We met Justin Jarrett of Wapiti Ridge Outfitters in February of 2007 at the Western Hunting and Conservation Exop in Salt Lake City.  The conversation naturally started with big game hunting and all the trophy hunting packages Wapity Ridge Outfitters offers.  The talk turned to fishing as I thumbed through the photo albums.  “J.J.” had out to view.  I asked about the summer pack trips they offered and the next thing we knew, we had a trip booked for the beginning of August.

We do several trips throughout the various seasons and I asked J.J. “what sets your trips apart from all the rest?”  He assured me that we would have a great time aboard experienced mountain horses in some of the most beautiful country in God’s Creation. “Everybody catches fish on this trip” he claimed and “nobody has ever left our table hungry.”  “We will ride beautiful mountain trails, see lots of game and all of this at a leisurely summer pace.”  The date was set and I couldn’t wait to get in the saddle and see if it was all he boasted about.

We flew into Cody Regional Airport August 8th and were greeted by J.J. and his wife Amanda.  Having just come off of a few days rest following their last Thorofare River Pack trip, they were eager to get back to the mountains as we were.  J.J. explained that the Beartooth camp was already set and all we were to do was meet in the morning and hit the road.  As I settled down for the evening, I couldn’t help but wonder what makes people like the Jarrett’s love what they do so much?  I was more than eager to find out in the morning.

Justin met us at the historic Irma Hotel “Buffalo Bill’s Hotel in the Rockies” for breakfast in the morning and we departed on the adventure I had been so eagerly awaiting.  One hour and forth-five minutes later, we pulled into the trail head and were greeded by Mr. Mike, Wapiti Ridge’s “right hand man” and full time guide.  We couldn’t help but buzz over the drive we had just taken over Dead Indian Pass and all the history and tremendous natural beauty of the Beartooth Plateau.  With a wry smile, Mr. Mike exclaimed “you ain’t seen nothin’ yet!”  As the dozen or so horses were saddled and packed with all the provisions we would need for the week, I marveled at the organization and skill it took to put such a trip together.  These guys love their business and they do it well.  In less than two hours in the saddle, we passed four high mountain lakes over flowing with brook trout and some of the most amazing scenery imaginable.  As we pulled into camp, I could see a comfortable wall tent for cooking and dining, with smoke already drifting lazily into the high mountain air.  Several sleeping tents spread out among the trees lining a beautiful meadow.  A lake was less than 100 yards behind camp.  While our hosts unpacked and unsaddled the horses, I along with the other guests in camp, got to know each other and our camp cook for the week, Bernice.  She offered us hot soup she had been preparing in expectation of our arrival.

With the horses taken care of, our gear stowed and a full belly, I was eager to get some fishing in before dark.  Mike grabbed me and a few of the other guests and brought us only a few yards behind camp to Stockade Lake, where we were into fish right off the bat.  With a 10,000 foot elevation, these fish have a short season to get their fill before the ice sets in, and they are hungry!  We coundn’t believe the amount of georgous brook trout we caught.

That evening around the campfire, we all expressed our excitement to J.J. and Mr. Mike about all we had seen and done in just the first day.  Our head guide again said with that familiar wry smile “you ain’t seen nothin yet.”

He was right.  Over the next week, we explored several high alpine lakes on beautifully scenic trails.  We fished three different mountain streams, all busting at the shores with voracious brook trout.  We saw a majestic mountain goat, several heards of elk and even a cow moose, with her curious young calf.  We ate like kings in a ranch style atmosphere, with outstanding beef steaks cooked over an open fire, fresh bread and desserts baked daily and of course, ’smores around the campfire in the eveings for the kids, (Okay, maybe one or two for the expert fishermen in the group).

Every evening around the fire we would talk about the upcoming climax to the excursion, the tough horseback ride and hike down to Deep Lake.  Not for the faint of heart, but at the end of this challenging jouney was maybe the most spectacular, untouched high mountain lake I have ever been witness too.  We spent several hours that day coaxing in one or two pound brookies.  This lake is almost never disturbed by humans and I have rearely had the opportunity to be challenged by brook trout that large.  Throw in a bunch of three pound cutthroats and it is hard to think of a day fishing that could top this one!

Safely back at camp and tomorrow was our pack-out day, I laid awake, now understanding why these guys love what they do.  Just take a look at their office!  The next morning while we were packing and starting for home, I told Mr. Mike “As good as this fishing trip was, I can’t wait to get out here to hunt with you guys”.  A small giggle, that same wry smile and “you ain’t seen nothin’ yet”  was all he said.

Justin and Amanda Jarrett, along with their three young boys, own and operate Wapiti Ridge Outfitters out of Cody, WY.  They are a full service hunting and fishing outfitter.  With several different summer trips available in two different wilderness areas, they can custom deliver the trip you need.  Families or serious fly fisherman or any combination in between.  Wapiti Ridge Outfitters delivers.  Give Justin or Amanda a call.

By  “Sportsman’s News” staff

Leonard Reeves (#931,PA) went along on his son Patrick Reeves’s (PA), Wyoming bighorn hunt and submitted the following report:

“Two surgically repaired knees and the ravages of accompanying arthritis ended my sheep hunting several years ago.  However, when my son Patrick drew a 2006 Wyoming bighorn tag for area 5, I decided that I had enough left to at least give kibitzing a try.  Patrick agreed that accompanying him on the hunt would be fun for both of us.

I hunted the same area in 1999 with wonderful results,  I booked my hunt with Dean Johnson Outfitting, who proved themselves superb in their trade.  Naturally, I recommended them to Patrick, who contacted Dean Johnson.  Dean advised him that, although he was still doing some guiding he had sold his outfit to Justin Jarrett who, until the time of the sale, had been one of his elk and mule deer guides.  Justin now trades as Wapiti Ridge Outfitters.  In his typically enthusiastic manner, Dean extolled the sheep guiding prowess of a young guide working for Wapiti Ridge by the name of Chris Nielson.  “He really knows how to locate a good Bighorn,”  he said. Dean was prophetic.

We were scheduled to arrive in Cody on September 10, to begin hunting on the 11th, but became somewhat disillusioned when in mid-August we began receiving word of fires burning across area 5. We spoke to many locals about the status of the fires, including members of the game and fish commission who were offering guaranteed postponements until 2007.  In other words, if a successful applicant wished to decline hunting in 2006 due to the burning he would be assured of a license for the following year.  Patrick was undecided until he spoke to Chris Nielson who discussed having gone into the area on a scouting mission just days earlier.  Chris concluded, with the confidence that became his trademark, “Come hunting and we’ll be fine.”  We did and we were.

Justin and Chris met us in Cody and took us to a spot where we erected a really comfortable tent camp from whence the hunt would begin.  The horses were already corralled and were enjoying the grass even though it was stiff and brown from the summer’s drought.  The fires by this time were for the most part burned out, although we did observe some residual smoke to the north.

On the first day the weather was hot and dry which encouraged the sheep to spend the midday in the timber, making spotting difficult at best.  Lots of rams were located, but only in the early morning and late evening.  One late afternoon ram proved “interesting” according to Chris, but was too far away for a stalk.  “It would be dark before we could get there,” he advised.  Day two proved to be the same.  I enjoyed the shade of some evergreens while the others scaled the heights and scanned the timber for a flash of horns or a rump. The interesting ram showed up again, but again too close to dark.  The third day’s hunt was in a different locale with altitudes over 12,000 feet, but with temperatures still in the high 80’s.  Rams were spotted, but none creating much excitement.  The next day was a return to Mr. Interesting’s digs, but with more of the same from a weather standpoint.  It was almost totally dark when he showed that he was still there, not exactly in the same place, but close enough for optimism.  The late night ride home on Wapiti Ridge’s very special horses grew chilly and the first cool air we enjoyed prompted Justin to remark that things would be different tomorrow.

Plans were made at dinner for a much earlier start so that arrival in the area would be at daybreak.  As per Chris’s plan, the ram was centered in the spotting scope before sunrise.  He was the one.  Should Patrick take the shot from where they were?  It was about 500 yards and Patrick was much more than capable of making the shot, but he decided out of respect for the animal that they should try to get closer, but still rather long shot.  The guide and hunter were quiet and stayed low as they worked the escarpments and ledges before settling into position.  It was 350 yards to the ram, who had not moved.  The shot was perfect and the interesting one tumbled more than 1500 feet to a point in a dry stream bed.  There was concern as to the condition of the horns, but there was nary a chip.  After the compulsory hero shots, field dressing and packing, arrival at camp was shortly after 2 p.m.  the balance of the day was given to celebration and praise to God.  The ram was dead.  The ram was dead.  Long live the ram – and he shall be in our minds ‘ eyes and on Patrick’s wall.

Not enough positive things can be said about Chris and Justin.  After breaking camp we contacted Dean Johnson and invited him to a late breakfast the next day.  Chris was about a half hour late, but showed up with a beautiful framed photo of Patrick and his ram.  What a nice touch it was.  They were quick to congratulate even Old Dad “for bringing the best-prepared hunter” they had guided.  He was in sheep shape and showed that he had practiced with his .270 WSM.  I had teasingly ordered them to get him a nice ram, but one that was smaller than mine.  They followed this instruction, but cut it perilously close.

Leonard Reeves,  PA

Justin Jarrett’s Wapiti Ridge Outfitters

“Having been on four sheep hunts and two excellent trips to Africa plus nine other western states hunts, I can say this hunt with Justin Jarrett of Wapiti Ridge Outfitters was the best of the fifteen hunts I had. It was a long and scenic ride into camp on trails with sheer drop-offs of hundreds of feet. Upon arriving at camp the operation showed that it had all good equipment, tents, etc. The horses all appeared to be fine and healthy. After settling in we had a fine dinner.(more on that later). The next day, after a pre-dawn breakfast we left our base camp at approximately 9,200 ft. and rode up an additional 1,500 ft. I counted a total of fifteen rams that day, their location made some inaccessible, some were too young and the remainder were of no interest to me. On the second day of the hunt we spotted eleven rams that were different from those we saw the first day. It was determined after a long period of scoping that again there was none that I wanted to shoot. The rams were very young or heavily broomed back. I was looking for a mature animal that still had his lamb tips. After a day of scoping we decided to start back to camp. Even the ride back to camp was exciting, a grizzly bear was casually walking on the trail in front of us. Day three started out brisk and clear but shortly after daybreak a combination of fog and low clouds reduced visibility to yards, making hunting all but impossible. Thursday, October 26, day four, we spotted eight rams, one of which had the horns I was looking for. Fully grown and not broomed back. I prefer to have this type of ram to the broomed sheep preferred by most hunters. My ram was facing us on a different

mountain, approximately 1,000 yards away. In order to get within rifle range we would have to cross an open area of several hundred yards and lose sight of our prey. As we started I was hoping every step of the way that my ram would not move from the last sighting. After crossing the open area in two feet of snow and then down a couple of hundred feet, then back up to the elevation at which we saw the rams. As we came up over the crest Justin Jarrett said “There they are” Justin’s range finder read 485 yards. I did not want to shoot even though we had good cover and a good rest for the rifle, a rock shaped like a natural bench rest. After a brief discussion at which Justin told me, “there is no cover or rest beyond this point”, I opted to run through the snow for a 100 plus yards or so and shoot from that point. As Justin and I were moving as fast as possible to reach what I regarded as a reasonable shooting distance the rams stood up and began to trot off, just as my guide predicted. At that point I dropped down to a kneeling position and fired at the second ram as instructed. The range finder read 350 yards. Without someone of Justin’s skill it would have been impossible for me to have picked my ram out of the moving group of rams and “shoot the second one, now he is the third one, now he is the second one again.” My .270 Winchester is sighted for 200 yards using Hornady Light Magnum Ammo. I put the cross hairs at the very top of the ram’s back and at the crack of my .270 Winchester. Justin said “perfect shot”. Justin said he saw the impact in the heart area. The ram fell over immediately and continued to slide down the snow covered mountain for another 70 or so yards until it was stopped by rocks. My third sheep was the most exciting of all my hunts. We took photos and caping followed. Several friends have asked me about my hunt with the inevitable question “how do I rate Justin Jarrett as a guide for Wapiti Ridge Outfitters?” If one was to use The Michelin Food Guide scoring system, I would give Justin’s operation the maximum number of stars. Regarding food, the steaks served in the camp were on a par with Peter Luger’s in New York or Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse. Nor did I expect to have delicious homemade pies made in a camp located at 9,000 plus feet in Wyoming. All the meals were excellent, even the pasta was cooked “al dente” with an excellent sauce. All by a cook that would be at home in any major city restaurant. Many people wait for years to draw a Wyoming Sheep tag. I waited twelve years to draw and for this hunt it was worth the wait.

Arthur Monahan

Elmhurst, NY