"Never Give Up!" (goat hunting story from Stalker Longbow post) bow now in Montana!

[Ryan Sanpei]

For those of you who have been following the New Stalker Longbow post, I promised a story about my goat hunt.

It was 10:30am and I was waiting patiently to make my move on two billy goats who decided to bed under a kiawe tree.  I lay hidden behind another lone kiawe tree thirty five yards away while watching the goats every move.  The wind was perfect, blowing about twenty miles per hour, straight into my face.  I had no cover from me to the goats, except for a low sloping ledge. Additionally one billy was facing in my direction.   I just decided to wait it out and hope for the best. One hour passed, but I was still pinned down with the one billy facing in my direction. I was getting restless, but I knew that if I made my move now, I would only get busted.  (These goats are almost as smart as deer because they are heavily pressured.)  Half hour passed and the billy that faced me decided to get up.  I guess he too was getting a little restless.  Luckily he walked behind the tree and stopped with his head behind the trunk of the tree, while the other billy lay bedded in the opposite direction.  It was my time to make my move.  Because I was perched on a small ledge above them, I could crawl an extra ten to fifteen yards without being seen.  I bellied crawled ever so slowly to close the gap.  I crawled as far as possible. It was twenty yards between me and the closest billy.  Both were nice sized billy goats and I would've been happy with either one.  With the wind in my face and no eyes on me, I got to my knees and set my bow for the shot.  The goats had no clue that I was there.  I picked a tuff of hair on the closest billy, drew my bow back, squeezed by back, focused and released.  Upon release, the shot felt perfect.  But...just before the arrow left my bow, I felt a small tug on my lower limb and my heart sank.  The limb tip had nipped the ground.  (I usually shoot a 56" bow, but the prototype longbow was 60", but no excuses.  I knew that before going into the hunt.)  Needless to say the arrow missed its mark and the billies took off.  I followed them with my binos to see where their escape route was.  Disheartened, I grabbed my arrow, pack and found a tree to reflect and eat lunch.

More to come......

[Stumpkiller]

Sounds like heaven to me.  Bowhunting without mittens and seven layers of clothing.  Mmmmmmmm.

Plus, I like the Hawaiian Camo.

[Cottonwood]

Great reflection of the hunt there in Hawai'i, can't wait to read the rest of the story.

Now that picture is funny, cuz I have the same shirt.

[Ben Maher]

Good stuff mate !

[cacciatore]

It happens in the best families.

[Ryan Sanpei]

Originally posted by Stumpkiller:
Sounds like heaven to me.  Bowhunting without mittens and seven layers of clothing.  Mmmmmmmm.

Plus, I like the Hawaiian Camo.

 

LOL!     Where's the matching shorts!
I know what you mean, I just came back from Nebraska and with all my clothes on, I felt like the Michelin Man.

[Jesse Minish]

Looking forward to the rest. I cant wait to get back and hunt Hawaii!

[ozzyshane]

ryan goats get real smart with a lot of pressure what eles can you hunt on the island ???
The new bow looks a bit dif then the protype

[Ryan Sanpei]

Hey Shane,
Yeah you should see the goats on public land in Hawaii.  They get poached, eradicated and hunted whenever possible.  Last month we hunted some that would run if they spotted hunters from a few hundred yards away.  I swear hunting some of these public land goats are as tough as hunting deer!

We have axis deer, muflon, black tailed deer, pigs, feral sheep, feral goats, turkeys and a bunch of game birds.  Public hunting is getting rough though!  Enviromentalists are taking over the islands.

Check out this thread about our game in Hawaii.

http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=090560;p=1

The two longbows are a little different.  South is still in the R&D phase.

[Ryan Sanpei]

Thanks for the kind words gang!

PART 2

After finishing lunch, I regrouped and started my trek up the hill.  Along the way, I took periodic rest stops to glass.  I spotted a few herds up above me which was a great sign.  I made a game plan then headed to the direction of the nearest herd of goats.  Closing the distance of 100 yards, the herd decided to head their way into a small ravine.  Perfect, I thought to myself, I could approach them from above without them winding or spotting me.  I visually marked where they went down.  Upon approaching the ledge of the ravine, I carefully peered over.  The goats were feeding in the dry river bed below.  While watching, I heard the sounds of a rutting billy, (which reminds me of the laughter of the 3 stooges).  Tracking the sound, I made a visual on the lone billy chasing nanny goats.  He became my next target.  Quiet and carefully I snuck down the densely covered ravine side.  I made it down to the bottom without being detected.  The billy started to chase the nanny goats all over the dry river bed.  I had closed the distance to 25 yards.  The only problem now was that the billy wouldn't stop moving and he kept slipping in and out of the brush.  The nanny goats stopped to feed and so did the billy.  I found a small window to shoot through.  Focused on the billy, I made a rookie mistake and took my eyes off of the scout nanny.  When I lifted my bow to shoot, she caught my movement, blew, and took the rest of the herd with her in an instant.  I couldn't believe how wary these goats were. Discouraged and frustrated, I climbed out of the ravine and headed to meet up with my hunting partner.  It was about 4:30 and I met up with my friend to discuss the day's events.  Tired and dejected, I told my friend about my missed opportunities.  At that point, I felt like calling it a day and heading home.  While looking at the Stalker bow, I remembered a conversation that I had with South Cox.  He had told me about a hunt that he had recently been on.  His "never give up" attitude was what sealed the deal for him on a magnificent buck.  His story at that point in time really inspired me.  I took what he told me to heart and used it to bring me out of my momentary slump.  I asked my friend if it was okay with him to give it one last shot.  He told me "go get um" and the hunt was on!

[rastaman]

Great story so far Ryan!

[Ryan Sanpei]

Goat Country!

[cacciatore]

Very nice Ryan.

[Guru]

Good stuff bro    

[Bivyhunter]

ARRRRR... you're killin' me with the suspense. You should be fined for the "to be continued". I hate cliff-hangers!

[Ryan Sanpei]

Thanks guys!

PART 3

I had two hours of daylight left, so I needed to get to a vantage point quick!  I headed straight for the nearest ridgeline.  I found a spot and hid under the shade of a tree. I spotted a few goats grazing, but they were way too far given the amount of time that I had left.  While glassing, the day's events played through my mind, things that I did wrong and things that I did right.  Even though my spirits were low, I was still elated by the fact that I was in the outdoors toting my stick and string.  Suddenly, out of nowhere I spotted a single nanny, then a billy and another billy.  It was as if they popped out of the thin air. They were grazing at a face pace about 300 yards above me.  I had to make my move.  I gathered my gear, looped around and sprinted to find an ambush location.  I had a hunch that these goats would end up on the same goat trail that the other ones used in the morning to escape from me.  It was a gamble but I was willing to take the chance. I kept visual contact on the goats until I got within 100 yards. At this point I had to make my move to the ambush location.  (The goats were so wary; I wanted to ambush them instead of trying to put on another stalk.)  All or nothing I thought to myself.  I got to the well used goat trail and set up just under 20 yards behind a pile of rocks. Just as I situated myself, I saw goat horns bobbing up and down.  They're coming I thought to myself. The wind was in my face and the sun was at my back, couldn't ask for anything better.  Adrenaline pumping, I had to tell myself to calm down.  With my bow arm set in the position of the goat trail, I reminded myself of two things, don't get greedy, take a shot at the first mature billy and adjust for the added length of the limb tip.  The goats were now on the trail. From my angle all I could see was horns! They were 40 yards to my right, then 30, and finally just under 20 and broadside.  I ever so slowly lifted myself enough to clear the limb tip, all the while focusing on the lead billy goats vitals.  The goats were still unaware of my presence. I drew my bow slowly, inches at a time, hit my anchor, squeezed and off my arrow went. Pock! The arrow had hit its mark! Jackpot!!! Overwhelming feelings of emotions hit me in an instant. Last hour of the last day.  I couldn't believe it. The sun began to set and I thought to myself, I couldn't ask for a better way to end my day!

[Stumpkiller]

Outstanding.  That terrain looks killer but sure is pretty.


<<<< ARRRRR... you're killin' me with the suspense. You should be fined for the "to be continued". I hate cliff-hangers! >>>>


Relax.  You know life is more laid back in those little lattitudes.

Shoot de goat, mon.

No, wait.  That's some other island.

[Ryan Sanpei]

South's "Never Give Up" attitude helped me to have a successful hunting trip!

[Ryan Sanpei]

Charlie,

"Ho brah go shoot da goat befo da ting go'n run away"

 

[Jesse Minish]

Congrats! Nice looking billy and a great shot! You on the big island?