I remember like it was yesterday—my wife calling and asking what tag from Game & Fish costs $300 because they had just pulled it from our account. My response: “If you’re not playing a sick joke on me, it means either you or I have an Arizona sheep tag.”I’m pretty sure that most any Arizona sheep applicant would have said … Read More
Lance Mitchell: 30 Mile Ram
Seeing your name next a draw result that says “Successful” for Desert Bighorn is indescribable. Realizing immediately after that you’ve just left a job with 6 weeks vacation and the new job only gave you 7 days for this year is PANICKING! Especially when the unit you drew is arguably considered one of the toughest in the state. It definitely … Read More
The Irony of Life and Death and Hunting and Hunters
I grew up in a small town in eastern Arizona where hunting was a way of life… a rite of passage amongst friends, family, and a rural community with a deep connection to the land and animals around it. I was a young teen when I first saw an animal die, it was a cow elk that my dad shot … Read More
How social media is ruining hunting
I recently had a conversation with a friend about a Facebook feud between two outfitters and their surrogates last week. It happens every year, every month, and nearly every day. It’s often worse on forums, and is one of the reasons I stopped using them. The guiding industry is as cut-throat as they come. There’s immense pressure to be the … Read More
Featured Ram: Ray Long’s Colorado Rocky
Hunter: Ray Long State: Colorado Species: Rocky Year: 2011 “After 14 years waiting and 13 years of applying I had finally drawn a Colorado Rocky Mountain Bighorn Ram Tag from that moment on till the opening day of Sheep season I spent every available moment on the mountain glassing and scouting for sheep. On September 18th 2011 my dream finally … Read More
Featured Ram: Sam Heffelfinger’s Cataract Ram
Hunter: Sam Heffelfinger Sheep: Desert Bighorn State: Arizona Date: October 2012 Sam was fortunate to draw a desert sheep tag in a very tough to hunt unit in Arizona. It was an especially busy year, as Sam was also engaged and planned to be married shortly before his hunt would start. It took a lot of long days scouting before … Read More