One Heck Of A Ride

78 The Texas Exotics Weight 100-125 pounds (45-57 kg). A breed, or breeds, of short-tailed, woolly domestic sheep in which the male normally has four horns, though occasionally as many as five or six. The two upper horns are larger and can grow in almost any direction; the two lower horns are smaller and are usually mouflon-shaped. A great variety of horn configurations can occur, even in the same flock. Females on Texas game ranches are hornless, but those in other parts of the world may grow short, mouflon-shaped horns. Multi-horned sheep come in a variety of colors, including shades of black, brown, gray and white, and many individuals are piebald (spotted or blotched).” My guides for the red sheep were Ken Tyner and L.L. Graham, and the hunt ended the first morning with my shooting a silver medal ram. I was surprised to see an animal that probably weighed only 120-130 pounds wearing 26-inch horns. My ram mostly was a tan color, and not red, with white underparts. After breakfast the next morning, I met David Lee, the guy Thomson Temple had assigned to guide me, and we drove to a ranch that had multi- horned sheep. After meeting the rancher, David and I drove around and eventually found a ram he recommended I shoot, which I did. I also shot what exotic hunters call a “Texas Dall sheep,” a white, short-haired hybrid created by cross-breeding Corsican and mouflon sheep on the YO Ranch. The horns on the one I shot looked more like those on an argali than a Dall sheep. I shot it for someone who knew I would be hunting in Texas who had called me in Lompoc and asked if I would shoot one for him. He needed a cape to replace the lost cape of a Texas Dall his daughter had taken. I had flown to Texas expecting to have fun and find more great people to share another adventure with me, and I wasn’t disappointed. I enjoy getting away from work and meeting new people. Every day I spend in that great state is special. A Hog Deer From Pakistan My last hunt for an exotic took place in September 1996, when Marty and I flew to San Antonio and met Ken Wilson, owner of Sportsman’s Hunting Adventures, to hunt a hog deer, a hundred pound deer from Pakistan. Their antlers typically have two tines per side on their forked main beams. Ken was our guide, and he had built a ground blind on a ranch in Kerr County where he was seeing a buck with good antlers. Ken and I sat in that blind for two days and saw a number of hog deer within easy shooting range, but not one wore an antler. When we talked with the rancher, we learned we’d been looking at skinheads. He assured us the buck still was on his place, but had dropped his antlers earlier than usual. Ken called around and located a ranch that had hog deer whose antlers hadn’t dropped, and we drove there the next day. Ken and Marty built a blind for us, which was a new experience for me. After I shot a buck, Marty and I returned to San Antonio, stayed in a bed and breakfast place owned by a retired dentist and his wife, and visited the Alamo, the city’s River Walk, and did some shopping. We’d had a great time on such a short trip. On our flight home, once again I told myself if I didn’t live where I did, I would move to the Hill Country. I love Texas!