Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska rifle for Dall Sheep

all bullets are affected by the wind, indeed, but the less the wind affects them the less chances of making an error.
if you can shoot it, a 300WBY will do everything the 7-08 does, and then a bit more. you may not need that bit more, bu then it will be there if you need it.
pointless discussion, though, as my decission was taken months ago.
BBerg.

Bberg.

Good call on the Roy. You can get Ammo for it from several sources in Fairbanks if they lose it on the airport ride.

The thing that is for the Roy is that you might run into a Brooks Range Grizz and it would be less opportunistic without the Roy which can handle that job or a long shot on Sheep. Go with your gut. Don't let anybody talk you into using a gun because they like their gun better. Leroy Shebal a famous Alaskan Guide loved the 300 Roy as did many other guides and hunters during the golden age of the 1960s. They often didn't like the Weatherby rifles but liked the caliber. Their complaint about the Weatherby's was that many of their owners had magnumtitus and couldn't shoot them or that in tough glacial country debris would get into the bolt and trigger assembly. A custom Rifles Inc will have none of these problems and as I mentioned earlier its not your first rodeo.

Tyvek painters overalls give you a white coverall or look which can sometimes be used to sneak up if you are busted. You can get them pretty cheap (5-15bucks) from home depot or Lowes. Your guide might have them but if not they don't take up much for room and they don't cost much. They can be a lifesaver. You can't specifically march at the sheep with them but they can be used to an advantage if done right.

I would also stop at the surveyor's exchange in Fairbanks and rent a iridium Sat phone for about $150 per week with 50 minutes of time. Just having the ability to call out and give the a-ok is worth it. You will thank me for that last suggestion.

Sincerely,
Thomas

Alright, I'll admit right up front I didn't read all the posts and I believe the first choice--the 7-08--would do fine, but, I have a K95 coming this month that I envisioned for just such a job. While I ordered the more pedestrian 30-06, the 7mmx65R
you mention is probably a more romantic and certainly just as practical a choice as far as capabilities.

I also have a Lex Webernick rifle but your 300 Wby is no way as light and handy as the K95 which would be a premium consideration with me and provides several options packing-wise; that said, none of your rifles could be said to be bad choices.

Sorry to waffle, but I would probably carry the K95, invest in another set of Blaser rings/base combo- carrying an extra scope. I know about the cost but I also know about the cost of a Dall sheep hunt.

Your welcome! Good hunting!

What does your pre 64 .270 weight? Would you put one in a Echols legend edge?

Ok, now that I've read OP's last post, I say, yea, not a bad choice at all! good hunting !!

It's a white, compact folding, lightweight coverall. Keeps the paint splatters off one's clothing......best worn while sheep hunting when one must be in exposed conditions on the stalk, but ONLY on all fours. An up-right white-clad bipodal wandering across a bare slope in full view of the quarry just won't cut it...

They ain't dumb, you know- but they can be fooled.

. And you have an accurate range estimation.

Oh, yeah, Art. That @330 yard shot with a 17 inch bbl? ........ was carrying a 2X7 Leupy II.....

Seems to me that too many people worry about grizz when they come up to hunt. Granted there's a slight chance you might run into one and and even slimer chance you'll run into a pissed off one but I wouldn't let it affect my hunt or rifle choice. I'd much rather enjoy the hunt then spend time worrying about getting eaten by a bear.

#2! don't care for the 50mm objectives, especially on the little Kimber. Too much of a good thing- like putting a big block Chevy in a moped.

What he said!!!
Contrary to popular opinion, there ain't a bear behind every tree (or, in this case bush). From your posting, I assume you're gonna have a guide. Let the guide worry about any bears - that's part of his job. Just use the rifle that you're most comfortable with. We've been in the area we hunt sheep in twice before (in the Brooks) and have yet to see a grizzly although we have seen old signs. I have seen bears in other parts of the Brooks but again, by keeping alert, we've avoided any problems. Just go on your trip & enjoy.
Bear in Fairbanks

My sheep rifle is a pre-64 Model 70 270 Winchester....topped with a 4 x 32 Zeiss scope...with this rig and using the 130 Nosler Partition and 61 grains of H4831 I have taken 12 NA rams..my longest shot was 277 yards in the Grand Canyon for my Desert Bighorn back in 1997...I have tried other combos but for
NA my favorite calibers are 270, 30-06, 300 Weatherby and 375 H&H

ou76,

a big welcome to the fire. Please tell us more about your sheep hunts. 12 rams - kudos. Per chance some pictures?

I really like your choice of rifle and scope - very non - nonsense.

BTW don't mind the guys. Good crowd here.

Like they often see polar bears wandering around the high country? (I suppose a human on all fours looks kind-of like a sheep, not a polar bear.) *The jury will disregard that comment as coming from one who knows little about this. However, I would add that the use of Tyvek� should include plenty of pre-trip scrunching of said article in order to soften and get rid of the crinkle sounds.

I will try and add some pictures...

North America Sheep:

Dall Sheep: Alaska 1987 and 1988, NWT 1997, 2001 and 2003

Stone Sheep: British Columbia 1990 and 2003; Yukon 2007

Bighorn Sheep: British Columbia 1995 and 2004; Alberta 2005

Desert Bighorn: Arizona 1997


Texas Aoudads:
Free ranging Aoudads Texas Davis Mtns..2000,2001,2003 and 2006

Aoudads are tough thick skinned critters and an old mature ram will weigh close to 250 pounds...I have heard stories of 300 pounders but I have never seen such an aminal!! For Aoudads, I use my 300 Weatherby topped with a 3x9x36 Zeiss scope and loaded with 180 Nosler Partitions....The free ranging Aoudads in the West Texas mountains are as wild as any NA sheep..and do not confuse these free ranging Aoudads with the canned pen hunts in South Texas!!!

I don't like to go into scores all that much since any legal ram is a trophy...especially if the ram is a 10 year old sheep...I have been lucky when it comes to Dalls...3 of my 5 have been 40 inch plus...the youngest ram I have harvested was my Yukon Fannin Stone at 9 years old....it took me 3 Yukon hunting trips and 50 hunting days get get a Fannin Stone...just part of the Stone jinx!!

Go with number 4, for one reason and one reason only- Dall sheep live in grizzly country.

When I went on my Dall sheep hunt, I was flown in by Super Cub. A flyover of my intended camp showed it to have already been visited by grizzly bear, or bears. Totally destroyed. I was flown to another campsite. I managed to score a good ram on Day 5, 12 miles from drop camp. After taking out as much as my guide and I could, on our backs, we went back the next day, to find nothing left. Griz had beat us to it!

I was glad to have had my 7 Rem. Mag. on that hunt, and would have felt even better with my .300 Wby.

You are right, Sheep country is Grizzly Country...and Grizzly encounters do happen... my choice for a combo hunt of sheep and Grizzly would be the 300 Weatherby..I have harvested 3 of my 11 Grizzlies with this caliber loaded with 200 grain Nosler Partitions or Swift A Frames during Fall combo hunts for Moose and Grizzly....However, in my sheep hunting experiences I have never encounter a Grizzly during a sheep hunt that could not be avoided ......

ou76,

to post pictures you need to have them available at a external site; like photobucket or flickr.

Then you take the linke to your image and insert it into your post like this:

[img]link[/img]

13 sheep and 11 grizzlies - definitly looking forward to the pictures.

do you have an email?? I know how to email pictures from my kodak easy share

i can post them for you. email is in my sig line.

any luck with the Grizzly picture of 2003?? SCI story?? Will try more pictures at home through easy share