Blayne St. James
FNG
Here are a few pics from my NM sheep hunt this past Dec. Hope you enjoy
Last edited:
DIY NM Desert Sheep
- Thread starter Blayne St. James
- Start date
Here are a few pics from my NM sheep hunt this past Dec. Hope you enjoy
actionshooter
WKR
Awesome pics! Tell us a story... 
Umpqua Hunter
WKR
Very cool Blayne! I was just thinking last week that I wanted to follow-up with you and see how your hunt went. Do you mind if I ask what your ram scored?
Awesome pics! Tell us a story...
Agreed...awesome photos of a great ram! Would love to hear the tale...
Shrek
WKR
Beautiful ram ! Please write up the tale and post it.
- Thread Starter
- #7
OP
Blayne St. James
FNG
Sorry, I got busy at home and couldn't post anymore pics/ story etc. I'll write a more detailed story later and for those of you that get Eastman's the story just got printed in their sheep issue. Here's the short version. I blew an opportunity on a 180+ plus ram, dry fired my bow on a low 160 class and shot this guy with my rifle in an ungodly wind storm. I haven't even officially taped him yet but he'll go a minimum of 167 which is what we roughed scored him at. I'll post more pics and details later. I ended up having an incredible year. I shot a 184+ P&Y whitetail in KS, a stud woodland bou that's getting an award at the P&Y convention in a couple weeks, killed a moose and my best archery bull with my bow. Now if my luck will hold out one more year ....
weaver
WKR
- Joined
- Feb 25, 2012
- Messages
- 1,208
Just read your story in eastmans yesterday....sounds like you had quite the experience. Congrats on an awesome ram.
- Thread Starter
- #10
OP
Blayne St. James
FNG
Last edited:
- Thread Starter
- #11
OP
Blayne St. James
FNG
Here's the story......
Old Rams in the White Sands
Four thousand vertical feet and there he was, bedded across the canyon, facing us directly. Time was not on our side, and at nearly .5 mile away, we had our work cut out for us. With fading light and much ground to cover it was decision time: leave the old ram and come back in the morning to trudge up through the cactus and sharp rocks, or climb towards the rocky peak in hopes of sneaking down on top of the old boy in his bed. I’ve been accused of many things in my life but being a passive hunter has never been one of them. It was go time baby!
As we hiked up the ridge the wind began to howl. By the time we finally crested the peak, the wind gusts were in excess of 50 MPH! I’ve hunted in windy conditions before but nothing quite like this! The blustery conditions wreaked havoc on our eyesight. Words could not describe how dry and irritated my eyes were. I could hardly focus past 100 yards without seeing white dots floating everywhere. As darkness closed in we became increasingly impatient, maybe even slightly desperate you could say. In our haste we mistakenly silhouetted ourselves while searching for the old ram. Not long afterwards I caught a flash of white and knew we blew our chance at a true world class ram. With his white rump running down the mountain side it was game over. We watched helplessly as the 180 inch monster ran out of our lives never to be seen again during our time on the White Sands Missile Range. If that wasn’t bad enough we now had to circumnavigate down this treacherous mountain side in the dark. Needless to say this was not a pleasurable evening!
Sheep hunting is always a special event and this particular hunt was no different. Being one of two hunters having the privilege of hunting the White Sand Missile Range in southern New Mexico for the first time in over 35 years was beyond special, it was a dream come true. The big question confronting me last spring after the draw results were posted was ‘do I go guided or unguided?’ With the help of Gilbert Villegas, the WSMR wildlife biologist /hunt administrator, and the overwhelming support of three of my closet, hardcore hunting buddies I opted for a “Do It Yourself” hunt. Scott McRae, owner of Alaska Summit Guide Service, flew down from Anchorage. Kent Boyington who is the best hunter I know behind the optics drove down from Utah, and Scott Hargrove, my mule deer hunting mentor of over a decade came down from Colorado. The dream team was assembled and ready to hunt!
Over the next several days we experienced more trials and tribulations than I care to remember. I ruined my bow by accidently dry firing it while at full draw on a beautiful 160 class ram. I received a federal speeding ticket which I didn’t know even existed. I fell on a cactus and pulled quills out of my inner thigh for several days. My transmission started going out in my brand new truck and the part we needed was on back order with the bigger issue being Christmas was the following week and the dealership wouldn’t be able to get the part until after the holidays! The weather was horrible. It snowed, rained and blew like a hurricane most of the hunt. The day I actually shot my ram there was a severe weather adversary warning in effect - sustained winds of 35 to 45 MPH with gusts in excess of 70 MPH! Feeling the pressure like never before, my dream hunt was quickly becoming the trip from hell.
The morning I killed my ram we contemplated whether it was even worth going hunting. The visibility was poor due to all the sand and debris blowing in the air, Scott Hargrove had to leave and go back to work so we were down a pair of eyes and we were just plain getting worn out and needed some down time. But with Christmas less than a week away we really couldn’t afford not to hunt, so we pushed ourselves. That morning we tried our best to set up out of the wind to glass an east facing slope. Unfortunately for us there was no escaping the strong winds on the barren valley floor. However, within 30 minutes of glassing my man Kent located our ram! Now faced with the same decision we had earlier in the hunt, leave the ram until tomorrow or go for it, we opted to go for it. Kent and Gilbert stayed behind to keep eyes on the sheep while McRae and I began our ascent.
Constantly second guessing our decision, we pushed forward hoping old yellow horns wouldn’t catch our scent in the swirling winds. Gaining elevation and tucking closer into the mountainside we slowly became sheltered from the wind. About two hours into the hike we were finally in position. With absolutely no way of getting any closer than 300 yards, I prepared for the shot. Laying on the rocks with my rifle resting on my pack I tried to steady my crosshairs. I laid there for several minutes trying to time my shot with the heavy cross wind. With my finger on the trigger, I gently squeezed off a round and missed! Quickly chambering another round in my rifle, I fired again making this shot count. Old yellow horns lay dead in his tracks!
Walking over to the ram I couldn’t help but feel a huge weight lifted off my chest. Everyone honestly worked their tails off to make this a successful hunt. This was “our ram”! It would have been easy to write a check and hire an outfitter, but it wouldn’t have been as special. Having three close friends I could count on come all the way down to New Mexico to share in this adventure meant more to me than the horns lying in the dirt; this truly was a hunt of a lifetime.
Old Rams in the White Sands
Four thousand vertical feet and there he was, bedded across the canyon, facing us directly. Time was not on our side, and at nearly .5 mile away, we had our work cut out for us. With fading light and much ground to cover it was decision time: leave the old ram and come back in the morning to trudge up through the cactus and sharp rocks, or climb towards the rocky peak in hopes of sneaking down on top of the old boy in his bed. I’ve been accused of many things in my life but being a passive hunter has never been one of them. It was go time baby!
As we hiked up the ridge the wind began to howl. By the time we finally crested the peak, the wind gusts were in excess of 50 MPH! I’ve hunted in windy conditions before but nothing quite like this! The blustery conditions wreaked havoc on our eyesight. Words could not describe how dry and irritated my eyes were. I could hardly focus past 100 yards without seeing white dots floating everywhere. As darkness closed in we became increasingly impatient, maybe even slightly desperate you could say. In our haste we mistakenly silhouetted ourselves while searching for the old ram. Not long afterwards I caught a flash of white and knew we blew our chance at a true world class ram. With his white rump running down the mountain side it was game over. We watched helplessly as the 180 inch monster ran out of our lives never to be seen again during our time on the White Sands Missile Range. If that wasn’t bad enough we now had to circumnavigate down this treacherous mountain side in the dark. Needless to say this was not a pleasurable evening!
Sheep hunting is always a special event and this particular hunt was no different. Being one of two hunters having the privilege of hunting the White Sand Missile Range in southern New Mexico for the first time in over 35 years was beyond special, it was a dream come true. The big question confronting me last spring after the draw results were posted was ‘do I go guided or unguided?’ With the help of Gilbert Villegas, the WSMR wildlife biologist /hunt administrator, and the overwhelming support of three of my closet, hardcore hunting buddies I opted for a “Do It Yourself” hunt. Scott McRae, owner of Alaska Summit Guide Service, flew down from Anchorage. Kent Boyington who is the best hunter I know behind the optics drove down from Utah, and Scott Hargrove, my mule deer hunting mentor of over a decade came down from Colorado. The dream team was assembled and ready to hunt!
Over the next several days we experienced more trials and tribulations than I care to remember. I ruined my bow by accidently dry firing it while at full draw on a beautiful 160 class ram. I received a federal speeding ticket which I didn’t know even existed. I fell on a cactus and pulled quills out of my inner thigh for several days. My transmission started going out in my brand new truck and the part we needed was on back order with the bigger issue being Christmas was the following week and the dealership wouldn’t be able to get the part until after the holidays! The weather was horrible. It snowed, rained and blew like a hurricane most of the hunt. The day I actually shot my ram there was a severe weather adversary warning in effect - sustained winds of 35 to 45 MPH with gusts in excess of 70 MPH! Feeling the pressure like never before, my dream hunt was quickly becoming the trip from hell.
The morning I killed my ram we contemplated whether it was even worth going hunting. The visibility was poor due to all the sand and debris blowing in the air, Scott Hargrove had to leave and go back to work so we were down a pair of eyes and we were just plain getting worn out and needed some down time. But with Christmas less than a week away we really couldn’t afford not to hunt, so we pushed ourselves. That morning we tried our best to set up out of the wind to glass an east facing slope. Unfortunately for us there was no escaping the strong winds on the barren valley floor. However, within 30 minutes of glassing my man Kent located our ram! Now faced with the same decision we had earlier in the hunt, leave the ram until tomorrow or go for it, we opted to go for it. Kent and Gilbert stayed behind to keep eyes on the sheep while McRae and I began our ascent.
Constantly second guessing our decision, we pushed forward hoping old yellow horns wouldn’t catch our scent in the swirling winds. Gaining elevation and tucking closer into the mountainside we slowly became sheltered from the wind. About two hours into the hike we were finally in position. With absolutely no way of getting any closer than 300 yards, I prepared for the shot. Laying on the rocks with my rifle resting on my pack I tried to steady my crosshairs. I laid there for several minutes trying to time my shot with the heavy cross wind. With my finger on the trigger, I gently squeezed off a round and missed! Quickly chambering another round in my rifle, I fired again making this shot count. Old yellow horns lay dead in his tracks!
Walking over to the ram I couldn’t help but feel a huge weight lifted off my chest. Everyone honestly worked their tails off to make this a successful hunt. This was “our ram”! It would have been easy to write a check and hire an outfitter, but it wouldn’t have been as special. Having three close friends I could count on come all the way down to New Mexico to share in this adventure meant more to me than the horns lying in the dirt; this truly was a hunt of a lifetime.
- Thread Starter
- #12
OP
Blayne St. James
FNG
amazing sunset 
Last edited:
TXCO
WKR
- Joined
- Aug 18, 2012
- Messages
- 916
Awesome!! Congrats on a great ram and a great year.
Besides your truck, any comments on equipment you used since the conditions varied so much?
Besides your truck, any comments on equipment you used since the conditions varied so much?
hunting1
WKR
Awsome pretty well sums it up and a big congrats!
Kotaman
WKR
Read the story in Eastman's...Awesome story, great Ram. I love the Sheep issue of Eastman's!
Duk Dog
Lil-Rokslider
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2012
- Messages
- 121
Congrats on the ram! Looking forward to reading the article in the EHJ sheep issue too, just seems to take forever for magazines to finally get delivered in Canada.
hunter4life
Lil-Rokslider
Congratulations!! It is nice to see some pictures of one of the desert sheep killed in NM last year.
Shane
Lil-Rokslider
Congrats! What a ram, and amazing photos too!
Stinky Coyote
WKR
Amazing accomplishment, congrats!
Duk Dog
Lil-Rokslider
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2012
- Messages
- 121
At long last my sheep issue of EHJ arrived. Good read, congrats again. Sounds like a great adventure and hunt.
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