When they say this is a hunt-of-a-lifetime, boy do they mean it. I knew I was in for a lot of blood, sweat, and hiking, but the opportunity for the ultimate reward was going to be worth it. I am still trying to process this surreal experience and comprehend what happened. A little luck and some good karma were on my side. With only 15 points in the hopper, I was tag #2 of 4 for the December 2021 Desert bighorn sheep hunt in unit 45C in Arizona’s Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. I was born and raised in the small Arizona town of St. Johns, a town of good people with a love of the land, guns, and hunting. One of those people is Jay Platt, one of the men behind G3 Outfitters.
Just a few weeks prior to being drawn, I had left a tumultuous 26-year marriage. My life was upside down. Adjusting to a new life as a single mom having to support myself and kids, I was blessed to land on some solid ground with the unconditional support of my sister and brother-in-law, Jodi and Lincoln Proctor. Finding out I was drawn for the hunt, I knew something out there was giving me something to look forward to and work towards. Lincoln made a call to his lifelong friend, Jay Platt, to share the news. Jay stepped up and said, “Let’s get this girl a hunt-of-a-lifetime!” Cut to five months later and I was sitting on a mountainside glassing sheep with the G3 crew.
Spencer Berns, Jay’s partner and guide extraordinaire from G3 Outfitters, was the leader of the crew. Spencer and I had spoken over the phone, and he had assured me that he was going to deliver an experience I would never forget. Spencer also took me out to shoot and get comfortable with the rifle I’d be using, the Gunwerks 6.5 PRC. The moment I pulled the trigger for my first shot at target practice, I knew what a privilege it was going to be to use such a coveted firearm.
Spencer and his G3 crew, Hunter and Westen McGaughey, had already been hard at work and were ready for my brother-in- law, Lincoln, and me when we rolled into Yuma the night before opening day. We decided to divide and conquer the vast terrain in two teams – Spencer, Lincoln, and me on Team 1 and the McGaughey boys on Team 2. We were up early and drove in deep on the Kofa backroads giving Spencer’s Ford Raptor plenty of new Arizona pinstripes. For my first and final Desert bighorn sheep hunt, I wanted to take it all in, and the Kofa Wilderness delivered.
We hiked in to our glassing spot and set up to get to work. Spencer had found a spot where there was a lot of country for us to cover. As every hunter knows, patience and persistence are the name of the game. As the sun rose, the temperatures followed suit. It was unusually warm for an Arizona December. With the sun pounding down, a little shade under a Palo Verde tree was a welcomed luxury. The heat waves off the desert had us spending plenty of time staring at rocks that we were pretty sure were the white backside of a ram. With plenty of country to cover, we hiked back to the truck, ate, and headed out. As the sun set, Spencer glassed up
a nice ram high on a mountainside over 1,500 yards out. It was impossible to reach the ram before dark, but now we were sure the elusive Desert bighorn did exist! At dinner, Hunter’s expertise determined that the ram we had videoed needed a couple more years to mature and wasn’t what I wanted.
Day two started with a long hike to a view of rocky mountains towered over by steep red cliffs. It wasn’t long before we found a couple ewes alone on a closer mountainside and a couple juvenile rams with five ewes over 1,500 yards away high on a cliffside, and more ewes soon joined. With the baking sun overhead, we hoped that the heat would drive some rams to a water tank Spencer had marked. We relocated to the water tank and hiked up a shale mountain covered with loose rock, which was a challenge. We glassed up more immature rams and ewes in the area and two ewes on the red cliffs above the water tank waiting for hikers to leave. Spencer anticipated the mature rams were bachelored up and had a plan for tomorrow.
The next morning proved to be our longest hike through a wash towered on either side by rugged mountains. The steep cliffs and high mountains offered plenty of shade, which were sure to house some sheep. There were signs of sheep everywhere but no sheep. We knew this hunt was going to be all about covering ground. We relocated and walked across the desert floor through a dense maze of cholla cactus to a new hillside. We glassed up miles of mountainside sitting in the blazing sun to only hear the sound every hunter dreads – the shot from another hunter. A second and then a third shot rang out. Spencer had been to this spot before the hunt opened and knew its potential. He hiked to another ridge about 800 yards away to get a different vantage point and then it happened. He spotted three nice rams right at sunset. The plan was set. We would be back in the morning. At dinner, Spencer found the ram’s location using Google Earth. His knowledge of terrain is just one of the reasons his resume is so deep.
The morning’s excitement foreshadowed something great was going to happen. We teamed up with Hunter and Westen and covered all aspects of “the spot.” Spencer, Lincoln, and I had no sooner set up when Hunter radioed, “I’ve got ‘em.” We loaded up and met up with the McGaugheys. They had the three rams located at 759 yards, exactly where Spencer said they would be. I knew which one I wanted, the one on the left. He was eating what I knew would be his last meal, a red barrel cactus. I had taken my two mule deer between 380-400 yards, so I was confident with a shot at that range. This was it. Spencer, Hunter, and I headed closer, and Lincoln and Westen stayed back to be our eyes. Thank goodness there was a wash filled with Palo Verde and brush to give us some cover because the rams stopped and were paying attention. The sun was starting to rise over for the mountain, and we would be right in our line of sight shortly.
We got to a spot 388 yards from our target and set up. The Gunwerks 6.5 PRC was ready to do its thing. Hunter got the video ready as Spencer gave me a boost of confidence. My adrenaline was flowing, and my hands were shaking. “Just breathe,” I kept repeating in my head as I lay down take the shot. I found him the scope and dialed in, the crosshairs right behind his front leg. I got the go ahead, “Whenever you’re ready.” I let out the air in my lungs as I counted down, “3, 2, 1.” Boom! The next thing I heard was the two most beautiful words, “Got ‘em!” in unison from Hunter and Spencer. It was a double lung shot, but he barely flinched. He took a few steps as he struggled for air. He wasn’t going down. I got ready for a second shot. By this time, the sun was peering over the ridge into my scope and the light was making my eyes water, but luckily, the ram lay down as he struggled to breathe. This creature that had survived some of the most unforgiving terrain in North America wasn’t going down easy. He got back up and moved down the hill. I fought the sun in my scope but found him again and took the shot. It was perfect. He was done. The excitement was palpable, and I stood up and hugged Spencer and Hunter. As I was thanking them, we heard a crack on the mountain. Wouldn’t you know, that fighter had stood up again and tumbled down the hill.
Lincoln and Westen had witnessed everything from afar and soon joined us. Hunter found the ram resting under a small Palo Verde. He was beautiful. There was a large chip in his right horn. He was a fighter with his scars, and so was I. It was a special moment. To see the pure joy and excitement that these men shared for me was humbling. Knowing that I was the one that was lucky enough to draw the tag, when most of them would go a lifetime never being drawn, filled me with so much gratitude. Of all the people to cry on this trip, you would have thought it would have been me when I fell, but no. It was Lincoln, my big, bearded brother-in-law. The joy he had for me knowing the difficulties life had thrown my way this year couldn’t be contained. He knew I needed a win, and I got it thanks to the good men around me.
To the many people who don’t understanding hunting, it is just killing an animal. To those of us who have had the privilege to hunt, we know it is so much more. It is a test of your will, determination, and drive. It is about the trust and relationships you build with those who are on the journey with you. I have so much respect for Lincoln, Spencer, and the G3 Outfitters team. I not only left the Kofa Wilderness with an amazing trophy, but I also left with new lifelong friends. I will never be able to express the gratitude I have for this experience. It truly was a hunt-of-a-lifetime.
Arizona Bighorn Sheep
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