psycho
Well-known member
Due to adult onset hunting I only had 6 points earned when my desert bighorn sheep tag arrived. My initial reaction was disbelief as I only had six points. I couldn’t believe I should get a tag when others have waited 20 plus years. I knew this area had pretty good odds at 15% but I didn’t put much effort into figuring out why before the draw. Considerable planning ensued. I figured out where all the guzzlers were and started making plans to check them all out. I quickly learned the majority of the good hunting was in a wilderness area so it was going to be long hikes or backpack camping which I have not done yet. I had some serious concerns early on:
It’s a big area with only a few mature rams in it.
I had an international hunt planned for the first two weeks of the season.
I was really out of shape from sitting at a desk all day due to Covid issues.
Also, friends and family had some challenging tags this year which would take some time helping them fill their tags.
In my mind I was making excuses as to why I couldn’t do this tag justice and so i resisted the urge to give it back.
6/6 This was the first time I was able to get out in the area. Spent two days hiking around in the heat going from one guzzler to another. At the entrance to the wilderness area there was a sign in box. The notepad was filled with many disgruntled hunters stating this area has no sheep. Page after page of no sheep comments. This hunt is not getting off to a good start. I don’t see any sheep in over 20 miles of hiking but I did see some tracks that were not too old. Saw some snakes and owls but no sheep. Oh, and I am right close to area 51 so often get to see the military aircraft buzzing overhead. Later on, I could hear the practice bombing just after dark. One time it was so loud it made me involuntarily duck. KaaBOOM!! Maybe somebody was using Tannerite in my valley but I didn’t see any lights out there. Maybe a plane breaking the sound barrier but didn’t sound like that either. Growing up in that town, seeing and hearing Airforce exercises was daily life. I guess i expected peace and quite in the mountains this time around.
It’s a big area with only a few mature rams in it.
I had an international hunt planned for the first two weeks of the season.
I was really out of shape from sitting at a desk all day due to Covid issues.
Also, friends and family had some challenging tags this year which would take some time helping them fill their tags.
In my mind I was making excuses as to why I couldn’t do this tag justice and so i resisted the urge to give it back.
6/6 This was the first time I was able to get out in the area. Spent two days hiking around in the heat going from one guzzler to another. At the entrance to the wilderness area there was a sign in box. The notepad was filled with many disgruntled hunters stating this area has no sheep. Page after page of no sheep comments. This hunt is not getting off to a good start. I don’t see any sheep in over 20 miles of hiking but I did see some tracks that were not too old. Saw some snakes and owls but no sheep. Oh, and I am right close to area 51 so often get to see the military aircraft buzzing overhead. Later on, I could hear the practice bombing just after dark. One time it was so loud it made me involuntarily duck. KaaBOOM!! Maybe somebody was using Tannerite in my valley but I didn’t see any lights out there. Maybe a plane breaking the sound barrier but didn’t sound like that either. Growing up in that town, seeing and hearing Airforce exercises was daily life. I guess i expected peace and quite in the mountains this time around.
