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Mountain Goats??

MULE

New member
Joined
Jul 8, 2002
Messages
419
Location
Colorado
I drew a goat tag this year. I have hunted above timberline some but not for goats.

Any words of wisdom from those that have I would like to hear it.
 
Mule:

Your a lucky dog!!! Get ready for a great
hunt. I've been lucky enough to draw a tag
twice in my home state of Washington. Both
hunts were great, with 2 nice billies taken.
Goat hunting requires alot of climbing, so
make sure your in tip top shape. Its also
pretty dangerous, so be carefull up there.
There ain't no goat worth dying for. Get some
good optics, and get ready to do alot of glassing. Go up and scout the crap out of the
area, and find out where the billies live.
Come season, you normally won't find them
in the herd. They will be off aways from
the main group. Make darn sure you know how
to identify a billy from a nanny. A billy
will be 20 to 30 % bigger then nannys. Also,
their bases are heavier, and their horns
curve back more sharply. Try to hold out later in the season to get one with a good coat of hair, but not too late to get your
butt snowed out! Of course I got way too
much advice to write down, so let me know
if you need some more advice because I'm
full of it! :D
 
Owl,

Thanks for the response.

My season starts Sept 3 and goes for about a month. I figured to start scouting in august. Are they seperated from the nannies in Sept?

If you bone out the avrage billy how many pounds of meat would a guy have? Its all coming out on my back. I may take a buddy just so we can get the hide,head and meat all out in one trip. If its hot like it was last year I am going to need to hurry.
 
Mule..... Congrats on the TAG !!! I'm envious :( .. ;)

Welcome aboard BTW !!

I'll let the guys that know what they're talking about answer this one.. Usually it doen't stop me from talking.. BUT this time I'l lay low
 
My buddy shot a billy once and had the pack weighed. This was full hide, meat and skull and it came out to 112lbs. Talk about a killer to pack out. Get in shape, if you think you are, you are half way there. Work out somemore. Up here most sheep dont even dare to go into goat territory ;)

I'd get a walking stick. they are great with heavy loads on steep inclines.

To me its hard to explain the difference of a billy and a nanny. All I can say that if the billy is mature you can tell the difference. Nannies usually travel in herds, billies are more apt to be loners. sometimes you see them in bachelor herds.

Spotted owl is right no goat is worth your life. I've been in some places while goat hunting that was down right stupid and life threatening. Its not worth it.

Congrats and have a safe hunt.
 
Congratulations to ya MULE.I cant add anything more to this topic except for whats been already said and thats get into the best shape of your life for this hunt.Hunt hard and have a good time.
 
Mule:

I'd plan on taking a buddy with you on this
one.Two reasons. It can be dangerous to be
in goat country, and you'll need the help
packing it out. I shot my last one in 99
in wilderness area 8 miles in. I'm lucky I
had my buddy with me. A large billy will be
about the same weight as a decent size muley,
probally no bigger. Their hide weighs a ton,
so if your planning on packing out the sucker
whole, better eat your Wheaties!
:D Take a good spotting scope with a compact
tripod. You'll be glad you did.Theres alot
more I can share with you. Believe me, your
gonna do fine on this hunt. I saw over 60
goats, with 5 legal billys the first day, so
you can probally be alittle picky. In this
state, its now once in a lifetime, so get
yourself a nice one. My e-mail at work is
[email protected] if ya want to chat some
more on goat hunting.
 
Damn,

Thanks for the responses. Usually you ask a question like this you get no responses or pure bullshit.

I LIKE this place!!

I just talked to a guy today. My hunt starts Sept3. His sheep hunt on the 11th. He comes with me and I'll go with him and be each others safety net and horse.

Thanks again guys.

Oh since I got this tag I've been a little more religous about the gym.

Back,legs and shoulders. Pounding them hard.

None of the curls for the girls sissy stuff!! hahahahahahahaha
 
Good luck, Mule!

I believe you're gonna like this hunt!!!


Don't forget to come back with the pictures now....
Bill
 
Mule said

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Thanks for the responses. Usually you ask a question like this you get no responses or pure bullshit.

I LIKE this place!! <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

HAHA... I think there is as much BS in this place as others :D :D I pride myself at it ;) BUT, We're always willing to lend a hand...

How old are ya ?
What kind of Shape you in ?
How long you been in CO ?
what else ya hunt ?
How'd ya find this HELL hole of a web site ?!?!?!? :D
 
Mule:

What ya shooting for this hunt? You don't
need a cannon, but I'll tell ya what, them
goats can take some serious lead! I double
lung shot mine with a 270 loaded with Trophy
Bonded bullets that left a 8" hole in the
shoulder, and the sucker still trotted off
with the herd. I found him a 1/2 mile down
a rocky shoot. Pick your ammo wisely, and
get the good stuff. Try to make your first
shot count. They love to play comma kazi
and do some cliff diving when wounded. :mad:
Oh ya, on the meat question, I only got a
whopping 39 lbs from the meat cutters. They
have heavy bones, and a thick hide which
make them look big.
 
Mule, congrats and welcome!!!!:D please make damn sure that where the goat is when you shoot, that you can get to him!!!!! may sound dumb but when your billy bails off a 2000' verticle drop (that he can make just fine) you may wish you would have thought about it before squeezing off a shot!

my buddy photographed a beautiful full curl stone sheep in canada and because of where the sheep was they knew that they would never be able to get to him so they had to watch, take pictures and leave him there for another day! it was almost straight down to the ledge he was lying on and 3000' vert. feet all the way around below him!

it was heart breaking to walk away but the alternative would have been worse!

lilbiggun and Owl, has givin some very good advice and obviously from experience!

sqats and lunges are probably the two best excercises you could do for yourself! Good luck and enjoy gods! country cause thats where goats live! and take lots of pics we want pics!!!!!

where are you going to be hunting ?? have you got the area narrowed doen any ???

a good friend of mine is going goat hunting this year in canada , hes hunting with some friends of ours , that just happen to be written up this month in the British columbia guide outfitters association hunting magazine! there average is 10-10 1/2 in. billies! should be a great hunt!
 
Moosie,

I'm a broken down old fart. I was born in Gunnison Colo 40 years ago and been a resident ever since. I hunt coyotes,antelope,deer and elk and fish a little. Missed alot of hunting due to 8 years in military and government contracts that kept me on the road CONSTANTLY. Starting to make up for that though.

Owl,

I'll be shooting a 7 mag.Something in a 160 grain or so. I'd like to shoot 140's but my winchester don't like lighter bullets.

DKO,

Ya know everyone I have talked to here that has hunted goats told me the same thing. Easy to find goats but be damn careful where you shoot them. I'll be hunting Mount Princeton which is unit G2

Thanks for the help guys, It is appreciated
 
Mule,

If you go to www.bowsite.com and search back through the goat forum, you will find a lot of good info on goats.

I drew G7 in 2000 and took a old long horned nanny that rolled down the hill about 300 yards. Didn't break anything, but she was a bloody mess by the time she stopped rolling.

I have a MS Word document with info on goats that a guy who hunted G7 put together. If you want, I'll try to find it and email it to you.

Good luck!!
 
Desert Sheep,

Want an indication of how flawed Colorado DOW draw system is??

I drew this tag with TWO...Yes TWO preference points. Told another guy who has put in for 5 years straight for G2 and I thought he was gonna have a coronary!!

But on the other hand I couldn't draw an antelope tag for Craig with 7 points. And I bet if I went there during antelope season I could find someone who drew it with one point.

Go figure
 
Mule, my 98' billy weighed 116lbs on the pack. Boned out meat, full hide including hooves and skull. Horns were 8 7/8 with 5 6/8 bases. Nice mature billy.

Some hints on ID'ing the billies. Thier hair really isn't white, its kind of yellowish especially the belly just forward of the haunches. Like elk they piss on themselves during the rut. The best way is carefull examination of teh horns through a spotting scope. Nannies horns will usually resemble black spikes whereas billies horns will have a distinct triangular flaring at the bases.

If you can watch one long enough for him to swing his head in your direction you'll know. The average billy's face from bases to end of nose is 10 inches so you can compare horn length to face length when judging from afar.

Absolutely bring treking poles--they're like ski poles only much stouter and they're telescopic. They are so helpful in keeping your balance under the weight of a full pack--you'll never walk downhill under a load without them again I promise.

Good luck. Goats are a much underrated trophy
 
Erik,

Thanks, that was very helpful.

One of my fears is I know jack shit about judging goats. I don't want to shoot too soon cuz I'll probably not get this tag again here.

Do or freakin die.

I notice you said holves.

Did you do a full body mount?

Edited cuz I forgets how to spells

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 07-10-2002 21:03: Message edited by: MULE ]</font>
 
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