We are always looking for great hunting stories and individuals to contribute to the Mission Alaska inspirational cause. Well Mission Alaskan’s… I have found a story and a person who has inspired me to harvest a stone sheep. Recently I was at Sean Lingl’s hunting operation on Vancouver Island filming a black bear hunt for 9x UFC champion Matt Hughes, while on this hunt I met some very skilled hunters and had the time of my life. Sean has several guides that work almost year round hunting the gigantic animals that roam this island in British Columbia, these guides I would argue are some of the most talented and professional individuals in the outdoor industry. As for Sean, It was such an honor to be hunting with the Dallas Safari Clubs “Outfitter of the Year” truly a grade A+ experience and just an awesome guy. Not to mention that Sean lead us to a monstrous black bear that stretched the tape and the scales, and made awesome outdoor tv for Uncaged with Matt Hughes on the Sportsman Channel. Sean has surrounded himself with an impressive A-team of guides that have some great pictures and stories of successful hunts over the years. Nathan French, the youngest of the guides has some fantastic hunting stories, some of the stories are with his clients and the others are of his personal adventures.
Here at Mission Alaska our message is all about unguided, uncharted, untamed self made experiences. We encourage hunters to get out and hunt as often as possible, testing themselves against nature and finding new areas to hunt. Guides in certain situations are the only way to harvest certain species of animals, and one day I will need a guide to harvest my stone sheep… One man I will call on in the future is Nathan French, first of all he is a talented guide(phenomenal sheep guide), a great writer, and a developing videographer. Nathan captures his clients hunts on film, and manages to squeeze in only a few days to personally hunt himself and test the boundaries of his limits. After his guide season he manages to sneak back into the wilderness to fulfill his personal hunting goals, the hunt that follows is an epic one…
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STONE SHEEP: Gray Ghosts with Golden Horns
By: Nathan French
Next morning we all packed up are gear, got are eyes set on big rams and fun adventures. On my back was six days worth of food, optics, tent, sleeping bag and pad, and miscellaneous gear. Johnny and I parted ways to cover more ground. Omar and I went south, Johnny and Garrick North. We were carrying satellite phones to keep in touch every other night to relay the day’s adventures.
Day 2 rolled around and we had spotted several rams already and lots of ewes. Already 8 miles back from the lake, we continued to push further. The wind from the minute we started was brutal. Didn’t matter which way you faced, it was in your face!!!! and strong!! We found out later, winds were measured at 60mph!
Later into day 2 we summited a high plateau and within minutes of glassing, we spotted two sheep far across the valley. With a closer look a 3rd sheep was spotted and right away I knew he deserved an even closer look. The wind was howling and not making it easy to glass; I was huddled under a cliff just to keep the spotter steady.
After I made the decision to get closer , I was off like the wind. Covering meters by the second. I dropped 2500 feet within several minutes and dropped off my whole camp at the bottom by a creek. We charged up the mountain with the camera rolling; Omar did one wicked job behind the handycam.
A long 2500ft ascent didn’t take long, I had one thing on my mind, and I was determined to get on this ram and nothing was going to stop me. Peaking over the edge in hopes to be above the ram, there he was 300yards away, feeding away happily. Without a doubt this ram was a shooter.
After video and pictures we skinned and butchered the ram and made are way back to the gear left by the creek. Midnight rolled around and we made er back. Without wiping the smile of my face, we unloaded the sheep and started making camp. Then came eating tenderloins from our days success and then followed several calls out on the sat phone to close friends. Not realizing it was past midnight, I woke my boss, parents and close friends with shouts of excitement.
Next day we headed back for the lake. A steep brutal climb up and over several mountains, 11 miles total and after a full day of grinding camp and the ram on my back, we made it !! Heavy load, long day. Yet so rewarding. There’s no better feeling than laying exhausted and looking at your pack with a ram on it. I think we had a little camp celebration and waited to hear from the boys on their outings!
-Nathan French
Thanks for the article Nathan: More videos and stories to come in the near future. -Mission Alaska