Sheep hunting holds a special place in my heart. I hunted my first stone sheep back in 2011 and it ignited a passion that has only grown over time. On September 8, 2013, I completed the Grand slam of North American Wild Sheep with a rifle, taking a Dall, Stone, Bighorn, and Desert Sheep. Fast forward to August 2024 and I found myself chasing stone sheep again, this time in British Columbia, looking to continue my second Grand Slam, this time with a muzzleloader.
My first muzzleloader ram was a desert sheep on the Navajo reservation in November 2021. I attempted a muzzleloader stone sheep two years ago. It was with my dad. At 75, he did an incredible job of handling the physicality of the trip, but nine straight days of bad weather stopped us from taking a ram. That experience only fueled my desire to come back. I knew I’d be back to chase these sheep again, not just for myself but also to honor the hunt I shared with my dad.
My trip started on July 29. After a few connecting flights from Grand Rapids, Michigan, we arrived in Whitehorse, Yukon where we spent the night. The next morning we loaded up on a float plane and took a 90-minute flight to Telegraph Creek. That’s where the excitement started to set in. I was finally back after stone sheep.
That first day, we took a train of horses 17 miles to camp. The 9-hour ride in the mountains wore us out, but knowing where we were headed made every minute and bump worth it. The landscape was vast and pure. No planes overhead, no cars driving by, and no modern distractions. Just untouched wilderness.
My guide Dawson and I headed up a drainage to start glassing the area. Dawson is a uniquely gifted guide. Rarely do you find someone who has such a calm determination and knows how to locate game so well. We finally arrived and got set up for the afternoon. There’s nothing like that first evening of glassing. It was good to be back. While we only spotted a few small stone sheep rams that first night, I knew we were in the right place.
Stone sheep hunting (and all sheep hunting for that matter) is an emotional rollercoaster. On day three, I thought everything had lined up perfectly. We had side-hilled for four hours to get into position on a band of 18 rams, with one giant ram standing out from the group. The rams made their way toward us, one by one, stopping at a rock I’d ranged at 220 yards.
I was locked in and ready to take the shot. Suddenly, out of nowhere, another ram popped up just 25 yards away. It saw us and spooked, taking the whole band of rams with it as it ran down the mountain. I couldn’t believe it. We’d done everything right, but sheep hunting is unpredictable. The highs and lows are part of the deal.
By day six, I had another shot lined up. We’d spotted two legal rams the night before, one of them an absolute stud over 40 inches. After another long stalk, I got within what I believed to be 318 yards and took the shot. The ram didn’t move a muscle. My heart sank as I realized I’d misjudged the range. The ram was actually 350 yards away. With a muzzleloader, every yard matters. That one stung.
The missed opportunity weighed pretty heavily on me but I knew I had to keep pushing. Sheep hunting is usually a battle of attrition, as much mental as it is physical.
On the ninth day, persistence paid off. We spotted another band of rams bedded down on a ridgeline. One of them was legal. We snuck in as close as possible, got in position for a shot, and waited for the ram to stand up. When he did, I squeezed the trigger on my muzzleloader and made the shot.
I watched the big ram fall and the emotions hit me like a wave. I was thinking about the trip with my dad and everything that went into this hunt. We were in the perfect area and saw over 40 sheep. My ram was an old warrior, 10 years old with stunning blue and white coloration. I was at a loss for words. It was an emotional moment that I’ll never forget.
Packing out a stone sheep is a special kind of exhaustion. Every step reminds you of what you went through to get here (and how heavy sheep are). We got back to camp just before midnight, and I could feel every one of the 18 miles we’d covered that day. It didn’t matter though. I was still riding the high of that moment on the mountain.
Sheep hunting is unlike anything else. It demands a lot of you, both mentally and physically. It challenges you in ways you don’t expect. People either love sheep hunting, or they hate it. For me, there’s nothing else in the world like it.
In sheep hunting, success doesn’t usually come easy. But when it does, it makes all the work worth it. If you’re interested in going on the adventure of a lifetime chasing stone sheep, reach out to one of WTA’s consultants. This is the place to do it—world-class guides and amazing country loaded with sheep. It’ll be a hunt you never forget.
The film of this hunt will be released in the next couple of months, and we can’t wait for you to watch the hunt unfold.Â
