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Topic Archives => Memorable Hunts => Topic started by: Steve O on September 02, 2007, 08:44:00 AM
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(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/DSC06576.jpg)
"All you need to do is go stand over there"
I wish I could start out this story with a picture of me with my hands wrapped around a massive ram, but that was not in the cards...
I thought you guys might want to see/hear about my month in Colorado hunting for sheep.
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My archery hunt started August 4th and ended August 28th. I hunted every day. We got into CO on the 2nd and I headed over to Marv Clyncke's. Before I put in for this permit, Marv told me he would show me around the unit and let me know where some rams were. Quite a bit of this unit can be scouted from long range:
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/DSC06503.jpg)
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Thru Marv and some other Coloradoans, three weeks before the season, there were a ridiculous number of rams being watched. Two weeks before the season started, Marv sent me a note about the monsoon type storms they were having and the sheep were in hiding. I knew he was joking around, but none of my group of helpers/hunters saw a good ram until Marv and I spotted what turned out to be my nemesis on the evening of the 3rd day of the season.
We hunted in the rain:
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/DSC06509.jpg)
As a side note, I tested out some new gear on this trip and two of my best purchases were clothing.
I have been saving up for a set of Sitka Gear since it came out. What great stuff. I purposely wore it in the light to moderate rain we got on the first couple days of the season without my raingear. The stuff dries out quick and sheds water pretty good to begin with. The base layer is incredible...I climbed a LOT from 10,000 to 13,500 feet and even though I sweat a ton, I was always comfortable. Not hot.
The other piece of clothing I was real happy with was my new socks...I tried out the "Ingenius" sock. It has the inner liner sock somehow woven to the outer insulating sock. I don't know how they do it, but it works! I put a lot of miles on those babies and did not have a hint of a blister and they really pulled out the moisture.
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So, this ram we spotted turns out to be living on the mountain right behind the cabin I had rented for the month. I rented a cabin so I could make this hunt a big family vacation. My wife would take the kids sightseeing while I was hunting. With the ram so close, I was able to show them the ram. Seeing how excited they got was one of the highlights of the trip.
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/DSC06518.jpg), (http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/DSC06519.jpg)
My wife was so fired up, she said next time she wants he own optics and she will flag me into the sheep!
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Flagging.
Another highlight of the trip was spending time with Marv Clyncke. I learned a TON. Marv has a system of directing the hunter to the animal using your optics and two different colored flags. It is really an effective system; it should be, Marv has been hunting animals in the high country for 42 years! Unfortunately, we only got to do the flagging a couple times, most of the time, I was on my own. Marv is a great storyteller and he has more jokes than the Wensels if you can believe that :biglaugh: .
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(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/BuffaloPeaks014.jpg)
Here is a shot from one of my evening ambush spots. I hunted that ram we spotted on day 3 for 20 days! I tried everything I could think of. I stalked him on my own. I stalked him with a group watching me thru their spotting scopes and flagging me into him. I climbed the mountain at 3am to catch him going to bed. I patterned him to try to ambush him in the evening when he would come out of the timber. All told I had this ram 4 seperate times under 30 yards and I could not get a shot at his vitals. Frustrating and thrilling at the same time.
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(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/BuffaloPeaks019.jpg)
Just about every day, I would cross this stream at 10,000' and climb to 12,500-13,000' after that ram. I want to go back sometime to just fish, I could not believe the Brook Trout that would shoot out as they were disturbed.
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All the rain really put the wild flowers in bloom; very rare for August I am told.
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/DSC06516.jpg), (http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/DSC06511.jpg)
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There were many old mines on the faces of the mountains and in the timber. You really had to watch where you were going!
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/BuffaloPeaks016.jpg)
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I was lucky enough to meet and become friends with a resident hunter. Originally, I had planned to backpack into a wilderness area in my unit to hunt. Finding the ram behing the cabin changed my plans drastically. Towards the end of the hunt, both of us thought we should try something new, so he went home and got his mules and we packed into the Buffalo Peaks to try and find the AWOL rams.
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/BuffaloPeaks004.jpg), (http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/BuffaloPeaks007.jpg)
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Exploring the Wilderness Area, I discovered we were not the first hunters there:
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/BuffaloPeaks012.jpg)
This was an old indian blind on the top of one of the "smaller" mountains.
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Great pics and story! I am envious, a month in the high country and the family along. It just doesn't get any better than that.
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(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/DSC06532.jpg)
Looking back on the whole experience, I would not change a thing. I was fully prepared, mentally and physically. I was able to hunt a mature ram for almost the entire season and if not for the fickle mountain wind, I would have had him to take home. I am proud of the fact I was able to get in on him so close. I have taken a Stone Sheep with a rifle and until this year did not think I would be able to do it with the bow...it CAN be done, I just need another chance. Marv told me it took him 102 days of hunting to get his first sheep. My friend Rick Duggan said it took him 7 years to get his first CO Bighorn! Unfortunately, those were the old days, when residents could get over the counter tags! Hopefully I will be blessed with another tag someday. That would be the silver lining to not killing a ram; I am eligible in 4 years to draw another permit ;)
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That's a trip of a lifetime for sure (hopefully to be repeated in four short years), thanks for sharing.
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Awesome Steve.Thanks for sharing.....Mike
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Thanks for posting the pics and story Steve! Truly a great adventure. Really cool that you were able to spend a month in the mountains and take your family with you.
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truly awesome sounds like alot of fun
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Thanks for posting and sharing. It sounds like it was a tough hunt.
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Great post. Really enjoyed the photos. Thanks for sharing your hunt. Bill
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Steve,
Thanks for sharing your experience. The way the lotto tags are setup now it is difficult for the average guy to establish enough institutional knowledge to know how to hunt these specialty species. We all have to be willing to share with each other just to have any improved chance of scoring.
Hope your family enjoyed the mountain as much as you did.
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What they said!!! Awesome pics, thanks for sharin the story!!!
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Great looking family Steve, Awsome country too.Thanks for the story, Sounds like the Sitka gear did real well for ya. Mine came in while we were in Montana and I couldn't be more pleased.
Good luck to you the rest of the season. :)
Tracy
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A great story and awesome pictures, thank you for sharing :)
DQ
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Great story and pics!! Congrats on the hunt and with the familt too. Well Done!!
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I agree great pic's and a great adventure.. FWIW, I heard on the news just today, a couple of teenage girls, I believe in the Ft.Collins area disappeared over night, the next morning they found they had fallen into an abandon mine with their 4 wheeler. One didn't make it the other is critical. Good point on the old mines to any foreigner going into the area.
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Steve you should be comended, for getting so close to your ram and not taking a risky shot.
At least it allowed you to spend the month up in Colorados high country.
Not many places nicer than that.
Good luck drawing your next sheep tag.
>> Tom >>
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Steve,
I followed your story over on the Bowsite. You are an admirable hunter. You worked hard and enjoyed your time on the mountain. Like you, I know what it's like to come home without a ram. I am now waiting for my second sheep tag--maybe next year. Your story has inspired me and made me more anxious for my next hunt. Unlike you, I'm fortunate to live in Colorado. But, it still can take many years to get the tag. Again, thanks for sharing the story and pictures.
Mike
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Great story and pics.
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SJS,
Yes, I did make it to the Bowsite a few times...I was communicating thru PMs to get more intel; there was NO time to come in here--it is too addicting :p .
I saw some incredible things in the mountains. I saw my first mountain lion in the wild. It was a BIG mountain lion! I saw a red fox kill a rockchuck and a red tailed hawk swoop down and take a cottontail.
I wish I had an adapter to take photos thru my spotter; then I would have some GREAT shots. For now, here a few more of my favorites.
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/DSC06566.jpg)
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This is NOT what you want to see when you are stalking a ram! It is hard to see, but that is a lightning bolt on the right...
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/SuzettePics103.jpg)
But then, I do not see many thunderstorms here in Michigan that produce SNOW!
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/SuzettePics127.jpg)
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The kids had a GREAT time. My wife and I were planning on taking a vacation out west to show them the mountains in a few years; this tag moved that up a bit. I have a friend who is an outfitter in Idaho. We hope to pack in to the White Clouds on his horses so they can get a real wilderness experience someday soon.
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/DSC06563.jpg)
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b351/osminski/Colorado%202007/DSC06546.jpg)
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Simply awe inspiring Steve! You did it right, and like you said, left no regrets on the mountain. What a cool trip!
I know you were in darn good shape before you left, but now you must be one lean, mean, fighting machine after that many days up and down those slopes!
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Joe,
That is correct sir! It sure feels good to know you can go anywhere! I am thinking real hard about going lion hunting this winter so I stay this way :thumbsup:
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Great story, Steve! I've done some stompin' on those very same peaks. You're sure hunting for all the right reasons. Good job.
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Great stuff Steve, thanks for sharing. I'm looking forward to actually getting to pack a bow after my sheep in a little less than a month. Gotta try and get Brian on an elk first for the St Jude hunt he bought. Thanks again for sharing your trip!
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WOW!!! Great recap! Are you sure we don't have some customers out there!
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On Monday Aug 27th, I wandered into a Subway in Leadville CO. I'd just spent a few days around here
(http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j112/Dutch4duck/BuckSpot.jpg)
looking for mule deer. Only seeing a few bucks and not thinking the area in general was right, I decided to climb out and spend an afternoon in town to recharge, study maps and come up with a new plan. When I wandered into the Subway for a meal, I get behind this guy in line wearing Sitka Gear head to toe. Darn serious elk hunter I'm thinkin. So, I pipe up...."elk or deer hunting?" "Sheep" was the response. Whoa, I thought. He was polite enough to share some of his story with a stranger but I didn't want to keep him long as I knew he had precious little time left and was on THE sheep of his hunt. I didn't know until reading this post he was a Tradganger. Good thing, cause I'd have probably kept him there all afternoon! Mr. Steve O, what a privelage to meet you sir and while I was impressed with your story then, now you are THE REAL DEAL in my book. Hope to see you again some day.
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LOL what are the odds? That's neat Duckbutt. Beautiful pics Steve O and nicely told. What a great chance for you and your family.
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Julian,
I was on a mission...my resident buddy and I were hunting opposite sides of the mountain. He called to tell me he found 6 rams we could stalk; all I had to do was get him lunch on the way over ;)
It was a pleasure meeting you...I was a little worried about walking in there with full camo, but then I realized it was OK in CO :D .
I wish you had your maps with you so I could have been more specific on where we had seen some nice bucks. As you could tell, I was getting pretty worn down by then. Did you ever find any good bucks to hunt?
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Steve O Camo no problem I once walked in a store in Delores Co. with a pistol on my hip forget I had it on but the clerk (women) eyed me funny then I realized.It was a .22 for grouse but should not have had it in town but in Ville Platte La. I don't think it would raise an eyebrow in most stores.Nice pics and hunt hope you get another chance,Kip
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Steve, thank you for sharing your hunt with us. I think it is awesome that your family got to share this with trip you! When you get the chance, post and let me know what camera you used and I am curious as to what bow/arrow/broadhead combo you carried? I do hope you get drawn again, but if you don't you have already made memories that will last forever! Thanks again, Mike
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Nasty weather predictions and poor planning kept me out of the game. Buuuuuut there's always next year if you want to divulge some of those spots. I got a whole year to study some new maps. :D I was huntin west of leadville and you were east if I remember correct.
Again, just wish I'd known you were totin a curve. I would have spent the final two days carryin your pack or something. Hope you get another shot some day.
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Mike,
Little Sony DSC-200 7.2MP Point & Shoot
I was shooting my Silvertip 55#@28" drawing to 29.5 with Beeman MFX Classic 400s and 100g RazorCaps. That gave me a point-on of 55 yards; pretty flat shootin' rig :goldtooth:
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:saywhat: Sitka doesn't make a Fedora :D
If you are going back, I can for sure mark up a few spots on the east side. I may want to get back there in a couple years for deer, and it would be a lot better with a partner. Marv taught me the flagging system pretty good...
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Hey Steve O, sounds like a great hunt. Good luck pulling another tag someday. Hope to see you around Iowa City again sometime. Good Hunting!
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Steve, That's a great hunt and time very well spent.
Looking forward to putting my Sitka gear to the test. I'm very much looking forward to it....
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Originally posted by Steve O:
If you are going back, I can for sure mark up a few spots on the east side. I may want to get back there in a couple years for deer, and it would be a lot better with a partner. Marv taught me the flagging system pretty good...
Shoot, are you kidding? I'd leave tomorrow just to meet Marv! I've got a couple of pref points for deer and I plan to go back. Just don't know exactly when yet. I'm trying to get to North Dakota in a couple of weeks and lick my wounds in a treestand for a few days. Let's stay in touch on the CO deer. I did have trouble locating bucks once the thermals changed and I tried to come in from above. A spotter would have been better for sure.
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Awesome thanks for sharing that!
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Hey I just found this thread - great job, Steve! You had it all except the kill - you saw some rams and had some chances, got the family involved, met some other sheep hunters, saw some awesome things of nature, and gave it your all. To me, an awesome bowhunt!
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Great story, Thanks for sharing. I have hopes of hunting bighorns oneday (soon ???) myself.
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wow what a trip Steve,, I remember you talking about it at the shoot,,