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Beginner-Mountain Goat Hunting

Mtnhunter1 said:
Run a search on this site. There are many great posts that have the experience and photos that you've requested.

To me, there is not another animal that I enjoy hunting more than the Mtn Goat. They just live in some of the grandest places that Mother Nature has to offer!

Good luck with your quest of some day experiencing the high country chasing the white goats.
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Thank you!
 
MTGunner said:
Be prepared for Pain. Get in the best shape of your life. Train, train, train and train more. Mountain goat hunting is mountain climbing with a rifle and pack on your back. A true adventure. MTG
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Understood, will do! Thank you for the head's up!
 
If I were starting from ground level again I'd personally save my application fees I would have spent and bought a guided trip to AK by now. I'm almost 20 years deep in some states at this point and my chances are still slim.
I understand the mentality some of these guys are coming from "you can't draw if you don't apply". That is true, but you should realistically understand chances are you never draw that goat tag in the lower 48 the way things are today. Chances are slim and the cost is high and getting higher with less tags in many states.
 
brownbear932008 said:
If I were starting from ground level again I'd personally save my application fees I would have spent and bought a guided trip to AK by now. I'm almost 20 years deep in some states at this point and my chances are still slim.
I understand the mentality some of these guys are coming from "you can't draw if you don't apply". That is true, but you should realistically understand chances are you never draw that goat tag in the lower 48 the way things are today. Chances are slim and the cost is high and getting higher with less tags in many states.
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Understood. Thank you for the info and wisdom!
 
brownbear932008 said:
If I were starting from ground level again I'd personally save my application fees I would have spent and bought a guided trip to AK by now. I'm almost 20 years deep in some states at this point and my chances are still slim.
I understand the mentality some of these guys are coming from "you can't draw if you don't apply". That is true, but you should realistically understand chances are you never draw that goat tag in the lower 48 the way things are today. Chances are slim and the cost is high and getting higher with less tags in many states.
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What if you don't want to go with a guide?
 
IMG_1054.jpegIMG_1148.jpegIMG_1189.jpegMy dream hunt was and still is a mountain goat. Being a blue collar guy from VA I never really thought that it could be possible to accomplish it. I also poured over draw options and endless threads on here. The goat represented the wildness and the ultimate challenge to me. I’ve hunted Montana’s Unlimiteds and can’t wait to do that again but the goat was always my real dream.

I booked a hunt in ‘21 for September of ‘23 at the ‘21 rates. My outfitter was a true professional in many ways and he gave me the current year price despite booking a few years out. Everything we talked about was validated in my experiences with him and his guides leaving my expectations far exceeded. It was beyond description honestly. I hunted with Tim Bouchard of Pacific Mountain Guides out of Valdez Alaska after a lot of research. Those boys crushed it and are absolute pros. Just a few days ago I called Tim back to book another hunt 5 years out this time at today’s rate. I shot a mature nanny at 9.75” and have to wait 5 years to hunt that particular unit again. My wife was able to join me on the hunt, 9 months after a full ACL tear and repair. The entire experience was worth way more than we paid. Here are some pics and feel free to PM me anytime about them. I thought this was a once in a lifetime deal for me, and before the plane even landed, we decided there’s no way we wouldn’t save up and do it again. Epic fishing, bear encounters, some hide and meat damage to a bear, and ultimately a goat I’m incredibly happy to have taken home. Good luck in your research, I can also vote for the book and go while you can approach and can’t recommend PMG enough.
 
The part of goat hunting nobody talks about, clawing up and down in a rainforest. The other reason we chose Alaska was a chance to fish. We were able to catch silver salmon from shore and also go further out but boat for halibut and rockfish, limiting out on all species.
IMG_1224.jpegIMG_0845.jpegIMG_0981.jpeg
 
Sandbrew said:
Don't pass up the chance to buy raffle tickets somebody has to win and we've a few HuntTalkers win. The Rocky Mountain Bighorn Society sells tickets online. I'm sure there will be a post about it on here soon. The Colorado goats are doing well and if you wait until later the hair is spectacular.
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Fact! I won the OR raffle this past year. It was a great hunt!
20231004_122013.jpeg
 
BuzzH said:
What if you don't want to go with a guide?
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Well as we all know sadly your chances are slim drawing a tag. Most likely you never hunt them in your life if we play the draw games from the ground floor today. I'd look at WY and ID considering they are totally random draws in the lower 48.
I'd move to Alaska if I wanted to hunt them bad enough while young, spend a while up there and move back possibly in my mind. You could also knock out hunting sheep/brown bear unguided while there.
 
bsmith said:
View attachment 312492View attachment 312493View attachment 312494My dream hunt was and still is a mountain goat. Being a blue collar guy from VA I never really thought that it could be possible to accomplish it. I also poured over draw options and endless threads on here. The goat represented the wildness and the ultimate challenge to me. I’ve hunted Montana’s Unlimiteds and can’t wait to do that again but the goat was always my real dream.

I booked a hunt in ‘21 for September of ‘23 at the ‘21 rates. My outfitter was a true professional in many ways and he gave me the current year price despite booking a few years out. Everything we talked about was validated in my experiences with him and his guides leaving my expectations far exceeded. It was beyond description honestly. I hunted with Tim Bouchard of Pacific Mountain Guides out of Valdez Alaska after a lot of research. Those boys crushed it and are absolute pros. Just a few days ago I called Tim back to book another hunt 5 years out this time at today’s rate. I shot a mature nanny at 9.75” and have to wait 5 years to hunt that particular unit again. My wife was able to join me on the hunt, 9 months after a full ACL tear and repair. The entire experience was worth way more than we paid. Here are some pics and feel free to PM me anytime about them. I thought this was a once in a lifetime deal for me, and before the plane even landed, we decided there’s no way we wouldn’t save up and do it again. Epic fishing, bear encounters, some hide and meat damage to a bear, and ultimately a goat I’m incredibly happy to have taken home. Good luck in your research, I can also vote for the book and go while you can approach and can’t recommend PMG enough.
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Wow! That is awesome! Thank you so much for sharing your story!!
 
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