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Marco Polo (Tajikistan) “Round Two”
I have often said that if I could only hunt one Sheep specie, without a doubt Marco Polo would be my personal choice. Factor in the Pristine Wilderness regions at the Top of the World that very few modern day man will ever encounter combined with their Majestic appearance not to mention the potential for 60” plus length Horns & you have one of the most sought after trophies in Wild Sheep hunting today. On an average Marco Polo hunt it is common to see 50-200 Rams per day!
Presently Kirgizia & Tajikistan are the only countries that allow Americans to hunt these Rams. In 2001 4 of us traveled to the Tian-Shan Mtns of Kirgizia & I was fortunate enough to score on a World Class Ram with an extremely long plush mane & Massive 56” deep curling Horns. I was officially hooked on International Sheep hunting at that point & have put together dozens of International Sheep hunts of all specie since then. It has always been my philosophy to only promote hunts that I have personally been on. There is nothing more valuable than first hand experience. To date 100% of my Clients have taken their Rams.
In 2005 & 2006, The USFWS refused import permits for any Argali Specie from Kirgizia since they have not followed thru with their game census. Makes little to no sense to me?? Why would a country that could easily export 60 Plus Rams at well over 20,000.00 each not follow thru with such a simple request? Anyone that has ever been to Kirgizia knows how badly they could use the boost to their economy. (Never will understand Politics)!!
With Kirgizia out of the picture most have no choice but to turn to Tajikistan. Over all fairly similar, however there is a realistic chance at a larger average Ram in Tajik. Prices seem to be fairly close. .
Some of the main differences I encountered between the 2 countries; Tajik base camps avg 12,000 ft plus, & daily hunting can approach 14,000-16,000 ft. This is 2000-3000 ft higher than Kirgizia. The higher altitude limits the use of Horses (Primarily 4wd Vehicles are used) Once a band of Rams are spotted, Spotting scopes determine if there is a worthy trophy at which point a stalk is planned. Accommodations are very comfortable in Tajik camps, Toilets, Sauna’s, generators for electricity & good meals.
In Nov of 2005 I took some of my best clients to Tajik for Marco Polo & Ibex. With a wide variety of ages (35-65) & experience. Travel went fine & we met up with my Russian partner/interpreter Nikolai in Bishkek. After a short flight to Osh the group of 6 hunters traveled 10 hours by vehicle to camp. Crossing some divides & passes in deep blowing snow well over 14,000 ft. After sighting in rifles, 3 of us traveled another 3 hours to a remote spike camp. Not as plush as the main camp but still very comfortable.
Upon arrival to our spike camp, we paired off with our guides & went out hunting. My 2 partners both took Rams on the first afternoon. Chris Klar of Madison WI. . Took the whopper of the trip with a very old & Massive 56” Stud. That left me as the only hunter left in that spike camp. On day 2 we spotted a band of Rams, Out of this band there were 3 Trophies I would crawl on glass for. 61”, 63”&, 64” Rams any of which I would be proud to display in my Trophy Room. Never before in my life have I had anything kick my butt on a daily basis as much as those Rams. There were several times we got near the 500 Yd mark but there was always something that prevented a clean shot. I will also admit that my cardio was not as it should have been & I was not taking enough Diamox. It was extremely difficult for me to return to the U.S. without a Ram on that hunt, but I knew my permit was good thru April of 2006. All I had to do was free up a window of time in March in between my 20 sport shows that I attend to return. All 5 clients took dandy Rams on that hunt, & if I had not been so Hell bent on a 60” Ram I could have been successful as well.
All I could dream about were those Awesome Rams that I left on the Mtn Tops in Tajik. Lucky for me I was able to free up some time in March & one of my best clients Neal Ainsworth was able to join me for my rematch. Once again Nikolai joined up with us in Bishkek & we made the journey to Base Camp at 14,000 ft. The weather did appear to be warmer but the snow was much deeper & drifted across the roads in many places. Timing was good for us; many were turned back the previous week due to the road conditions. Neal & I went to the same spike camp I had been to in Nov. I had my same guides (Alex & Sali) as we had formed a tight friendship from last Nov.
The first morning we drove to an area where they had observed Rams feeding over the last few days; we saw over 150 Rams that first day but never got within range. On our walk back towards the jeep we spotted 75 Ibex. We were far enough away not to disturb the Rams so the stalk was on. At the closing moments of day light I had scratched & clawed my exhausted body to within 350 yds of the feeding Ibex. As I prepared for the shot the wind swirled & there were Ibex running everywhere. It was fairly easy to pick out the 45” wide Billy I had my eye on. Some luck shined my way when all 3 rounds from my 300 Mag put the Old Billy Down for good. These are some extremely tough animals to put down!! Ibex had eluded me on all my previous International Sheep Hunts so I was happy to have that guy down.
The second morning dawned crisp, clear & cold. We returned to the general area as the day before & Sali was confident that if we climbed this small 15,500 ft Mtn we would be above the Rams we were after. The good news was my extensive cardio training & proper Diamox dosage was paying off big time. I actually felt pretty good & we topped that Mtn in record time. Just as Sali had predicted, 15 Rams feed 750 Yds below us. I filmed the rams for approx 30 minutes as they slowly feed closer. Conditions were perfect.
No wind, a perfect solid rest, & they had no idea we were there. I had plenty of time to get my Heart rate down & when the Leica Range Finder read 638 Yds I prepared myself for the shot. According to the
Co-sign elevation gauge on the side of my VX-111 was in reality approx 550 Yds. I knew my Magnum Research 300 Win Mag with the Carbon Barrel was dialed in so the rest was up to me. Nikolai & the 2 guides watched thru my Lieca optics as I put the bottom cross hair of the Boone & Crocket reticule on the shoulder of the largest Ram. I do not even remember putting pressure on the trigger but before I could chamber another round the boys were jumping up & down & slapping me on the back. Honestly I do not think I could do that twice, the 180 grain Nosler was perfectly placed thru the lungs.
We were able to drag the entire Ram down the Mtn very near to where we could drive the 4wd van. What a great feeling, Ibex on day #1, Marco Polo on day #2. After we returned to camp we found out that Neal had also shot his 56” Ram at the same time I did many miles away. Now we could return early & I would not miss the MN/WI FNAWS fundraiser. One of the best in the nation!
To say Sheep hunting has become a passion of mine would be a severe understatement . I have often wondered if I should Curse Dennis Campbell or thank him. One thing is for sure, Sheep hunting has kept me healthy & young, not to mention all the wonderful people I have meet along the way!
The future of Marco Polo hunting has me very concerned. There is no room for Corruption & there is already far too much politics for my comfort zone. Someone needs to explain to me why there are only 60 USFWS Import permits for the entire country of Tajikistan?? I have personally spent over 40 days in the Mtns where Marco Polo live, there has never been a day where I saw less than 50 rams, most days 100-200 Rams per person per day. That is more rams than anyone will ever see on any other hunt anywhere. Yet they are on the threatened list??? Yet Canadians, Europeans, and Mexicans in fact anyone but Americans can hunt these rams each year & even take more than one Ram?? Still trying to figure out why being an American should be a penalty? In 2006, approx 90 people applied for the 60 Import Permits, Something needs to be done to put all hunters on an even playing field.
Anyone that is serious about a Marco Polo Hunt should get after it now. I predict the prices to sky rocket in the next few years as permits become tougher to acquire. Nov/Dec of 2007 I have set aside 16 permits for those that would prefer a personal escort, As I will be personally going back for yet another attempt to get some oxygen out of that Cool Crisp Air. Some of us see different a kind of Sheep when we close our eyes at night.
Al`s Worldwide Adventures "Al Kuntz"
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