to the next ridge. I chose wrong! There are absolutely no rams to the right, but I get a phone call from Ty telling me he's go sheep 300 yards below him and there is a different BIG ram...HURRY!! With that Koby and I make our way over to Ty taking about 12-15 minutes to do so. By that time, for some reason known only to sheep, the group has decided to go up and over a chute across the canyon and now they're 565 yards away. Dang it!! Of course there was a second group of sheep at 315 yards that had 2 younger rams in it...maybe 6 year olds, and they looked really good at that moment. It was all I could do to sit there and look at them wondering why I wasn't going to shoot one of them. Koby and Ty probably heard the big, disgusted gasps of air coming out of me as I sat there and agonized about the situation. Only 2 days left to hunt, and for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to shoot one of those rams. I think Koby and Ty were just as disgusted - all we could do was wag our heads, shake our fists at the sheep and head off the mountain. We never did find out where that lighter colored ram disappeared to. It was like he was a ghost.

By this time, I wasn't taking many photographs. Too many things going through my mind to mess with the camera. I did take a few pics though. The first pick is of a couple sheep beds in that hellacious chute we climbed. Photos just don't do it justice. The second photo is of a cool cedar skeleton we passed by while attempting our stalk on the big, lighter colored ram.


----------



## MWScott72

Saturday morning was supposed to be like all the others. Sunny and dry with only a slight 15-20% chance of precipitation. I should have been a weather man What other profession can get it wrong 50% of the time, and no one seems to care (hope there aren't any meteorologists out there reading this :grin! It is snowing lightly at my home in West Jordan when I pull out of the driveway at 6am...and it doesn't stop snowing all the way to the Skull Valley turnoff. This morning our numbers are fewer. Koby had family business to attend to and Rick and his son were turned back by the weather. Jake had stuff to take care of as well, so it was just Ty, Kateorade (Kade), and Kade's friend Steve. The plan for the morning was to glass the canyon into which the big ram had gone into the evening before, but unfortunately, with all the snow and fog, visibility was extremely poor. It took awhile, but only a couple ewes and a young ram were spotted in the areas that we could see. The decision was made that Ty and I would hike up the canyon where we thought the sheep might be while Kade and Steve went south to glass several additional canyons to see if they could find anything. With that, we split up.

Ty and I slowly made our way up canyon only to be see barren hillsides. These sheep were hard enough to find without snow - now they're almost impossible to spot with the snow covering about 75 percent of everything. on our way up, we did spot two ewes and a young ram, but nothing to shoot. We made it up to a point where the canyon split, and finally saw another younger ram and a couple ewes up in the cliffs. Ah-hah! Now we've finally found the band from yesterday, but after circling down below the sheep, we only spotted another young ram and a ewe. Ty needed to head back to town at noon, so we decided to turn around and head out. Surprisingly, the younger ram with the two ewes had turned into a bigger 6.5 year old ram on the way out, and anxiety got the best of me. I wanted something for the wall, and I didn't want it to be a framed, unfilled tag! The ram was unconcerned with us at 260 yards and there were some ledges that would get us to within 150 yards. This was going to be a piece of cake, so Ty and I circle around and come up behind the ledges. The ram is still bedded, my gun is on the shooting sticks, and Ty is recording everything on his cell phone. I turned around and said "Are you ready? It's time to end this!" With that, I settled into the sticks, clicked off the safety and proceeded to MISS! I can't believe it! Ty is telling me to get another round in on him and the ram and two ewes are skyrocketing across and UP the canyon. This is not supposed to be how it goes! I'm chugging across the hillside trying to get a second shot and finally get a quick shot through the dead cedars, but the result is the same. I am absolutely crushed! All the practice and hard work only to miss at 150 yards! I just can't believe it, but Ty tells me he has it all on his camera. I tell him I don't want to see it. I then work around the ridge to try and cut off the sheep, but that is not happening. Ty works his way over to where the ram was bedded and confirms that my shot was high. I grazed the top of the rams back - a small chunk of flesh and a bunch of wooly hair confirms the obvious, but thankfully, that ram will be just fine. Slightly sore for a few days, but just fine.

This was the absolute lowest point of the hunt. I just kept replaying the shot in my mind and thinking that I might have just blown my only chance. Who knew what was going to happen - the weather was getting worse not better, and I was down to a day and a half of hunting to find and kill a ram.

We made it back to the truck and after saying goodbye to Ty, I started heading over to Kade and Steve. They had actually found several rams that had stayed bedded and were solid candidates to fill my tag. Not the bigger rams, but for the second to last day, they would definitely do just fine. The weather was getting even worse though, with constant snow and fog. Kade and I had the same thought though - if we could get in on the rams while the weather was bad, we could probably slip in undetected and get a shot during a lull - if one ever came. I got to Kade's location and he was thinking the same thing, so 5 minutes later we were hiking back up the mountain to try and get into position.

I've got to say, at this point, I was beat. The earlier hike, though not hard, had taken alot of the energy out of me. Now, with no rest, it was back up the mountain trying to keep up with a guy that was 20 years my junior. Not easy! I had to tell myself to just keep putting one foot in front of the other. We made it up to a glassing point and couldn't see the bedded ram. We moved up closer in the inclement weather and still couldn't see him. Then we busted a lamb out of the cliffs across the canyon and knew the obvious. The ram and ewe had slipped up the same chute that Kade and I had climbed a week prior, and there was no point in wasting more time. There were actually two rams across the canyon and over the ridge from us, so we decided to cross over and see if we could make it happen on one of them. With that, we are going back down the mountain only to go back up (a common theme during this hunt). Once we get around the ridge to the face, Kade again has cell reception (I had forgot my phone in the rush to get out) and started to talk to Steve. Steve could see the sheep but he couldn't see us. Steve even sent a photo from his spotting scope showing the location of the truck in relation to the sheep. After 15 minutes of this, it dawned on Kade that the sheep had to be right below us and they were moving up in our direction!! It was time to get out the gun, and no sooner had this happened when Kade said "there's a ram at 100 yards!" Of course, I couldn't see him. The lay of the ridge and me sitting down put the ram out of my line of sight. Somewhat anxious and frustrated but at the same time determined and focused, I moved north about 15 yards toward a ledge where Kade thought I would have a better vantage point...and then it happened!

As I'm standing there, a ram pops up above the ridge line and he's only at 50 yards. I see that he has a tight but even curl and that is all that I need to see - the only problem is that he is facing me straight on, knows we're there, and I don't want to take that shot - especially after the morning's mishap. The standoff continues for what seems an eternity (which was probably only 15-20 seconds) and then the ram turns to head back over the ridge and presents a somewhat steep quartering away shot. All I can think is "aim low" and then the crosshairs are low on his chest and behind the shoulder and gun just goes off. At the shot, I see the ram pitch forward in my scope, and I can't believe it! I'm pumping my fists in the air, Kade is jumping up and down on a rock 50 yards away (video camera in hand...I still haven't seen the video yet, but can't wait), and then it dawns on me that I'd better get up there and make sure he's done. As I walk up to the ram, it's apparent, he's not quite through. He's on his back with legs straight up in the air, but he's still moving around a bit when all of a sudden he rolls to his right and flips off of a 10 foot cliff. Crap!! When I get to the ridge, he is all tangled up in himself but does manage to get on his feet only to fall back down again. This I can't take, so as soon as he presents a good shot, a 2nd round goes into the boiler room at 40 yards which ends things.

Words cannot describe the emotions that were running through my mind at that point. Kade comes huffing down the ridge with his gear along with my pack as well and we just soak up the moment. Every few seconds, I look down to where the ram is lying and still can't believe that it's over. 8 days of hunting and 2 days before the end of the season and there is FINALLY a ram on the ground. It was like the weight of the world just got lifted from my shoulders. I know it's only hunting, but that OIL thing can and does put some pressure on a person - especially with an unfilled tag two days before the end of the season. You basically just won the lottery, but only if you follow through and do your part. 

To put a cap on this long, drawn out affair. Steve came huffing and puffing up the mountain to help with the pack out. Lots of photos were taken, and then the ram was full body caped (a first for all three of us), and we headed off the mountain. With 2 inches of snow on the ground and some steep terrain, it took some doing (all of us falling at one point or another), but we arrived at the truck around 8pm. And with that...

I can't thank those that came out and helped on this hunt. There were alot of people that took time from their schedules to help a guy out that most had never met before. A very special thank you goes out to Koby, Kade, and Ty. Without these guys and their help and knowledge of the unit, the hunt would have been ALOT different. Do I think that I would have gotten a ram? Yes, I think so, but their experience and knowledge of these sheep, helped me to appreciate the hunt so much more. After 14 years of putting in for the tag, I can honestly say that I couldn't have asked for a better hunt. There were lots of animals, great conversations, highs, lows, enough hiking to make me wonder why any sane person would do this, and some terrain negotiated that had me seriously questioning my sanity at times. In a word, this hunt was complete. I didn't end up taking the biggest ram on the mountain, but I got to chase them for an entire month. The experience was one not to be forgotten, and the fact that I actually was able to take a good representative ram is just icing on the cake.

OK, first couple photos are hiking in and looking for that bedded ram and ewe that gave us the slip. Third photo is the "trophy" photo. Kade is in the middle and Steve at right. Fourth photo is just a cool photo with he different perspectives, and the last photo is of the hike out in the dark with full loads and wide smiles!


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## MN Hunter

Beautiful ram! Thanks for sharing the story, I have thoroughly enjoyed following along!


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## ridgetop

Great recap Mike.
I'll post up a few more pictures of the hunt on Friday when I have more time tonight.
And yes, Ty Anderson is probably the best spotter I have ever seen.
I thought I was pretty good but he will humble anyone real quick.


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## Vanilla

This might be the best thread I've ever followed on a forum. Awesome work! Thanks for taking us along with you with your reports and pictures. And thanks to those that helped the hunter out. It's good to see that humanity is still awesome, despite what most the world would have us believe. 

This is just great all the way around! Congrats on your OIL trophy, and a true once in a life time experience.


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## 3arabians

Great story Mike and congrats again. It was great meeting all you guys on friday. I wish I could have got out A LOT more to help you but we had fun with the one day we got. That was a special hunt no doubt


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## CPAjeff

I echo what others have said, this has been an amazing thread, and my favorite of the year! Thanks for taking the time and effort to post up all the updates, and congrats on a wonderful hunt of a lifetime!


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## Buckfinder

Congrats, What a great hunt and result!!


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## mack1950

best post I have seen since I joined up in hear congratulations:grin: one a job well done


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## Dahlmer

Congratulations on your ram. You worked your guts out for it.


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## Clarq

Great story, and great ram. I would be very happy to have a full mount of him in my trophy room (if I had a trophy room, that is). Thanks for taking us along for the ride. Following your story has inspired many great dreams of my own eventual sheep hunting adventure(s). 8)


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## Billy3136

This has been a great story and read throughout your entire journey. I honestly believe you should package up all your posts (along with the pictures) from this thread and send it to Hunting Magazine or some other outdoor publication. It has been one of those great stories that most hunters would love to read. Great job and congratulations!


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## Packout

Pretty sweet how it all worked out and you killed a nice ram.


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## DallanC

Beautiful ram, amazing country.


-DallanC


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## littlebighorn

Congratulations Mike,
We are sorry we were not able to help out more, but we were relieved to hear you finally scored. You definitely made it an adventure, which is exactly what an OIAL hunt is supposed to be. Very good my friend


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## middlefork

One of the better stories for sure. I think a lot of people don't appreciate how much pressure comes with a OIL or LE tag. Good job on enjoying the hunt and getting it done in the end. Make sure to post up the mount.


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## katorade

I was able to spend 3 days down helping Mike find a Ram, and they were some of my favorite days in the field this fall. Here's a few pictures, and the last one is a video screenshot right before the kill shot, I'll have to work on the video in the next few days. Thanks Mike for letting me come along and you definitely earned your Ram.

When my friend Steven, got up to us. Mike started giving him the rundown of what happened, he even acted out the Rams last tumble, and I was able to Sneak a few pictures of him doing so.


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## MWScott72

Man, that is cool Kade! Seeing that screenshot just brought it all back home. Can't wait to see the video. Can't believe I forgot to ask to see it before we all parted ways on Saturday.


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## wyogoob

"WOW!" is right.

Congratulations on a beautiful sheep and thanks for sharing. 

What great story!


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## Vanilla

I want to see the video! 

Please share when it's done. Pretty please!


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## ridgetop

Here's a bad picture of the ram we went after on Friday from over a mile away.
Then of the chute/crevasse we went up on our stalk.
Looking down at Mike and then upward after he passed me. 
Also, here's some video of the bigger ram we bumped but didn't see it until it was out of range.
I wished that I would have zoomed back on the video to show how steep the cliff was that the sheep had just climbed.


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## Springville Shooter

Great to meet you MW. Awesome ram, awesome story. Thanks for the chance to hold that bad boy.-------SS


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## 3arabians

ridgetop said:


> Here's a bad picture of the ram we went after on Friday from over a mile away.
> Then of the chute/crevasse we went up on our stalk.
> Looking down at Mike and then upward after he passed me.
> Also, here's some video of the bigger ram we bumped but didn't see it until it was out of range.
> I wished that I would have zoomed back on the video to show how steep the cliff was that the sheep had just climbed.


That was cool watching you guys climb up that chute from my truck in the valley below. We watched you guys navigate those cliffs for a bit then my bro said to me "I think the only way up over that is through that chute" Ten minutes later you guys were headed up it.


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## rockroller

Congratulations great sheep,liked the play by play,and the photos you and ridgetop took.


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## MWScott72

Springville Shooter said:


> Great to meet you MW. Awesome ram, awesome story. Thanks for the chance to hold that bad boy.-------SS


Great to meet you too SS. Your daughter's bull is a stud! It seems this internet forum is a small world


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## Shunter

Congrats! Hunt of a lifetime 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk


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## coues52

Thank you guys for taking us along with your journey..congrats on a great Ram and hunt of a life time..Danny B


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## ridgetop

For a bonus.
I'll post up some video clips I took during the past couple weeks.
Here's some sheep Mike and Kade pushed over the top of their canyon into the one I was looking in. 
This was two weeks ago and not nearly as cold as it is now but you can still see the sheep's steamy breath. 
Like what Mike was saying about that ram on the ridge we went after on Friday.


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## littlebighorn

I tried to look at the video but it says it's private.


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## ridgetop

littlebighorn said:


> I tried to look at the video but it says it's private.


I just double checked it and it says public.
I even pulled it up on my phone.
Try checking it again Rick.
Anyone else having problems?


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## Bob L.

Congrats and great thread.


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## ridgetop

This next video clip is of the group of sheep that hung around a while after the big one went over the top on Friday. They final decided to head out too. That's when I decided to get some footage.
It's amazing how easy they make it look running over those slick rock slabs.


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## 3arabians

ridgetop said:


> This next video clip is of the group of sheep that hung around a while after the big one went over the top on Friday. They final decided to head out too. That's when I decided to get some footage.
> It's amazing how easy they make it look running over those slick rock slabs.


Man thats cool to watch. After tagging along on a sheep hunt with you guys I really wish I didnt commit to a moose for my OIL. Unfortunately, I think Im too many points in to back out now.


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## MWScott72

I can't believe you can't hear me huffing a puffing while watching those rams. I was so close to shooting that first ram that pops into the screen. The pressure was starting to get to me and I really wanted a ram...almost any ram. Glad I didn't!


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## ridgetop

MWScott72 said:


> I can't believe you can't hear me huffing a puffing while watching those rams. I was so close to shooting that first ram that pops into the screen. The pressure was starting to get to me and I really wanted a ram...almost any ram. Glad I didn't!


That's why I had the camera rolling.;-)


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## ridgetop

I think this ram would have been hard for you to pass on that last weekend too.
Beautiful cape. 
Maybe you should have killed this ram after all.
His "ram hood" was not aligned quite right. 
He might be suffering from pesticide poisoning.


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## ridgetop

I took this video within the first hour of Mike's hunt on opening day.





He could have easily taken one of these rams but instead wanted to try and take one of the older rams on the unit.
I commend Mike on his efforts.
Many hunters would have folded under the pressure much sooner.
I really respect Mike for giving his best efforts on his hunt.
I believe it made the whole experience much more rewarding for him and those helping out.


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## Redman82

Awesome!
Thanks for sharing everyone.


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## littlebighorn

Koby,
I figured out I was trying to view your video post at work where it won't let me access youtube. I've viewed all of them now. Thanks for posting. After looking at what you have posted we are thinking the ram we had spotted on Friday was as good or better than any of them. Too bad the UHP chopper booed him out of the country.

Anyway, a good time was had by all! :grin:


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## MWScott72

I have spent the last 3.5 hours processing my ram and cleaning up. It always amazes me what an animal shrinks down to in the end. I'm pretty meticulous, so there is a fair amount that gets tossed in the process, but what remains is primo. I usually don't hang my animals for a week and a half, and have to say that cutting all the hard, shrink meat on the outside was a chore and added to the loss of meat as well. Can't wait to give it a try.

The ram is in to Packout now so he can work his magic. We full body caped him on the mountain with the intention of possibly selling the cape and using the proceeds to buy a different cape and pay for the mount. However, after talking to Packout at his shop, I decided to just pay the money, keep the cape, and do a wall pedstal mount. He had such a deep chocolate color that I couldn't part with him! I'll put up some picks of the mount up once it's done in the spring.


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## ridgetop

Here's one last picture of Mike, just after we crossed a 24" wide ledge, with about a 50' drop below it.
The picture shows Mikes joy that we were still alive!!
What an amazing few weeks that was.
Mike, if I would have known the hunt would have lasted as long as it did, I would not have shared the story of my roommate falling to his death after loosing his balance on a narrow ledge like the one we had just crossed that he had been on many different times.:shock:
Then again, it was a good reminder to always be on our guard.
Thanks for the adventure.
Also, have you tried the meat yet?


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## Clarq

I would also be interested in hearing how wild mutton tastes.


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## MWScott72

Koby - I have not tried it yet but plan on grilling up some steaks this week. If it's like i've heard, it will be wonderful. Looking forward to it! What did you think of yours?

I honestly didn't think the hunt would go as long as it did, but that was my fault as much as any other. I've seen the video Kade shot the weekend before Thanksgiving, and the ram we let walk overy the ridge at 325 was a solid low 150s ram. I believe in any other situation I would have shot him but that OIL mindset and trying to find a "big" one sets in and skews your thoughts. At least we got to see a pile of sheep - I feel for those Henries buffalo hunters that hunt just as long and see zilch for buffs. That would be tough!

I'll have to post up the video of that 150s ram I "should" have shot. Then again, if i'd shot him then, there would have been no"sheep chute mountaineering" the following Friday. That was an experience for sure. Not quite as unsettling as the walk across that 24" ledge, but very cool in is own rite.


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## ridgetop

My sheep meat was great. My kids even liked it. 
Which is saying a lot.:mrgreen:


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## Bow hunter mojo

Cool thread! Congrats on a very nice ram. I enjoyed reading all the posts as well. The videos posted are awesome. Can't wait to see your final one. What a great experience.


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## littlebighorn

Mike, you made the hunt into an adventure, which I think all hunts should be...especially OIL ones. Thanks for letting us come out and try to help. Sorry we were not more successful in doing so, but we were thrilled you finally connected.
I have to ask, just for my own curiosity, why you always wore your orange hat when it is not required? Luck? Safety? Looks? 
Thanks again for the fun and have a Merry Christmas!


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## MWScott72

Rick - mostly so that people could find where we were on the mountain. Hard to miss an orange hat. Safety figured into the equation too, but it was mostly a utilitarian thing.

I hope this works...never tried to post a video on this site before. If this does work, this is a video of a big ram that may have been one of the original transplants to the Stansburys in 2007-2008. We found him on the second weekend of the hunt. Koby and I saw this ram about 1pm in the afternoon about 1,000 yards away. Of course Kade was only 300 yards from him, and was urging us to get over there quickly. Problem being that we had already hiked about 7 miles up and down some nasty stuff and were both wore out. To make matters worse, every time we thought we could cut distance off, we were foiled by creases and crevasses in the ridge we were working around. Long story short, by the time we got there, the big ram was gone, but he had left his little buddy to make fun of us. It was a long hike out that night. We never did see this ram again during the hunt, and don't know what happened to him although the DWR found a big ram with a white ear tag dead while doing their aerial surveys the day after Thanksgiving. Still trying to get any confirmation on whether or not this was the same ram we saw earlier in the hunt.

The link to the video is below. If this doesn't work, can someone instruct me how to attach these to a post. I can't find the answer in the FAQs.


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## littlebighorn

Mike,
Thanks for the link. It worked for me. It appeared to me that he had a collar as well as an ear tag so he had to be part of the original transplant. I doubt there are other sheep still out there with white ear tags so it sounds like this ram may be another sad casualty. I hope not! :-?


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## MWScott72

Clarq said:


> I would also be interested in hearing how wild mutton tastes.


Clarq-
You won't be disappointed if you get the chance to have wild mutton. We had some of the backstraps tonight, and two words sum it up - absolutely fabulous!! Better flavor than elk and super tender. I may have found a new favorite wild game meat! I told my wife she now needs to draw her tag in the near future so we can enjoy it again once mine is gone.


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## Clarq

MWScott72 said:


> Clarq-
> You won't be disappointed *when* you get the chance to have wild mutton. We had some of the backstraps tonight, and two words sum it up - absolutely fabulous!! Better flavor than elk and super tender. I may have found a new favorite wild game meat! I told my wife she now needs to draw her tag in the near future so we can enjoy it again once mine is gone.


Fixed it for you. I try to think positive. :mrgreen:

Unless life takes an unexpected turn for the worse, though, I'm going to make it happen. That will probably require a Dall Sheep hunt in Alaska. Hopefully they taste as good as the California bighorns.


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## MWScott72

Here are a couple videos of the ram Kade and I pursued the Saturday before Christmas. There was a bigger ram that we were chasing, and I imagine that is why I didn't shoot this one, although looking back, I probably should have shot this guy. Monday morning quarterbacking though...always easier to look back than forward.

B/t/w - Kade took all of these videos I will post. He and Koby have inspired me harder in this department. It's awesome to have these tidbits from the hunt to look back on!


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## tberick21

Did the white ear tag ram have a plus sign on the tag or a number?


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## ridgetop

tberick21 said:


> Did the white ear tag ram have a plus sign on the tag or a number?


I think it had a black diamond.


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## ridgetop

MWScott72 said:


> Here are a couple videos of the ram Kade and I pursued the Saturday before Christmas. There was a bigger ram that we were chasing, and I imagine that is why I didn't shoot this one, although looking back, I probably should have shot this guy. Monday morning quarterbacking though...always easier to look back than forward.
> 
> B/t/w - Kade took all of these videos I will post. He and Koby have inspired me harder in this department. It's awesome to have these tidbits from the hunt to look back on!


You know I would have been screaming........DON'T SHOOT, DON'T SHOOT!!! And if you would have, then it would have been all high fives and hand shakes.:mrgreen:


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## tberick21

ridgetop said:


> I think it had a black diamond.


Did you guys happen to see either of the rams with blue ear tags? One ram had them in both ears the other ram only had one blue tag.


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## tberick21

*Yellow tag*

[/ATTACH]


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## ridgetop

tberick21 said:


> [/ATTACH]


Yep, that's the same ram.
My phone died last year and I lost those pictures you had sent me but when I saw the ram with white tags and black diamonds this year, I remembered you had some good pictures of it from last year.
Thanks for sharing Tyson.


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## MWScott72

tberick21 said:


> Did you guys happen to see either of the rams with blue ear tags? One ram had them in both ears the other ram only had one blue tag.


I don't remember any rams other than the one with the white ear tag. We saw several ewes with ear tags and collars, but only the one ram. Spent alot of time on the mountain during the hunt, and I think all of us were surprised about the lack of sightings on ear-tagged rams.


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## tberick21

*Blue tag*

 QUOTE=MWScott72;1446281]I don't remember any rams other than the one with the white ear tag. We saw several ewes with ear tags and collars, but only the one ram. Spent alot of time on the mountain during the hunt, and I think all of us were surprised about the lack of sightings on ear-tagged rams.[/QUOTE]

The single blue ear tag ram. Couldn't find any good pictures of the double blue ear tag ram.


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## tberick21

tberick21 said:


> QUOTE=MWScott72;1446281]I don't remember any rams other than the one with the white ear tag. We saw several ewes with ear tags and collars, but only the one ram. Spent alot of time on the mountain during the hunt, and I think all of us were surprised about the lack of sightings on ear-tagged rams.


The single blue ear tag ram. Couldn't find any good pictures of the double blue ear tag ram.[/QUOTE]

Sorry Pictures didn't load.:sad:


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## tberick21

*Another Ram*



tberick21 said:


> The single blue ear tag ram. Couldn't find any good pictures of the double blue ear tag ram.


Sorry Pictures didn't load.:sad:[/QUOTE]

Another collared ram!


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## MWScott72

Wow...one quarter of the rams on that mountain are in your photos!


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## katorade

Here's the Video of Mikes Sheep Hunt, Enjoy.


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## MWScott72

Wow Kade - that is so cool! Thanks for going the extra mile and putting this together. My only regret is that we couldn't get some of the others in it that helped out so much. This hunt was an eye opener for sure.

This will be a cherished memory and something that I will look back on thru the years! Thanks again...and when you draw your own tag, you know who to call!


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## ridgetop

Good job Kade. Video looks great.


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## 300 Wby

Awesome!


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## tberick21

Very nice video...


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## bekins24

Great work! That is an amazing story


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## ridgetop

With a new camera in hand, I was really hoping to see more of the head smacking this year. 
Like in this video: 



 This video was taken a day or two after Kade's dad killed his ram.
It was weird how early this season the rams stopped hitting heads.


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## ridgetop

Over 14k hits on this thread, WOW!
Hope this shows that people are very much interested in reading hunting adventures on this forum and I hope more of you will come forth and share some of your own adventures.
It was awesome to see so many forum members step forward and help or was willing to help Mike on his hunt.
I was really disappointed with the lack of support he got from personal friends and family.
It really set in with me, how good I have had it, concerning the group I personally hunt with.


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## MWScott72

Time to bring this thread full circle. I got my sheep back from Packout about 3 weeks ago - just haven't had time to upload the pics till now. Here's a couple photos from front and side, along with a photo of him in my office "zoo". It's pretty cool to have people pop their head in and oogle at the mounts. I get far more positive comments than negative. 

Now I'm just waiting for when my wife decides she wants to start trying to draw. She has 14 points, so crossing my fingers that is sometime in the next 10 years or so.


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## MWScott72

Let's try that again...not sure why it put those first two pics horizontal. They open vertical as regular jpegs.

B/t/w, Packout put the mount on a cool bracket that allows it to rotate left or right. Pretty cool that you can turn it any way you want if you want a new perspective. Great job Mike!!


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## AF CYN

Nice! Is that the ram's hide on the bookshelf below?


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## katorade

I'm glad you could utilize the rest of the rams hide, congratulations again Mike, he's pretty. Thanks for letting me tag along.


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## ridgetop

Looks good.


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## CPAjeff

That's a really neat looking mount - packout, you did a great job!

MWScott72 - thanks for doing such an awesome job keeping this thread updated and interesting!


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## MWScott72

AF CYN said:


> Nice! Is that the ram's hide on the bookshelf below?


Yes, it is. The original plan was to sell the hide for a full body mount and then purchase a separate sholder cape. The money left over could then pay for the actual mount. Once I saw the shoulder cape though, we decided to just keep my cape...the colorings just didn't match up right. Packout's tanner was able to sew the hide back up the backbone, so I have the back half of the hide as a "conversation piece" too.


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## bekins24

That looks great up on the wall! Congrats again


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## katorade

What a difference a year makes, Sheep Hunting to Die off to Hunt Closure.

Good Times Mike & Koby.


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## bamacpl

ridgetop said:


> With a new camera in hand, I was really hoping to see more of the head smacking this year.
> Like in this video:
> 
> 
> 
> This video was taken a day or two after Kade's dad killed his ram.
> It was weird how early this season the rams stopped hitting heads.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## MWScott72

katorade said:


> What a difference a year makes, Sheep Hunting to Die off to Hunt Closure.
> 
> Good Times Mike & Koby.


Absolutely Kade. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.


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## ridgetop

We definitely were the lucky ones.


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## MWScott72

On a slightly related note, my family just had the last package of sheep backstraps last night. We have been rationing them all year because they are SOOOO good! There was literally a tear in my eye when that last bite went down 

We do still have a few roasts that we will savor over the next month or two, but there is nothing I have ever tasted that really compares to wild sheep backstraps. They are THAT good!!


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## Longgun

Congratulations, what an adventure from start to finish! :shock:


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