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

Aku Croda Boot Review (womens)

November 21/12

Aku Croda Gore-tex Hiking boot for women (waterproof).

I bought these boots to replace my old High-Tecs and Cabellas insulated boots. I have broken them in and have worn them out on some intense hikes (mountain goat hunting). Here's my review on them...

FIT

When I had tried these on in the store the first time I didn't buy them right away. They were the only pair left and they were a 1/2 size too big and when I tried them on they felt too narrow (I wasn't wearing proper hiking socks). Kyle convinced me to go back and try them out again, this time we also got a different guy that knew what he was talking about and doing. This time I used proper hiking socks and it made a huge difference. They know longer felt so narrow because I had cushion between my foot and the shoe. The guy helped me tighten them and they felt good.
After wearing them for a while now I am happy I got the half size bigger. I can tighten them right up with my light hiking socks and they are great and I can loosen them and have thicker socks or double up my socks without them being too tight.

PERFORMANCE

I have worn these mule deer hunting and mountain goat hunting now, in warm weather and snow. I love these boots. They have a 3/4 shank, great for mountainous terrain and steep climbing. The only down side to such a stiff boot is when your walking on wet sticks and rocks you slide everywhere. These are waterproof. After my goat hunt this past weekend in the snow and rain the only part of me that was dry were my feet. They are NOT insulated, if you plan on wearing them all year round I suggest getting the half size bigger. I wear my light merino wool hiking socks and a heavy wool sock over top and my feet stay nice and warm. Have good ankle support, they have saved me a couple times. When heading up steep terrain I just dig my toes in and its like walking up stairs, I can now make it up a steep mountain before Kyle (his boots are 1/2 shank).

BREAK IN

Breaking these in didn't take long. The sole and foot area are very comfortable right from purchase. The part I had to break in was the collar. The collar around the top of your ankle is very stiff, after the first few days wearing them my legs were bruised. It took about a week to get my legs used to the collar. Now they are fine, but always wear high socks, even if your just wearing them around town.

SPECS

* Gore-tex Waterproof & breathable membrane
* 3/4 Shank
* Vibram Rubber OutSole
* EVA Outsole
* Rubber wrap-around rand
* Abrasion resistant, rugged suede outer
* Gusseted tongue
* Padded footbed
* IMS internal midsole system
* Removable Insole

All in all, I love these boots and highly recommend them.

Nikita

Start of November Goat Hunt

November 3, 2012

We were very fortunate that Kyles mom had requested to take the kids for a sleep over Thursday night- Saturday afternoon. We took full advantage of it and went goat hunting.

Friday morning we woke well before sunrise to get ready for a day of hunting. It was raining...like it had been for over a week now. We got all our stuff together, threw it in the truck and drove off to the area I drew my tag. Once we got up to the area we still had some time before it got light, so we drove a bit to see if we could find a mule deer until the sun hit the mountains. We didn't find any deer so we went back down to a bridge that we had a full view of the mountains and sat and glassed. Nothing. So Kyle suggested we head up to an area called white creek and go for a hike into the back of the valley. We got out and put our gaiters on and started trekking through the horrible alders. As we're going along I asked Kyle a couple times if we were going down the right trail. He kept saying yes. The last time I asked he says,"I don't remember. We may have taken the wrong one." Great. But it wasn't all in vain, when we looked across the valley.... surprise, our first goat of the day! So we watched the goat and tried to figure out how to get to it. We then figured we would go straight down the mountain until we hit the road and go back to the truck. Once we got to the truck we drove a little ways until we got to a good viewing area and pulled out the spotting scope. When we got the scope out and was able to see the goat more clearly  and observe it , we were able to see it was a very young nanny. Probably her first winter alone. So I pulled the plug on the stalk. We watched her for a little bit  until Kyle says,"Bear." Sure enough on the slide below the goats cliff was a massive old grizzly bear, lounging in the grass. He had no clue the goat was above him, but she sure did. We watched him go across the slide  and into the brush, so did she. We decided to pack up and head back to the bridge.
Back at the bridge we pulled out the scope and binos again and started scanning the mountain tops. Within 5 minutes Kyle says,"goat." Sure enough 2 goats were in view. We watched them until they bedded down and figured they were not a nanny and kid.  We got our packs loaded and started to climb. Keep in mind everything is saturated from the rain. So within minutes my gloves were soaked as well as my pants. The first part was a clearing, not bad except for the hidden sticks in the grass. Next part was treed, much better to walk in. Then we hit the rocks, lose rock that is slick as ice to walk on. That took a while to climb across. After the lose rocks it was a very steep climb on basically mud and rock with some alders and prickle bushes thrown in the mix. I climbed over half the mountain on my hands and feet, it was that steep and slippery. I was thankful when we had finally reached the bench that the goats were on. We went around the face and the slope grew in steepness to where I wasn't willing to sidehill unless I knew a goat was still on the bench. I sat by a tree while Kyle went over to take a look. He couldn't see them. But then again, we were underneath them, so I got set up and Kyle started whistling to see if we could get one to look over the edge. Nothing. We thought maybe we had bumped them and decided to head down so we didn't have to make the treacherous climb in the dark. On the way down Kyle twisted his knee and it kept giving out on him. I looked at him and asked if we needed to call SARs to come get his ass off the mountain...i got a few profanities thrown in my direction for being a smart ass. I have decided that I hate prickle bushes and that goat trails royally suck. If anyone refers a trail as a goat trail...that means its truly awful.We did make it off the mountain before it got dark and decided we would head home. We got to the bridge and looked over to see if the goats were still there, they were but had moved more to the middle of the face which was all cliff. They were bedded for the night. We came around a bend on our way out and stopped to scan one of the mountain sides not visible from the bridge and sure enough 3 goats were on it, in an easier area to hike. We shook our heads and continued home.

The next morning we were not very enthused to jump out of bed before sunrise, we were both very tired and decided we needed a sleep in. I was up at 9:30 and Kyle got up at 10:00, we got ready and headed out again. When we got up there everything was clouded in. We thought we would head to a clearing and fire a couple rounds to make sure the rifles were fine after the scary descent from the day before (yes I fell...a lot). So we set up a bottle on a stump that was about 80 yards away and while Kyle was doing that I got my pack out and ready to use as a rest. We were talking and as I looked over at the bottle to get ready to get the gun ready I see a white and blond object, coyote. He was hiding in the Christmas trees watching Kyle set up the bottle and was curious. He was standing beside the bottle watching us. Both Kyle and I were shocked. He recovered faster then I did and was soon yelling at me to shoot him. So I snapped out of it and got lined up on him and fired. Trigger jerk. It went over his back and into the bank. I was still in surprise that he had came out like that. Then I was pissed that I had missed him. After we scoured the clearing to see if we could find him again (which we didn't) I went back to shoot at the bottle. Bang! There goes the bottle flying, hit right in the middle. Gun was on. We looked up at the mountain that we were shooting at the base of and guess what was watching us, a goat. Out of my area though. It was getting later into the afternoon and we went to the mountain we had seen the 3 goats on the other day. It was clouded up. We sat for a while hoping it would clear up. When we finally got a break, we started scanning. Kyle found a goat, way way up high and with only a few hours before we had to pick up the kids. I decided we better not risk it and since they were now in their wintering area we would be able to find them again after mule deer season.

It was a well spent day and a half together and we were able to figure out where the goats were for migration. Hopefully it will snow before we head out again and pushes them down the mountain.

Nikita