Colorado Luckydog

Exercise is good. Getting to your camp a couple of days early and spending some time before the hunt at altitude will help you get acclimated. A couple of of hiking or "scouting" trips before the actual hunt, will help a ton.

npaden

Lose some weight. Work out. Alot easier said than done though. It takes committment, not just talking about it on an internet forum.

Change things up so you don't get stuck in a boring routine, I'm doing workouts using the Kinect on Xbox360, spending time on the elliptical in hillclimb mode while I watch a hunting show, and jogging when I get a chance. I would say that when you are able to run a half marathon in 2 hours you are getting close to "sheep shape".

You need to mix in plenty of hills and burst though, not just steady running.

Sheridan

Simulate your hunt.

Get dressed with your boots, put on your pack (filled to the weight you expect to carry) and find the biggest hills (not the street) and go get'em.

You'll know in short order how much more work you need to put in, & it will never be enough !


Good luck, have fun & be safe !!!

Colorado Bob

Just a little different angle. I've been on 4 sheep hunts and 1 mtn goat hunt. All were here in Colorado. 2 of the sheep hunts I played sherpa & the other 2-- I was the hunter. The goat hunt I was the hunter. I would camp @ 11,000" & then climb @ 2000"--2500'---to get to where the sheep were. but once I was there, I stayed there all day. When I moved it would be on the same plane of the mtn. I would spend more time glassing than climbing. Finding the sheep is the key, then make your climb/stalk. On my ram I watched them for 3 days in the same basin. The season started the day after Labor Day. I packed in on Saturday, found the rams on Saturday, watch the Saturday nite, Sunday & all day on Labor Day. Tuesday I hiked up, got above them, had the ram down @ 9AM. He was a 7/8 curl. Mtn goat was a jst about a replay. Found them in the early AM----climbed and had the shot @ 2:30 PM.


My wife's sheep hunt was a replay. My 1st sheep hunt was near Aspen. My buddy & hiked all day. We booggered the rams & didn't see them again. Mistake made was we hunted with our legs instead of our eyes.

Get in shape----but it's more important to have good glass & know how to use it. Eye strain is bad. Try looking with your binco's in advance---get your eyes in shape also. An eye strain headache is murder up there.

I use a stair climber rather than running. I think it's more important to have strong quads & hamstrings----than being able to run 5 minute miles.

Using your backpack loaded & hiking up & down the football bleachers is also good.

Hopefully, I get another tag this fall. I've got 3 points plus 4 weighted points here in Colorado---so I've got a chance. Good luck--CB

DesertShadow

From a nevada hunt in October last season.

I'm not sure about your region but I would practice in the terrain you plan to hunt in and have about the amount of weight as you plan to packout when you take the sheep... Our area was loose shale and I'm 26. I was about ready to die packing out 80lbs of meat with my 40 year old counterpart. Average hiking per day was around 10-15 miles mostly vertical climb on poor footing.

Poor Man

Id say a good way is to cross country ski at elevation and when the snow melts then start hicking a lot at high elevation. Kill two birds with one stone scout and get into shape all summer long. Keep doing what you are doing but this summer get up above timberline alot and do what you will be doing on that sheep hunt hike like crazy with a big pack. Practice with more weight then normal so when you do go it will be easy. Good luck and happy hunting

nsdemit

i will look into this.

i'll be coming from 900 ft elevtion to 9,000 plus ft. i want to prepare my body for the starin as best i can ahead of time. i'm going to arrive 3 days early and do some light hiking i think. to start to build up my bloods oxygen carrying capacity.

i want to avoid strength training so i don't bulk up. i want lean muscle. i was all pumped up before i went dall sheep hunting once and it whooped my butt for the first 4 days. after that it wasn't bad, but i pushed so hard i didn't have much left.

i do construction work, so i stay pretty lean. but i stand in place and use a shovel or lift heavy objects, that does nothing for my ability to make it cross country.

i like the idea about the bootcamp program. since i live in eastern kansas, i have no hills to hike. i have a treadmill, but i might get a gym membership to do the stair climber.

thanks for the ideas guys

Valentine

How did I ever get this old?

I exercise and I reduced my food and sweet water intake by the decade, in the front end loaders they give you to eat with.