Publications - OVIS Magazine - WINTER 2011

Mike Adams (LA) – Ovis Winter 2011- Page 18

Mike Adams (LA) gave us these reports on his September 2010 mid-Caucasian tur as well as his October 2010 Alpine ibex. The mid-Caucasian tur was the 12"1 species of sheep that Mike needed to finalize his Ovis World Slam. Here is what Mike had to report:
This past September Mark Hampton, his wife Karen, and I hunted mid-Caucasian tur with ProfiHunt. This hunt was one of the hardest, but most enjoyable, I have taken. Alexey Maximov was my guide/interpreter. The number of large tur seen was impressive. I came very close to shooting a Rex Baker-style tur, but I guess "close" does not count. On the final approach the wind shifted and betrayed us. Eight rams went down the mountain in the timber instead of going high­er, so we followed in their direction. In rough broken terrain we accidentally bumped into them at 20 yards and I pulled a very quick shot. I was so impressed with seeing the big tur that I am seriously considering going back!

Jan Prinsen (Holland)- Ovis Winter 2011- Page 68

GSCO we boast that we have 4,500 members rep­resented by 65 different countries. We now have our first Capra World Slammer from the country of Holland, and his name is Jan Prinsen. Jan reached his Capra World Slam when he took a mid-Caucasian tur in the Kabardino- Balkariya Republic of Russia in September 2010. We have a report from Jan about his hunt but the photo is not print quality, so we will feature some of his other Capra animals along with this report:
On September 1, 2010, my wife and I flew to Moscow, and the next day further to Mineral-nyye-Vody to hunt mid- Caucasian tur in the Republic of Kabardino-Balkariya in the Nalchik region. From Moscow we were accompanied by Alexey Budin of ProfiHunt, whom I had met in 2007 on our Kuban (western) tur hunt.
From the airport we were taken by car to a wonderful hunting cabin in the Chegem Valley at 1,550 meters above sea level. The next day we went б 1/2 hours on horseback to reach our camping and hunting area. We put up our tents in darkness at 2,850 meters. From this camp we went hunting with Kasbek, Kerim and Asian, all Balkars, acting as guides. From our camp we saw each morning a group of about 20 turs; females and lambs, but no big males. In this group was a white one. The Balkars believe these to be "of God," and you may not touch them! In Europe there is a widespread belief that a hunter will die within a year after killing a white animal.
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The hunting we did was between 3,100 and 3,300 meters on rather steep slopes; seldom were they less than 45 degrees and at the end of the week I had lost three kilo’s weight! One day we saw a group of 10 big males, but they were running at 297 meters, according to my rangefinder As I do lots of driven boar hunting, my experience told me that shooting at these turs would be somewhat overoptimistic, so 1 did not even bother to raise my rifle.
We also had a nice stalk towards a sleeping tur, but I  missed my shot from 390 meters, probably because of the strong wind. So I have not been able to take a big mid- Caucasian tur, but will have to be content with a smalerl trophy taken at 3,200 meters altitude.
It is most interesting that Jan has all four of the very difficult-to-obtain Caucasus Mountain trophies: all three turs and the Caucasian chamois. We are also pleased that he has Capra trophies from four continents (New Zealand, Europe and North America).

Corky Ullom(GA) - Ovis Winter 2011- Page 69

We mentioned in the Fall 2010 issue that Corky Ullom (GA) only needed one more animal to reach a Capra World Slam as well as the Triple Slam. Corky did just that this past November, when he took a Kuban (Western) tur. We'll let Corky take it from here: On November 5, 2010, at approximately 2 p.m. Caucasus Mountain time, I completed my Triple Slam. It all started back at 'he last GSCO convention. 1 decided to bid on the Kuban Western) tur hunt donated by ProflHunt. I had hunted with them in August 2009 and was successful in taking a fine mid-Caucasian tur. I was successful as the high bidder, and on November 1, 2010 '.found myself on a flight to Moscow. As I made my way across the Atlantic, I thought back to my good fortune of being the first win­ner of the 3/4 Slam drawing. It was the last hunt I would take with my father before he passed away; truly, that hunt provided great memories that will remain vivid in my mind until I take my last -reath. I had no idea that it would signal the beginning of a long journey around the world hunting sheep 2nd goats in the far corners of many countries. That hunt, and the Grand Slam, made up the first leg of my Triple
Slam.  My guide for the hunt was the ever- liable Alexey Maximov. He is a fine young man who is probably the most knowledgeable professional hunter around  when it comes to tur hunting. He as with me on my fantastic mid- Caucasian tur hunt and I would probably not have booked this Kuban tur hunt ' he had not been available. This hunt would finish my Triple Slam with what I affectionately call the "Caucasus fountain Grand Slam, " which is made of the Dagestan tur, mid-Caucasian tur, Kuban tur,, and Caucasian chamois. Quite honestly, I believe it is the most i:tficult Slam to complete. It is truly a hunter's hunt because 1) You must be in good physical shape to climb the steep Caucasus Mountains to altitudes that in exceed 12,000 feet; 2) You must be to shoot accurately out to long distances; and 3) You must have. control of your nerves to successfully navigate sometimes difficult terrain. This is probably why fewer than 20 hunters have ever completed this Slam. I was bound and determined to be one of those few to accomplish this task.
Upon my arrival in Moscow late morning of November 2, I was met  by the ever-smiling Alexey. After processing my firearms, visa and various paperwork, we changed airports and caught a commuter  jet flight to Mineral 'nyye Vody, a favorite vacation spot in in south of Russia known for its spas and mineral baths. After the
2 ½ hour flight we met our local government guide, Ivan Yufkin, who transported us in his trusty Russian jeep to the town of Cherkessk, in the province of Karachayevo-Cherkesiya. Suffering from jet lag, we had a good meal in a local restaurant and retired For the evening. On November 3 we arose quite early and continued our travels for another two hours by jeep to our base camp, where I met our local guide Aliy Kochkarov, and our cook Vladimir Schevchuk. The base camp was a standard concrete
building with cots and a stove for cooking and heating. After handshakes and introductions all around, we repacked our gear, leavving unnecessary items behind, and pack them on four fine ' horses for our 2 1/2-hour trip into a specific canyon that had seen only one hunter in three years.
As we mounted our horses, I could not help but smile about our two guides Aliy and Ivan. As usual, they were slim, long-legged mountain men who could race up a mountain like a tur. Both of them were hardened by their life in the mountains. It was a great team I felt was going to give me a distinct advantage when hunt­ing these magnificent animals.
November 4 found us scouting the mountain range from our spike camp all the way out to the glacier that ominously hovered over the canyon at its very end. The goal was to pattern the move­ments of six turs we had spotted through my Swarovski spotting scope. After six hours of glassing and moving back and forth up and down the canyon, we were confident the turs bedded down in mid-afternoon on a sheer cliff covered in heavy snow. They stayed there all night and around mid-morning would work their way over the ridgeline to a large bowl where the females could congre­gate. They would then battle each other for the favor of the females and spend the next 4-5 hours mating. Finally, around 2-3 p.m. they would retire to the same cliffs they had left earlier that morning.
The next morning, as we made our way up the mountain through a large pine timber, Alexey asked if I could make a 500-yard shot. After a few sec­onds reflecting on my shooting range, I said yes. Alexey went on to explain that though I should have a clear shot at one of the big turs, I would be shooting across a canyon.
As we exited the timber we worked our way up the backside of the adjoin­ing mountain through steep terrain and boulders. My lungs were burning, and the slippery snow made going tough in spots. Finally after about three hours we found ourselves nestled into a tremendous vantage point for shooting at an elevation of between 10-11,000 feet.
Like clockwork at about 2:30p.m., four oj the six turs came over the top of the mountain to my left. The biggest one was standing in the snow facing to the right. I ranged him at an even 630 yards! I've never taken a shot on an animal that far, but I knew I had no choice but to let one fly. I handed my Leica bino/range finder to Alexey so he could call out the distance if the big guy did not go down. I set the third bar of my Swarovski scope just below the big turs spine and squeezed the trigger. The 300 Ultra Mag roared and soon after I heard the distinctive whack of a hit. It was over, and my Triple Slam was complete!
My ram was a 300-lb. brute that we put at 11 1/2 years old. His horns were long and heavy, and his coat was thick and dark, a beautiful ram who ruled these mountains. This will go down as one of the toughest and most memorable hunts of my life.
Congratulations, Corky, for this tremendous accomplishment

Mark Hampton (MO) - Ovis Winter 2011- Page 74

Mike Adams and I enjoyed a successful trip organized by ProfiHunt. Taking this mid-Caucasian tur fulfilled several goals: 1) It completed my Ovis World Slam; 2) It also completed my Triple Slam; 3) 1 have now taken all three tur and the Caucasian chamois from this incredible mountain range. It was a tough hunt, but a great experience.