One day it occurred to me that I truly believed that I would never draw a bighorn sheep tag.  This epiphany hit me about an hour after I had found out I had drawn a desert sheep tag in my home state of Arizona!  I did not have an internal acceptance speech prepared, so I wasn't quite sure how to feel let alone handle the sudden attention from other sportsmen. 

The most prevalent feeling in the next 24 hours was one of guilt.  Most all of the huntable sheep population in Arizona is a result of sheep relocation efforts.  Hundreds of dedicated sportsmen and biologist have spent the last 50 years trenching out water holes, building concrete dams miles from the nearest road, or risking life and limb capturing and relocating sheep.  Many of these unsung heroes have never drawn a tag, some have passed on without ever receiving a permit with their name on it.  It did not seem fair, but it was reality.  So I began the physical and mental preparations for my first bighorn sheep hunt.

The first order of business was to put my entire hunting season into perspective.  You see, for the first time in my life I had the burden of "too many tags".  This sheep tag was the ninth big game tag I had drawn for 2005 and, to make matters more difficult, it was the last one I found out about.  I had a full hunting season planned even before I drew the sheep tag!  My dilemma did not draw much sympathy from my buddies and I doubt that many of you feel a great deal of pity, but I had some hard decisions to make.  After much crunching and mashing, I managed to squeeze all of my editorial deadlines and hunting seasons onto the pages of my Day Timer.  Some tags got "burned" in the process but…

It may have struck you as odd earlier when I mentioned "mental preparation."  Drawing a once in a lifetime tag can carry with it an immense amount of pressure to perform, much of which is self inflicted.  After decades of bonus points I had drawn this "once in a lifetime tag" that at times felt like a "once in a lifetime chance at failure."  Fortunately, I have had the opportunity to be a part of many sheep hunts over the last few years with some of the finest sportsmen alive, so I was able to lean on their example and wisdom for counsel.  I dedicated myself to one goal: have fun every day of my scouting and hunting.  I knew that if I could accomplish this one simple goal I would always be able to look back on this hunt without regret.  My hunt unit was only an hour's drive from my home so I had the good fortune to see my family every night, sleep in my own bed, and take a day off if need be.