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Sheep

There are four major species of North American sheep recognized By both the Pope & Young and Boone & Crockett records keeping systems. They are dall, stone, big horn, and desert big horn. Both the dall and the stone are considered thin horn sheep, and in some areas of British Columbia and the Yukon Territories they interbreed resulting in what is referred to as the fannin sheep. Dalls are all white, stones are gray and fannin have patches of both colors. For record keeping purposes, fannin sheep are considered as stone sheep. The California big horn is an additional big horn sheep sub-species sometimes mentioned, but for record keeping purposes it is considered part of the overall big horn species.

There are other sheep species roaming free and wild in the United States, however they were not indigenous species (they were imported here years ago from other lands) and therefore are not considered to be North American species. The aoudad sheep originally indigenous to North Africa was brought to Texas many years ago and has established as viable population in the mountainous western part of that State. Similarly, the mouflon was brought from Europe to the Haiwian Islands where a free ranging population is hunted successfully at the current time. Both of these species represent fantastic hunting opportunities, but are considered elsewhere as "exotic" species.

Dall Sheep

The most commonly hunted of all the North American sheep has to be the white sheep of the high north country. There are more of these sheep than any other, and the hunt costs are generally less expensive than other sheep hunts. The combination of more available tags and a lower overall cost is surely why these beautiful animals are as sought after as they are. This isn't to say that dall sheep hunts are cheap, just that they are generally less expensive than guided hunts for the other sheep species.

Dall sheep are found in the mountains of Alaska, The Yukon, and The Northwest Territories. The larger trophies seem to come from Alaska, although the highest population densities are in the Northwest Territories. Good representative trophies exist wherever hunting them is allowed. While all sheep hunting is a spot and stalk affair, there are two major differences in the guide services provided for these hunts.

The less expensive, and more common hunts involve back packing into the mountains on a one-on-one basis with your guide, a small tent, and a pack full of freeze-dried food. The other option involves striking out every day on horseback. In either case the idea is to get to a high vantage point where you can glass to find suitable rams to hunt, without being detected.

Once the ram you want is spotted, the real work begins! In most cases you must work around and above the ram, which usually means dropping off the far side of the mountain you're glassing from and than circling around the peak the ram is on to get above and behind his position. Even on horseback hunts, this final approach is usually done on foot and requires one to be in "sheep shape" to maximize the chance of success. Lots of things can, and often do, go wrong when attempting these long range stalks. The rams can just get up and feed away before you get there, anything can spook them out of the area, and, of course, you can screw up the final approach. It is not unusual to have failed attempts on a daily basis in areas with good population densities!

Stone Sheep

Very much the same as dall sheep, except for coloration, stone sheep are found mostly in British Columbia. For the most part hunting is done on horseback until the sheep are spotted, and the real hunt begins. There are very limited numbers of tags available for stone sheep, and those are allocated to guides in specific areas. This limits hunting pressure and assures that there are outstanding trophies available across the full range of these species, but it also contributes to the high cost of these hunts. A stone sheep hunt will run over fifteen thousand dollars as a single species hunt and can easily go over twenty thousand if done on a mixed bag basis.

Because these hunts are done by horseback, in some of the most remote and trophy rich areas in North America, many hunters will do them on a mixed bag basis and spend the extra money. The rationale is that the hunt is going to be expensive anyway, so why not add a little more for the opportunity of taking a caribou, moose, and grizzly, and than pay the respective trophy fees for the extra animals taken. The mixed bag combination usually means adding a few days, and the extra days help assure that a good ram will be taken. If the ram is taken early, it is very realistic to expect that at least one additional species will be taken, and gun hunters will often take three.

Big Horn Sheep

A good trophy big horn ram has to be the "holy grail" of North American hunting. Probably the most majestic of all our big game animals, a big horn ram is the center piece of any trophy collection. The big horn enjoys a large range, but exists in limited numbers throughout that range. In the lower forty-eight States, there are big horn sheep in numbers that allow some limited hunting opportunities in most of the western States from Utah in the south north through Montana and Idaho, and from as far west as Washington east to Wyoming.

With the possible exception of a few limited areas in Montana, all big horn tags in the lower forty-eight states are issued on a limited draw basis, or sold at public auction. It can take years to draw one of the limited tags, and a small fortune to buy one at auction. There are advantages to both systems however. If you are fortunate enough to draw one of the limited tags, the chances of finding a trophy ram are excellent, hunting pressure is minimal, and you can find a guide at reasonable prices. This is the least expensive way to take one of North Americas coveted sheep.

Those with the money to buy a tag at auction get some additional bonus for the extra money. Most of these are "Governor Tags" and allow the owner to hunt anywhere in the State that has an open season for sheep, and often times allows for hunting extra days both before and after the regular season. The idea is to give the successful bidder every opportunity to take the best ram in the State.

North of the border things work a bit differently. The majority of the tags are allocated on a strictly limited basis to guides/outfitters in areas with sheep. These guides are than able to sell a limited number of sheep hunts to use these tags. The resultant trophy management works as well as the other system and the price of the hunts falls somewhere between what it costs to hunt in the states with a limited draw tag and what you would pay to buy a tag. You can expect to pay between $18,000.00 and $25,000.00 for a big horn hunt in either British Columbia or Alberta.

For the most part, big horn sheep hunts run 10-15 days and are done via horseback. If you draw a limited tag in the States, you can do the hunt on a self guided basis to keep the costs down. With some research you may be able to find a fellow sheep hunting enthusiast who knows the area you want to hunt, but didn't draw a tag. Some of these "would be" sheep hunters are willing to help those fortunate enough to draw tags just to be involved in the hunt. By joining one of the hunting clubs with a strong membership of avid sheep hunters you will be better able to make contact with these people.

Desert Sheep

This somewhat smaller horned version of big horn sheep is found in the more southern and arid areas of the Rocky Mountains. There are considerably fewer desert sheep tags available than any other species, and the price of tags reflects the rarity.

Once again, tags are available on a limited draw basis in most areas, but winning one of these coveted tags is the equivalent of hitting your State's million dollar lottery. Many of us keep trying however, because it is the only way we'll ever be able to afford to hunt these animals. On the plus side, most States that offer desert sheep tags on a draw basis have adopted a preference point system so those of us that put in every year increase our odds of winning as time goes on.

There are several exceptions to the limited draw for those that have the financial recourses and really want to take a desert ram. The most widely known way to buy a tag is at the annual FNAWS (Foundation of North American Wild Sheep) Convention each winter. The various States provide Governor tags to be auctioned at this event with the majority of the funds raised going back to the State issuing the tag to be used to improve sheep habitat or expand sheep populations through transplant operations. These programs have been very successful over the years raising many millions of dollars and allowing for the considerable expansion of hunting opportunities. These tags cost over $50,000.00 (not including the cost of a guide). There are also a limited tags available in old Mexico and on a couple Indian reservations. These hunts run $40,000.00 or more and are sold out a year or two in advance.