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A friend of mine --Gale--drew a coveted Mountain Goat Tag here in Montana. He has been applying for around 20 years..Gale is 73 years young..he and his nephew Brock had never hunted goats before nor had they caped out animals before..so they asked if I would go with..

We rode about 11 miles into a wilderness area on Thursday morning..glassing on the way in and saw several goats in the peaks..put up a camp and were out hunting again by early afternoon--hunted the rest of that day--say 6 goats total..however were quite inaccessable for Gale...

We rode back to camp where Gale and Brock made a meal I am not normally used to in the back country..but traveling with horses versus backpacking does have its advantages..they cooked steaks, baked potatoes and beans all with a desert...the next morning we had scrambled eggs, bacon and pancakes..wow..first back country hunt I think I actually gained weight..

On Friday morning we rode over a pass at 11,000 ft and spotted a billy bedded in some snow at the top of the mountain across the basin..We rode a bit further and hid the horses in a little depression and tied them to some boulders..we then crept through the little gully until we got to the point were it was physical impossible for Gale to go any further because of the large rock fields and steep terrain..again, at 11,000 ft..

I ranged the goat with my leica--it was 419 yards..Gale is shooting a Remington laminated 7mm Ultra-mag--he rested on the boulder with my back pack for a steady rest..at the shot the billy jumped and ran slightly toward us..after a very brief stop..the goat started to wobble and tipped over..he hit him square through the lungs with a 150gr partition..awesome shot for anyone..

As you can see he could not have been happier..he later stated this was one of the highlghts of his lifetime....very cool..

This entire experience was quite humbling for all---while riding in and out, and along with hunting the area..one can not help but to be amazed at what God has blessed us with..we saw elk, lots of grizzly sign, goats, eagles, and unbelievable country..amazing....IMHO...

Ripp

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ALL MEN DIE, BUT FEW MEN TRULY LIVE..

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