Sheep in the Texas Brush Country
By Mike Schaefer


George Kraft is an icon. He is a hero of mine and someone I would love to emulate. I often dream of tagging along with him hunting ibex in the Altai, Marco Polo in Kyrgyzstan, Blue sheep in China or even stalking a trophy Dall in the Mackenzie’s. Since I weigh 60 kilos (I prefer kilos over pounds when discussing my weight, it just somehow sounds friendlier!) more than he and I get winded climbing my stairs, that has about as much chance of happening as my having an affair with Britney Spears! Which by the way I wouldn’t do if I had the chance ... I swear, Honey!

With that said and some of it probably better off un-said, I was looking for a hunt for my 26 year old son, Scott, and I to take together. He had mentioned to me that he had the first week in December off and would like to take a hunting trip “somewhere”. With Christmas fast approaching and funds very limited, I was wracking my mind on something that would be fun and different. As I sat at my desk, hard at work, an e-mail advertisement from Bluff Creek Ranch caught my eye. Texas Brush country MEAT HUNT. Two of my favorite words, meat and hunt in one short phrase! Further the ad stated that I could hunt my choice of Mouflon, Corsican, Texas Dall, merino sheep, New Zealand Mountain Goat (looked like Catalina to me), Angora, sika, fallow or axis doe or a wild hog for $180. My first thought was “misprint” my second thought was “they’ve got to be in a pen!” I called Bonnie who assured me that the sheep and hogs were on several hundred acres of low fence pasture. The exotic deer were in a high fence but there were miles of that fence. Bluff Creek was also going to provide lodging free of charge for however long we wanted to hunt. Then she sealed the deal. She told me that most of the rams were at least a full curl. I was going to be a sheep hunter just like George... well, kinda! I sent a deposit for two animals apiece for Scott and me. I invited my other son, Michael, but he had just started a new job and couldn’t get the time off.

December first Scott and I saddled up in his Ford F-150 and started the ten hour drive to Mason, Texas We arrived and met Hal, our guide. As we had driven all night we elected for a nap, lunch and to meet Hal back at the office that afternoon. He took us to the two story, six bedroom house that was to be our lodging for the duration and left us on our own. The house was in the process of being renovated but the downstairs was mostly complete and very comfortable. All linens, pots and pans, dishes and appliances were provided and the beds were comfortable. What more do you need?

After our nap we went to buy our $35 Texas exotic hunting license, grabbed some lunch and headed to the outfitters office. Hal wasn’t there yet so Scott and I went inside admired the trophies and shot the breeze with Bonnie. Bonnie is wonderful. Plain spoken, direct and a fantastic sense of humor. She is a great story teller as well. We found out that Hal, our guide was her husband, his son was the owner and she was the brains of the operation!
When Hal arrived he looked concerned. He informed us that an unexpected guest, a repeat customer had shown up and would we mind if he hunted with us. We were a little concerned about hunting with a stranger but we agreed. Tom Brosi is a young entrepreneur from California who has a whitetail lease in Mason. He had limited out on whitetail that morning and dropped by to see if he could hunt that afternoon and the next day with us. It didn’t take long to figure out our misgivings had been totally unfounded. We hadn’t driven 200 yards when we spotted a group of sheep at a watering hole. There was a very nice Dall and a huge merino in the group. Tom was up first. Scott joined Hal and Tom on the stalk to film it. I decided I’d just watch the action from the truck through my Swarovski binoculars. From the bed of the truck I could see the hunters but the sheep were out of sight in the thick mesquite and pinon pines.

I watched as Tom got in position and shot, then shot again! I had thought he had shot one sheep twice but it turns out he had shot the Dall and the merino. After blood trailing the Dall about 60 yards, Tom finished him with a second shot. He was beautiful, the ram, not Tom! The Merino decided he was not going to go softly into that good night. After putting three more rounds into him Tom made the horrifying discovery that he was out of cartridges. If he went back to the truck for more there was a chance that he would lose his trophy but the ram was not planning on lying down any time soon. With panic in his eyes he told Scott ”I’m out of bullets!”. Scott held out his Buck fixed blade and said “Do you want to try to jump on him with this?” After a nervous laugh and a moment of contemplation, Tom said “Give it here!” Then they were off through the mesquite and thorn bushes. Hal and I, being older and wiser, decided we would wait right there and watch the show from a distance. The ram led, Tom was close behind and Scott brought up the rear with the video camera. The result was somewhere between America’s Funniest Video and PETA propaganda! Tom was able to get the blade between the ribs of the running ram.... but not out. I could hear Scott yelling “my knife, get my knife!” A mesquite limb did what Tom couldn’t and dislodged the knife from the ram. After finding the ram again Tom decided he was going to run alongside the injured animal and sink the blade into him again. This time a hard earned trophy went down for the count.

My initial assessment was that Tom was not a very good shot and he had repeatedly missed the vitals. I was wrong. Every shot had penetrated heart and/or lungs. The knife had also been well placed both times slicing into the lungs the first time and the heart the second time. My final assessment, sheep aren’t sheepish. I have a new respect for these tough animals.

After we loaded Tom’s rams we were off to see if we could score. We located a very nice Corsican ram and Scott decided to take him. He made what looked like a good shot at about 150 yards with a 7mm magnum using ballistic tip ammo. We had good blood but the ram was 1. not going down and 2. not presenting a clear target for a clean kill shot. After three and a half hours of trailing and stalking this animal I will confess that I was not saddened by the loss of shooting light. I would also like to interject right here that someone needs to explain to Texans exactly what “pasture” land is! I have never had my clothes ripped off in a pasture in Alabama! Everything in this pasture wanted to stick me, cut me or tear my flesh from my bones! We finally followed the ram to the mouth of a blind draw where Hal suggested we leave him alone to bed down for the night. I tried not to agree too enthusiastically. Back at the lodge, Scott was beside himself. We all know the feeling of going to bed with a wounded animal out there. I tried to console him as I picked thousands of tiny cactus spines out of my shins, that his ram would be right where we left him, cold and stiff in the morning. Well, guess I gotta get used to being wrong!

The next morning was cold with a fog rising from the ground. I am amazed at how much this place looks like South Africa. We found Scott’s ram. He was alive and well and running with all his buddies! The only thing cold and stiff about him was his front leg. Two hours later, Scott scored on a classic quartering away shot and had a gorgeous Corsican ram on the ground.

When we first entered the pasture I had seen a big Corsican hanging out with a really big Black Hawaiian but as they were up in the rocks and we were in a hurry to find Scott’s Ram we didn’t try for them. I did make a mental note of their location and when Scott had scored we went back to find them. They were no longer in the rocks but as we got closer we noticed them in the thick brush near the road. I moved off the track about 50 yards and had a good angle. The big Corsican was quartering to me. I set up the shooting sticks, braced my Browning A-Bolt .270 and put the cross-hairs on his front left shoulder. I squeezed the trigger and sent a 130 grain trophy bonded 140 yards and almost completely through him lengthwise. He bowed up, then he staggered but he didn’t fall! I kept the scope on him for what seemed like an eternity, but he just would not go down. I squeezed off another round and he hit the dirt. Man was I relieved, I was not up to another two hours of tracking through Hell’s back yard!

We were now off to the high fence area for Tom to check out the selection. He took a tall horned Axis Deer, a Scimitar Horned Oryx and a beautifully palmated Fallow Deer. This was done in about four and a half hours. Each shot was over 200 yards and each animal dropped within 20 yards of where it was shot with a single round. Tom was vindicated!
Though Tom had spent a substantial chunk of change, he took us all out to eat that evening as he was driving to Vegas the following morning to “get rid of the rest of it” . He had a total of six deer, two rams and an Oryx that Bluff Creek Ranch was going to ship to him in California. He had never eaten Oryx before and wasn’t sure if he would like it so he asked if I wanted the meat ... Silly, silly boy!

Scott and I went to the processing house after dinner and helped Hal skin and dress everything. Though this is something that is provided by Bluff Creek Ranch, we didn’t think it fair that Hal stay up half the night alone. This was a lot of fun as well. Hal showed us both tricks of the trade and taught us the proper way to cape an animal for the taxidermist. We were done in no time and I don’t think I moved when I hit the bed. I didn’t even remove my cactus spines until morning!

I had planned on taking a red deer doe as my second animal, Scott wanted to try for a nice black horned Corsican he had seen the day prior. On the way to see if we could find him, Hal hit the brakes. “There’s one of them Ibexes!” About two hundred yards away was a beautiful black and white Texas Ibex. Now this is no Gobi or Altai but he was enough to make me forget my red deer! I crawled up on a ridge (after informing my son if he videoed me crawling I would kill him next) and took aim. He was quartering away and when the bullet hit him he pitched over backward and didn’t move again. Just for a brief instant, I was George!

We later located Scott’s ram. Scott dropped him on the first shot but as we were walking to retrieve him he got up and ran away. I was beginning to dislike hunting sheep. Scott was finally able to anchor him and it only took three hours! We were done ... we thought. The night before a Sika doe had escaped the high fence area and was an insurance liability. Justin Burch, the owner, said we could take her for $75. I handed Scott my Browning and we were off. Now if anyone is interested in the details of that hunt, I’ll be glad to tell you all about it ... but I ain’t puttin’ it in writing! Scott got the deer and we made preparations to leave the next morning. We realized we had way more meat than we had coolers, especially after Hal gave us a Red Deer hind quarter and back strap. No problem. They would not hear of us buying coolers. They gave us two large coolers and with the two we had we brought back over 300 pounds of healthy, low fat game meat. What a bargain!

The folks at Bluff Creek Ranch are top drawer. They could not have been more accommodating. There are hunts available to meet the needs of any hunter whether young, old or handicapped. You can hunt Safari style, spot and stalk or from a blind. I have never seen more whitetail deer anywhere than I did in Mason. They were like seagulls at the beach. The town itself was quaint and beautiful with a multitude of antique stores and shops (so leave the missus home!). The accommodations weren’t 5 star but they were clean and comfortable. We are going back next year and after watching the video, our wives have informed us that they are going too. If you are looking for a fun, affordable getaway this would be hard to beat. Our entire trip including gas, trophy fees, lodging and licenses came to less than a thousand dollars, an it can be done for less! We took 5 animals! Give Bonnie a call at 325347-8808, email her at wildlife@ctesc.net or just write: Bluff Creek Wildlife LLC, P.O. Box 1049, Mason, TX 76856 You can also visit their web site at:
www.bluffcreekwildlife.com.

As an added bonus, while working on the 2004 SCI Banquet and Fundraiser, I met David Holcolmb of Fin and Fur Taxidermy. David is a talented taxidermist. He agreed to do all the trophies we collected in Texas plus an impala I had left over from South Africa and a red fox I had in the freezer for a fantastic price. I have the impala back already and I am thoroughly pleased. If your looking for someone who does quality work at a reasonable price and doesn’t take a lifetime to get it done, call David at 205-647-8650 or e-mail him at mshokey@aol.com. When you spend your spare time working for SCI you always get rewarded!