Goat Rocks West OIL Journey

[Jpmiller]

C'mon! Your killing us!

Glad I'm not the only one dying to hear the story and see the photos.

[jackelope]

It's "later this week" already!!!

[Rainier10]

@tman24 was active this morning. Hopefully he is working on pics and story.

[elktracker96]

Glad I was able to participate in the retrieval of your goat! Once again congratulations!

[LDennis24]

Oh sure, rub it in... 

[tman24]

Working on a write up and figuring out pictures now. Sorry for make everyone wait.

[tman24]

So, while in Montana helping my 2 boys fill their deer combo tags (which they did), I'm worried about the weather and praying I'll be able to get back up the mountain.  We get back and I take a few days around November 19th.  I know there's snow up in Jordan basin but I'm not sure how far down the snow level is or how much there is.  I'm also hoping the goats I have been seeing have moved to more accessible areas or at least on my side of the basin.  Closest up to that point I have gotten to a goat was 1100 yards, way out of my range. 

I left home early to get to the trailhead by day break.  I pack my snow shoes just in case.  Going to Berrypatch trail head, there is snow on the forest service road several miles before the turn.  Pull into the trailhead and there is several inches of soft, powdery snow.  I think I can make it to the basin and start up the mountain, but take my snow shoes just in case.  I'm able to get a mile in before I need the snowshoes.  This is my first time using snow shoes and I awkwardly start walking up.  Going slow and listening to my downloaded podcast, I get to a point where I have no idea where the trail is or the route I should take.  I look at the time and distance on my phone and see I have been hiking for 5 hours and was almost 4 miles in.  Not good in my mind.  I glass the areas that I can easily glass and make a plan to head back.  I make it back to the trailhead disappointed, frustrated and rejected.  Thinking to myself that I'm too late into the season and I wasted this tag, I head back to the highway. 

I get on the phone with my wife and explain my thoughts and frustration with myself and she suggests that I stay in Packwood and try some other areas that other members have suggested to look.  I reluctantly agree and start looking over maps.  My plan is to try Walupt lake area.  Next day, I head up to Walupt lake and I look up towards Angry Mountain and see goats on the mountain.  I'm not sure on how to get to them, so I keep going to the lake.  The advice that I got for hunting the lake area, is to get a boat and got on the lake, glass the areas above the lake, beach the boat and go after the goats.  Sounds easy, but I don't have a boat.  I make a plan of going down the trail to the far end of the lake and glass from the shore.  I get to the far end, see some otters in the lake and glass up the rocks.  I immediately spot 3 or 4 goats, one looks like a billy.  The are 500 yards from my location.  I think about taking a shot but want a closer look and make a plan to head up and try to sidehill above them and then drop down.  2 hours and 1100 ft. of elevation gain, I'm overlooking the area I think the goats were at.  I spent a lot of time looking this area over.  I don't see anything, so I head back down to the trail.  I get back to the shore to glass back up the rocks and spot them quite a ways to the west of the last place I seen them. I didn't have time or leg strength to go back up after them.  I head home and have a new, excited outlook knowing that my season was not over.  I made arrangements to be back to my hunt from the day after Thanksgiving until the season ending of November 30th.   

[X-Force]

It’s getting good!

[tman24]

Jordan Basin

[Jpmiller]

Oh boy! Great pictures but I am really looking forward to the one with the goat

[tman24]

After all Thanksgiving item, I get to Packwood with my trailer on Friday the 26th.  Do a quick scout drive to check on the snow levels and relieved the snow is not nearly as far down as my previous trip.  Get a plan for Saturday morning and try to get some rest.  Saturday morning comes and I make my way to Walupt lake and the plan is to go up to Nannie Peak area.  I make my way up the trail and about 2.5 miles in, I cut a fresh set of tracks in the snow.  They look like a set of fat deer tracks and they are heading North.  I start following them, still with some doubt of what animal made them, and they go over and through rock face outcroppings.  This confirms in my mind that this is definitely a goat that I'm tracking.  I track this thing through timber, but it's on a mission heading North to a rock ridge below Cispus Pass.  I track it until I know it's time to head back before I loose light in the timber.  I get back to my truck and head back to camp ready for the next day. 

Sunday the 28th comes and back to Walupt lake.  I plan on my glassing from shore again, hoping that I can spot something and they didn't move up with the receding snow.  I get to my spot and don't see anything.  I glass for hours and get thinking the goats have moved out of the area.  I get back to my truck and decide to find some other areas to glass near the road on the way out.  I find several areas that I can glass and can't seem to find anything.  On my way out, I decide to look up at Angry Mountain again.  I spot 2 goats on the top of some wicked rock face.  I mark the area on my Onx and make a plan to try and get to them on Monday. 

Monday morning I determined to go up Angry Mountain trail, thinking I can make it to my marked location in a few hours.  Boy, was I wrong.  The trail is steep and all uphill.  After 6 miles, I get to my marked location.  I hunt the top area and look over anything I can find to hopefully find the 2 goats I seen a day earlier.  No luck on the goats and I head back and walk the last 3-4 miles with a head lamp.  I get back to my truck exhausted and defeated, knowing my last day is the following day. 

I wake up and my body is sore and I'm exhausted, but it's the last day.  My plan is to go back to Walupt lake and glass from the shore.  I really didn't have confidence on my plan, but it was my last shot and somewhere I felt I could get into easier than the other areas I have been at the whole season.  I get to my spot and I immediately spot 3-4 goats.  I know 1 of the goats is a kid and 1 is probably a nannie.  I'm not sure of the other 1 or 2 but I was going up to get a closer look.  I take my previous route of straight up the hill.  I make it to the top and plan on going across the rim of the face of rocks/cliffs and hopefully look down onto them.  I move slow and pick a part the landscape.  I notice the weather is changing and rather quickly.  It goes from blue sky and sun to fog, clouds and sideways rain in a quick fashion.  I still work around the rim and duck in and out of the timber.  I can't see more than 50-100 yards and think to myself, well this is it, time to head out and get home.  I was thinking about the thousands of things I could of done differently and knowing I'll probably never be able to draw this tag again.  I work my way into the timber and start finding a bunch of fresh sign of goats.  I also find a horse camp in the middle of nowhere, wish I would of known this earlier.  Time comes that I know I need to go back down and head to the truck.  I make the plan to hunt the ridge down to the lake on my way out.  I pop out of the timber and look to my right and a goat stands up 20-30 yards from me. 

[Rainier10]

Oh boy.

[Jason]

Don't leave us hanging at 30 yards

[Jpmiller]

So I know he got a goat and all but come on man, the suspense!

[Widgeondeke]

Now it's getting exciting with daylight waning.....