I’m talking to John about mountain goat hunting in British Columbia. He’s on speaker phone with me as he’s sitting at the Worldwide Trophy Adventures offices in Sidney, Nebraska with Jason Berger, the director of WTA. I called and caught them between meetings about hunting, to talk about hunting. I’m pretty sure every meeting and every conversation there is about hunting. Or fishing.
John told me the area they hunt in northwest British Columbia “probably holds the highest density of mountain goats in the world.” Plus, they’re genetically superior animals. The #1, #2, and #3 Boone and Crockett record book entries came from that area, and the new archery world record came from just south of there. “That whole corner of BC is just phenomenal goat country,” he said. John has outfitted for goats, moose, and stone sheep in Canada for 30+ years.
Sufficiently wowed, I asked a simple follow-up question about what a hunter who’s going after those mountain goats can expect. That’s when he walloped me with, “Extreme. It’s a backpack hunt, so eight or nine days climbing, sleeping on the ground, eating freeze-dried food out of a bag.” I guess he’s not the kind of guy who sugar coats it.
Okay, got that. But what kind of physical condition do you need to be in to get after those mountain goats? He started off pretty low-key, saying the better condition you’re in, the better your chances, always. “We have some areas that would lend themselves to people who aren’t in peak physical fitness. But fitness certainly adds to the enjoyment and success of these hunts.” Then he lowered the boom. “We label these extreme hunts, Level 4 extreme. You’ll probably get wet and cold, and you’ll be tired and hungry. Just a typical extreme backpack mountain hunt,” John said.
Then Jason chimed in. “Goats live on top of the mountain.” A not-subtle way of saying you have to go up there to get them. And, if you want a trophy-quality mountain goat and you’re willing to have your fun in extreme conditions, this is the hunt to go on.
“From a consultant’s point of view, it’s one of my go-to operations,” Jason said. “Based on what a hunter is looking for in a mountain goat hunt, once we determine that their physical condition will allow them to do this type of hunt, it’s my first choice because of the trophy quality, the extreme wilderness, the sheer beauty, the sheer remoteness, the overall experience. It enhances the entire experience.”
It’s a one-on-one hunt with a guide. “John and his guides are first-class, seasoned, experienced, and their ability to field-judge trophies is next to none. They are true professionals in the field.”
“Goats don’t hide on the mountain,” Jason said. “It’s just a matter of where they are and can we get to them. It’s a lot of glassing until the right goat is found and then plan on how to get there and how does that look like and can we get there?”
John said the goats they look for are large bodied, have great hair, and typically score from 50–55 inches and higher. “The genetics are there,” he said. The archery world record taken just south of this area was right at 60 inches.
I got a quick tutorial on field judging mountain goats, but the only way to get good at it is through experience. John has 30 years of experience and has looked at thousands of goats. “You’re looking at the length of the nose on a mature billy,” John said. “You can tell age by the body size and how he carries himself. You’re looking at ears, comparing ear length to length of the nose, face, all kinds of reference points. And bases.” Goats there have a lot of mass, Jason added. In past seasons, hunters have experienced extremely high shot opportunities on mature goats.
“It’s an adventure,” Jason said. It’s a remote wilderness adventure in extreme remote northwestern BC with very, very high shot opportunities for those who are not only physically strong ,but also mentally strong with the ability to deal with different weather conditions, mountain terrain, and Spartan accommodations, he said. “There are a lot of things that go into these hunts that hunters need to prepare themselves for above and beyond the physical; it’s mental preparedness as well.”
John agreed. “It’s as much a mental game as it is a physical game. Jason said it well. It’s about finding a billy we want to go after, finding him in a spot where we can get to him and then retrieve him. We’ll be looking at goats daily. It’s just a matter of picking the right one and putting a successful play on him.” Think rocky, shale-covered mountains, most likely well above timberline. Hunters should be practiced and prepared to take shots from 250 to 400 yards.
Though John has outfitted all over BC for 30-plus years, this is only year two of hunting this area, so it’s relatively new. Last year, in year one, they had three goat tags and killed three goats. This year they are also taking only a limited number to protect the resource and assure quality trophies year after year.
It’s remote, so it’s not easy to get there. You fly commercially to White Horse in the Yukon Territories, overnight there, then fly down to BC and land on a lake at the main base camp. Flying in is the only way to get to base camp. From there, the hunt begins. You’ll move out to various other camps, spike camps, some wall-tent camps, depending on where you go. Some are just overnight on-the-go spike camps. To get home, reverse the process, overnighting in White Horse, then catching a flight home.
Included is the 1:1 guided hunt, all food, lodging, trophy care, and transportation within the guide territory.
Bottom line: this is an extreme hunt, but the trophy quality is best in class. If a goat is on your list, this may be the hunt for you.
