My Stepson’s Oregon Bighorn

[Jmort1754]

Congrats young man. Way to go everyone

 

[kodyshriver]

Thank you all. Glad we were able to shoot the ram early and experience the country, as it is now completely on fire! Your kind words are appreciated and have been passed on to Nathan.

 

[twdjr]

Awesome! Congrats!

 

[JeffP_Or]

Thank you all. Glad we were able to shoot the ram early and experience the country, as it is now completely on fire! Your kind words are appreciated and have been passed on to Nathan.

I saw the fire maps on Inciweb - that appears to be the heart of the area for sure; plus, it has kicked out some spot fires toward [or on] Goat Mtn which is a mountain goat stronghold. That would be tough country to bail out of in a hurry for sure - glad you got it done. Again, nice work for you and the stepson!

 

[kodyshriver]

I saw the fire maps on Inciweb - that appears to be the heart of the area for sure; plus, it has kicked out some spot fires toward [or on] Goat Mtn which is a mountain goat stronghold. That would be tough country to bail out of in a hurry for sure - glad you got it done. Again, nice work for you and the stepson!

Thanks man, we live here in Enterprise and have been keeping an eye on it. I know both the tag holders for Goat Mt #1 and they’ve been pushed out of their unit. Rough deal—maybe ODFW will do a rollover on those tags.

 

[dukxdog]

Well deserved ram. Congrats!

 

[JeffP_Or]

Thanks man, we live here in Enterprise and have been keeping an eye on it. I know both the tag holders for Goat Mt #1 and they’ve been pushed out of their unit. Rough deal—maybe ODFW will do a rollover on those tags.

Yeah - I saw that spot fire on Goat; that is a tough call for sure. Wait so long to get a chance at the tag to lose it and then everyone down that potential line gets bumped - another no win for the decision makers.

Ya'll be safe over there; we'll be over in a few weeks - very cautiously so! Still giddy over your great adventure - thanks again for the share.

 

[roymunson]

That's an experience that a lot of people will never have. And he handled it like a man.

Congrats to you all!

 

[DuckDogDr]

Congratulations! Nice ram

 

[RilePrecise]

AWESOME RAM kid!

 

[Kickernate]

Nathan’s 2022 Bear Creek Bighorn Sheep tag—truly a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ experience. This is a hard Rocky Mt Bighorn hunt for Oregon, as most sheep are ~10 miles from the trailhead, and are certainly the most “wild” sheep in Oregon. I am beyond proud of Nathan (15yr old) for showing grit and determination in areas where most grown men would fail. This young man grew up 5 years in 5 days, pushing beyond his perceived physical and mental limitations.

Our team (Nathan, myself, Gus Titus, and Kurk Shriver) located this ram opening day, and pursued him over the next three days. He was named “Prince Albert” after a rusty old can of tobacco Nathan and I found on the ridge near his domain. And royalty he was—a cagey, mature ram, living by himself in some of the most brutal terrain in the unit.

On the fourth day of the trip, we had the opportunity to make a stalk. Dropping 2/3 elevation into the drainage, Nathan and I made our approach while communicating with our team across the canyon. The ram was bedded on the shady-side of a 100ft rock pinnacle, with tree limbs covering him from the left, right, and along his body—a tiny shooting window. Perched 130 yards above the ram, at a 50 degree slope, we waited an hour and a half for the ram to stand and offer a shot. Finally, he did—and Nathan took full advantage.

Upon making our approach to the ram’s last location, we realized that he had fallen down a 100ft cliff to the side of the rock pinnacle and cartwheeled down a 60 degree rockslide another 500ft. It took Nathan and I nearly 2 hours just to reach him safely. I will never forget Nathan laying hands on his ram for the first time, and the look of awe on his face. Gus joined us shortly thereafter, and our only course of action was to rappel the ram down the rockslide using paracord. Finally finding a spot that was reasonably “flat” enough to tie up the ram’s head to a tree, we began processing him.

Then the work began, for what would be a 10 mile packout. Once we hit the trail, we met up with Kurk and used a jetboil to render down his fat, in which we cooked the ram’s tenderloin. From there, we had another 8 miles to travel under heavy packs & the dark of night. Despite the suffering, Nathan was hard charging the whole way.

I am so proud of Nathan, and he is so deserving of a animal that ranks amongst the best rams ever taken in this unit. This also wouldn’t have been possible without the efforts of Gus Titus & Kurk Shriver—truly a team effort, for which we are grateful and will remember for years to come.

What an achieve

Nathan’s 2022 Bear Creek Bighorn Sheep tag—truly a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ experience. This is a hard Rocky Mt Bighorn hunt for Oregon, as most sheep are ~10 miles from the trailhead, and are certainly the most “wild” sheep in Oregon. I am beyond proud of Nathan (15yr old) for showing grit and determination in areas where most grown men would fail. This young man grew up 5 years in 5 days, pushing beyond his perceived physical and mental limitations.

Our team (Nathan, myself, Gus Titus, and Kurk Shriver) located this ram opening day, and pursued him over the next three days. He was named “Prince Albert” after a rusty old can of tobacco Nathan and I found on the ridge near his domain. And royalty he was—a cagey, mature ram, living by himself in some of the most brutal terrain in the unit.

On the fourth day of the trip, we had the opportunity to make a stalk. Dropping 2/3 elevation into the drainage, Nathan and I made our approach while communicating with our team across the canyon. The ram was bedded on the shady-side of a 100ft rock pinnacle, with tree limbs covering him from the left, right, and along his body—a tiny shooting window. Perched 130 yards above the ram, at a 50 degree slope, we waited an hour and a half for the ram to stand and offer a shot. Finally, he did—and Nathan took full advantage.

Upon making our approach to the ram’s last location, we realized that he had fallen down a 100ft cliff to the side of the rock pinnacle and cartwheeled down a 60 degree rockslide another 500ft. It took Nathan and I nearly 2 hours just to reach him safely. I will never forget Nathan laying hands on his ram for the first time, and the look of awe on his face. Gus joined us shortly thereafter, and our only course of action was to rappel the ram down the rockslide using paracord. Finally finding a spot that was reasonably “flat” enough to tie up the ram’s head to a tree, we began processing him.

Then the work began, for what would be a 10 mile packout. Once we hit the trail, we met up with Kurk and used a jetboil to render down his fat, in which we cooked the ram’s tenderloin. From there, we had another 8 miles to travel under heavy packs & the dark of night. Despite the suffering, Nathan was hard charging the whole way.

I am so proud of Nathan, and he is so deserving of a animal that ranks amongst the best rams ever taken in this unit. This also wouldn’t have been possible without the efforts of Gus Titus & Kurk Shriver—truly a team effort, for which we are grateful and will remember for years to come.

what an achievement at 15! Congrats!

 

[AgLawman]

Congrats, young man!!!