RAM FEVER ! Mouflon of Lanai, Hawaii

Hawaii

Contributors to this thread:

Brian Howell 07-Aug-14

Brian Howell 08-Aug-14

808bowhunter 13-Aug-14

glass eye 21-Aug-14

MeanMachine 28-Aug-14

Brian Howell 17-Sep-15

From: Brian Howell

07-Aug-14

RAM FEVER ! Mouflon of Lana'i, Hawaii

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

George Barton lets one fly ___>>>======>

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

A band of Mouflon rams on the red dirt near Lapaiki Road. The island of Moloka'i appears in the background.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

Glassing for sheep near Morita Trail.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

A 2/3 curl ram taken near Lapaiki Road (mid-low elevation) while hunting with Shadow Man aka Brad Deffenbaugh. Note the free range Rio Grande in the background at Steve's old pad on the corner of Lanai Avenue and Kaumalapau.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

World renown bowhunter Bob Fromme with a nice ram taken near Kahue Road.

In May of 2002 Bob arrowed the new World Record Brown Bear on Kodiak Island!

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

No Shoot! Shoot! Only deformed horned rams were legal during the 2010 state hunt. Awalua Road.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

This mature deformed or nub horn Mu'u mouflon ram was taken near Lapaiki Road during the 2010 Lana'i state hunt. I spooked this ram as I was traversing the wide open red dirt hill shown in the background right of this photo. As he ran away I yelled to try to get him to stop while at the same time I nocked an arrow and hooked my trigger release. My initial yell didn't phase him, so I quickly followed suit with a BLOOD CURDLING SCREAM AT THE TOP OF MY LUNGS !!! He then stopped on a dime, stood broadside, and looked back at me. I guessed that it was about a 50-yard shot at this point (a rangefinder later measured the distance at 48-yards). The arrow flew true out of my new Mathews bow and nailed him square in the heart. It passed completely through and stuck in the soft red dirt directly behind him - totally covered in bright red blood. A little blood was splattered at the hit sight, but oddly there was no blood trail between that spot and where I found him 90 yards away. He bled out internally in a huge way. I've used this screaming technique successfully on spooked running mouflon before, so keep it in your bag of tricks as it can pay off last ditch dividends.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

A young ram taken near Mahana with a perfect 40-yard lung shot during the state hunt back in 1987.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

A Mu'u or deformed horn ram taken at Lapaiki during the 1989 state hunt.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

Two ewes, a Mu'u, and a typical mouflon ram at Awalua.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

Hawaii Fishing News magazine editor Brad Deffenbaugh (aka Shadow Man on Bowsite) with a nice Mu'u horn ram taken at Lapaiki during the 2010 state hunt.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

Packing out a half-curl ram at Lapaiki.

A half curl ram taken between Awalua and Lapaiki Roads.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

The late Pablo Libero, a bowhunting legend on the island of Lana'i.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

A full curl mouflon ram with the horn protruding into an open wound hole in its neck.

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

Hunter's Heaven ~ MAHANA LANA'I

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

I shot this symmetrical 30-inch horn full curl mouflon ram on the opening morning of the 1998 Lanai archery mouflon sheep season held in late July. I was hunting east of Lapaiki Road at the mid-high elevation, traversing semi-open rocky brush. The ram was less than ten yards away when I saw the top of his horns just over a berm ahead of me. I immediately ducked down low and hurried to nock an arrow. I nearly kissed the dirt to ensure that the ram didn't see any movement as I drew back my bow. Just as I stepped up behind the cover, the ram eased forward putting his ribcage right in the middle of a perfect shooting lane... >>>======> ssshhtooonk! Trust me, it's never this easy! - photo by Robert Basquez

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

Death Valley Days ~ Lapaiki, Lana'i

Lapaiki Mouflon Ram

Death Valley Days ~ Lapaiki, Lana'i

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14

ONE HUNTER'S GARAGE You could say my garage looks like a hunting lodge, a museum, or even a junkyard depending on one's point of view. Sure, I have a few taxidermy heads, a couple pig jaws, some axis deer antlers, and a bunch of Spanish goat racks. There are several full-curl skeleton ram horns that I've picked up while hunting over the years. Varnished and mounted high on wooden blocks, together they look like the mother lode of Mouflon; regal kings whose stories will go untold by the sorry hunters who lost such beautiful animals.

Rusted metal objects are treasures to me. Old ranch ironworks, tools, horseshoes, stirrups, bridles, and spurs stand in stark contrast to the white drywall. Railroad spikes, cowbells, and bale claws run the gamut from my forages afield.

My pride and joy are two small cluster bombs I found while sheep hunting on the island of Lanai. A red dirt strip of land that warplanes used to strafe for target practice during WWII is littered with steel shrapnel remnants. I discovered the first unbroken relic as I was sneeking up a silt ditch, and ten years later I saw the intact tail fins jutting out from the clay earth. Evidently neither bomb detonated upon ground impact, and years of rain water has washed away the explosive material from their center cores. Regardless, I wouldn't want to be in my shoes the next time I find one and try to explain that to TSA airport security!

From: Brian Howell

08-Aug-14