Your "must haves" in your sheep pack for 10-12 days in

[wyosteve]

Ditto on hot Tang!

 

[Snowhunter11]

All the people talking about chapstick.. I use dermatone for my lips, nose, neck and whatever else is going to be burning! I agree you can easily overpack.. Too light or too heavy can lead to discomfort. Just right is found by training and practice in my experience. My 2c

 

[adventure907]

This might be more applicable to sheep hunting in Alaska, but sunscreen and sunglasses are now a must have item in my pack. I learned this lesson the hard way during the opener in 2022. Sunburns and snow blindness while sheep hunting is no fun.

 

[MTWop]

A buff with spf is great to protect your lips and face/neck/ears avoiding the need for sunscreen. Agree on chapstick and sunglasses

 

[Snowhunter11]

X2 on sunglasses. I don’t leave home without them. I also bring a thing of visine in my kit.. glassing and/or crazy wind can make your eyes dry. As for the the actual “must haves” alpine camping gear and hunting/mountaineering apparel, footwear, gear, etc. The UL units in my limited experience are no place to screw around. Test and practice with your gear.. Be prepared for snow, ice, rain, grizz, and sunshine. Sometimes all of that in the same day

Good luck on your adventure. It’s a good feeling to be in sheep country with a tag in your pocket. Even if the odds are crap!

 

[maxwellh86]

I was looking at keeping my pack between 50-60lbs. Ultra light everything.

Well in that case: Goldbond for chafing and swass, dehydrated wet wipes, a ccf pad cut down to torso length, (sit pad, place quarters on, glassing nap pad, backup for your ultralight inflatable pad, extra pad insulation depending on season), ultralight tarp (I hunt in Alaska and have found it invaluable for getting out of the wind and rain when glassing or chowing down but only worth the weight on longer hunts), Tylenol PM (helps you get a good nights rest when you’re aching), short section of leukotape (the kind with the paper backing so you don’t have to roll it onto itself which loses stickiness), a single prepackaged sterile suture (gear or person repair) and best glass you can possibly get your hands on even if you have to rent/borrow an alpha spotter.

 

[redchinviking]

Small section (12-14”) of light netafim piping in my water filter kit for turning small seeps up high into running water. This one has saved us a bunch by keeping us from having to drop down for water. A lot of seeps we would have never been able to get a pump filter into. Also switched to platypus gravity the last couple years. No more pumping for hours. Fill it up and glass nap refuel etc while your water filters for you.

 

[redchinviking]

Oh last but not least..
NL 12x42’s on a tripod
Swaro ATS 25-50 65

 

[Corey Paulsen (teamkabob)]

Must haves for me as I age in backcountry wisdom have become things like: Floss. Whiskey. Leukotape. Coffee. Puffy Pants.

The rest is whatever.

You just turned 30!

 

[wisheephunter1985]

Lol

 

[mtwarden]

The Beartooths are an all business affair- lots of climbing/descending, lots (and I mean lots!) of rock- small slippery gravel rock, lots of medium rock that is loose and tough to negotiate and lots of big- Volkswagen big! rock. There are places you'll never touch the ground and be jumping from big rock to big rock. It's a little unnerving, as a slip doesn't mean a risk of a bruise, could mean a broken bone(s).

With that said, you want sticky outsoles and boots that can take a licking.

10-12 days you're very likely to encounter every weather condition- hot and dry, cold and wet and everything in between. Have your clothing system dialed so you don't get caught out- expect changing and extreme conditions.

Bring a inReach and leave it on (you can turn off at night)- it took them weeks to find a gal there who had an inReach, but was only turning it on at night- so no way to ping her device. Leaving it on (when not tracking) takes very little battery (tracking takes battery).

Like I think everyone said, bring bear spray. Make sure you know how to use it and make sure it's handy.

Have fun. It's a gorgeous area and to be able to spend extended periods of time in there is a blessing, ram or no ram.

 

[wisheephunter1985]

I've got a full kuiu clothing system, and I really have had good luck with my Scarpa boots. Thank you for the advice!

 

[BadEarth]

I don't know that it would cross my mind to try that lol..... I've usually got some Burts bees in my pack. Especially for elk. My lips chap bad when I'm hiking around with a diaphragm in my mouth for days on end.

Looking back it was a bad move but I was desperate! I’m the same way. Sun, wind, dry air, after a few days without it’s miserable. After that hunt I always keep a backup in my pack and my bino harness always has one too. Burts bees is the alpha balm

 

[Snyd]

Anti Diahrea and Anti Nausea meds. OTC Anti Diahrea works. RX Anti Nausea if you can get it. A bad case of either one leads to dehydration, exhaustion, etc. and the hunts over. You cant hunt if you can eat or keep fluids down. On two different sheep hunts here in AK my Anti Diahrea meds saved my partners @sses, and the hunts.

Also basic back country first aid/wilderness first responder knowledge. I slipped in a steep chute one year stalking some rams and dislocated my shoulder. We were a 2 day hike out to the road. I knew what had to be done to reduce it and was able to instruct my partner on the how to. Between a makeshift sling, ibuprofen during the day and RX muscle relaxers and/or pain meds at night we hunted 5 more days. No rams but also no medivac!

Good Luck on your hunt! Where at in MT? I was born in Whitefish, grew up in Missoula/Whitefish before moving here to AK 32 years ago.

 

[as.ks.ak]

You just turned 30!

31!!! Thank you captn crunch Berry much.

 

[wisheephunter1985]

Anti Diahrea and Anti Nausea meds. OTC Anti Diahrea works. RX Anti Nausea if you can get it. A bad case of either one leads to dehydration, exhaustion, etc. and the hunts over. You cant hunt if you can eat or keep fluids down. On two different sheep hunts here in AK my Anti Diahrea meds saved my partners @sses, and the hunts.

Also basic back country first aid/wilderness first responder knowledge. I slipped in a steep chute one year stalking some rams and dislocated my shoulder. We were a 2 day hike out to the road. I knew what had to be done to reduce it and was able to instruct my partner on the how to. Between a makeshift sling, ibuprofen during the day and RX muscle relaxers and/or pain meds at night we hunted 5 more days. No rams but also no medivac!

Good Luck on your hunt! Where at in MT? I was born in Whitefish, grew up in Missoula/Whitefish before moving here to AK 32 years ago.

I will be hunting in one of the unlimited units. I'm doing some research and have it narrowed to two potentials. I really like one more than the other because there are more out of the way basins that I think will be nice secluded places away from pressure.

 

[wisheephunter1985]

Anti Diahrea and Anti Nausea meds. OTC Anti Diahrea works. RX Anti Nausea if you can get it. A bad case of either one leads to dehydration, exhaustion, etc. and the hunts over. You cant hunt if you can eat or keep fluids down. On two different sheep hunts here in AK my Anti Diahrea meds saved my partners @sses, and the hunts.

Also basic back country first aid/wilderness first responder knowledge. I slipped in a steep chute one year stalking some rams and dislocated my shoulder. We were a 2 day hike out to the road. I knew what had to be done to reduce it and was able to instruct my partner on the how to. Between a makeshift sling, ibuprofen during the day and RX muscle relaxers and/or pain meds at night we hunted 5 more days. No rams but also no medivac!

Good Luck on your hunt! Where at in MT? I was born in Whitefish, grew up in Missoula/Whitefish before moving here to AK 32 years ago.

Having guided in Wyoming, I was required to have wilderness first aid certification. I had to stitch myself when a moose spooked my horse and it went on a balls out run through the timber. Sliced open my leg. Some stitches made me be able to stay out and keep scouting.

 

[wildwilderness]

Everyone is different so you need to figure out what you need.


I like salty greasy potato chips!

Also with the freeze dried food I started buying a #10 can and putting portions in ziplock bags- I don’t need 2 servings for lunch and ziplocks pack smaller. Also the best part is I add spices, hot sauce, shredded Parmesan cheese, oil, etc to the meal to make it taste way better and add variety.

Absolutely need to figure out the lightest sleep system to get a good night rest.

Go light, double use everything and no backups! Keep your emergency stuff at the trailhead for piece of mind and if you absolutely need it can leave camp and bomb back ultra light.

 

[mod7rem]

I’ve been yearly DIY hunting Stone sheep for a couple decades now and there’s a few small things that I find make a big difference on a long backpack trip. Assuming you have all the bigger things figured out like, packs, boots, tents, sleep gear.

- prioritize protein and fat. This keeps energy and mental state stable, hunger under control and high protein minimizes weight loss. Avoid high amounts of sugar and carbs.

- with clothing, think layers not extras. Keeps weight and bulk in check.

- ear plugs for better sleep.

- drug store eye patch for long hours of spotting scope use. Really helps with forehead and eye fatigue because you don’t have to force one eye closed all the time.

- carry a light weight tarp and don’t hesitate to crawl under it and take a break when a storm blows through. It’s hard to recover energy once soaked and chilled, so avoid it if possible.

- drink lots of water and use electrolytes of some sort. Helps muscle recovery overnight and minimizes cramps.

- staying well hydrated means having to pee at night (for me at least). Crawling out of a tent in the middle of the night when my muscles are trying to recover means leg cramps for me.
A 4 liter bladder used strictly for peeing in at night has been a game changer for me. Roll over on to your hip, pee in the bladder and go back to sleep. No more restricting water late in the day means better recovery over night for me.

- using solo tents instead of shared tents has also been a game changer in the mountains. Way easier to find suitable spots to pitch, better sleeps and still setup within feet of each other for easy conversation.

 

[chasewild]

I wouldn’t bring any of this, it’s all dead weight.

Facts.