Art Vandelay
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- Mar 12, 2011
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- 59
Yes, it’s rule #1....
Sheep hunting rule #1
- Thread starter Bambistew
- Start date
Yes, it’s rule #1....
BrentD
Well-known member
I meant as a "legality rule". I've heard of many people shooting both a caribou and a black bear or a sheep and a black bear. I don't see the problem.
thusby
Well-known member
I might be packing caribou right now.
BrentD
Well-known member
That is a hell of a nice caribou. Not just big. He has the shape, the symmetry, the paddle. Man, that is a heck of an animal, and I would gladly double pack for him if I had the proper tag.
Bambistew
Well-known member
Its easy to armchair this one and say yep shoot him. Think on this for a bit.
This is a very remote area, you don't have Yetis with ice, you don't have a pickup to take your meat to town. You are out there with critters that like to eat meat, and now have 160lbs to babysit until the plane comes and gets you 7-8 days later or you call for them to come get you. The pilot isn't going to pick it up and babysit if for you.
Trust me I've played this out in my head a 1000 times. Pull that trigger and you might as well just pack it up and go home, your sheep hunt turned into a camping trip babysitting caribou meat. At best you will get a couple days of sheep hunting in, the rest of the time will be wasted packing meat, and checking on meat and diddling around in areas with very low chance of killing a ram because you can't get very far away from your meat.
Toss this out there... you can hunt caribou off the road system later on in the year.
This is a very remote area, you don't have Yetis with ice, you don't have a pickup to take your meat to town. You are out there with critters that like to eat meat, and now have 160lbs to babysit until the plane comes and gets you 7-8 days later or you call for them to come get you. The pilot isn't going to pick it up and babysit if for you.
Trust me I've played this out in my head a 1000 times. Pull that trigger and you might as well just pack it up and go home, your sheep hunt turned into a camping trip babysitting caribou meat. At best you will get a couple days of sheep hunting in, the rest of the time will be wasted packing meat, and checking on meat and diddling around in areas with very low chance of killing a ram because you can't get very far away from your meat.
Toss this out there... you can hunt caribou off the road system later on in the year.
BrentD
Well-known member
Yes, it all depends on the details. How cold the weather, when/if a plane ride is possible, etc. But if there are two guys hunting sheep and one guy shoots his on Day 1, the situation isn't much different so far as meat goes.
Anyway, that's the finest caribou bull photo I've ever seen.
Anyway, that's the finest caribou bull photo I've ever seen.
We've also seen your sheep wall, which is beyond ridiculous! I honestly can't remember, do you have a caribou that good? That would factor into it for me as well. Unfortunately, I have neither a dall or a bou so I'm probably unqualified to participate in the discussion...
BrentD
Well-known member
Me too.
D
Deleted member 18333
Guest
Bambi,
You make some totally legit points. Given that scenario I think I would hold off.
I was in NWT a couple years ago on a sheep/moose/caribou hunt with sheep first on the priority list. We were just loading up to fly out for sheep when the guide called me over to a spotter he had set up on the air strip. He wanted me to look at a caribou he spotted on the other side of the lake. I didn't have any other previous caribou experience but this bull looked good to me. He asked the outfitter/pilot to come take a look. He responded with something along the lines of "I am not delaying a sheep hunt to chase after a caribou". The guide pleaded. The outfitter cussed. He pleaded again. Finally he begrudgingly walked over and took a look through the spotter. He then turned around, looked at me and said "sheep can wait, your killing that bull". Two hours later the bull was down.
I think we made the right decision. But it was a very different scenario from the one describe. My first ram had to wait a few days.
You make some totally legit points. Given that scenario I think I would hold off.
I was in NWT a couple years ago on a sheep/moose/caribou hunt with sheep first on the priority list. We were just loading up to fly out for sheep when the guide called me over to a spotter he had set up on the air strip. He wanted me to look at a caribou he spotted on the other side of the lake. I didn't have any other previous caribou experience but this bull looked good to me. He asked the outfitter/pilot to come take a look. He responded with something along the lines of "I am not delaying a sheep hunt to chase after a caribou". The guide pleaded. The outfitter cussed. He pleaded again. Finally he begrudgingly walked over and took a look through the spotter. He then turned around, looked at me and said "sheep can wait, your killing that bull". Two hours later the bull was down.
I think we made the right decision. But it was a very different scenario from the one describe. My first ram had to wait a few days.
Bambistew
Well-known member
Having sheep meat to deal with is way different scenario. You can take it with you, and can split it between you and your partner. It makes the pack heavy, but doable, plus you can eat on it and lighten the load. Its not ideal, but not a hunt ender either. We've killed rams early on in the hunt a few times, and stuck it out till the end. One trip I shot mine opening day, and we killed the second one on day 8.
Mule creek that is a stud bull for sure. Having a guide/packer and plane make things a whole lot different for sure. i wouldn't have passed that bull up either in that situation... unless you also spotted rams. hahaha
I've killed a couple as good bulls. The one in the video is a nice bull no doubt, and very pretty/symmetrical, and the shovel is ridiculous... but it's no sheep.
This is my nephews first big game animal. He has 56" main beams (the bull in the video might go 50, but probably closer to 48). Crappy picture, but its ridiculously heavy, and has huge bottoms. This one and the one above hang together in the garage, the one below dwarfs it...
A bull I shot a couple years back.
Mule creek that is a stud bull for sure. Having a guide/packer and plane make things a whole lot different for sure. i wouldn't have passed that bull up either in that situation... unless you also spotted rams. hahaha
I've killed a couple as good bulls. The one in the video is a nice bull no doubt, and very pretty/symmetrical, and the shovel is ridiculous... but it's no sheep.
This is my nephews first big game animal. He has 56" main beams (the bull in the video might go 50, but probably closer to 48). Crappy picture, but its ridiculously heavy, and has huge bottoms. This one and the one above hang together in the garage, the one below dwarfs it...
A bull I shot a couple years back.
Art Vandelay
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- Mar 12, 2011
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- 59
Those in the know, know.
Jape
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Wish I could get some work done instead of drooling over @mulecreek and @Bambistew photos.
BigHornRam
Well-known member
A real sheep hunter would pass on the caribou and go find a nice ram. 
In the unlikely event that the real sheep hunter was smart, he or her would leave their caribou tag at home so as not to be tempted to screw up their sheep hunt!
In the unlikely event that the real sheep hunter was smart, he or her would leave their caribou tag at home so as not to be tempted to screw up their sheep hunt!
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Irrelevant
Well-known member
Those are some amazing caribou Bambi. Any reason why you go after them in velvet and not later when they're hard horned?
D
Deleted member 28227
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Depends on the part of the system you are talking about and your residency status... but I think your rule stands.
Your pictures are not good for my marriage, BTW.
Bambistew
Well-known member
Usually situational. The end of August is kind of the doldrums and is prime caribou hunting. They are fat, and just hanging out waiting on the rut. Moose season isn't open, and we're done sheep hunting so its something to fill the time. We've killed quite a few hard horned ones, but the reality is there is only 10-14 days they are hard horned before the season closes and I'm usually out of vacation time by then. haha. As they approach the end of september, they don't taste as good due to the hormones ratcheting up for the rut. They tend to rub off around the 4-7th of Sept, season closes the 20th (opens the Aug 10th) so not a big window. Also the area I usually hunt has a quota, and could close if the quota is reached, so may not make it through the 20th.
Here's a few hard horned ones we've killed...
Muzzleloader bull I shot about 6-7 years ago. Killed him on the mountain just over my head at cloud line. Earned this one...
Last day of the season, last evening... consolation prize. I earned this one too, 3 mile pack back to the truck across a swamp, small river and lots of elevation gain. Took me 2 days to get him out. Just me and the pup.
This is still the biggest bodied bull we've ever killed. It was the size of spike/cow elk. IIRC we got 120lbs of burger of him.
Winter hunt post rut. Skin and bones, but tasty.
Worst packout to date. One load each, 24 hours of hiking/sleeping on the mountain. Pure stupidity... and the rack stayed on the mountain. hahaha. This bull is bigger than the one in the video.
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I've given my wife fair warning that my dad and I will be going on an Alaskan moose and caribou hunt at some point. Even if I have to finance it before he has to stop hunting. It's not negotiable lol.
But yes, threads like this threaten to bump the date up unnecessarily lol.
D
Deleted member 28227
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I just started going, so far it’s just been on the budget hunts, but my goal is to make it a yearly or at least every other year thing.
Hopefully the bank account will allow me to some of the more expensive hunts some day... or my wife will give in and let us move up there.
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