I like Both, I have been on several Sheep hunts with a friend who is a seasoned Sheep hunter in MT and Alaska, he has some very large impressive heads from both states. I never had a sheep tag, still working on that. I have hunted and shot one high mountain Goat in Montana many years ago. It was the end of November, I wanted a good late season hide, hunting alone, at 3 am I started up the east side of the range, snowshoed up to the ridgeline in deep soft snow with over 3000 feet elevation gain. I then glassed the knife ridge with bare windblown trails that had been worn down by goats for years. I had pre scouted from a road on the other side of the mtns a day before where I had no access due to cliffs and very long round about way to get to the goats that far away. The morning I went up, I watched the sun rise come over an distant mountain range and what a sight that was! But the goats were no where to be seen in the area from the day before. I knew they went north by tracks in windblown snow on the old worn down goat trails of many years that grooved out the loose areas of shale rock on steep slopes. I situated myself on the east side of the knife ridge, out of the strong wind and started glassing when I spotted the small group almost 2 miles away. I was on a long snakelike knife ridge with steep cliffs and huge drops alternating on both sides. There was however a goat trail to follow the entire way with some scrambling up very vertical areas. I found the goats late in the afternoon, located the biggest Billy in the herd as they were headed over the top to a gap and on the other side, a high ledge trail with a vertical drop of dizzying proportions. I knew the area from summer scouting and knew I had to make the shot before they got there or even too close, as the billy could go just over the edge and fall hundreds of feet vertical into a cirque that would have bee very difficult to access. I was in a boulder field when I spotted them ahead of me @ 300 yards. I set up over a boulder, scoped the billies and found the large one, they were moving slow and feeding on lichen on small boulders and rocks about 100 feet from the gap they were working up to. I got a great position on a boulder, set my Zeiss 3x9 on 9, chambered a round and set sights of my 270 on the big billy, first shot just behind the shoulder blade, he shuddered and kept walking, the rest of the herd was in the gap and going over, I shot again, almost in the same spot, he shuddered again and kept walking, I fired once again, another great hit, he fell, rolled a full roll and landed in soft snow. It was getting late in the day, 4 + miles from the truck. I gutted and drug the goat off the gutpile a hundred yards and put it up on a rock to help keep the coyotes from getting to it. I hiked down the backside of the mountain, glissaded with my snowshoes on and ski poles, down the first deep snow covered rock gully, then up a steep side going back and repeated it 3 times getting back to the truck. The ridge was getting too windy to return safely on my approach route. I made it back to town at 11 pm, found a buddy to go back with me the next day to retrieve it. We snowshoed in the way I went back to the truck, found the goat in fine condition with some overnite predator work on the gut pile. We skinned the goat for a rug mount, boned most of the meat, loaded up and headed out. We were exhausted when we got to the truck. My buddy thought I was crazy to go where I did to shoot that goat, but I grew up Skiing, Mtn Climbing, trapping all winter, and hunting hard. It was one of the greatest moments of my life to walk up on that goat! 9 7/8" Long horns, it was a dandy goat! For me, and where I hunted goats and would again, I would say Goat hunting starts where Sheep hunting ends on the Mountain. But Thats just my thoughts. I still want to hunt sheep yet myself too!
Scenarshooter -- Did you live in Bozeman many years ago?? You look very familiar.
God, Guns, Guts and the American Fur Trade MADE America, Lets keep it that way!!! Know your History! Know Americas Borders! Why they are, where they are- The Fur Trade!
Kids that Hunt Trap and Fish, DONT Mug Little old Ladies, Take them young ones outside and teach em' - For Life!
