I'm looking for some advice from folks who have hunted in OR unit 59 (Snake River). I put in for this tag planning to access and hunt it from the Snake River as a raft trip. Then my husband/raft guide wrecked his bike and broke his arm (thankfully he is okay otherwise, if seriously grumpy about missing early archery!) He's pretty sure that he'll be able to row by late September, but not sure about rowing through the "heavy" rapids (Wild Sheep and Granite) below Hell's Canyon Dam.
So now we are reconsidering our plans. Options are to: 1) Float and hunt from the raft, just skipping the first 2 big rapids by getting a jetboat shuttle to Three Creeks Rapids or something else lower down, 2) Put in at HC Dam and float the whole thing hoping his arm holds up, or 3) backpack ourselves in off the Rim (I think it is too late in the year to get lined up with a drop camp/ horse packing outfit?)
Do any of you have experience hunting this unit from the Snake River? Will we miss out on too much terrain if we start our float downstream of Wild Sheep and Granite? Alternatively, if we hunt from the rim, how far in will we have to pack ourselves and our gear to get away from other camps? From what I've gathered here and on other forums, access off the rim sounds pretty crowded.
Thanks for any info you can send my way (here or via PM). As a WA huntress looking to bag my first buck, I am super excited about this hunt, and hoping it won't get derailed by a broken arm!