A few years ago, I started feeling like a mortal man…recovery times were slower…aches were more noticeable….hills seemed taller…ack, I’m getting older! As I thought about that and how I wanted to do a lot more hunting, I read some articles on aoudad hunting. Some articles, in particular by Boddington, caught my attention. He was writing about how it’s the cheapest entry point to sheep hunting and a good warm-up for other mountain hunts. The hills in south Texas aren’t high in altitude but they are rugged and test the spirit. I called a hunting friend and said let’s go chase some aoudad before we wake up someday with regrets.
I called some guides that Boddington recommended and we ended up booking with Stephen West for a late September hunt. Stephen said that time of year was good for early season rutting activity. This area was on the very southern border near Big Bend and had a good population of 8-11 year old rams that were averaging 31”. Thirty inches is kind of the magic number for aoudad and Stephen said that should not be a problem to get a couple of rams at least that big.
I worked up some loads for a custom 6.5 PRC (now owned by @ AZ Dave) and got the ballistics sorted out to 1000 yards and verified on steel at those distances. I was on a pro staff rifle team at that time and we had the range to work out to those distances. That’s MUCH further than I would ever expect to shoot on game but when you practice that far, 500 yards or less seems much easier!
The hunt dates quickly arrived and we made the drive down to Marfa, TX to meet the guide. He said fill up your gas here as it’s going to take awhile to get to the ranch. We drove about another hour to the end of the road and a locked gate. He unlocked the gate and pointed way back to the mesas and said, the ranch headquarters is behind that mesa. We drove 47 miles on dirt roads before we stopped at the ranch bunk house where we would be staying. Along the way, we saw a lot of desert quail, coyotes, javelina and mule deer…along with a few skinny half-wild cows scattered in the hills.
The ranch buildings were simple but comfortable and up high on a bluff where you could see a long distance. Stephen pointed south and said that’s Mexico just a few miles from here. The country was severe looking but beautiful as only the desert can be. It was late in the day and we got the rifles out to check zeros. By the time we got back to camp, there was a great meal cooking with grilled steaks, beans, onions and peppers and home made tortillas and salsa. As the sun dropped below the horizon, the coyotes started singing and I knew it was going to be a good experience.
I called some guides that Boddington recommended and we ended up booking with Stephen West for a late September hunt. Stephen said that time of year was good for early season rutting activity. This area was on the very southern border near Big Bend and had a good population of 8-11 year old rams that were averaging 31”. Thirty inches is kind of the magic number for aoudad and Stephen said that should not be a problem to get a couple of rams at least that big.
I worked up some loads for a custom 6.5 PRC (now owned by @ AZ Dave) and got the ballistics sorted out to 1000 yards and verified on steel at those distances. I was on a pro staff rifle team at that time and we had the range to work out to those distances. That’s MUCH further than I would ever expect to shoot on game but when you practice that far, 500 yards or less seems much easier!
The hunt dates quickly arrived and we made the drive down to Marfa, TX to meet the guide. He said fill up your gas here as it’s going to take awhile to get to the ranch. We drove about another hour to the end of the road and a locked gate. He unlocked the gate and pointed way back to the mesas and said, the ranch headquarters is behind that mesa. We drove 47 miles on dirt roads before we stopped at the ranch bunk house where we would be staying. Along the way, we saw a lot of desert quail, coyotes, javelina and mule deer…along with a few skinny half-wild cows scattered in the hills.
The ranch buildings were simple but comfortable and up high on a bluff where you could see a long distance. Stephen pointed south and said that’s Mexico just a few miles from here. The country was severe looking but beautiful as only the desert can be. It was late in the day and we got the rifles out to check zeros. By the time we got back to camp, there was a great meal cooking with grilled steaks, beans, onions and peppers and home made tortillas and salsa. As the sun dropped below the horizon, the coyotes started singing and I knew it was going to be a good experience.
