Dall Sheep Hunt NWT - Day #3
We woke fairly early this morning, perhaps due to the grizzly bear encounter last night, but it's hard to say for sure. In any case, we woke to heavy cloud cover that had come right down tight on all the surrounding mountains. There was no glassing for rams until the weather improved.
Jacob left shortly after breakfast to do some flying from base camp. Eric set up a portable sawmill at Blue Lake and had been milling lumber before we arrived. Now he was having Jacob fly it out to key spike camp locations where it could be used to build permanent tent platforms. It didn't take much time in base camp to understand that there is constant effort needed to build, and then maintain, a top shelf operation in the back country. Eric and Lorna are doing an admirable job from what I could see!
As the day progressed the cloud cover never improved, making today a "rest" day due to the weather. I didn't feel the need to rest, but there was no sense hiking up into the high country if you couldn't see anything when you got there! We did keep our eyes peeled for a decent caribou bull in the lower elevations, but all we saw all day were more cows and calves. To fight the boredom we chopped and gathered some fire wood and swapped hunting stories.
Because today was such a slow day for us, I don't have a lot to report and will use the time to discuss equipment a little more. I should also bring you all up to date with more hunting information from the rest of the group. I'll start there.
Yesterday I sent over a photo of Joe's bull, but didn't give much in the way of details. Sorry, but it's late when we get back in from hunting and my mind isn't always as sharp as it should be. Joe managed to stalk up to with-in four yards of that bull after glassing him bedded under a rock ledge. Good going Joe! Then he put an arrow through the vitals before the bull even knew what was going on. Don't you just love when that happens? Joe used a Mathew bow.
Joe Coleman with his Caribou bull.
Did I tell you that Tod made a 100 yard shot on his bull two days ago? He claims he practices out to those distances on a regular basis and is very comfortable shooting from them. He is certainly a better shot than I am! In any case, his guide confirmed that the arrow went into the "boiler room" and the bull only traveled forty yards. Once again, good going Tod!
Today another of our caribou hunters put it all together in a big way. Phil Race collected the biggest bull so far with a nice shot. Obviously Phil found a better spot to chase caribou than Slim and I have come up with thus far! Judging from the photos, Phil's bull will score very high in the record book ... congratulations Phil.
Phil Race from Rochester, New York with his fine trophy"
Now to the equipment issue: While no "expert" on the topic of back pack hunting for sheep, I have been on two goat hunts and this is my fifth sheep hunt, so I'm forming strong opinions! I did some things different this time, which have really worked out well and may help others plan their hunts so I want to share them.
A month before the hunt I pulled my trusty old back pack out of storage in preparation for the packing job ahead. I had forgotten the torn shoulder strap! On the way back from my last dall sheep hunt, the airlines let the shoulder straps get caught up in the luggage conveyor system. One strap was badly damaged and the other was not in great shape. The hunt was on for replacement straps.
The pack is eighteen years old, and I just couldn't find the right parts, so I was off to the store back pack shopping! I believe the best thing to do is go to a store with a good selection of packs, and try them on. I ended up at Eastern Mountain Sports, finding they had 50-60 different packs in stock. A very nice lady spent the better part of an hour helping me try on packs and attempt to adjust them properly to fit me. We finally agreed on a good sized pack with an internal frame and enough compartments and tie downs to cover all the bases.
I'm sure there are a lot of good stores out there, and plenty of good packs, so I'm not recommending anything in particular. That is, except for taking the time to find a store with a good selection and a staff that is both knowledgeable and willing to help.
After selecting the pack itself, however I did make some additional purchases that I feel need to be mentioned. The first thing I added to the pack was a water bladder system. These are designed to slide into the back compartment of your pack with a hose that pops out through the top and comes over your shoulder. The one I got holds 2.5 liters of water.
Not only did this hold more than twice the water of any canteen I ever carried, having the hose handy so I could take a little drink quickly any time I wanted was an incredible help! I find that you just won't stop as often as you should to drink if you have to rip off your pack and go digging for a canteen. With this new system I stayed well hydrated the entire trip which made things much easier on me.
The next thing I purchased, and highly recommend, was a hide away duffle bag type cover for my pack. This thing is very light and folds up into its own pouch/bag when not in use.
When unfolded you stretch it over your entire back pack (sleeping bag and all) and zip it shut at the bottom. This protects your bag, and all its contents, from the weather and the airport baggage handlers and their conveyor systems. It also has a nice strap system allowing you to carry your bag as a duffle.
This, in turn, allowed me to wear a small day pack while traveling that I carried on the plane. With those two packs and my hard bow case I had everything I needed, could move quickly through the airports, and had no excess baggage issues. It was "slick".
I also added a small, and inexpensive, rain cover for my pack. This thing came with its own little stuff sack and had draw strings to secure it to my pack if/when it rains. This doesn't weigh much at all, and takes little to no space, but sure helps keep everything dry when the weather turns to shit! It was $20.00 I was glad I spent.
Lastly, I picked up a collapsible hiking stick. Again this was not expensive and it was light weight.
I've found it makes a huge difference in hiking the mountains. When going up hill it is always best to take small steps to keep the work angle of your legs at a point where you have the best leverage. Long/high steps will "eat your lunch" after a while, but there are places where you just have to take long/high steps due to the footing conditions.
The hiking stick helps you transfer load from your knees to your arms and shoulders, which seriously reduces stress on your legs. On the down hill climbs the hiking stick has proven even more valuable.
What most people are surprised to find on their first mountain hunt is that the down hill portion of the hiking is what will get you. The tremendous strain you put on your knees coming down, especially with weight on your back, will raise hell with your knees. I've had so much trouble in the past that I always carry knee braces in my pack, but on this trip I never used them.
I was able to take enough load off my legs with the hiking stick to eliminate the beating my knees usually absorb.
Finally, I also found the hiking stick very helpful when negotiating the boulder fields, especially when side hilling through them. For this the hiking stick was used for balance. When jumping from one rock to another you never know when one is going to kick out from under, or rock to one side.
It would ruin your hunt real quick if you lost balance and twisted an angle or broke a leg. For that reason I go very slow through the rocks, and my new friend (the hiking stick) allowed me to pick up the pace a little while feeling much safer.
When I roll over tonight I'll wish for two things. First, I hope that some of this information will be found useful when planning "your" next hunt. Second, I hope those clouds go away tomorrow so we can get back to hunting sheep!