redwoood
Well-known member
After a few years of research and drooling a buddy and I finally made the journey to Southwest Texas for an Aoudad hunt.
I am very lucky to have a friend that when I say "hey do you wanna go" doesn't hesitate to say "sure." So after 3 years of talking about it I finally found a hunt that I could handle the cost of(I know not DIY but didn't have a clue about sheep hunting). After talking to several different outfits I just got a good vibe when I spoke with Matt and an even better vibe when he told me the price of the hunt. So without much hesitation we booked the dates of January 6 through 10.
On January 5th my wife Brooke and 3 month old baby boy Boone drove the 2.5 hours down to Garrett's place since he lives fairly close to the airport. Garrett has a 4 month old boy so leaving wasn't going to be very easy this time. We awoke the next morning to blizzard conditions. Once we got loaded and said our good byes we started the trek to the airport in the dark in less than favorable conditions. The flight was late taking off and we only had a 35 minute layover for our connecting flight to El Paso but somehow we made it as well as our gear and rifles(thanks Southwest Airlines). We picked up the rental car and made the 4 hour drive south the Alpine, Texas where we would meet Matt the next day. That nights sleep was amazing after the long day of travel and after big breakfast at a local diner we met Matt and we were headed even farther south. A couple hours later we were in the middle of the high desert and I couldn't have found my way back out to civilization if I wanted to. Seriously, the middle of nowhere. We unloaded our gear into the camper and shot our rifles off of the lead sled that Matt provided and we were ready to start hunting!
Now Matt, Nick(the cook/guide),Garrett and I were loaded up in Matt's truck and headed to the "Cliffs." Of course I start the million questions game about the wildlife in the area, habits of the Aoudad and so forth. On the way to the cliffs we saw plenty of quail and even a road runner. Now when we arrived to the cliffs where we would begin glassing I couldn't believe I was in Texas!
Once we made it to the end of the cliffs that we could access from the vehicle we took off on foot. We were walking on top of the cliffs between to big canyons and it was an awesome vantage point for spot and stalk. We had probably made it about 3/4 of a mile before Matt said "we have sheep!" About that time I saw them about 350 yards away down on a canyon ledge and they were working away from us. I just got enough of a glimpse in my binos to tell there were a couple of good looking rams and 4 ewes. The stalk was on. We backed away from the ledge and worked toward them as quickly and quietly as we could. Matt would pop up every now and then to range them. We did this several times and regardless of how far we walked when he ranged them they were still 350 to 400 yards and working away. The last time he popped up to range them they dropped down over the cliff face and out of our lives. BUT we didn't have time to get too upset because as soon as they dropped over the cliff Matt spotted a bigger group of sheep across the canyon ahead of us. We closed the distance as much as we could. Garrett said he wanted me to shoot first since I had planned everything so I crawled through rocks and cactuses until I got to the edge of the cliff. There were probably 20-25 sheep in the group and I was checking them out through my scope when I saw a ram that looked huge. What stood out to me even more than his head gear were his super long blonde mane and chaps that were blowing in the breeze. Matt whispers to me from about 7 yards back "do you see the one" and I cut him off with "I SEE HIM" which that with the expression on my face must have made an impression on Matt since we would relive that after the hunt. Mean while Nick is trying to convince Garrett to crawl up to the edge so he could shoot after I did if a shot was available. Garrett was reluctant but I told him to "get up here." Once he started up I continued to check the ram out through my scope and noticed that there was another big ram on a rock up and to his right. My glassing was interrupted by the sound of flatulence. I guess the strain of crawling through the rocks and cactus while trying to keep silent was too much strain on Garrett and it "just came out." So after much laughing by all four of us(as quietly as we could) Garret was finally in position as well. Nick communicated to him which one to shoot. In hindsight the flatulence was probably a blessing since it helped me to control my nerves since I was just staring at the ram the whole time Garrett was moving into position. Anyway, my ram was somehow still quartering away in the same position throughout all of this. Matt ranged him and 275 yards. I took a deep breath and squeezed the trigger. Matt immediately says you smoked him. I rack another round in and get back on him in time to see the blood pumping out and the ram headed directly for the cliff(he was only about 30 to 40 yards from the cliff edge when I shot.) Luckily he turned and started running away from the cliff. I hear Garrett shoot and then I put a follow up shot in my ram and then lose sight of him. They thought Garrett missed his first shot but he followed the sheep as it fled. When it stopped on a rock at 380 yards he dropped it in its tracks. I was concerned because I couldn't find my ram but I eventually I could see his rump sticking up from behind a big boulder. After a lot of high fiving and laughing about how things had transpired and we decided to leave them overnight since it was getting really late and we were going to have to backtrack to the truck to go around a canyon, drop into another canyon, and then climb up to where our sheep lay. The end of my index finger is where the sheep were when we shot.
After some celebration at camp that evening and long night of waiting to get my hands on my ram I awoke early the next morning to a beautiful sunrise.
After a long drive back as close as we could get to where we shot and a long(1.5 mile) hike around a canyon, down a canyon, and up to the sheep I finally had my hands on my ram.
We also realized in all of the confusion Garrett had actually shot a Ewe and had hit here the first time he shot as well. She was a big ewe with 18 inch horns. After caping and getting some meat we started the climb out of the canyon and back to the truck. After we made if back to camp and got the sheep on ice we were off in search of javalina and to phone home(30 minutes one way from camp to a hill you can maybe get reception on). After we phoned home to let the fams know we were alive we hunted for javalina until dark and didn't get on any. We did however see a lot of mule deer including some really nice bucks.
The next morning we were back in search of javalina. We went back to the "hills" area where Matt usually sees them. The first stop I told Garrett to walk up and peak over the ledge first since he was going to shoot first. About the time he got the ledge he waved me up and javalina started to bust out of the brushy draw. Garrett was shooting one way so I picked out one headed another direction and when he ran through an opening I dropped him. Garrett ended up dropping one as well. A short walk down in a brushy drainage and we had a couple javalina.
Matt then said he wanted to try to get Garrett a ram which was very gracious and unexpected. We hunted hard and put on several miles the rest of that day and the next morning and never laid eyes on another sheep. The terrain these critters live in is beautiful and will eat you up at the same time. The sheep drop over the cliff faces and run ledges that are no more than 12 to 18 inches wide with a 300 foot sheer cliff below them. Matt had told us how the big rams horns get rubbed smooth by the cliff walls when they run these narrow ledges and sure enough my rams horns were smooth on the outside edges.
To sum the hunt up it was an awesome hunt unlike anything I have done before. I am anxious to get back and try to get one DYI style now that I have a little experience hunting them. The fact that we both got a sheep and a javalina far exceeded my expectations. Matt and Nick are both great guys and they have a great affordable operation going that the average Joe can afford. Before this hunt when I thought of Texas I though of high fence ranches and corn feeders. Let me tell you, down in the Southwest mountains of Texas it couldn't be any farther from the truth. I will be back!
If anyone wants any more info or Matt's contact information I would be happy to help any way I can.
I am very lucky to have a friend that when I say "hey do you wanna go" doesn't hesitate to say "sure." So after 3 years of talking about it I finally found a hunt that I could handle the cost of(I know not DIY but didn't have a clue about sheep hunting). After talking to several different outfits I just got a good vibe when I spoke with Matt and an even better vibe when he told me the price of the hunt. So without much hesitation we booked the dates of January 6 through 10.
On January 5th my wife Brooke and 3 month old baby boy Boone drove the 2.5 hours down to Garrett's place since he lives fairly close to the airport. Garrett has a 4 month old boy so leaving wasn't going to be very easy this time. We awoke the next morning to blizzard conditions. Once we got loaded and said our good byes we started the trek to the airport in the dark in less than favorable conditions. The flight was late taking off and we only had a 35 minute layover for our connecting flight to El Paso but somehow we made it as well as our gear and rifles(thanks Southwest Airlines). We picked up the rental car and made the 4 hour drive south the Alpine, Texas where we would meet Matt the next day. That nights sleep was amazing after the long day of travel and after big breakfast at a local diner we met Matt and we were headed even farther south. A couple hours later we were in the middle of the high desert and I couldn't have found my way back out to civilization if I wanted to. Seriously, the middle of nowhere. We unloaded our gear into the camper and shot our rifles off of the lead sled that Matt provided and we were ready to start hunting!
Now Matt, Nick(the cook/guide),Garrett and I were loaded up in Matt's truck and headed to the "Cliffs." Of course I start the million questions game about the wildlife in the area, habits of the Aoudad and so forth. On the way to the cliffs we saw plenty of quail and even a road runner. Now when we arrived to the cliffs where we would begin glassing I couldn't believe I was in Texas!
Once we made it to the end of the cliffs that we could access from the vehicle we took off on foot. We were walking on top of the cliffs between to big canyons and it was an awesome vantage point for spot and stalk. We had probably made it about 3/4 of a mile before Matt said "we have sheep!" About that time I saw them about 350 yards away down on a canyon ledge and they were working away from us. I just got enough of a glimpse in my binos to tell there were a couple of good looking rams and 4 ewes. The stalk was on. We backed away from the ledge and worked toward them as quickly and quietly as we could. Matt would pop up every now and then to range them. We did this several times and regardless of how far we walked when he ranged them they were still 350 to 400 yards and working away. The last time he popped up to range them they dropped down over the cliff face and out of our lives. BUT we didn't have time to get too upset because as soon as they dropped over the cliff Matt spotted a bigger group of sheep across the canyon ahead of us. We closed the distance as much as we could. Garrett said he wanted me to shoot first since I had planned everything so I crawled through rocks and cactuses until I got to the edge of the cliff. There were probably 20-25 sheep in the group and I was checking them out through my scope when I saw a ram that looked huge. What stood out to me even more than his head gear were his super long blonde mane and chaps that were blowing in the breeze. Matt whispers to me from about 7 yards back "do you see the one" and I cut him off with "I SEE HIM" which that with the expression on my face must have made an impression on Matt since we would relive that after the hunt. Mean while Nick is trying to convince Garrett to crawl up to the edge so he could shoot after I did if a shot was available. Garrett was reluctant but I told him to "get up here." Once he started up I continued to check the ram out through my scope and noticed that there was another big ram on a rock up and to his right. My glassing was interrupted by the sound of flatulence. I guess the strain of crawling through the rocks and cactus while trying to keep silent was too much strain on Garrett and it "just came out." So after much laughing by all four of us(as quietly as we could) Garret was finally in position as well. Nick communicated to him which one to shoot. In hindsight the flatulence was probably a blessing since it helped me to control my nerves since I was just staring at the ram the whole time Garrett was moving into position. Anyway, my ram was somehow still quartering away in the same position throughout all of this. Matt ranged him and 275 yards. I took a deep breath and squeezed the trigger. Matt immediately says you smoked him. I rack another round in and get back on him in time to see the blood pumping out and the ram headed directly for the cliff(he was only about 30 to 40 yards from the cliff edge when I shot.) Luckily he turned and started running away from the cliff. I hear Garrett shoot and then I put a follow up shot in my ram and then lose sight of him. They thought Garrett missed his first shot but he followed the sheep as it fled. When it stopped on a rock at 380 yards he dropped it in its tracks. I was concerned because I couldn't find my ram but I eventually I could see his rump sticking up from behind a big boulder. After a lot of high fiving and laughing about how things had transpired and we decided to leave them overnight since it was getting really late and we were going to have to backtrack to the truck to go around a canyon, drop into another canyon, and then climb up to where our sheep lay. The end of my index finger is where the sheep were when we shot.
After some celebration at camp that evening and long night of waiting to get my hands on my ram I awoke early the next morning to a beautiful sunrise.
After a long drive back as close as we could get to where we shot and a long(1.5 mile) hike around a canyon, down a canyon, and up to the sheep I finally had my hands on my ram.
We also realized in all of the confusion Garrett had actually shot a Ewe and had hit here the first time he shot as well. She was a big ewe with 18 inch horns. After caping and getting some meat we started the climb out of the canyon and back to the truck. After we made if back to camp and got the sheep on ice we were off in search of javalina and to phone home(30 minutes one way from camp to a hill you can maybe get reception on). After we phoned home to let the fams know we were alive we hunted for javalina until dark and didn't get on any. We did however see a lot of mule deer including some really nice bucks.
The next morning we were back in search of javalina. We went back to the "hills" area where Matt usually sees them. The first stop I told Garrett to walk up and peak over the ledge first since he was going to shoot first. About the time he got the ledge he waved me up and javalina started to bust out of the brushy draw. Garrett was shooting one way so I picked out one headed another direction and when he ran through an opening I dropped him. Garrett ended up dropping one as well. A short walk down in a brushy drainage and we had a couple javalina.
Matt then said he wanted to try to get Garrett a ram which was very gracious and unexpected. We hunted hard and put on several miles the rest of that day and the next morning and never laid eyes on another sheep. The terrain these critters live in is beautiful and will eat you up at the same time. The sheep drop over the cliff faces and run ledges that are no more than 12 to 18 inches wide with a 300 foot sheer cliff below them. Matt had told us how the big rams horns get rubbed smooth by the cliff walls when they run these narrow ledges and sure enough my rams horns were smooth on the outside edges.
To sum the hunt up it was an awesome hunt unlike anything I have done before. I am anxious to get back and try to get one DYI style now that I have a little experience hunting them. The fact that we both got a sheep and a javalina far exceeded my expectations. Matt and Nick are both great guys and they have a great affordable operation going that the average Joe can afford. Before this hunt when I thought of Texas I though of high fence ranches and corn feeders. Let me tell you, down in the Southwest mountains of Texas it couldn't be any farther from the truth. I will be back!
If anyone wants any more info or Matt's contact information I would be happy to help any way I can.
