Gwoodak
FNG
- Joined
- May 5, 2014
- Messages
- 40
My wife drew a TMA tag for 2014 and we flew in with 40 mile last week. After hunting hard for 6 days we just couldn't get within range of two rams we'd been going for. We texted the pilot and told him we'd need another day and on the last day it worked out and she shot a nice full curl on one side and broomed on the other ram. She put him down at about 320 yds down a steep slope. She judged the wind just right and placed the shot through the neck and into the shoulder. He dropped instantly (thankfully). It turned into a suffer fest hike out and we got to break out the emergency blankets we've both been carrying for years (they are exhausting to unfold btw). A sleepless night next to a marginal campfire cuddling with each other and our rifles. It was a great experience and one we'll never forget. I think once the muscles recover and the dinners of wonderful meat are eaten she'll be up for another go. As of now she jokingly say's she'll stick to caribou (we had two nice ones that practically crawled in the tent with us in camp). We didn't have any fancy gear to speak of really. My camo is all homemade. I spray-painted a tree branch stencil over some lightweight tan zip off pants and shirt, and everything else was just earthtones. Granted our packs and rain gear are arcteryx but we use them for backcountry skiing as well so it was nice to not have to purchase "hunt specific" clothing and packs. My wife shoots a tikka .270 with a Zeiss 3x9x50. I handload for it with 130gr H-SST's. I brought along my Win model 70 featherweight 300 short as backup in case something got fallen on or dropped (or used as a pry bar to roll a rock off of a stuck leg).
Other gear was....Tent-Mountain Hardware Sky-ledge 3. Good size for 2 it'd be cramped for 3. Vesti is good sized and we are able to store our packs/rifles/camp stuff under cover. We had some solid 50mph gusts that it shrugged off just fine. Rain rolled off and away just great.
Boots-I wore Salewa Rapace GTX's and with a bit of Lukotape on the heels I was blister free the whole trip. My wife wears Kennatreck's and they fit her fantastic.
Spotter- was a Vortex Viper HD 60x Worked ok but definitely was under-gunned when trying to judge full curl at anything over a 1000yds.
Binos- Vortex diamondback HD. Fantastic glass for the money, no complaints.
Stove- MSR Whisperlight XCD it's the Peterbuilt of stoves. Simple, re-buildable, simmer function, and pretty efficient (we only burned 11oz in 7 days)
Filter-Katadyn same qualities as the stove
Rangefinder-Bushnell G-Force DX1300 It worked great and I could range rams at over 800 yards no prob. It was nice to be able to give her ballistic bullet drop for her shot at 320 yards. All that I had to do was dope the wind and she was good to go.
Other than that everything else was just the regular light weight stuff you can buy at just about any mountaineering store (REI etc...).
Big thanks to everyone who gave up advice and tips. This site and AK outdoor forum were a big help in getting the details dialed and getting the mental game in check.
Good luck to everyone yet to hunt this season. I think we're going to chase some ptarmigan and a few more salmon and we'll be good till next hunting season.
Other gear was....Tent-Mountain Hardware Sky-ledge 3. Good size for 2 it'd be cramped for 3. Vesti is good sized and we are able to store our packs/rifles/camp stuff under cover. We had some solid 50mph gusts that it shrugged off just fine. Rain rolled off and away just great.
Boots-I wore Salewa Rapace GTX's and with a bit of Lukotape on the heels I was blister free the whole trip. My wife wears Kennatreck's and they fit her fantastic.
Spotter- was a Vortex Viper HD 60x Worked ok but definitely was under-gunned when trying to judge full curl at anything over a 1000yds.
Binos- Vortex diamondback HD. Fantastic glass for the money, no complaints.
Stove- MSR Whisperlight XCD it's the Peterbuilt of stoves. Simple, re-buildable, simmer function, and pretty efficient (we only burned 11oz in 7 days)
Filter-Katadyn same qualities as the stove
Rangefinder-Bushnell G-Force DX1300 It worked great and I could range rams at over 800 yards no prob. It was nice to be able to give her ballistic bullet drop for her shot at 320 yards. All that I had to do was dope the wind and she was good to go.
Other than that everything else was just the regular light weight stuff you can buy at just about any mountaineering store (REI etc...).
Big thanks to everyone who gave up advice and tips. This site and AK outdoor forum were a big help in getting the details dialed and getting the mental game in check.
Good luck to everyone yet to hunt this season. I think we're going to chase some ptarmigan and a few more salmon and we'll be good till next hunting season.
