Sunday - Day 2
Weather
Sunny - 60's


Goats Seen
20+

 

 


Sunday Morning:

Having loaded our packs the night before, we got up early, had a good breakfast and discussed the upcoming hike. We would be hiking through what the locals call 'jungle' or rain forest for about 1000 feet of elevation before breaking off into muskeg which is a swampy, spongy grass before reaching camp 2 at about 1700 feet.

Hunt Map

Each terrain has its own drawbacks. The jungle is a twisted mess of downed trees, berry bushes and the dreaded Devils Club - a thorn laden bush. The muskeg sucks your energy as you sink to your ankle with each step - still better than the dreaded climb through the rain forest!

Welcome to the Jungle

Devils ClubDevils Club

The hike was exhausting and took much longer because we were constantly getting tangled up in the bushes and trees along the route. I quickly found out why Johnny urged me to purchase a pair of 'caulks' which are a boot with metal spikes screwed into the sole. While I was not very thrilled about changing footwear for the trip, I heeded his recommendation and bought a pair of the $120 boots. It turned out to be the best investment I made for this trip as this is the footwear that the guides and loggers in this country use to conserve energy and keep their feet where they plant them - it pays to listen to your guide! I wish I had listened to his other recommendation which was to carry my arrows in my arrow case, rather than my bow quiver. I broke one arrow and lost another 2. That left me with only four arrows to hunt with going into my hunt.

Caulks

After several hours we reached camp 2. We planned on spiking up with the goats with an ultralight setup later in the trip but for now this was our 'base spike'. As soon as the gear was unpacked and the camp set up we took a nap and had lunch.

Camp2

 

Sunday Afternoon

We decided to do a scouting run to the base of the cliffs - about two hours up the valley. We spotted goats all afternoon and plotted our hunt strategy for the next few days. We never hunted that day since we needed another 1500 foot climb to get into goat country and neither Johnnie, nor I, had it in us. We spotted over 20 goats, some possible billies, from that basin.

The Rock

We both retired to our little one-man tents around 8:40 after a freeze dried meal and a hot chocolate. Tomorrow, the hump begins!