Ram hunting

[sacan]

From what I have been told you should be at least two people per ram to carry it out. I was wondering if any of you have or know of a way that you can carry out one ram per person?
The people I know that go after rams say they have a hard enough time carrying out one ram with two people sharing the load, and they don't think it is possible to do it one person, one ram. I have been trying to think of ways to do this, but again if someone knows of a way or has done this then please fill me in on how.

I may be biting off more than I can chew, but I have a couple of thoughts on how I could potentially do this, but again any input would be appreciated.

As a side note... I am in shape and will be in shape for my hunt next year so fitness should not be an issue.

I might a bit too greedy as I don't want to wait 3 years before it is my "turn" to get a sheep haha

[sacan]

Also I am unsure about what boots to buy so any suggestions on those would be appreciated as well

thanks

[Setterman]

My brother and I took out 1 dall sheep(smaller than a big horn) and it darn near killled me. One the other hand I have a friend who went in with 2 of his buddies and they each got a sheep. These guys are machines and they still had trouble carrying out a sheep each. Cheers SM

[drake]

im no "alfred" einstein but wouldn't multiple trips solve your problem?

[Ryry4]

Buy a horse if you want to get it out in one trip. As far as boots go, I've got a pair of Kenetrek's and a pair of Asolo's and they're both great in the mountains.

[Findal]

You could eat half of it there.

[drake]

Originally Posted by Findal

You could eat half of it there.

just make sure you bring lots of tp...... sheeparhea is the worst!

[crawfy]

Originally Posted by Findal

You could eat half of it there.

I was thinking along the same lines as i was thinking of telling him to bring a knife and fork and maybe a little salt and pepper.

[Grizzly Adams]

Originally Posted by Findal

You could eat half of it there.

Or, hope a Grizz comes along and does the job for you. Personally, I like the horse idea. Much easier on the back.

Grizz

[Hooter]

Originally Posted by sacan

Also I am unsure about what boots to buy so any suggestions on those would be appreciated as well

thanks

I just bought my second pair of Hanwag Goretex boots and they're simply awesome. I think they were nearly $500 OTD, but worth every cent. Track 'n' Trail in Edmonton carries them.

-Trevor

[ishootbambi]

i carried around 70 pounds of meat and my buddy carried the head. when i stood up in the shale, i took 2 steps and promptly did a cartwheel in the pitch blackness. on a level parking lot i could carry quite a bit more, but coming off a mountain i would not have wanted one more ounce than i had. i believe some guys can handle more due to experience doing it, but they are not common. i also think a few guys would be surprised how much the scale shows their 100 plus pound packs to actually be.

[shooter]

I've now had three sheep in my pack in the past three years. Been on two ram kills and have packed half of each and it's a good load along with a bit of gear... wouldn't want much more weight than that.

Last year I packed out my ewe all in my own pack. De-boned the fronts and backstraps, but not the hinds as I just put them in whole. Along with the head on top, it made for a fairly heavy load coming out but manageable.

A buddy of mine packed his ewe out this fall all in one shot and decided that the hide was so nice he had to take that home too. He weighed the pack at home and without the rifle and optics it was 118 lbs. Meat all boned out prior to pack trip.

I think the key is two packs for a ram and life is much better and the trip more enjoyable!

[Redfrog]

The sheep I've packed out were on a horse.
I have packed moose out in a couple trips with a buddy. We weighed our packs and one was 165 and the other 160. I was young and very fit and weighed in at 205. I went to horses shortly after that.

it was nearly flat terrain as well.

[LongDraw]

Originally Posted by sacan

I was wondering if any of you have or know of a way that you can carry out one ram per person?

Real simple, two trips.

If you are backpacking a camp, 3 trips.

[sacan]

Haha yeah I know that more trips would be one way, but the problem with that is that it is about two days hiking into the area. Now I don't really see that as an option. The first part of the hike in I could maybe take like a modified "dolly" and then leave it somewhere. That is one option I am considering and then I can do two or three trips to the dolly and back, and then one trip out with the dolly from there. I havent really thought this idea through that much, but it is just one option I am considering. To do two or three trips to get the ram out is not an option as it would take too long, especially if I dont get the ram early on in my hunt.

With no other gear, packing an entire ram would definitely be doable but unfortantely, if you are a couple days in, you need gear. When I was much younger and much tougher, I'd have considered a 5-6 hour pack with a ram and minimal gear so depending on the shape you are in, I wouldn't say it's impossible but with a ram and gear you are going to be in the 160 pound plus range. Not sure you could sustain that load for a couple days...a couple hours for sure but a couple days, I doubt it.

There's likely a guide or two on here that's done it though

I like Lowa Tibet GTX boots.

I'm still working on a way to dehydrate pack horses but no luck so far.

[sacan]

Thanks Sheephunter

So of that 170 pound range, how much of that will be because of the ram itself? I did a hard hike this summer and I managed to keep my pack weight fairly low. Of course I would have a heavier pack regardless as I need a few more things on a ram hunt but I just want to figure out an approximate minimum, and maximum range of what I would probably be carrying out.

Thanks again

Originally Posted by sacan

Thanks Sheephunter

So of that 170 pound range, how much of that will be because of the ram itself? I did a hard hike this summer and I managed to keep my pack weight fairly low. Of course I would have a heavier pack regardless as I need a few more things on a ram hunt but I just want to figure out an approximate minimum, and maximum range of what I would probably be carrying out.

Thanks again

With cape and horns, you are looking at a minimum of 120 pounds....more on a big ram.

[albertadave]

Originally Posted by sheephunter

There's likely a guide or two on here that's done it though

lmao

[podman]

our ram head/horns and cape alone were over 50 lbs. I would think with one guy it would be 3 trips if you have any distance to cover. But hey if you got the time why not.

[elkamaholic]

Originally Posted by sacan

I might a bit too greedy as I don't want to wait 3 years before it is my "turn" to get a sheep haha

If you're that confident that you can pull a ram each out of this spot, I'd happily volunteer my services to come and help pack out you and your buddy's rams. Just don't make me wear a blindfold

[hardy]

I have been on three successful sheep hunts in the last 5 years, all pack hunts. I had to pack a half of a sheep plus my gear 9 kms out on the last trip took a whole day. My friend shot the sheep in a lower basin so we had to hike back up 1500' just to get back to the ridgeline, that was brutal. I could not lift my pack onto my back my friend had to lift it while i put it on. Doing a one man sheep hunt would be a little sketchy in my books( twisted ankle or somthin). My favorite boots are Asolo never had a blister and never had to breakem in. My average pack wieght before sheep meet would be between 40-50 pounds. I would love to go lighter than 40lbs and am still workin on that. Good luck!

[blackmamba]

on most of my sheep hunts this year I was packin about 53 lbs for 2 - 3 day trips !! I personally dont think it would be worth it to try and do it in one trip !! pack out what you can and go back with some buddies and get the rest !! Thats what my plan is ....

[coldredneck]

My best bud TM and myself walked my Dall and our day gear back to camp ( couple miles)two years ago. My Dall with head / cape and complete boned out meat ( and I mean all meat - Neck / rib and down the legs ) fit in my pack ( Kifaru Longhunter ) and while it was heavy it was manageable. Would have been more manageable if I had been in better shape. Kev took the rest of the gear in his pack. We didnt pack the ram and camp gear out as the only way into our area was by chopper, But I think two guys should be able to bring out a ram in one trip if you go in as light as possible. Of course this would also depend on how far in and how long your in for.
BTW : Looking for a partner in the Okotoks area to go in for Bighorns next year!!!

[Tundra Monkey]

Originally Posted by coldredneck

My best bud TM and myself walked my Dall and our day gear back to camp

One of the greatest days ever Bud

Noticed ya didn't post in the "Do you shoot at running game" thread

Nice shootin' BTW

tm

[wildwoods]

Ole Nuge and I accomplished this last year. Two guys, one ram. Took it in two trips. It was a marathon but was more efficient than killing ourselves. I’m guessing the guys who do it solo in one trip are caching gear and being very liberal with shank and shoulder meat. Fast forward to this year and bringing in a friend who is a wrangler was an amazing decision. Fresh camp chow and super light packs. Love it!

I have an offer from a neighbor to acquire free llamas. I might take him up! A string of 4 would carry 320 lbs of gear. Now that would be super cool!

[buckman]

First shoot the Ram,make sure its a huge one,it will make the pack out a lot sweeter.

[Stipa comata]

Originally Posted by sacan

From what I have been told you should be at least two people per ram to carry it out. I was wondering if any of you have or know of a way that you can carry out one ram per person?
The people I know that go after rams say they have a hard enough time carrying out one ram with two people sharing the load, and they don't think it is possible to do it one person, one ram. I have been trying to think of ways to do this, but again if someone knows of a way or has done this then please fill me in on how.

I may be biting off more than I can chew, but I have a couple of thoughts on how I could potentially do this, but again any input would be appreciated.

As a side note... I am in shape and will be in shape for my hunt next year so fitness should not be an issue.

I might a bit too greedy as I don't want to wait 3 years before it is my "turn" to get a sheep haha

I think the piece of advice about two trips is the best so far.

Lots of guys can carry 160 pound packs on an internet forum. Putting that kind of weight on your back and scrambling rock is not the brightest idea. Even if you didn't slip and kill yourself, the chances of causing serious damage to your back or other body parts exists. It's one thing to be in shape, another to be in shape to carry a pack and a completely different thing to be conditioned to handle weights proportional to you own body weight for extended periods of time.

Take what you hear with a grain of salt

[dave99]

Fun old thread.

I have carried (parts of) 4 rams and an entire ewe off the mountain in past hunts. I can manage 1/2 ram and multi-day gear in one trip, but not more. Where I hunt it often takes 1 1/2 days to 2 days to get out to the truck with that weight.

The ewe was a day hunt, and I humped it out on my own without too much trouble.

I have one friend who packed a ram and multi day gear out as a solo hunter. He did 2 trips to get ram and gear out.

Although it certainly is possible to take a ram and multi day gear out in one push, it does stretch sanity and borders on dangerous. For a few km over flat ground I would try it. But mountains ain’t flat, and sheep aren’t often killed beside the road.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[dave99]

Double tap- I was so excited to reply...