As I am preparing for my sheep hunt, I am starting to think about little things to take that have a big impact. I would like to hear any of your ideas.

Some of my little things are as follows:

1- Mask to cover eyes. I would get little sleep without it.

2- Empty Gatorade bottle in case I have to pee in the middle of the night.

3- Small blow up pillow. Weighs 2 oz I think.

I have a poncho that weighs about a pound. It is heavy duty. I am thinking of taking it. In really bad conditions, this would be fantastic.

Larry,

I did several back pack hunts when I lived in AK. I'm sure you already got your rifle sorted but a really light rifle made my hunts far easier. Pare as much down as you can. IMO forget the bottle and just pee out through tent door. Your jacket will make a good pillow and if you have rain proof gear you won't need poncho.

My 2 cents

Mark

My rifle weights 4.5 pounds without scope .

I got the pillow as my clothing didn't make a very good pillow on my last 2 trips.

Sounds perfect.

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:
My rifle weights 4.5 pounds without scope .

I got the pillow as my clothing didn't make a very good pillow on my last 2 trips.

I'm all about shaving weight and I have used my jacket or anything stuff able as a pillow but....as I've gotten older I learned if I don't sleep well enough to get adequate rest and recuperation then I will suffer all the more the next day.

Pillow is fine, forget the poncho and the pee bottle. Rain gear is good enough and Alaska is your urinal.

Cheers
Jim

I suffer with severe sleep problems, emphasis on severe. When my mind gets turning, it is all over. When I get up, get boots on and head outside, it will be over for me, no question in my mind. I am trying to limit that disruption.

I slept like hell with my clothes as a pillow. I am going to try the pillow.

I need all the rest I can get on a hunt like this.

Larry,

To be blunt you walk up to the tent door on your knees and just let her rip. Having a pee bottle in the tent is asking for a very nasty accident that you'll regret for the rest of the hunt.

Mark

Might want to try out the pillow at home. I used one of those blow up pillows once, about half a night. My wife tries out a new one about every year, none of them are comfortable for me. I opt for my puffy coat in a diddy bag, wrapped in a fleece, or stuffed in the hood of my sleeping bag.

Not sure what sleeping pad you have, but there are some with built in pillows. I have a Neo Air, something or other. The small pillow is great.

I agree 100%, a good nights sleep is worth a lot more than anything else in my pack.

Check out the Big Agnes Air Core pillow. It is big enough to fold double and adjust to the right height with air fill. Best backpacking pillow that I have used. Wrap a jacket around it and it is great.

These you may already have:

A small piece of foam sleeping pad to use as a seat is a welcome addition. I keep one in my pack all of the time. About 2 panels of a thermarest z-lite or similar. Weighs nothing and keeps you off the cold or wet or snow covered ground.

A hankerchief. Just one, handy for lots of things.

A tiny cheap plastic camera tripod. About 4" tall when unfolded. Weighs about 2oz. I love photography, and relive the trip through photos.

Just a few thoughts. Check out the pillow, though.

Jeremy

I have done several sheep hunts and have found the advise to use a light rifle good, but the reality is that I would rather lose an extra 10 lbs in body weight than go with a real light rifle.

My logic is that I need the normal or slightly heavy rifle to hold for a steady shot. I struggle to hold a light rifle steady. I use a 9 lb rifle (scope and ammo) and have no trouble with it. Also, I use an Eberlestock pack with a rifle scabbard do I do not even carry the rifle in my hands. I need my hands to hold the walking aids.

Anyway, by taking a couple of pounds off the rifle, is no different to me than losing a few extra pounds off my fanny.

quote:

Originally posted by MARK H. YOUNG:
Larry,

To be blunt you walk up to the tent door on your knees and just let her rip. Having a pee bottle in the tent is asking for a very nasty accident that you'll regret for the rest of the hunt.

Mark

Mark speaks from experience.... and I agree based on my lousy aim and tossing and turning with a loaded pee bomb in the tent.....

Don't listen to anything Biebs tells you about hunting alaska.

I have zero experience hunting sheep and probably will never hunt sheep.

But when we hunted moose in Alaska Biebs told me to get muck waterproof boots. Now at base camp these were a few streams and they could have been useful if you wanted to cross the streams.

At spike camp we had to climb a hill everyday and the boots sucked. There was not a damn stream we ever had to cross - the muck boot sucked. I started using my crocs.

This is totally irrelevant to Larry's professional sheep hunt. But it does show how useless Darth Blasers advice is.

I will live my sheep hunt thru you Larry.

Mike

quote:

Originally posted by dogcat:

Mark speaks from experience....

He wet his tent?

One other thing we carried as a group in the Brooks was an empty 750ml plastic vodka bottle. We all used camelbacks for hydration and Mountain House water filtered through a MSR filter but...... many times higher up the only water could be a shallow seep. The vodka bottle is flat shaped and easily filled from the seep. We could then filter from that.

I so wish I had that small ensolite/foam pad for sitting. Great idea.
Cheers
Jim

I enjoy good sleep as well and I have tinitius pretty bad. A MP3 player than runs off a AAA battery to listen to music at night puts me right out! I agree on testing your pillow. Never liked air pillows but always take a real pillow with me. Extra weigh saves me headaches.

I will try the air pillow. My sleep problems are severe. I was in bed 7 hours 50 minutes last night. I was asleep 6:16 after waking up 8 times and being restless 8 more. This is at home in my bed with my pillow using my CPAP machine. A tent on the ground with no CPAP will be a disaster.

Thanks!

quote:

Originally posted by Frostbit:

quote:

Originally posted by dogcat:

Mark speaks from experience....

He wet his tent?

One other thing we carried as a group in the Brooks was an empty 750ml plastic vodka bottle. We all used camelbacks for hydration and Mountain House water filtered through a MSR filter but...... many times higher up the only water could be a shallow seep. The vodka bottle is flat shaped and easily filled from the seep. We could then filter from that.

I so wish I had that small ensolite/foam pad for sitting. Great idea.
Cheers
Jim

I have a pad that I bought. That is a must. I love using mine.

A fleece neck warmer and a fleece socking hat if it gets cold and nasty both well keep you comfortable.

If your pillow isn't satisfactory, I had my ex sew a drawstring into a pillowcase. When I go to bed, I shove all my clothes into the pillowcase and tighten the drawstring. Works okay for me. I think you're gonna have some challenges either way. Hopefully, you can bring a battery powered CPAP to help you get a decent nights sleep.

I have a batter powered CPAP. The battery lasts 2 nights.

I have used those water proof bags and stuffed clothes inside as a pillow. I have not been able to get comfortable with those. This blow up pillow weighs between 2 & 3 ounces. I figured I would try it.

Ear plugs help me sleep, if there is a snorer in camp
Pee out the door
I use my sleep bag stuff bag and put several pieces of clothes inn it for a pillow.
Aleve for aching muscles
My only sheep hunt was about eight years ago and we rode horses. It was a full two day ride to camp. I don't think I walked three miles in the nine day hunt, but I was very sore from horse riding. This was in the NWT.

On the pillow.....I use a Therm-a-rest compressible pillow and love it. Very light and compresses down to hardly anything. Way better than an air pillow in my opinion. I see now that they even have an XL size. Found them on Amazon

quote:

Originally posted by df06:
Ear plugs help me sleep, if there is a snorer in camp
Pee out the door
I use my sleep bag stuff bag and put several pieces of clothes inn it for a pillow.
Aleve for aching muscles
My only sheep hunt was about eight years ago and we rode horses. It was a full two day ride to camp. I don't think I walked three miles in the nine day hunt, but I was very sore from horse riding. This was in the NWT.

We have a 2 day hike into the valley we are going to hunt in.

Larry:

Been a while since I was sheep hunting but I do a lot of backpacking in the Grand Canyon. I suffer from the same issue you do in terms of waking up; if I move a lot to urinate I can be up forever, and if I don't go I get severe back aches. I bring a pair of light flip flops so I don't have to get a lot of stuff on; if it is just me and MsAZW, I kneel at the door and let her rip.

I can do without a pillow, but I can't sleep without a good blow up mattress. Some of the self inflating ones are okay, but heavy. if you do use a self inflating, blow into after it self inflates and it will be much better.

Hygiene is very important to me when I am backpacking. On a short trip I bring baby wipes; on a longer one a washcloth. I always take a whores bath. I always bring dental floss and a toothbrush of course.

My fav sheep hunting outfit is this:

running shorts
biking shirt that is brown or camo
pair long heavy underwear top and bottom that is hydrophobic
Sitka rain paints and parka
fleece upper
three pairs good socks
knit cap and light gloves

if the weather is nice, which is can often be on Aug 9, I climb in the hiking shorts and biking shirt, which is hydrophobic. If it gets cold, I put on a heavy top. Really cold, I take off the shorts, pull the long underwear on, then pull the running shorts over the long bottoms. It might look goofy, but it is unbelievably comfortable. If it rains or you are glassing and windy, put on the rain gear. if it is really cold, put on the heavy fleece with the rain parka over it.

If it is raining and you have to hike, put on the the running shorts only with the rain gear, with or without the bottoms. You will not be cold once you hike, and the sweat will go out the gore tex rain top much easier than if you have on a poly pro type shirt. And if you don't vent all the sweat, it is easier to dry off in the tent than trying to dry out your sweat soaked shirt.

Bring a good quality sleeping bag.

quote:

But when we hunted moose in Alaska Biebs told me to get muck waterproof boots.

I bet Bob i could get you to wear Mucks on a mountain hunt. When your showed up, did you see him give me a $5 bill? :-)

You guys are so damn funny!

Enough pillow talk! haha

I always take SPF chapstick for my lips and sun block for my face. A tiny travel tube of SB will last the whole trip and will be welcomed by the bridge of your nose and the tops of your ears.

Take a length of stout cord and make a loop to go around your knees while sitting and glassing (old O'Connor trick). It'll allow you to relax and make you more steady and it could have many other uses.

Several little things like that make my sheep hunts more comfortable without too much weight or bulk.

I can't wait for the report.
Zeke

What would make my hunt easier would be to lose 20 pounds and 20 years.

A ziplock freezer bag works great for peeing. Just unzip the sleeping bag, roll on your side and go. Never had a problem with leaks, although I test them beforehand. Take several.

High country musts for my busted up body.

1. Compressible pillow, I won't sleep without it. I've never had luck with blow up pillows. Gotta have a good pillow and here's why.

Picture of my C-Spine, long story but you should have seen the other guy!!


2. Light weight blow up air pad for sleeping, nothing else works for me. I tried the Syn pad 9 it was heavy and prone to leaks. Now I use a Big Agnes Aircore, Big Agnes makes lighter pads now. For the same reason as above plus four elbow and one shoulder surgery, makes hard, cold ground rough for me. No quality comfortable air pad, no outdoors for me.

3. A pack that fits you well and has either an external or internal scabbard. It was a total and complete feeling of liberation the first time I crawled up a scree pile with the rifle safely strapped into my "Eberlestock J34 Just one pack". Having your hands free and not having to worry about your rifle slipping around is the best hunting invention EVER! It was a serious psychological boost after years and years of fighting a rifle on a sling sliding off your shoulder while hiking.

4. I have started using KUIU clothing. So far I've had no reason to look back. I have completely gone 100% all "phuket" on Sitka gear after several bad experiences at bad times.

5. Light weight camp shoes.

6. Trekking poles!! I have no idea how I spent the first 40 years of my life without them. It is amazing how much faster I can pile on the verts with a set of poles and it is equally amazing how much easier coming down is on the knees! I've taken a solid hour to two hours off of some 14,000'+ summits here in Colorado simply by learning how to properly use poles and several different mountaineering pacing steps. I refuse to climb without my poles and they make for some handy field expedient rifle rests too. Google it.

7. Learning how to pre acclimate for high altitude. Spending 30 minutes above 11,000 3 times within 3 months prior to your climb/hunt makes a HUGE difference. You don't have to work out, just sitting at 11,000 + feet does the trick. I know that this is easier said than done for some folks. For me here in Colorado it is simple. The other thing that makes climbing easier is to do lots of climbing. I spend an average of 30 days a summer above tree line. Every time I climb it gets easier.

8. Cross Fit 3 to 4 days a week. Period. Nothing else I've done gets me into climbing/hunting shape like cross fit.

Larry perhaps you could bring a small solar panel to extend the life of the CPAP batteries?

Bob:

Even if I could do it, the battery and the machine are a bit heavy for backpacking. Not to mention that it is hard to recharge while the solar panel is in the backpack.

I have an expensive mouth piece that I used to carry all the time when traveling. Then I got the travel machine. I need to find it. If I can't, there is something called PROVENT SR.

Surestrike:

I have a lot of those items.

I can't do Cross Fit due to the condition of my knees.

I am at about 50 feet elevation. I do not foresee the time available to head to teh mountains.

My blow up pillow sucks. I tried it. $50 down the drain.I will look at other options.

I think we all saw the blow up pillow hitting the trash. Lol
For altitude training tighten the chest strap on your pack or wear a bandana across your mouth to limit air intake. Good lung workout.

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:
Bob:

Even if I could do it, the battery and the machine are a bit heavy for backpacking. Not to mention that it is hard to recharge while the solar panel is in the backpack.

That is why you strap the portable solar panel to the outside of your pack and charge while walking. That is kind of the whole point of portable solar chargers. Weight is still the issue however.


Surestrike:

I have a lot of those items.

quote:

I can't do Cross Fit due to the condition of my knees.

I'd be willing to bet next months mortgage payment that you could indeed do a modified and still incredibly effective "Cross-fit" style work out. In fact I know you can.

quote:

I am at about 50 feet elevation. I do not foresee the time available to head to teh mountains.

Grab a young flight instructor hungry for flight time. Tell him what your deal is. Have him climb to 11,500 circle around for 30 minutes. Do it three times in the next couple of months. That and one of these. http://www.trainingmask.com/training-mask-2-0/ Although climbing to altitude and breathing high altitude air three times in three months actually creates a chemical change in your body that allows you to more easily adapt to high altitude exertion. Not so sure about a training mask.

quote:

My blow up pillow sucks. I tried it. $50 down the drain.I will look at other options.

Yep they all do. Mine is a compression style foam one. It's pretty good. Just trying to help....

quote:

Originally posted by Fjold:
What would make my hunt easier would be to lose 20 pounds and 20 years.

seems also that mountains are getting higher year after year ....

couple of blackomatics would sure help

1) wildlife specialities no-scent antiperspirant roll-on crap in a small plastic bag. Use this on your feet so you don't get blisters. Feet conditioning(toughening them up) is almost as important as your overall cardio shape.

2) Jetboil Minimo isobutane stove with TSA/DOT (Primus) approved isobutane canisters. You can simmer sheep meat and its light. Aircarriers give you crap and you show them how its approved.

3)Make sure your guide has a very good gps that has tiff maps that are enhanced of the region. They can also get satellite maps.

4) Get a tripod adaptor for your main binoculars. You will be surprised on how that will help you look at things.

5) Bring your own dehydrated food. While it might be easy to conclude that your guide has your best interest at heart, having the food that you like will effectively help you.

6) emergency meds. get immodium, and over the counter stuff in small portions but go to your dentist and have him/her prescribe you good painkillers and antibiotics for emergencies. It is worth it.

7) Schedule Two extradays in and two extradays to get out. Explain to the guide that you would like to get habituated and with that CPAP machine it would be good to have the necessary time to get adjusted.

8) Bring a superlight helinox chair. They weigh less than 2 lbs are are great for spotting. You should have a packer anyways.

9) Tyvek plastic sheeting is good for an emegency bivy and is useful for other things as well.

10) Develop the mindset to not quit until your guide does. Don't call for a break unless your guide does. Be positive at every turn and bump. Enjoy the country and let the sheep opportunities come to you. You are enjoying heaven on earth. Alert your guide if anything isn't right but never panic.

11) Start hunting as early as you can. You will cover a tremendous amount of country if you start 3 or 4 hours earlier than others.

12) Keep a clean camp. Practice taking your gear out and setting it up and then repacking it quickly as you can. Listen to everybody's stories but be assertive when it comes to the good ram. You kick ass when the time comes. That comes from doing a lot of shooting right now.

Have a great hunt.

Thanks all.

I am just back from hog hunting. I was very lucky.

I am going to start packing this week just in case I can't find some of my gear. I am going to go as light as possible. It is going to be interesting to see what the gear weighs.

quote:

Originally posted by surestrike:

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:


I can't do Cross Fit due to the condition of my knees.

I'd be willing to bet next months mortgage payment that you could indeed do a modified and still incredibly effective "Cross-fit" style work out. In fact I know you can.

Agreed. We've had folks with casts, braces, and all sorts of Ortho gear complete modified (scaled) workouts right along with the regular class. Most boxes (gyms) offer a free tryout. Just let the trainer know your perceived limitations and they will show you how to scale. Larry, for someone that relishes efficient use of time you will find a Crossfit workout unparalleled. Just remember it's not a solo workout. It's all about the fitness family and the drive you draw from others.

As usual, the AR Brethren prove their sincere concern, great experience and useful advice. I lost most of my binocular vision recently, which has made walking on uneven ground difficult. I think the pole suggestion might help me. Thanks.

Larry
I use a cpap machine for the last 14 years.How do breathe rite strips work for you ?