Jodee's Montana Mountain Goat One shot from the .243 Win, 90 grain Barnes X at approximately 100 yds. did the job.

The hunt of a life time, well maybe.

By Jodee Kawasaki (©)

We spotted my big billy goat on the southeast face where some of the snow was melted by yesterday’s sun.  We glassed a route to the east, circling up to go above the billy goat.  Two smaller billies were near the bigger one, but none of them paid us any attention.  As we maneuvered over the huge, snow-covered boulders, ever so gently crawling closer to a flat ledge where we knew I’d be within shooting range.  We were almost there when to our great surprise another billy goat was laying against the alpine brush just to our left not 10 yards away.  He was as surprised as we were; he jumped and dived down the slope through the alpine brush.  Now all four goats were gone.

Living in Montana I have routinely applied for the mountain goat license through the lottery drawing.  I finally scored on the precious tag.  For my husband, Jerry or I this was our first opportunity to hunt one of the special big game species.  As anyone who has hunted mountain goats can tell you, getting into shape and studying the difference between billy and nanny horn shapes are musts.  One must hunt high country and doing some homework on mountain goats builds knowledge.  The balance of the scales is always in favor of the mountain goat, but being in top shape and developing an understanding of mountain goat behavior does help in easing the balance a little toward woman or man’s side.  There are many good articles and few books about watching and hunting mountain goats.  I recommend two books, A Beast the Color of Winter: the mountain goat observed by Douglas Chadwick and Hunting the Rocky Mountain Goat by Duncan Gilchrist.  If you can’t find copies, your local library can track them down for you.  The education I received from these two sources was worth the time and effort of finding and reading them.

My goal was to fill the mountain goat tag; all other activities took second seat.  We scouted every weekend for three months; I practiced with my rifle.  I read about mountain goats and jumped rope to get into shape.  I knew mountain goats lived at high elevations.  We were camping at 8700 ft. in elevation and spending a lot of time scouting between there and 10,500 ft. with the aid of a pair of tripod mounted 20x80 binoculars.  I needed to increase my lung capacity and tone my muscles to climb to the goats, because I knew stalking would be on their turf.  There are many exercises that build lung capacity; I’m told the quickest ones are swimming and jumping rope.  I choose to jump rope, since I could do it at home and it seemed simpler.  For me as a youngster jumping rope was second nature, but as a thirty-something adult I was crushed when I didn’t even make the two-minute mark my doctor recommended as the starting point.  However, I was determined to fill my mountain goat tag and preceded to jump rope making slow progress weekly until I reached 20 minutes per day by the season’s opening day.  Also, I practiced handling my rifle, a .243 Win and shot targets regularly.  I have used this rifle for all game, from prairie dogs to elk, and knew with the right bullet and good shot placement it was enough gun for a mountain goat too.  Nonetheless, I wanted to be even more confident of my rifle handling and shooting ability, so I shouldered my rifle routinely in the living room looking through the window at a distant fence post. 

As the summer progressed into fall and the season opened, I waited for the long winter hair to grow on the mountain goats.  With all the scouting we did, by mid-September I knew exactly which mountain goat I was after.  We named him “Big Billy.”  I knew his haunts and his movement patterns.  The last weekend of September started, we proceeded to our camping spot high in the mountains.  Upon arrival, we discovered snow had changed everything, including our camping spot.  This was only a slight set back, since we knew the area well.  We moved camp into a protected spot among the white-barked pines.  The major change was finding Big Billy.  We glassed the slopes for my billy goat.  His summer and fall haunts were covered with snow.  Finally, I sighted Big Billy on the south-facing slope late in the afternoon and located him again the next morning; the path of approach was laid out. 

We made our way to near the top, but not the skyline of the eastern ridge in knee deep snow; we headed west along the south face.  We periodically checked on the big goat and his two satellites, although they paid us no mind.  We moved among the huge, snow-covered boulders making progress at turtle speed lest we fall in the unseen holes between the boulders, which held the danger of easily breaking a leg or an ankle.  We maneuvered ever so gently, slowly crawling to the flat ledge that would put me in shooting range.  I was in the lead as we inched near the ledge; movement to my left caught my attention.  I turned, motioned at Jerry; a billy goat was tucked into the alpine brush.  It seemed like I could have reached out and touched him; he was so very close.  There was no way of spotting him from any other angle than our present one, but we were way too close for his comfort.  He jumped to his feet and dived down the slope through the alpine brush.  Now all four goats were gone.

After we crawled upon and spooked the nearby billy goat, we sat there debating our next move when Jerry said, “there is one, do you want to shoot him?”  Up and to my right stood a billy, not my big billy that we located and watched every weekend for months, but a respectable billy within range.  He was quartering away and climbing effortlessly higher and higher, glancing back over his shoulder every few steps at us.  As I lay down, shifting for a good spot among the snow and shale rocks it seemed like time stood still, I finally found a good rest.  He stopped at approximately 100 yards, still quartering away looking back at us; I aimed behind the rib.  I remember hearing the 90-grain Barnes X bullet hit and the billy was gone.  We worked our way up the snowy slope, across more outcroppings, shale slides, and peering over boulders and brush, looking for a mountain goat.  Jerry was in the lead and just over a crest spotted the billy.  He moved aside, I took the lead chambering a round in my .243 Win.  I went around another rock outcropping, peered over the shrub, and there I saw the most beautiful sight.  One billy goat on his back lodged against the wind swept, alpine brush. 

If there is such a thing on a snow-covered mountain, this location was the perfect spot for him to land.  The horns and hide were still intact.  I’ve heard and read stories of goats falling down mountainsides, breaking horns, tearing hide, and bruising meat along the way.  This was a good spot.  We used the brush to secure him while we removed the hide, meat, and skull.  After getting all of this secured onto the pack frame—well than the work began—we headed slowly off the mountainside lowering the overloaded pack frame by rope ahead of us at times.  Camp was a tiny dot down in the distance.  However, it was a happy hike in the dusk hours of the day back to that tiny dot in the distance.

The privilege of hunting a mountain goat I’ll never forget.  My billy won’t be in any record books with 8 ¼” horns, although he was the only billy taken within the area that year. We started the day after a big billy goat and finished with one in the bag.  I am truly blessed!  I’m able to hunt, I have a wonderful husband that goes with me, and best of all there is a beautiful white mountain goat rug hanging on our wall.  Mountain goat hunting was tough in high, treacherous Montana country.  Many hunters say hunting the mountain goat is worth the trophy, but once in a life time is enough.  However, I am a woman, I can only compare my thinking to another female trait.  Some women own lots of pairs of shoes and just have to have another pair.  I personally don’t own lots of shoes, but my desire to hunt another mountain goat is strong.  I want another mountain goat.  I will be applying for another mountain goat hunting license.

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