SDHunter11 Report post Posted December 8, 2010 Well this last weekend was the weekend I had been waiting for all year. It was the first, and last, day of my california desert bighorn hunt. The unit I was hunting in was a rugged nasty mountain range snuggled next to the Joshua Tree national forest called the Sheepholes. I enlisted the help of Dry Creek Outfitters on my hunt and they had been in the area for a week spotting sheep when I arrived. They had seen some rams and I had my hopes set high. The unit I was hunting was not know to produce large sheep and any sheep in the 140s would be considered very good. The sight of the mountain range really got my engine running. The camp set up was much nicer than I had ever expected as well. After very little sleep, I awoke early in the morning and we headed off to where the sheep where last seen. This unit is very tricky due to the annual migration of the rams out of the unit to the mountain range across the road on the military base. By the time the hunt starts, some of the rams have left the unit and the others will usually make there way out within the first couple of weeks. The ram we had in mind was last seen a couple hundred yards from crossing the road. We knew it would be a long shot to find him, but it was worth a try. It did not take long for my guides to pick up the sheep on the top of a nearby sheep. They were moving downhill slowely at first and then began to pick up some pace. We rushed over to the edge of the mountain to try and cut them off. The largest ram had broken off from the others and was near the bottom. He got an extra little push from two large military helicopters that happened to fly right over him! As we pulled around the corner, one of the guides spotted him on the desert floor attempting to cross. I jumped out of the vehicle and was able to get set up prone for a 200 yard shot. As I fired the first shot, the guide told me I missed. I felt good about the shot(turns out it was a double lung shot that went straight through and hit the hill behind him), but decided to put another in him just in case. The second shot dropped him immediatly and I had my first sheep! When I first drew this tag, I had envisioned a very long and difficult hunt that involved scaling peaks and many blisters. I never imagined the luck I would have in being at the precise point when one of these marvelous sheep would attempt his descent and try to cross mountain ranges. My sheep scored 153 and was the second largest sheep ever harvested out of this unit. I can't thank my guides enough. Thank you Cliff, Tim, Matt, coach, and Grover. I would also like to thank my father for coming out and supporting me on this hunt. I could not have done it without them. He was aged at 5+years by the biologist. Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good! mountain_range.pdf Tent.pdf camp_3.pdf sheep_me_2.pdf DSCN9312_1_.pdf Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
izquik72 Report post Posted December 8, 2010 Great looking sheep. It sure happened fast for you Congratulations Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RED07 Report post Posted December 8, 2010 Dude thats sweet ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DUG Report post Posted December 8, 2010 Nice! Way to go! I'll probably be 70 or dead before I get a sheep tag........ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Heat Report post Posted December 8, 2010 Congratulations on a great looking ram. Great job on the shot under pressure like that. I tell you what, you picked the right group to help you out. Tim and Cliff are some of the best! Nick Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Arizona Griz Report post Posted December 8, 2010 Very nice outfit. Congratulations on nice ram. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AZ402 Report post Posted December 10, 2010 Very cool. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ehunt Report post Posted December 10, 2010 Awesome job on your ram!! I met Matt a week or so ago and he is a great guy!!! Love the american flag set up in camp!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
savage Report post Posted December 10, 2010 Nice desert ram Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Browning'sCustomMeat Report post Posted December 10, 2010 Nice sheep for sure! You did a great job, congrats! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SDHunter11 Report post Posted December 13, 2010 Thanks for all the praise! Matt, Cliff, and Tim were excellent on the hunt. I would recommend them to anyone! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
