Hi All! I managed to beat the steep 50% odds and drew a Kaiparowits East desert sheep tag for this fall, with max points (four max point applicants, with two tags issued). I REALLY want to hunt this DIY with my wife. It is our third desert sheep tag since 2022, the last two being in Arizona. I still am in shock over that! To be clear, my goal is NOT to take the biggest ram on the unit. It is to experience a memorable hunt with Christy and hunt for a mature ram.
As I understand it, there are basically two ways to hunt this tag, on the rim with a UTV or on Lake Powell in a boat. Lake Powell is one of my favorite places on the planet. A hunt on the lake sounds amazing, but the sheer logistics are concerning me, since it would be just my wife and I. It looks like we'd need to be 40 to 50 miles up the lake to hit the productive arms, which adds a lot to the logistics of a lake hunt (boat, carrying extra fuel, hauling a camp up the lake, etc.) I don't think an extended tent camp would be a fun trip for my wife. A daily 80 to 100 mile round trip on water doesn't sound like a good plan. A houseboat sounds cool, and solves several of the logistics issues, until I read they recommend being no more than 25 miles up the lake. What I am leaning to is staying in Big Water and make day hunts hunts on the rim in a UTV. The down side here is I've heard that a lot of sheep may be concentrated on the lake with the dry conditions and unless the sheep are up on the rim they can be difficult to access.
If any of you have experience on this hunt, your advice is very welcome, especially in sorting out the decision to hunt on the lake (boat) or on the rim (UTV).
As I understand it, there are basically two ways to hunt this tag, on the rim with a UTV or on Lake Powell in a boat. Lake Powell is one of my favorite places on the planet. A hunt on the lake sounds amazing, but the sheer logistics are concerning me, since it would be just my wife and I. It looks like we'd need to be 40 to 50 miles up the lake to hit the productive arms, which adds a lot to the logistics of a lake hunt (boat, carrying extra fuel, hauling a camp up the lake, etc.) I don't think an extended tent camp would be a fun trip for my wife. A daily 80 to 100 mile round trip on water doesn't sound like a good plan. A houseboat sounds cool, and solves several of the logistics issues, until I read they recommend being no more than 25 miles up the lake. What I am leaning to is staying in Big Water and make day hunts hunts on the rim in a UTV. The down side here is I've heard that a lot of sheep may be concentrated on the lake with the dry conditions and unless the sheep are up on the rim they can be difficult to access.
If any of you have experience on this hunt, your advice is very welcome, especially in sorting out the decision to hunt on the lake (boat) or on the rim (UTV).
