Hi All,
Back from WHP...went last weekend. The very best part of the trip wasn't the hunting this time...it was the guys that came! It was a real pleasure to meet and hunt with Mikey and Mike103 and his crew of 14! I'd have to say these two guys are the salt! Nicest guys you'd ever want to meet....like I've known them all my life! I also got to hunt with my long time bud Chuck...the single shot pistol wizard!!
As usual....We arrived on Thursday in the drizzle (always seems to be raining), went to White River Junction and had a nice dinner and then back to the camp for some Guinness Stout (thanks Mikey!) By Friday morning, a full monsoon was in progress so we all waited till you could at least see through it!! It more or less cleared by the afternoon and out we all went.
Folks were after boars mainly, a few wanted bison and Chuck and I, sheep...course...I'd NEVER let a superior fallow walk if I could get a shot! The rest of Friday was wet, cold, windy and not much was moving. Saturday was a completely different story...let's see...Chuck and I were on a hillside, snuggly wrapped in our raingear, hoods up freezing our ... well my...minimal gonads off...and a herd of 6 or so bison just about trampled me...seemes neither of us saw the other (wet pine needles are just the ticket for sound suppression). We saw elk, red stag, bison and sika throughout the day.
In the afternoon, we were just over the edge of a small field where there was a crossing and again saw lots of animals. A light colored fallow popped out and started to feed. A minute later a darker one also popped out for ... 4 seconds...took three steps out...looked around and headed back into the thick stuff. That was all I needed....this was the biggest fallow I'd ever seen (even when I went to TX) and the stalk was on. I circled the field staying just off the edge and found the light one bedded down. I also saw a dark one and my heart started to pound....but...as I waited for his head to clear some brush...I realized it was another animal entirely and a ragged horn at that. Never saw the big one again....
Later, we heard the 4 wheeler coming and the guide said that a black hawaiian and a mouflon were spotted at the edge of a big field on the other side of the preserve, so, off we went. When we hit the field, we stopped and started to walk to the crest of a hill....as we neared it, a curl and a half corsican crested, saw us and bolted. Chucky got ready but it zigged and zagged at full run and ... he just could not get his 308 contender settled ... later he said he was kind of glad because it was shedding and looked like a rastafarian.
A minute later, the hawaiian crested and ......as I said to my bud GRIZZ666...
Super accurate SAKO rifle ........................$1500
Leupi VX-III 3.5x10 scope..........................$500
Several months of reloading components ......$200
Maybe 30 hours of range time and practice @$70/hr (pharmacists pay) ...$2,100
15 yard shot.....priceless
I told the guides, next time, I'm not shooting anything unless it's at least 200 yards away......
That's my story and I'm sticking to it!!!!
My Black Hawaiian
Chuck's Hybrid Mouflon
