Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting More on the packgoats

So the goats did great. Totally proud of them, they adjusted to trail life quickly. We went through stuff no horse could ever handle. The cliffs and waterfalls stressed me out but they just rolled with it.

I did my part to lead the way, by avoiding the most difficult dead falls. Over chest height I’d try to go around. Multiple dead falls suck but they figured it out. Thick brush was nothing, and just like a horse they push through it.

The goats with minor weaknesses really weren’t. Odin’s big haybelly and getting hot in the sun, was no big deal in mild temperatures. He was usually mid train and if he was huffing and puffing, fair chance I was too.

Nigel and Loki’s smaller size was easily dealt with by just giving Loki the sleeping bags ( on the way back we added ammo on one side and binos on the other). Nigel just got leashes and cables on the way up til we needed room for water, on the way down he got a light load of meat. Nigel is also the only one with any skittish tendencies so I made sure he was hooked up before the shot. Nigel is also the quirkiest, he hates splitting the group up and will call for a little if someone walks off to take a dump or when I did my final stalk. I also had to keep Nigel closest to me and yet still within sight of the others at night to keep him calm.

Gunnar’s soft pasterns caused no issues but he was the most hesitant to jump off a cliff and skid down to us in the creek bottom when we cliffed out. Not necessarily Pastern related but could have been. I didn’t give him a huge load either and didn’t want to do any new damage. Was also prepared to kill him if I really [bleep] him up, but he’s still my favorite and friendliest. And he has the best beard so far.

They really took cues from us. They knew when it was a real break and they could lay down or if a quick break and just when to stand around and browse. They also seemed to know when we were going to camp for the night.

I still have no idea of their water requirements. They went without water, not by choice, until 10am on day 2 and they all needed a drink. But only half even took a drink during some minor stream segments we hit on day 3. They all drank again in day 4. I suspect green vegetation reduces their intake compared to what they drink at home with hay.

Thor, Ivar and Ragnar really seem the most bombproof and have no obvious weaknesses. They kick ass.

Next problem is the kid packs just don’t have enough capacity. I struggled to get enough moderate density stuff like clothes to push their weight limits.

Regarding the dead mountain goat, they flat out didn’t care. Only one of them even looked at it. The goats didn’t give a crap. At the shot, nothing happened, but they were mostly hooked up. Oh and I used Ivar as a decoy, and whether or not it worked, I don’t know, but the mountain goats came down off the cliffs and he was standing out in full visiblity.