Disclaimer: This report is copied pretty much verbatim from my post on another forum.

Species: Barbary Sheep (Aoudad)
Location: Southern New Mexico
Outfitter/Guide: NA, public land DIY
Rifle: Kimber 8400 .300 WSM, 150 grain Barnes TTSX handloads
Other gear: Exo Mountain Gear pack, Alaska Guide Creations chest rig (aka my Snuggle Buddy), Bushnell Legend Bino, Vortex Ranger rangefinder (first outing)

In addition to Desert Bighorn Sheep that I will likely never draw a tag for, New Mexico is home to another species of desert sheep. Barbary sheep, or aoudad as they are also known, were brought to the state by private landowners and the Game and Fish in the 1940s and 1950s as a potential replacement for our own waning native sheep. They escaped and/or were released into various areas of state, and subsequently thrived in our arid climate, which is similar to the northern African habitat they originally called home. They have filled several habitat niches in New Mexico and are now considered a game animal in the state, subject to management by the Game and Fish.

I’ve long been interested in hunting these exotics, but didn’t really know where to start. I’m easily distracted by other shiny baubles like deer, elk, antelope, desert bighorns, and oryx, so I never got serious about chasing them. Fast forward to last spring, when a colleague (let’s assign the alias of “Sam” for the sake of conversation and storytelling ease) shared pictures and the story of his successful hunt for Barbary sheep in the “draw area.” I was impressed, and became more interested. However, I neglected to apply for the same hunt for this year. Sam likewise skipped the draw, instead opting for taking his chances in the state-wide, over-the-counter areas. Unlike me, Sam’s a single guy with some extra time, so he’s been out scouring the hills for Barbary sheep, hoping to locate and eventually kill a ram larger than the one he scored on last year. After much searching, he located a few sheep in a pretty rough part of a mountain range within reasonable driving distance of us. He regaled me with tales of these brown ghosts and finally talked me into ponying up the dough for a tag of my own.

On our first day out, we were able to glass up a few sheep high on the mountainside above our second stop. We studied the steep terrain and decided that we might, just maybe, be able to get to the sheep with some hard hiking. We planned the best approach route, tightened up our boot laces and backpack straps, and attacked the mountain. For much of the hike, we were able to use this steep, narrow canyon to hide our approach.

Looking up



Looking down


A couple hours later we scrambled up the last few hundred yards of rough, steep, crappy terrain and peeked over the last few boulders between us and where the sheep were surely waiting to get shot. However, the sheep failed to read our plan and had sneaked off to places unknown. With no sheep to shoot, we sat down and had lunch. Then we tried to climb higher to see if we could circle around the mountain in search of more sheep, but eventually chickened out when it got too steep and loose for mammals with less than four legs. We admitted defeat for this day and trudged back to the truck.

Two days later we got to try again, and once more headed out early to get there by daylight. We crossed the low desert flats in a hurry, and were soon at the foot of the steep, rugged slope. Though the sun hadn’t crested the mountain yet, the far western horizon was lit up and there was plenty of glassing light for us to spot a few sheep on a rocky point not very far up the mountain.



We considered ourselves lucky because they were in a relatively accessible location. We planned a stalk and set out to get there before they tired of feeding and went higher to bed. On the way up a narrow gorge that kept us out of sight, we bumped into a small bachelor group of mule deer bucks and got to watch a couple of the spar for a few minutes.



Once they moved out of our way, we continued our climb. We finally reached the base of the last cliff we hoped to use for cover and began our final sneak. As quickly and quietly as possible on the loose slope, we edged around the bluff to inspect the canyon into which the sheep were grazing when we last saw them. Alas, like our last outing, the sheep appeared to be long gone. Both of us were too hard-headed to quit at this point, so we scrambled and clawed our way up the steep canyon on all fours in an attempt to catch the band of sheep. No dice. They were gone, but since we were on a roll, we went ahead and climbed out onto the brushy bench we figured they’d be bedded on. We walked about a mile and a quarter to the north and east, where we bumped into a couple recreational hikers and decided to turn back. We retraced our steps, then worked our way into the canyon that comprised the other potential escape route. And wouldn’t you know it, there they were. Of course they’d already worked their way too far up into the cliffs for humans to follow, so we contented ourselves with watching them scamper around in the rocks while lamenting our poor choice of direction earlier in the day. If we had only chosen this canyon to inspect first, chances are good we could have caught the sheep down lower and closer. Oh well, next time. We slipped out of our packs and scoured all the accessible country with our binoculars before finally concluding there were no other sheep within walking distance.

Here's the gear list, er, picture



It was mid-afternoon by now, so we dropped of the mountain and made it back to the truck with a bit of light to spare. On the way back, I snapped a picture of an early blooming Spanish Dagger.



The day of our third attempt started much like the past two, with an early departure from town, the drive to a good jumping off point, and shouldering our packs as it became light enough to see. We planned to hike hard in order to reach a pocket of cover that can’t be seen from below in which Sam had seen a few smaller rams in the past. Just before we started the serious climbing, we stopped to glass and located a small band of sheep quite a ways above us along a narrow shelf that appeared inaccessible to mere humans. We watched as they fed toward a deep narrow canyon that we marked for investigation later in the day if our other plans didn’t pan out. We continued our assault on the mountain heading for the little pocket. Just as we would break over the ridge to peer into it, we spotted a couple small rams way up on the cliffs above us. Hoping for a closer look, we dropped back a ways to get out of sight and approached the base of the cliffs through a narrow draw. We ran out of cover with 728 yards between us and them (half of which was probably vertical). With no shot, or legitimate chance of recovery even if there was, we hung back and watched for a while. About 45 minutes into our vigil, the group that turned out to consist of six small rams started moving along the cliff face in our direction. They eventually round the nearest point and lingered on a narrow bench high above us for long enough that we determined they were just a bit too small and a bit too far away (580 yards is a long poke for me). We watched as they wandered out of sight into a different canyon that we added to our growing list of options for later sneak and peak. So, with no immediate plans, we plopped down in the shade, at lunch, and took a brief nap. I also played with a ballistics calculator on my phone and, out of curiosity, checked the GPS to discover we were 1.91 miles from the truck (and long ways above it).

When the shade ran out we had little choice but to get serious again, so with packs strapped tight and rifles ready, we started toward the first of the two canyons we had to investigate. Because we expected the sheep to be tucked up in the shade somewhere, our approach to the first canyon was somewhat casual and not exactly sneaky. We’d stopped in the wide open to have a sip of water before getting serious when I caught sight of something brown moving between the yuccas on the facing ridge. Certain it was a sheep, I got Sam’s attention before confirming through the binocular. Yep, sheep (red ellipse).



At 20x zoom, you can clearly make out the two ewes and one lamb (pink ellipse) and single ram (blue circle).



And there we were, perched on a large flat rock 508 yards from our quarry with our proverbial pants down. With nowhere to go that wouldn’t attract their attention, and no real way to set up for the long shot, we had little choice but to hold still and wait for them to move out of sight to the right, which they did in surprisingly little time. Once out of view we quickly made our way to the bottom of the nearby cliff (red square in above picture) hoping for a good shot opportunity. I rounded the hill first, creeping slowly along. As more and more of the opposite hillside was exposed, I became more and more frustrated when I couldn’t locate the sheep. I knew I had come far enough around, but I just couldn’t see them. I figured we had blown it by making too much noise, thus spooking the little band of sheep deeper into the canyon where we couldn’t get at them. When Sam eased up behind me, I whispered “We screwed that up.” He urgently whispered back, “No we didn’t, they’re right there!” “What, where?” I responded.

Sam quickly oriented me and I got my eyes on the four sheep. They were much further left than they should have been. Apparently we did spook them a little, which must have caused them to head back the way they’d come for the sake of security. The two ewes were on high alert now, staring right at us. The ram, on the other hand, was busy rooting around at the base of an ocotillo for the green spring grass at its base. I dropped onto my right cheek on the steep incline, leaned into the hillside, settled the rifle onto an accommodating rock, and quickly located the ram in the scope. I knew he had to be at 300 yards or less by now, and what little wind was blowing was coming from nearly straight behind us, so as soon as the crosshairs settled on his shoulder, I sent a handloaded 150 grain Barnes TTSX on its way. I heard the impact of bullet on sheep and watched him collapse as I ran the bolt. And just like that, I had my first Barbary sheep! To say I was excited would be an understatement. I was ecstatic! (I think we even did one of those silly fistbump thingies.) After a minute or so, I noticed through the binocular that he was still struggling a little, so just to be on the safe side I settled back in behind the rifle and put an insurance shot into his neck. He gave one last kick, slid a few feet down the hill, and got tangled up in another ocotillo, which luckily kept him from plummeting off the sheer cliff below.

Here’s the view from where I shot. The sheep is somewhere on the bench between the two sets of cliffs.



Here’s the same shot zoomed in.



We collected our gear and began making our way to the sheep. We were forced to drop down the hill and then work our way back up the bottom of the small side canyon into which the sheep were headed so that we could access the narrow bench where the sheep lay. Though he was only 271 yards from us, it took an hour and 15 minutes of hard hiking to reach him. It was worth it though!



From here, we can look back from whence we can. The black arrow in this picture points down toward the now hidden rock upon which we planned our stalk. The red dot is where I shot from.



From that little red dot, we had to descend to the bottom of the dark canyon you see below that location, then climb up the canyon that is hidden by the sheep’s body and steep hill. We struggled with the loose footing on the relatively sharp incline to set the sheep of for the requisite trophy pictures. We did manage to get him set up without sliding off the cliff to our deaths (remember that drop shown in the picture above?). He's not a monster, but for a public land, fair chase, completely DIY mountain hunt, I couldn't be any happier with him.




(The truck is down there somewhere...)



With sundown fast approaching, we set to work boning the meat out and loading into meat bags. We finished that task and loaded our packs for the long hike off the mountain just as the sun was setting.



A few long, ankle-twisting, knee-straining hours later, we arrived at the truck and greedily slurped down some cold Gatorade and water before heading into town for a greasy cheeseburger and fries!




Closing thought: I think I’m starting to understand how dedicated sheep hunters get addicted to this game. Though challenging and painful, it is extremely rewarding. I look forward to the opportunity to chase these or similar animals again. In fact, I’ve already completed my application for desert bighorns and ibex, and will likely get another of these tags for next year. Of course, I’m also signed up as Sam’s pack mule for his next outing. He’s got a couple weeks left of this license year to fill his tag.

Great job on a public land Barbary!

I've been wanting to apply for that hunt near Carlsbad nm...Love that area and there are a lot of sheep through those hills

Congrats!

What a wonderful experience.

DesertRam, as we've come to expect from you a great hunt report and bonus pictures with graphics!
Well done on your Sheep.
Hunting Sheep and Goats of any kind is highly addictive, I think part of it is hiking and maneuvering around in country that most people have no business hiking in and making a successful stalk and a great well planned shot.
Thanks for sharing your hunt. Great job!

Nice report. Congratulations on a successful hunt for a neat animal. Thanks for sharing.

Nice report. Cool country.

That's great, congratulations!

Looks like a great trip! Congratulations!

Just plain awesome DR! That is exactly what I'd like to do for a DIY hunt. Is it doable for someone with no local knowledge flying in from 3000 miles away (serious question...lol)?

quote:

Originally posted by Norton:
Just plain awesome DR! That is exactly what I'd like to do for a DIY hunt. Is it doable for someone with no local knowledge flying in from 3000 miles away (serious question...lol)?

Thanks. And the answer is, maybe. If you're serious, I would recommend the draw hunt, which is scheduled for all of the month of February in the two units of the state with higher populations and better trophy potential. If you were able to spend a good portion of the month down there hunting, I think you'd have a realistic chance at getting into sheep (based on reports I have of that area). The state-wide, over-the-counter units have much lower populations of sheep and, of course, higher hunting pressure, resulting in very skittish critters, lower trophy potential, and overall very challenging conditions. That's not bad for the resident hunter who has all year to dink around with them. For the traveling hunter, I think you'd be better off in areas with greater concentrations of potentially better animals.

Thanks DR....I can't spend a month anywhere right now other than in my office...lol. It'll have to wait.

Great report, and congrats! That looks like a very fun hunt!

Nice Sheep,cool story.Congrats to you and your pard.

Wow!

and

double wow!

Great report and photos.

I know you had a ball!

good stuff!


ya!


GWB

Great report!

They are great fun. Plenty of them in Texas too. I have hunted them several times.

Awesome!
Your hunt contains all the elements of a classic sheep hunt, without the outrageous price tag.
Congrats