Nikita's Goat Hunt 2012- Persistence pays off

November 27/12 

This was my second year hunting mountain goats, but in a different area. I've never harvested a goat before, and this goat had to have been the hardest hunt I have done yet. My worst outing ever was while trying to get this goat at the end of September. All the goats were still way way in the back, you had to go through a valley or two to get to them. Lets just say, I didn't make it to the back. I discovered my boots were no longer any good, my blisters had blisters! I fell in a creek, twisted my knee crossing a shale slide, got a stick in the other knee and in my neck....needless to say we got half way before I had enough. I was bruised, bloody and crabby. This was one out of two days that we didn't see a goat.
The next time we went up was mid October. It had been pouring rain and everything was saturated. We went for a hike up White Creek and found a goat! She was a very young nanny and she was across the river on the other side in the cliffs. I didn't want a goat that young so we decided to watch her for a while. She was very cute and still baby faced. After a few minutes a big black spot showed up on the slide right below her, Grizzly Bear. He was a very rich, dark brown and was sitting on his back end in the long grass, clueless there was a goat watching him. He was a massive, beautiful bear. We watched them until he disappeared down towards the river and we decided to get out before he showed up on our side. We got out and headed out of that part of the valley to look for more goats. Later in the day we were able to make a play on a couple billies. One was a big booner and the other was a younger billy. We had a big shale rock slide we had to climb up and those rocks are as slippery as ice when wet. It was an extremely steep climb once we were above the shale, I went up the entire mountain on my hands and feet it was that steep. At the top I was tired, so I sat and rested while Kyle went around the front face to see if the goats were still there. No sign. So we headed back down and back to the truck. We drove around to the front and sure enough looked up and the goats were still there. They had just moved farther into the cliffs and were bedded for the night. The next day we were back but everything was clouded in. I was still tired from the hike the day before and wasn't very enthusiastic about hiking another mountain. We decided to shoot a couple rounds out of the rifles because we had both taken a couple spills the day before. So we found an old clearing full of christmas trees and set up. Kyle wanted me to practice shooting off my pack. He went and set out a bottle at 80 yards to shoot at. As I was getting comfortable with my pack I looked up and standing right where Kyle had been was a coyote. I was shocked. I said to Kyle,"Coyote!" He told me to shoot it but I was still so surprised that it was there, that I missed. I was not happy that I missed. It was a beautiful dog, he had his thick winter coat and was basically all blond. So I reloaded and shot at the bottle, pin wheeled it right through the middle.   
Our next trip ended as soon as we got there. There were 2 guys from out of town sitting and watching the goats we had planned on going after. After we pulled up and talked to them they figured out we were after the same goats, so they rushed out of the truck to get up the mountain before us. I didn't feel like competing with them or being shot at, so we went to check out White Creek. We came up to the lookout and there was a red dodge sitting there. We pulled up to talk to them. It was a guy and his son and another guy, here with the guide. The one guy was from California and the father son duo were from Utah. The guide and the son were up the mountain after a goat and the 2 men were sitting and watching. We sat and talked with them for a while then decided to go whitetail hunting.
The next time we were able to get up there we had the whole valley to ourselves. Reason: the whole valley was fogged in. You couldn't see anything and it was half raining and half snowing. Kyle still wanted to make a play even though we were blind. We went up the way we had planned to go the last time. It was pretty easy going until you hit the cliffs. These were not the cliffs that the goats hang out on. These ones were hidden by the thick timber and were impossible to climb. We figured we would go along the bottom until we found a way to get either past them or through them. No such luck. On both sides were gullies made of shear rock that were deeper then the cliffs we were trying to get around. It is amazing what the timber can hide. Again, we left empty handed, drenched to the bone and never seen one goat.

November 26 & 27. These are my last two days I have to hunt for a goat and then my season is over. I am frustrated and feeling pretty defeated at this point. So we head in like every other day and just out of the blue Kyle decides to look up and slams on the breaks. Goats. They had moved from their regular hang out and were lower down. Three goats were up in the cliffs, so we bailed out and got ready to head up. It was a better go then the previous hunts and I had a spark of hope that maybe this would be my day. As we got to the bottom of the cliffs the wind shifts and blows right up at them. Kyle peaks around the one set of cliffs just in time to see a white streak heading into the timber. Just like that our hunt was done for the day. We head back down to the road and decide to just scope the cliffs from the road to see if we can find more. As we headed up the lake Kyle does it again, slams on his breaks and says Goat. They are on a mountain of shale and cliffs. Huge cliffs. Scary cliffs. But at this time we only had a few hours of light left so we watched them. There were 8 goats in those cliffs, 4 billies, a nanny and kid and the rest were nannies. As we are watching them Kyle says, " that billy is kicking the nanny in the butt" I looked over at him and replied, "he's trying to mount her" . Sure enough....yup...they are rutting.We even got to witness a stand off between two billies over a nanny. After watching the goats for a while I came to the conclusion that billies are mean. The poor kid was getting kicked around and pushed off ledges by the billies and all he was trying to do was stay close to his mom. Seeing all the goats concentrated in one area got Kyle excited and trying to hash out a game plan. My response...how are we going to get to them, those cliffs are huge.


My buddy, right below me.



Just hanging out with me

Next day we come up to the cliffs at day break. The goats were still there and just starting to move around. We didn't waste anytime getting our stuff on to head up. We started hiking in through the trees that ended rather abruptly and turned to shale. Now from the road it looks like the cliffs start where the shale ends, well there was a lot of shale to climb up and the shale turned to boulders and massive rocks with 8 inches of snow on top. Yes, I fell into a number of holes and between rocks. Once we got into the rock slide we looked up and noticed that the goats were watching us. They were still over 400 yards away. Kyle decided we would go up the left side of the cliffs and try to climb up onto the ridge. The left side was also all rocks and shale with some horrible alders and prickle bushes thrown in the mix, which equaled my own personal hell. I can not power through those alders at all and I hate prickles. By the time we got to the bottom of the cliff to climb it I was almost in tears of frustration. My feet were getting tangled, my pack and rifle were getting caught in the alders that were up to my shoulders, I was ready to go back to the truck. Kyle came back to grab my rifle and helped me get through the alders. When we got to the cliffs he scaled them like a goat, while I struggled to stretch tall enough to reach foot holds. He helped pull me up half way to the ledge and I decided I couldn't make it, I wasn't comfortable scaling cliffs that were covered in snow and ice. My confidence was low. I felt so defeated and frustrated all over again and was on the verge of a break down, so I sent a silent request to my Auntie Jenny if she could help me catch a break. Kyle could see the break down coming so he helped me down and we decided to check out the other side of the cliffs for an easier route. As we hiked across the slides Kyle stopped and pulled off his pack so we could rest and have some lunch. Of course with having legs half the size of his I lagged behind a bit and when I hike I watch the ground so I don't end up falling on my face. So it surprised me when he whistled at me and motioned for me to hurry over. I got to him and he points up, the goats were 200 yards from us standing at the edge of their ledge watching us. I looked at him and asked how I would get it down from there if I shot one. He told me not to worry that if I couldn't get up there he would go for me. So we pulled the packs over and got a rest set up for me to shoot off. By the time I was set the goats had lost interest in us and moved back from the ledge, except one. Kyle watched it through the binos and said it was a billy. He could see the scent glands and the horns were long and sweeped like a billies. I lined up on it and pulled the trigger on my pink .270. It dropped on the spot. Followed was a lot of cheering, hugging and kissing. We got our packs on and went up to the cliffs. Kyle powered ahead of me and told me that if I was able to get up to the goat he would come back and grab me but if not that he would deal with my goat and then come down to me. I made it to the cliffs and looked up and decided I would wait to see if he came back or not, I wasn't going to try it alone. He didn't come back for me so I waited. After about 15 minutes I heard some crashing in the bush below me, something was walking towards me. I was getting ready in case I had to pull off my pack and grab my rifle. There was a giant grizzly in the area. But I held still and listened. I decided to take a peek over the ledge I was standing on to see if I could see what was making the noise. That's when I seen it.
Black horns and a white face...it was a goat. I backed off the edge a bit and scrambled to pull out my phone so I could take pictures. I just about froze my one hand off trying to take as many pictures of the young billy that I could. He came right up under my ledge and stood there for a bit looking around and then he continued up the right side of my little ledge and stopped right beside me, only 10 feet from me. I froze as he looked at me and looked all around. The camera on my phone snapping away. After a couple minutes he continued a little bit to the more front of the cliff face and looked out over the lake and then hopped up on the ridge adjacent from me. He hung out there for a little bit looking mainly at me. He was only about 12 feet from me on his perch. It wasn't until he got directly above me and the wind was in his face that he figured out what I was and trotted off. I was relieved to put my glove back on, that was the longest but coolest 10 minutes. Within 10 minutes after my little buddy left, Kyle showed up above me with a full pack of his stuff and my goat. We were both tired and ready to get back to the truck. He packed my entire goat out for me, what a wonderful husband I have. Apparently while Kyle was skinning and de-boning my goat he had an audience, a nanny and kid were about 15 yards from him watching. We both had a shock when he told me that my goat was actually a nanny. She was a big nanny and was about 6-7 years old. The length of her horns measured out at 9 3/4inches.



my goat

I worked very hard for my goat and am ecstatic on the goat I got, especially being my first. It was a tough season but in the end it all paid off. And on top of getting my first goat and being out with my husband, I got to experience something that not many have... A little buddy.



Nikita



My buddy

My Very First Goat Hunt

End of September 2009...

Kyle loves his goat hunting. He got his first goat the weekend after our wedding (we got married on a weds in 2007) and we had the hide done as a rug and it became Pheonix's baby blanket (I was pregnant at the time). After that first hunt he was hooked. The next year he helped our buddy Danno get his Boon & Crockett goat since Kyle never drew a tag.

For the 2009 season we both put in for goat tags and we both drew in the same area...along with Danno. So we planned a group hunt together to go for our goats, their main focus was getting me one because it was already very cold (for me). I had all insulated clothing (being men's and juniors because at the time there was no women's hunting clothes) and none of it fit me properly so I had 4 layers of clothing on underneath as well. I felt like a giant camo marshmallow! We planned a 2 day hunt; drive in and set up camp then quad as high as we could go, after that it was hiking. The first 2 mountains we climbed we were able to get up a good distance before having to hike. The guys kept teasing me and my layers of clothing....The first mountain we went up was a nice hike, open alpine. Until we got onto the ridge, it was basically straight down and grass with a skim of snow on top...very slippery. The wind was blowing so hard that it kept me standing straight up when leaning into it. I was warm and snug in my millions of layers. So we sat down and glassed the other mountain adjacent to us until the fog swallowed us. We did see 2 goats...and the guys were sure it was 2 billy's. We headed down the mountain to the quads and went down the road 5 mins and parked. We started going up towards the 2 goats that were happily feeding on a slide. This trek was not as easy. It was thickly timbered and steeper to climb right away. While bush whacking my way up, the sling on my rifle broke...I was not a happy camper. Its a heavy gun and now I had to find a way to bush whack and find a comfortable way to carry this thing without falling on my face in the mean time. Finally we made it to the slide and the goats. We put the optics on them and.....Nanny with a kid! @#$%!! So back down we hiked. We went to the quads and sat down for a rest and to scope out the other side of the valley....sure enough there was a lone goat, well above the tree line. Danno was all gun-ho, I was skeptical. I really didn't think he would still be there by the time we got across the valley and up the mountain. But I kept my mouth shut and went a long.


Looking at the slide the Nanny and Kid were on

We got to the other side of the valley, parked the quads in a natural meadow and started hiking.  This one was all hiking, which wouldn't have been so bad if you had the same leg length as the 2 people you hunt with. I am 5'1'', Danno and Kyle are 6'+ and built like brick sh** houses. The mountain we had to climb was all blow down in thick timber. So I ended up climbing the logs that they merely stepped over. It was a long, slow trek up; eventually we got above tree line and I had thought the snow covered grass hill was steep, this was a 75-80 degree hills. And if you slipped, the bottom was all rocks. We eventually made it up to where we seen the goat...he was gone. I announced I was done for the day, it was getting late and I had pulled my groin half way up this mountain and still had to make my way down. They agreed and we went back to camp and too bed. The next morning it was below freezing and had snowed. We got up and noticed the whole valley was socked in with snow and clouds. We called it quits and packed up. I didn't get back up that year due to too much snow for me, neither guys got their goat that year...

Kyle & Danno heading up the grassy hill

Nikita

Scouting in August

August 12-13, 2012

Kyle and I decided to head out for a scouting trip and an overnighter. The valley we decided to go into is not accessible by truck, so we brought along our bikes. We loaded up the bikes, packs and 2 of the dogs (the other one( Koda) stays with the kids at the grandparents) and drove out. It takes about an hour and a half to get to the spot we park, then another few hours to get up the mountain. Unfortunately the terrain is not very bike for riding up the mountain, so with our packs on we pushed the bikes up it. That sucks by the way! Usually it is quite a bit cooler when you are up that high...but it wasn't. It was still 25 degrees while is was 30 degrees in the valley. The norm is about 15 degrees cooler then the valley...so we didn't know what we were getting into at all!

We got about 3/4 of the way up the mountain before Kyle called for a stop. We were both done, he was exhausted (he just got off night shift) and I was cooking. We stopped by a creek and the dogs were in seventh heaven! Kyle also decided to wear his new boots up and had some nice blisters emerging (yuck!). We dropped our packs, took off our boots and ate with our feet in the creek. After about an hour of resting we put our boots back on with some clean socks and decided to walk the rest of the valley with just the binos, camera and defender. Thank fully once your back there, the valley is not very long or wide so its easy to glass with binos. When we came up onto an open area Kyle announces that he sees elk across the valley. So we found some bushes to sit in and glass them. There were 10 elk in total and they had seen us. They were feeding above the tree line and one of them was a bull...a very mature bull, the others were 4 calves and the rest cows. So we watched them and scanned the rest of the valley for more signs of life and we eventually found a lone billy that came out to sun himself in the last rays of evening. We didn't stay long to watch the elk, the bull was getting pretty agitated with us and pushed the cows a little more up the mountain. We headed back to the bikes and Kyle decided we should head back to the truck.

 By the time we got to the bikes I was not feeling so good, I had a pounding headache. So we jumped on the bikes and rode down the mountain. It would have been nice....minus the headache...and it was definitely a lot faster then hiking down. While we were heading out the animals were starting to come out. On our way down the mountain we seen a massive Bull Moose, a mule deer doe and her fawn and a whitetail doe. Once we were at the truck we cooked up a mountain house and Kyle let me eat first to see if it would help with the headache...it didn't...it made me nauseous, so i didn't eat. Kyle drove us down to the valley in the dark and we set up camp..or i should say he set up camp. I was basically useless by this time, I had every piece of clothing packed on me and I was still shivering. Once the tent was ready i climbed in my sleeping bag and instantly passed out.

The next morning I felt refreshed but still a little fatigued. Kyle decided we wouldn't do any major hiking for the day. So we drove the valleys, we drove down one that we know well; it was washed out so we jumped out and walked a ways in. This time we ran into 2 cow moose, an owl, and glassed 2 more goats. After this we headed home, slowly, taking the long way around through the bush instead of heading back to the main roads.








Nikita & Kyle