Archery goat season is only 2 months out!

We spent 5 days last week goat scouting.

The first two days turned into a family backpacking trip, which was perfect except for the lack of goats. We started at 9000 ft elevation and went as high as 13200. The younger kids did extremely well.

Summer in the Rockies is in full bloom.

Wife and two younger kids

My better half and I

With the lack of goats, I decided to drop the family off and head to a different trailhead.
The dog stayed with me. She's awesome!

This trail head was wicked to get to and worse once I started. A full day later, 9 miles in and 4000 feet higher found me running for cover above tree line with a full blown electric storm.

The next day everything was wet, but my hopes were high.

I was not disappointed.

Jackpot.

Billy goat hangout.

Here are the top 5 on the hit list.

#1 A goat named Horse. He's big. Like a horse. His body dwarfs most others he's around. I'd guess him at 9.5" plus.

He's the one in back.

Horse is playing dead after I drilled him with my imaginary arrow.

#2 Old and Broken.

He's old, broken, and as big as horse. His horns will only go 8" or so, but he's massive to the tip. I got to 35 yard of him and was able to count rings. He's 9+ years old.

[img]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f302/jennifer9024/DSCF2470_zpsf669b59c.jpg[/img]
#3 Diego.

He's got length and decent mass. Any guesses on his length?
[img]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f302/jennifer9024/DSCF2437_zpscb7f6c1a.jpg[/img]
#4 Kinky
He tries to mount anything.
[img]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f302/jennifer9024/DSCF2487_zpsa6c5ada2.jpg[/img]
#5 No Name

Just a good solid goat, although nothing outstanding.
[img]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f302/jennifer9024/DSCF2478_zpsdc46344d.jpg[/img]

Fun backpacking partner and a hot meal.

Sleeping Dog mountain. If you look closely, there are goats on the horizon.


Horse is the most impressive so far, but I'll be happy with any mature billy.

Opinions welcome. Am I over estimating these guys?

Great stuff, thanks for sharing. Beautiful country, I miss it!

Very cool. Hope you get to let the air out of one of them.

Goats are my favorite, very jealous. I'd go for Horse, but Kinky looks to have some good mass too. I'd like to see more pics of that one!

San Juans are incredible!

Tanner

Great pics and story, what a nice way to be spending time in July...I'd be so happy with any of them! Thanks for posting.

Great pics T-bone.

Tanner,

Kinky has me thinking....he's a solid goat, but no where near the body size of Horse or O&B. He'd approach every billy on the mountain, posture and try and mount.

If I put on a white hat and suit, he'd decoy I bet.

I'll go back up in mid August and see if they are still around.

It's going to be a great hunt!

T Bone:

Good luck. Thanks for sharing. What unit did you draw?

KC

Just don't let hem get around behind ya........

OK, that was funny, I don't care who you are!
Seriously, thanks for those pics, great looking family, too

LOL

Nice photos .. Ice lakes for the family ?

My guess also

Yes, Ice Lakes.

Beautiful place for an overnighter for the family.

The day we were there a llama committed suicide where the trail goes thru the cliffs below the lake. A family had rented 3 llamas, the oldest one walked right to the edge and fell down 60+', the dad kept telling the boy leading him "You weren't holding him tight enough!" Poor kids.

Great pics!

Fantastic pics. What a great way to spend a week in July!

Cool. I look forward to your updates.

Awesome pics and trip.

Is that a pretty tough draw in CO? I'm assuming yes...



Travis

Goddammm, this story made me laugh.



Travis

If a llama decides to walk off a cliff, I'M not going to be holding him "tight enough" either! In fact, I'm letting go just like the intelligent young llama leader apparently did. Let the smart dad "hold on tight" as a 350 pound llama walks off a cliff. Laws of physics can bite you in the butt!

First day of the hunt was rough.

My entire backpack camp was stolen in a remote area of La Plata county Colorado around August 30th.

Please keep an eye out for:

1)- Spotting scope: Minox MD62 ED with 21-42 L.E.R. eyepiece. Model # 62212 Serial # 61000105.

2)- Vortex Ridgeline tripod

3)- Mountain Hardware 3 man tent

4)- Marmot Flathead 20 degree Long model sleeping bag

5)- Big Agnes Q-Core sleeping pad

6)- MSR Rocket stove

7)- Olicamp XTS cook pot

Authorities have been contacted.

This has really put a crimp in my mountain goat hunt.

Please keep an eye out at pawn shops, Craigslist, etc.

Cash reward offered.

What a kick in the junk.

God I hate thieves.

Holy schit dude! That sucks.

You need to borrow anything right away just let me know. You pay shipping and it's yours until the season closes.



Travis

Damn that sucks. I'm heading down through Gunnison, Ridgway, and on to Dolores next Wednesday/Thursday on the way to my muzzleloader elk hunt.

If there's anything I can drop off, let me know, I have spares of most of the stuff on your list.

Thanks for the kind offers everyone!

Anyhow....

Monday Labor Day, my son and I backpacked in to the spot to find my cached gear missing from the week before.

My son has a bag, pad, and tarp so he stays at camp while I head back out to contact authorities and get replacement gear.

I decide to hunt goats instead of my gear. I'll leave it at that. My attitude was in the crapper.

Where does one find gear the evening of Labor Day? Walmart to the rescue.

It's not just heavy, it's bulky!

By 9pm I'm back on the trail heading in the 7 miles to camp. Again. Legs were feeling less peppy this time.

Tuesday Sept 2nd - opening day

A quick nap on my crap-ola Walmart sleeping pad gave me some energy to get up the mountain by daylight.

Billy showed up on queue.

Right off the left big toe you'll see a white dot.



It's Diego.

I decide to try and get in range.

I turn my jacket inside out and put on a white head mask. Goat ninja.



Within range I was.


I spent some time looking him over. Smallish body. Decent horns. Good hair. Yes, I'm totally going to stick him.

I try to find good footing so I don't fall....range him at 44 yards almost straight down and....he walks into a chute and disappears from my life.

I get back up top with some effort and both my son and I have some big grins.

Keep after 'em, looking forward to more Diego pics.

I hate to here about the theft, but glad you made due. I can loan you a couple of better pieces of gear if you need. Just PM me.

Good on ya to forge ahead, Tbone, and bad karma to the slime who took your gear.

Tuesday afternoon the range maggots invaded the mountain again.

Go away. Nobody wants you here.



Tuesday night I fully realized how nice good gear is, and how crappy cheap gear is.
This stove and pot combo burned through 2 cans of fuel in 4 days. It takes forever to boil 2 cups of water.


Sleeping on those little closed cell foam pad adds about as much insulation and padding as a slice of Wonder bread.

Wednesday dawned bright and clear.



Jackpot. We found the two goats I wanted most. Horse and Old and Broken. Hanging out together on pinnacle.

These two are the kings of this mountain. Big heavy bodies.

Here is O&B.


I put my best sneak on them. It worked for about 4 minutes. They busted me.

Plan B.

We'd been tracking two billies that bed in cliffs (white spots on the left of the pic) and feed out into the green to the right of the pic every evening.



The wind was right, so we made a move. The stalk was going extremely well. I was going to kill the bigger of the two. Sure enough.

They came out of the cliffs on schedule. I was readjusting across a small boulder slide. The boulder slide cut loose and I scampered out with only a small injury to my thumb. My bow did not fare so well.



3 of the 5 arrows broken. Quiver bent like a pretzel.

What a downer.

Everything else on the bow survived with only scrapes.

The goats ran away.

After the crash, I climbed back up on top and Nathaniel and I laughed some about it.

Who needs a full quiver? Two arrows are plenty.

Swedish Fish always help cheer me up.



The sun set on another fine day in the High Rockies.

Thursday came soon enough after a full night of tossing and turning on my Wonder bread sleep pad.

Sometime during the night weather showed up. Rain/slush mix.

We set out after some hot oatmeal. We trekked a long ways to enable us to look at the faces of the cliffs that we had been looking over from the topside.

We found what I was hoping for.

Horse and O&B in a stalkable spot. We drew a little map on landmarks and hustled back around the basin.

We stalked the two fatties blind, hoping they were still in place and our memories of landmarks were accurate.

It was the longest stalk so far. We inched in and peeked around the corner.

Horse had us pinned down. We couldn't get any closer.

We sat for 30 minutes or so and he stood and started feeding away. As soon as he turned the corner over the little ridge we scampered forward and inched over.

We found O&B at 55 yards, clueless of the two arrow threat about to lengthen his mid-day nap.

Have you ever seen a goat yawn?

Great pics & story! Can't wait for the conclusion.

Nice.........

It was a perfect setup. My son was 100 yards to my left. I had O&B ranged at 55 yards at about a 50 degree angle downhill.

At my signal my son stood on the skyline, causing the billy to stand perfectly broadside.

It was beautiful. I drew, had to let down and readjust footing.

I pinned him for 45 yards and let it fly. Shaved hair off his back.

Billy jumps as carbon explodes on the rock behind him. He runs down hill 10 yards and stops quartering away.

I knock my last arrow, pinned again for 45 yards and the arrow hits nothing but rock right under him.

Game over.

My son and I talk about it. We can't help but grin even with the outcome of events.

It starts raining, then snowing. More arrows are in the truck 7.5 miles away.

I could be hunting again by Friday noon.

As we hike in the slush we decide to bail. I dislike sleeping cold and uncomfortable very much. I'd like to get my bow 100% straightened out.

We pack out in heavy rain and snow. We pull into the driveway around midnight....hot showers and food and clean sheets.

Basic replacement gear has been ordered. It should be here Tuesday.

Tomorrow I'll be talking with a Deputy from La Plata county again.....

I'll be back on the mountain Wednesday with fresh attitude, gear, and arrows.

I'm looking forward to it!

Wish you luck, thanks for sharing your hunt.

This is a great story so far, and this is the best line yet.

This is the best story line. Wish my boys would have enjoyed hunting as much as I do. Can't imagine the memories doing hunts like this together.

Bone - hope Weds brings more opportunity.

Went out for the 3rd trip of the season Monday.

Got a shot at a billy Tuesday morn.

Recovered the arrow.

Congrats!

Awesome! Story please!

Hell yes... nicely done - the fire demands more.

fantastic story, sir! well done.

like others, I really enjoyed hearing how your son was there every step of the way.

excellent delivery.

Did you find blood?

That Diego?

Here is the hero shot of my son and I and the goat.



The billy is not Diego or any of the others previously pictured.

Diego and the two giant billies we had been targeting live on that saddle shaped peak over my son's left shoulder.

If you anchor on the top and rappel down about 90 feet there is a catwalk that will go right to Horse and O&B perch. They haven't moved from that perch for over 2 weeks. I had my chance at them.

I simply missed.

Twice.

T,

thank you for yor narrative. I put us right there. Am very happy for you and your son.

Not many pictures do a mountain justice. Yours do. The shot from up top or the blood running down in your hero picture show their slope.

Getting a goat up there with a rifle is a task for most - you guys did it with a bow. Respect.

I have not been to the Colorado Rockies for 20 years now, with sometime in the Alberta Rockies and some hills in Alaska in between.

Suffice it to state - I see, what you did there.

Simply outstanding!

Good for you, glad you got one.

Absolutely great picture! Congrats. I'm guessing your son and you'll be talking about that hunt for a while...

A cherished memory that you and your son will always share. Incredible story, pics, and accomplishment. The smiles in the hero pick say it all! Well done and congrats on a nice billy, and for persevering through multiple challenges to close the deal. That is what backcountry archery hunting is all about!

Wow fantastic story; thanks for such a great effort at bringing us along. What an unbelievable experience!

Congrats ! Good pictures. Great story. I appreciate you taking the time to share with the rest of us...

Congrats, I missed this whole thread until now. Very well written, photographed and done.

Jeff

Thanks for all the pictures and post. The true inspiration is not the goat that you bagged, but taking a [bleep] situation and making the best of it without getting too down about it and letting it ruin your trip. Great example you just gave your son!

I have a friend like that, and on a few occasions I was disgusted and wanted to walk away from an outing, but his positive additude turned a [bleep] trip into a successful one...I have learned much from him.

Great story and great billy! Congrats!