My wife, Katie drew a muzzleloader license as an alternative to a high country early rifle license because she didn’t have the points for any decent units. She had been wanting to do a hunt like this and hadn’t hunted with me and the goats together yet.

I sold two of my goats a few weeks ago, so we are down to just the 5 pack goats now but I still thought that would be plenty of load capacity for this any other trips we had in mind for this year. So, when it came down to our scouting trip we were able to take some extra luxuries along like camp shoes, lots of food, the dogs, their food, and plenty of clothes for mixed weather conditions.

Anyway, on the way in on the scouting trip we saw three really nice bucks, then two more smaller ones one while glassing that night.

Later we went down to the one stock tank we knew of that would have water, called Yancy Reservoir, but weren’t willing to filter that nasty cow crap water, and the goats wouldn’t drink it either. Only the filthy dogs wanted to play in that 20 foot wide mud pit.

The next morning we hiked and glassed some more finding one large bachelor herd of bucks, including some real pretty boys on Thompson Ridge











While hiking around looking for other water sources we were disappointed in the lack of running water, which we thought might limit our options. Instead, we planned to put these goats to work and carry more water than we could possibly use.

Once we got home, we studied the maps and aerial photos a little harder, finding a spring and another crappy reservoir on the opposite side of Thompson Ridge. We still didn’t know how gross it would be or if the spring would have dried up, but since the goats were going to carry in enough water for us, we figured we would be fine either way…..

We put 40 pounds of water in big old Ivar’s pack in heavy duty camp shower bags, plus three more liters in aluminum bottles in addition my 3 liter bladder and Katie’s 2 liter bladder. All totaled we had 184 pounds of gear, plus a little extra with the muzzleloader, and some gear we kept in our own packs and never weighed.






We packed in on to Slow Cow Ridge the day before the season opener, with plenty of time to set camp and settle in. As we packed in, we found out that the cattle pond on this side of Thompson also had a spring feeding a tire tank and then feeding the pond with overflow. This was a much better water option for us and the goats if we needed any more than we packed in.



We didn’t have a great view of Thompson Ridge, just the top 100 yards or so as it was more heavily timbered, but we had a tremendous view of all the ridges coming off the south face of Rough Ridge.

Rough Ridge



That night we glassed up two nice bucks from around 1000 yards away on one of the lower fingers of Rough Ridge and Tommy’s Creek. As Katie watched those deer and a few other does, I decided to use the final minutes of daylight to go back toward Thompson Ridge to glass. When I got up with goats, the bucks all ran for some reason. I refused to believe it was because of us at that time.

Camp shots




….

Great pics and verbage! Hope it works out for Katie. What is the age of your goats? I'm thinking several years based on the length of horn.

Looking forward " to the rest of the story " as Paul Harvey used to say.

Great captures!
+1 on rounding out the chronicle.

Sounds like fun. Are the goats pretty good at hearing and seeing game animals?

Thanks they are all 3.5. The horn growth will slow from here but still continue throughout their life.
They do pretty well with it. Last year on an elk hunt they certainly alerted to elk sneaking in without bugling. Also let me know just before a moose came into camp and you can watch them work the wind out of curiosity when something is close.

That is one FINE photograph!

John

So we decided to go with the freshest information we had and hike around to Rough Ridge in the dark the next morning. It took a solid hour and a half to cover about 2.5 miles. We knew we’d spend the whole day out there so Ragnar carried extra food, jackets and a another pack and frame in his panniers in case she killed something.

We crept out in several finger ridges and saw nothing at all. No does, no bucks, no bears no elk.

So by about 10:00 am, we called it quits and found some shade to get out of the heat and slept the rest of the day. Every once in a while we’d glass up in Rough Ridge or down Tommy Creek, but saw nothing.

By 4:00, we got up and headed back down a finger and started glsssing. Nothing.

Went to another ridge by about 5:30 and finally saw deer. I picked one out at 750 yards that was in a cattle dugout that I though was dry. Could have been attracted to salt or something, but maybe there was in fact water. The deer started walking our way and I told Katie we better think about getting ready by either getting lower on this draw or move back and head to the ridge opposite of us. I was fairly certain it was a buck, but had a hard time making out antlers in the shadows. Just then, it stopped, looked our way and spooked. As it ran off over the far ridge, three others took off too. I could tell at least two were bucks.

Just like the night before the goats were milling around us but it seemed very unlikely to me that their shape would spook a deer. They didn’t have our wind either. However, also like the night before, we were looking into the sun and wondered if there was glare off our optics that was getttjng the attention of the deer.

Looking down from Rough Ridge into Tommy Creek






Hiking along what was probably an old road below Rough Ridge that connected back towards camp. Now it’s just a wide cow trail.

We stayed til dark, but didn’t see any other deer. It was a long hike back out in the dark. Getting into camp well after 9:00 PM. We quickly ate dinner snd went to bed, this time deciding to leave the goats further in the woods from glassing spots. The goats didn’t spook any deer previously and last year while elk hunting we about walked up on deer with the goats alongside us. I still think it was more about the glare from our binos and scope but didn’t want to take the chance. I hadn’t seen any bear sign yet, so felt a little more comfortable leaving them out of sight. I did see a lion track on the Ridges above Tommy, but with our new plan leaving them in the woods well off trail, I figured they would be safe.

We woke up just before 4:00 to the sound of rain on the tent. It was light at first but steadily picked up. I asked Katie if she had put the gun under the tarp and she said she had not. So I quickly got up and covered everything I didn’t want to get wet. Next I started pulling out additional tarps to put up goat shelters. I kicked myself for not bringing their coats. As I got the first tarp up in the rain, everything stopped and I looked up and could see stars. I felt pretty confident that was the end of the weather, so we got back to getting ready for the day and were out of camp by 5:00 as originally planned.
As we made our way up Thompson Ridge in the timber before dark, the goats did great following in the headlights. When we passed the spring, we saw eyes blinking and watching us. I thought they were closely spaced but could tell what I was looking at from 50 yards away. As we moved on it came bouncing toward us, I reached for my handgun until at about 20 yards I could see it was just a fox bouncing along. For some dumb reason it followed us for about a 1/4 mile before turning off.

We tied up the goats in the timber about 150 yards from the top where it opened up as the sky was just getting light. Katie and I crept up to the too and immediately sat down at the edge of a sage covered park with a few strings of aspen pushing down the hillside. The wind was swirling and right at dawn it pushed downhill and we instantly heard branches snap and the very familiar sound of horns/antlers scraping wood(the goats love to destroy saplings). And then the PHEEEWWW, snort weeze! I told Katie to get her gun up. I peered through the dark and buck was getting up just 75 yards below us, silhouetted against the sage I could see antlers protruding above his ears. Katie said she couldn’t quite see her sights yet and off he bounded… letting everyone else know we were lurking about.

By about 7:00 am we accepted that we were hosed and hike up the ridge further to where the bucks were two weeks ago. We saw nothing but in glassing back towards Slow Cow Ridge where we were camped we saw deer out in another presumed empty tank. Once again I don’t think they were drinking water, but probably licking salt or other minerals. I saw one of my goats do this too in loose dirt earlier the previous day.

They appeared to be does in the spotter so we were in no hurry to get back yet.

As the morning grew warmer and sunnier we headed back for the goats to grab some peanut butter and a bagel for breakfast. In doing so I tripped over a nice shed.



We felt pretty pleased with the morning knowing that we were still into deer but headed back to camp to snooze the day away.

I glassed the hillside of Slow Cow Ridge as we came out of the timber on Thompson, and just then I saw the final moment of a buck bedding literally a couple hundred yards below camp. Katie never saw it, but in watching him bed down, I counted the three trees from the top to his bed.



Katie stayed out to watch the tree while I took the goats back across the draw over to Slow Cow Ridge and tied them up in the aspens there. I then motioned over to Katie to come down to me and the stalk was on….

Thanks John, I also love that one. She and Thor get along well, despite the fact he pretends like he doesn’t care about petting.

Great read! Keep'em coming!

High adventure beautifully photographed, and well described. Appreciate your posting it.

It was now 10am and we quickly walked right past camp, in search for the landmarks we had in mind. It was just three trees, but our perspective had now changed 90 degrees. We easily found the high tree and then dropped our packs. From there, we only had our binos and Katie’s gun plus a couple pre measured powder charges, bullets and caps.

Everything was slow motion from here, it took as an hour and a half to descend about 100 yards down the hill. However, things got confusing. It seems simple looking at the pictures that the buck was bedded under the third tree, but now there were little trees scattered about and the oak and snow berries were waist to chest high and the sage was often hip high.
Looking back I think the tree behind the tree that the buck bedded u see is what made it difficult to determine where he was.
We sat there in the heat, completely confused as to which tree the buck had to be under. So, Katie got set up in a small opening and I began throwing rocks. First tree…. Nothing.
Next tree…. Nothing. The tree I though the deer should be under…….nothing. Again with the rocks, and the. Some more trees down the hill, and back to the tree I was initially leaning toward. Nothing, nothing, nothing.

We were 20 yards from the target tree and couldn’t see anything. We glassed and glassed and now wondered if the deer got up during the 20-30 minutes we spent hiking the ridge above near camp.

We had been so quiet and now we’re talking loudly and animatedly. We were hot and in direct sunlight. I told Katie, just go over to that tree and prove he’s not there. She walked over with her gun slung and just then I threw a larger rock, and I heard the hollow Plunk! It’s just like when you hit your dog in the ribs with a ball. I yelled at Katie to get ready, and you up he stood and, hesitated for one second, and we got a great view of a nice 4 point velvet buck, just 5 yards from Katie. Then he bounded off down the hill, I yelled at Katie to run to the left to an opening and shoot him. She did and then sat down .

Another buck got up further down the draw. This one was hard antler, both bucks went up the ridge on the other side and stopped separately. I heard a Boom!. The velvet buck was untouched. I said reload and looked for the hard antler buck. It was 89 yards from Katie and still standing broadside. Katie was reloading quickly.

She got the gun back up, both bucks broadside and watching us, I saw Katie get the gun back up, but was unsure which buck she was aiming at. Then Pop! The .54 cal Lyman Deerstalker raised her ugly head with a misfire. Only the cap went off the main charge did not and the bucks had had enough. Up they went up Thompson Ridge back to where we sat this morning. I watched them in and out of view for half a mile.

I went down to Katie, and she was dejected. She said the tears were from the dust and sun, but I knew better. We spent two hours getting so close then gave up so quickly. We still couldn’t understand how a large antlered buck could hide at such close range.

I walked over to the tree the buck was under and and there was a trail cut into the hillside where the buck could sleep in the shade and the two big snowberry bushes were uphill of the trail, so we would have had to be on the trail looking back under the tree in order to see him. It was impossible from above.

We couldn’t believe how we had come so close then squandered our chance on a great buck and then dumb luck offered up another buck. Oh and if things played out a little differently we might have had a chance at another buck earlier this morning.

We got the goats and went back to camp for a nap, and decided to take it easy and just sit the water hole tonight.

We left the goats in camp, they complained a little bit, but no big deal. Katie sat the water and kept watch over the draw where we saw the bucks earlier. We were both so down on ourselves.

Nothing was seen that night.

The next morning we tried Thompson Ridge again and saw nothing. We glassed back over to Slow Cow and saw nothing there either. That night from Slow Cow, we glassed back to Rough Ridge and Tommy’s Creek. Nothing.

We were dejected. The next morning, we went back up to the Thompson one more time, but to sit a different opening, nothing there either. Though we could laugh about what happened, it still hurt, and we were both ready to head home on the 4th day.

We laid out the gear, emptied the remaining water into our bladders and weighed it. Down to 110 pounds now, we were coming out light, but heavy with disappointment. It was going to be a short but [bleep] hike up the mountain. Elevation gain of almost 1,500 feet in under a mile as the crow flies. We weren’t crows, we would angle our way up. It took two hours and Ivar, the fat boy, slowed the pace of everyone a little bit. Not that we couldn’t use a break when he was panting too.

It was hard but wasn’t that bad. Glad the goats carried the real weight. Ivar wasn’t as he peed blood when we got home. He seems fine now, but that may have stressed him a bit.

Katie now tells the story as it was one of the bests hunts she’s ever been on, but still kicks herself for giving up on this buck at bayonet distance. Her other bucks were more sudden opportunities, with no significant stalk involved after spotting them. Same with her elk. Her antelope were different in that they required stalks but if you screw up you carry on, walk back to the truck and drive over the next hill and find more.

Still, how did we screw up right on top of that back? I know, I know. But I still can’t believe it.









It was a quiet ride home… The End

Thanks for taking us along!

What a great trip. No meat or horns, but such awesome memories and pics. Congrats on a great adevnture.

Fantastic photos and text of your hunt!! Thanks for sharing.

Fantastic story telling and photos my man. Thanks so much for sharing that.

Dave

Great story and better luck next time.

Just remember, "The worst day hunting or fishing is better than the best day at work".

Thanks for posting that story and pictures.
Goats are cool animals

Great pics and story..

Thanks great story and pics, looks like some pretty country.

Damn I love post/threads like this

Great post. Thanks for taking us along using your photo's and literary skills. Have you thought about writing a story for one of the outdoor mags?

Great job detailing your adventures!

I love these goat threads. That looks like a very cool way to hunt.

Great write up.

I enjoyed that very much, thank you for sharing

Thanks for sharing your adventure with us.

Great pictures, great write up, awesome adventure!!!!

Thanks for sharing. You are living the dream. Well done!

Great pictures and very well written! Thanks so much for sharing.

Thanks, I always enjoyed the old adventure hunts as a kid reading some of the greats, but no I’ve never really pursued. Used to write other types of articles here and there though

Great read. The difference between grocery shopping and hunting. Thanks for sharing.

You should send something to one of the hunting magazine editors. I bet they'd use it.

My wife and I were featured in an oil/gas industry hunting magazine a number of years back. We ended up having the magazine cover and our article printed on metal and have it sitting in our living room. Cool conversation piece.

Thanks exbio. My uncle was a wildlife biologist and headed the successful quest for turkeys in Missouri. Be Well RZ.

Thanks for sharing your adventure. Really apprecite it!