king' s outdoor world - Index

king' s outdoor world - Hunting Illustrated - October/November 2007 - Index

had picked him up at the airport.
With everyone back in
camp, plans were made for the
morning hunt. Things had to go
perfectly for us to pull this hunt off
in one day. If we didn't get this ram
tomorrow, it would be weeks before
we could get Danny back to Utah.
By then, all bets would be off!
Morning came early and,
with a quick breakfast, we were off
to our designated spots. Brian and I
would get out on a point across from
the rams and locate them before
we would have the others go in for
the shot. It was about sun up when
Brian and I finally got to our lookout
point. After looking for the ram for
over an hour and not being able to
locate him, I was beginning to get
worried. Perhaps they had gotten
spooked during the night. After
what seemed an eternity, I finally
found the top of a ram's horn hidden
behind a boulder. I watched the horn
for a while and then the whole ram
finally emerged from behind the
boulder to catch some morning sun.
It only took one look to know we
had him! By this time, Troy, Kid,
Danny and Dan had made their way
to the top of the canyon the ram was
in. We had been lucky, the rams had
50 HUNTING ILLUSTRATED.com
Hunter Danny Smith (center) is all smiles after he knocked down this new Utah state
record Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep scoring 197 gross and 195 2/8 net B&C
moved up the canyon 250 yards from
where Kid and I had last seen them the
night before. We directed Troy and
Danny over to a small saddle on a ridge.
We hoped that they might have a shot
from there.
As we watched Troy and
Danny approach, it was obvious by
the expression on their faces when
they first caught sight of the ram.
Now it was about to get "Western? as
Dan always says, and Western it did!
Troy and Danny got into position for
the shot and touched one off. The
shot was high and to the left. Strike
three! Brian and I were sick as we
watched it all unfold from behind our
Swarovskis. But, to my amazement,
the ram didn't go far. He stayed in
the same canyon, but dropped 300
yards lower. Uncertainty about
where the danger was coming from
kept the rams from blowing out of
the country.
After a lot of effort, Troy
was able to reposition Danny and get
another opportunity at this awesome
ram. Danny's second shot was again
high and to the left, and this time the
rams were not sticking around - they
were headed for the next county!
Now the pressure was on. The rams
were headed straight away from
Troy and Danny and closing in on
the ridgeline. When the rams were
less than 40 yards to the ridge, I