In 2017, I received a call from Dennis Campbell. I had forgotten about the Super Slam drawing that was set to take place that day. Dennis opened the conversation by mentioning the upcoming IA FNAWS banquet and then took me totally by surprise by informing me that my name had just been pulled for the Dall sheep hunt with Majestic Mountain Outfitters. I was in such shock that I was more or less stuttering through the rest of the conversation. Later that month, Majestic Mountain Outfitters (MMO) just happened to have a booth at the IA FNAWS banquet. I met Jeff and Cyndi Chadd but felt as though I had known them for years. They were very friendly and outgoing, answering questions and giving me the information I would need for my hunt.
I had hunted Dall sheep in Alaska four years earlier, and although my guide/outfitter and I had worked very hard and put on many miles, we never saw a legal ram. Talking with Mr. Chadd, he informed me that the area I had previously hunted was very accessible and close to Anchorage. Therefore, it had extremely high pressure from locals, which would explain why we didn’t see a legal ram. The MMO hunting area, on the other hand, is very remote and tougher to get into, so it has very low pressure. I had figured that first hunt was going to be my one and only chance at taking a ram, so winning this hunt in the Super Slam Raffle was truly a life-changing blessing.
I arrived in Anchorage a couple days early and met up with Mike and Nick Martin, a father and son from Missouri who would also be hunting Dall sheep. We shared a rental car and made the drive from Anchorage to Tok. The weather was beautiful and perfect for flying, so Mr. Chadd called and got us flown in a day early. After a couple of bush plane rides, we were in base camp.
Jeff informed me that my guide, Bryan Griffin, had been out scouting and had been watching a band of seven or eight rams for a few days. In the three days before I arrived, Bryan had seen six grizzlies, including one that had charged, forcing Bryan to put a shot in the ground in front of it to top the charge. All of the grizzly activity must have been too much for the rams because they vacated the area the day before I arrived. Bryan found another band with three rams in a high saddle going back and forth between drainages. Jeff said that one or two of those rams could possibly be legal and we would start by looking at them.
Spike camp was already set up when I arrived and consisted of two tents, a fire ring, a “bear deterrent” tarp, and a tree with some hanging food bags. I began to get situated and get acquainted with Bryan while he did some camp chores and started to prepare Mountain House meals. After our meal, we finished our preparations for the next morning’s early start.
Rising at 4:30 the next morning, we started our hike in the dark. After a couple hours, we spotted a ram on a ridgeline, but only momentarily. Bryan climbed high points several times looking for the ram, but it had dropped into a hidden bowl and could not be seen. There was a stepped bench running down the middle of the drainage. With the ram on the left side, we headed up the right side. Nearing the top of the chute we were in, we started climbing up the side of the bench. Before cresting, we stopped and I waited while Bryan went on to have a look. After a short wait, Bryan returned and excitedly said, “Grab your stuff. Let’s go!” Bryan had spotted three rams coming down toward the bench from the hidden bowl and ranged them at about 165 yards and getting closer.
When we got to the top of the bench, the rams were nowhere to be seen. We kept scanning ahead and advancing cautiously, crested the bench, and were now making our way down the other side. Suddenly, Bryan signaled to get down and get ready. He set his backpack down and I got my Weatherby set up on it while he sat behind his spotting scope. For 45 minutes, we watched the three rams from 65 yards. They were feeding in the very bottom of a deep cut and would occasionally come up to scan for danger. Never presenting a shot, they eventually started feeding up the cut. Knowing that our wind was quartering up the hill and towards the cut and that we would be busted, Bryan decided we would back out. We quickly backed out, circled around, and came back in above the rams. This time, sneaking in didn’t work quite as well. The rams busted us and blew out of the cut. Bryan made the final determination that the big ram was definitely legal, and after stopping a couple of times to look back, he presented a shot. One shot from my .300 Weatherby at 76 yards followed by a short run and the ram was down. After the shot, I gathered myself and realized that a lifetime of dreams had just come true. Twenty years of trying and applying and my number one goal of taking a wild sheep was complete.
After photos, taking care of the ram, and packing back to camp, we cooked sheep tenderloin over an open fire on sharpened alder sticks. Before turning in for the night, we went down to the glacier-fed river to soak our feet.
The next morning, we arrived back at base camp and found out all three hunters had taken a ram on the first day. Jeff said that in his 35 years of guiding that was the first time for that to happen. He also thought my 76-yard shot was only the second ram shot with him under 100 yards.
We were in camp for a couple of days due to rain. When the weather broke, we hiked to another camp with Bryan and Ben to clean up some bear damage. When we got near the other camp, we spotted a bear feeding on a hillside. After a 265-yard shot, we took care of the bear and cleaned up the campsite.
MMO is an incredible family business that is very well run in which everyone works very hard to make sure clients are happy and successful. I would recommend them to anyone and can’t wait to hunt with them again.
About three weeks after returning from Alaska, I headed west to Colorado. Earlier that spring, I was informed that after about 14 years of applying I had drawn a Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep tag. I called Turner Guide Service and talked to Mark. He was very knowledgeable and had lived in the area his whole life. I talked with a few other outfitters and several past tag holders in my unit. After much thought, I called Mark Turner back and booked with him for the opening week.
I arrived a little early to acclimate and talked with Mark about what he’d been seeing. He had been seeing a band of four, two small rams and two good rams. The evening before opening day, we headed out to see if we could find them. We ended up finding two of them one drainage over from where they had been, one small ram and one of the good rams. We watched them until dark.
Starting up the mountain at about 5:00, it was still dark. Finally, with good shooting light, we reached the patch of quaky aspens near where we had last seen the rams. Slowly making our way through the trees, Mark spotted the ram. I had problems locating him right away, but he was only 135 yards away. After finding a shooting lane through the trees and getting set on the sticks, I made the shot. A few steps and the ram was down.
I was made to feel comfortable and at home during my stay with Mark showing me a lot of local sights. He did a great job, and his wife is not only a great cook but also excellent at spotting game. I will definitely be back to hunt with Mark next time I draw a tag in Colorado for any animal.
Twenty years waiting for my chance to take a ram and now I had two rams in less than a month. What an incredibly lucky year, and what a ride it was. I still find it hard to believe and am reliving it daily. Many thanks to everyone involved in helping me get to my Half Slam.
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