What an experiance!!!
My buddy Ron and I booked this hunt thru Cabela's with Gene Nixons Desert Mountain Guide Service www.desertmountainhunts.com
We got there a day early and the ranch foreman put us up in a house were we would be staying.
About 10 minutes went by and Gene showed up and welcomed us in.
He took us around the ranch and we saw 2 nice well to me Mule Deer bucks in the 20-22" range but he said we wouldn't even consider shooting them if we were hunting them.Our hunt started the next day.
We got up ate a good breakfast and headed out to link up with Genes son Asa who works as a guide for his dad.
The hunt is spot and stalk from 4x4 trucks and by foot.We drove around to vantage points and glassed for miles.We came upon a small group of Mule Deer with 3 bucks,Gene said 1 was a 20" and another was a 23-24" and the other was a monster he was way wider than his ears,Genes said at least 28" and maybe a 30"-31".Gene said the average buck they kill is 7 1/2 years old.
Back to the sheep.Gene said we could kill Javelinas if we wanted to and we were just about to a place he wanted to look for sheep when a small group of Javelinas crossed the trail in front of us,he said we could take them if we wanted to.I ask him then if it was a good sheep location ahead? He said yes so we said we were sheep hunting so we passed on the Javelinas.We drove on up the trail not hardly 200yds. and Gene spotted a Big Ram at about 700yds. we drove up closer and stopped and we decided Ron would go for him.The sheep ran up the mountain and the ram stopped,Ron was on him and shot,he just kinda shook and ran up over the top of the mountain.By now I finally had dug the range finder out and lazed where Ron hit him it was 400yds. on the nose.
So up over the mountain we go after him,we found a blood trail and started tracking.I stayed high watching the slopes below for him.I saw him and Ron did too at about 200yds. or so he shot again and just shot over him,he shot again and it looked like he hit him hard again.Down over the slopes he went and then over a 100ft.clift and we couldn't see him.So after about 20 minutes to get to the clift we got there and saw him going down thru the valley at about 200yds. Ron shot and missed,he fired again and that fisished him after a chase of over a mile and a half of absolutely rugged terrain.We finally found a place to get down off the clift to get to him.Nice Ram 29" 11 1/4 bases.
By the time we got him caped and packed out it was past dinner time.
Gene fixed a fire and we heated up burritos and ate then went about 10 miles to another mountain to look for sheep.
We would stop at vantage points and glass for sheep,in some places you could see over 20 miles.
We drove up on a mountain to the 5500ft. level and walked out a ridge with a clift all around it.Gene spotted 3 sheep about a mile or so across a canyon which would require a walk of 2-3 miles to get there.He decided they were ewes or small rams at best.
We went to another point to glass and saw a herd of 10 or so ewes and a Big Ram.Ron lazed them as they ran over ridge at 390yds.We pulled back and decided to try a stalk on the sheep where we thought they might be.After an hour or so we couldn't find them but figured they went over the next ridge but dark was coming quick so Gene decided we would drop off the mountain about 1000-1500ft. and have his son Asa drive around for miles to pick us up.It worked fine until Gene slipped and almost went down but he caught himself but not before getting about 50 cactus needles in his backside,so there I am pulling these cactus needles out of him hoping nobody was seeing this.Oh well they had to come out and I needed him to guide so I pulled them.
Next morning after breakfast Gene had decided we would try to catch up to the big ram we was after.
We drove the truck up towards the mountain stopping to glass here and there.Ron rode with us as another set of eyes as well as Asa,so we had 4 guys to glass.We had stopped to glass a big canyon and Ron said theres sheep.I yell Laze them and was looking for a/the ram.Finally there he was! Ron said 379yds. I took a rest and fired they ran up and the ram stopped,Ron said 416 I shot again and her ran over a knife ridge and we couldn't see him so we move up the trail a couple hundred yards to where we could see the side he went to.I spotted him standing on a rock ledge almost straight up he was hit,I took a rest and fired he went down and I couldn't see him.So we started the climb up towards where we last saw him.Ron found him if the binos and said he's still alive.I saw him then and took a rest on a juniper snag and fied again and finished him.he's 28 1/4" with 11 3/4" bases.
We had a great time,the Chinati Mountains are breath takingly beautiful.
Gene Nixon and his son Asa treated us like they knew us all our life.I just can't hardly find words to describe just how pleased I am with them.First Class People!!!!
We took 7 rolls of pictures and I don't have a clue how to post them,I got a scanner and know how to email them.If someone will help me out I'll post pics.
This is the best hunting experiance of my life,I'm beyond satisfied but I can see this sheep hunting is an addiction.I loved it!!!!

rws2,

Congratulations on a great hunt.

You can email me some picures and I will post them. Make sure you "attach" them to the email.

Regards,

Terry

T.Carr,
You got mail!!!
I sent you pics Attatched,Thanks rws2

A free-range Aoudad hunt in the mountains of west Texas is pretty hard to beat. They are tough, and they are fast. Congrats on a great hunt!!

Y'all come back now, y'hear.......

Bob

[ 02-02-2003, 06:08: Message edited by: Bob in TX ]

rws2's Ram


Ron's Ram

Hey I had one great time. rws2 you forgot to tell everyone that we also got Javelinas and blue quail. We also missed 4 coyote's

Great hunt report and nice rams, that same hunt is on my list of "somedays".

Nice rams congrats.How much did the trip run you guys?

Congratulations to both of you

really nice sheeps

/ JOHAN

Fireman,
The hunt "was $2800.00" it's now raised to $3250.00.
We drove cause we wanted to see the country so with gas,lisc,hunt,everything right at $3500.00 Total.It was worth it for me I had a great time and my guide was great. www.desertmountainhunts.com

Thanks Everybody!!!

The hunt "was $2800.00" it's now raised to $3250.00.
We drove cause we wanted to see the country so with gas,lisc,hunt,everything right at $3500.00 Total.

I was in texas hill country in 94...got a 9 and 10 point bucks 2 doe and a nice Ram. all for $1800. license and flight was another $500. I can't imagine what a hunt like that would cost now.
Btw....nice ram....glad you had a great time.

[ 02-09-2003, 16:38: Message edited by: lofter ]

Good rams rws2.

btw, I book for Gene as well.

Wendall,
Since I am an old West Texas boy from Marathon, where and who owns the ranch in the photo, just curious...

I hunt DK Boyds ranch out of Ft. Davis, Kermit, and Lovington NM...for sheep and deer....
Ray

Ray,
The place is south of Marfa about 30 miles in the Chinati Mts.,I was told the owner was from Houston it was Cibolo Ranch.
We stayed on the Shurley Ranch owned by Bill Shurley but hunted the sheep on Cibolo Ranch.
We had a great time!!!

[ 03-15-2003, 02:25: Message edited by: rws2 ]

Ninja here it is.

I was so confused when i saw this then i went to my other posts hehe ^_^ Thanks RWS Where you located in WV?

A small town in northern WV not much here but a lame college.hehehe
Actually I'm about 5 miles outside of Morgantown

I hunted with Gene Nixon in January 2000 and we hunted hard and long before we finally got a great ram over just under 31. I plan to go back and hunt with Gene for Muledeer. A free ranging Texas Aoudad hunt on foot is as tough as sheep hunts come. On the day we got my ram, we climbed the mountain during dawn to top out early high above the rams, we spotted the bunch with my granddaddy ram at about two and got down the mountain on the other side by dusk to hitch hike a ride back to the ranch.

Congrats on your trophies. Well done!

Muskwa

Muskwa,
This is the year to go for Mule Deer we saw 7 bucks.One was a Dandy and Gene said he would go at least 28" and maybe as high as 31"
The others were nice too and this was this past January.If they get some rain which I think they got some then there should be some absolutely HUGE bucks there this fall.
One of the guys who hunts the ranch killed one last fall that scored 214 B&C if I remember right.
Gene said we got as lucky as can be to get our rams so easy.He told me of climbing and looking all day for rams.We got awfully lucky to get off so easy,but I ain't complaining cause we were over due for some good luck.
Give Gene a call on those Muleys,if I had the cash I'd go there this fall myself.I know there is at least one eye popper there I saw him on January 27th '03

You know where Grafton is? Well i live miles 15 miles away from it in Barbour County.

Grafton!!!
Yea I know right where Grafton is.Been there done that! I actually shot a deer in Graftons City Limits with 300WM that got hit with a car and broke up real bad.The women said it was suffering could I do something about it.I then produced my 300WM and did right thing in almost downtown Grafton.

Cool RWS ^_^ we oughta talk on aol or something LOL