Wifes 05 Bighorn

Boatfool

New member
Joined
Nov 10, 2006
Messages
28
Location
Lewiston,Idaho
Just seeing if I can attatch picture.If it works,story and more pics to follow.
 

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Very nice, congrats to the wifey. Looks like a good place to put a bullet.
 
Awesome ram, he was in the Trbune a year ago, correct? What was the final score on him? Did you see the ones that came out of there this year?
 
Nice trophy...not a bad ram either.:) Sorry, couldn't resist & welcome Boatfool
 
Your wifs hot.. but WOW ,,,, look at that Sheep !!!!! Baahhhhhhh :D

Seriously though, Kudos !! What unit did that come from ? I'm assuming up north by you ?
 
The story

OK, so here is the short version.In 2005 my wife drew a unit 11 sheep permit in Idaho.We spent the summer doing some scouting and her doing a lot more long distance shooting than she had in the past.By the time the season opened we had found out that she was pregnant.Not far along,but some minor complications meant we had to get her in front of a good sheep early as we knew she might not be up to much hiking in a few weeks.

So the season opens and I hadn't planned any days off until the second week,so the wife and her dad take the horses out for a couple days of hunting.They saw a couple small rams and came back few days later.

Earlier we had already decided that if we got towards the end of the season and she hadn't shot a sheep we would take a boat up the canyon and hunt up from the river.The wife decided that she wasn't going to be any good hiking in a couple weeks,so we went to plan B.

I grabbed a boat from work and we headed upriver for an afternoon to look for a good place to hunt from.We saw the usual groups of sheep as we headed up.suddenly her dad spotted 3 rams up on a bluff.We stopped and glassed them and one looked pretty good,but not in good position to put stalk on.Went on up the canyon and saw several more sheep with a few fair rams mixed in.When we headed back down and got close to where we saw the 3 rams earlier we wanted to get another look at them.I spotted one close to the river so i killed the motor and we started to drift.As we got closer the 2 bigger rams were not near the river,but standing on a small beach.We drifted by at less than 50 yards.It was almost dark so we kept drifting awhile then when I felt we were clear I fired up the boat and headed home.We talked it over and I told my wife we had found her ram.Her dad wasn't sure it would score what she was looking for.I thought it would.Her only criteria was that she wanted it to be the biggest in the state by a chick.

When we got to town we got Jason Rhinebold to come over and talk about what to do the next day.We were sure we knew where they would be by morning.Jason has more experience than the rest of us on field scoring and had offered his help.We decided that I since I had to work the next morning,Jason would take my wife and her dad up in his boat and look for the biggest of the 3 rams.They got up to where we thought they should be and headed up the hill.Several hundred yards up they spot all 3 rams.Her ram is at 400 yards.My wife sets up her shooting sticks and get comfortable.She wanted to get closer,but Jason and her dad both thought they couldn't get much closer.She has made 400yd shots,so she decides to take the shot.The ram runs a bit and goes down.As they are working their way to it the sheep gets up and heads over the hill.3 hours and a couple miles later,they catch up with her ram bedded down.She sets up and finishes the job.

They skin and bone it out and pack everything back down to the river.She clled me at 5:00 p.m. from satellite phone to say they were headed back.We had a full body mount done and it looks great.She really owes a lot to Jason and her dad.They really did all the work.Yea,this could have been a flip-flop hunt the night before at the river.They ended up working a little,but still pretty easy by sheep standards.Her dad left the next day to try and fill his sheep permit by himself in I think unit 19?He didn't see one shooter ram in 10 days of hunting.

And Tone, this was the one in the trib last winter.We haven't seen this years rams,but have heard plenty about them.The wifes sheep will go in the books at 183 5/8 I think.We don't have the score sheet but need to get it soon and get it entered.It was broomed off on one side pretty bad.There was another big ram with him that was the coolest chocolare color,but a little smaller.If he is still out there,he is a shooter for sure now.As for the wife,like Rodney Carrington says,I married way over my head.What a good looking young thing like her is doing with a middle aged goof like me is beyond me.But I ain't complaining.
 

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Very cool, thanks for the story. I went to school with her brother by the way and one of my hunting buddies lives a couple houses down from your father in law I believe. The two rams that came out of there this year are supposed to go 192 and 185 if I remember correctly. They were both very impressive rams. Definitely a dream ram unit that I have no doubt I'll never draw.
 
TheTone
Don't count yourself out of drawing that tag.If you look at the number of residents that apply,your odds are better than most people think.Remember that at least one of the 2 tags goes to a resident.Or you could just buy the auction tag next time it comes up:) .We had hoped to have her brother out for the hunt,but it just didn't work out.She has killed all her trophies with her dad and brother,so it would have been nice. The numbers on the rams killed this year sound about like what I've heard.
 
At this point I'd rather have the elk tag up there than the sheep tag, thus I can't apply for the sheep. I have to sit out on deer this coming year since I drew this year, so I may just give a sheep tag a try. You're right about the auction tag, if only I'd somehow stumble into a load of money.
 
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