Very nice! What was it about the guide that was bad?
To be fair I really do not like hunting with guides period. So what is a poor experience for me might be advantageous to someone who has limited experience with alpine hunting.
I want a guide to share his knowledge of the terrain, animals and help get my fat arse up the hill. Once an animal is spotted I prefer they get the heck out of the way and let me hunt. So often
(with sheep guides especially) they simply want a shooter and not a hunter.
I felt like I should have put on a halter so the guide could lead me around with a 10' rope. Any time I would stray off 20 to 30 yards to glass an area he missed I'd end up getting rocks thrown at me with a stern gesture to get back in line.
Unfortunately the nature and expense of sheep hunting breeds clients that only cherish the self promoting trophy. If you really want to hunt you have to get in the guides face and have a serious man to man argument and that's just not in my nature. Would surely have benefited my hunt and that is my fault I did not. There was a much larger sheep in the area I really wanted, but I let my passive nature and irritation drive me to say, "Screw it! Let's just kill a sheep and get me off this dang mountain."
I'm going to give the guide the benefit of doubt. Later this year he takes the owner of Kuiu
(co-founder of Sitka Gear)and his 12 year old son on a hunt aimed on becoming the youngest kid to take the Grand Slam. He was probably using me as practice for having the 12 year old in tow -
It could happen.
This guide was a human mountain goat! Packed huge loads with ease, was a pleasure in camp, was honestly concerned for my health, and definitely wanted me to succeed in getting a nice ram. Just his idea of getting there and mine were quite a bit different. I share the blame for not making my point sternly enough.
My second guide, however, took the time to get to
know me and asked the right questions as to how I preferred to hunt. They don't usually chase a single bunch of Caribou for nine hours over two steep mountains and take one so high they send in a helicopter to pack out the meat. But this young kid listened to what I wanted and helped me succeed with great enthusiasm. It was almost like hunting with "Crazy Larry" my main hunting partner. Unlike the sheep hunt it was an abnormal experience for the species and we both enjoyed the uniqueness of it all. Even if it busted our butt.
