6-3-07 - WOW do I have a case of "shin spints"!  I don't know if this is normal or not, I might be over training a bit.  I have been lifting weights (something I have done for years) and running 2+ miles after every weight lifting session (this is new).  I wasn't even going to go scouting today, but I couldn't keep myself at home either.
The first mile of the walk/hike sucked but after that things loosened up.
 I was more focus on looking for sheep today.  I only hiked a couple of miles stopping every so often to glass.  Right at the last spot I wa going to look at I spotted the only sheep I have seen in the last two trips.  He was a beautiful 150"-160" ram.  I watched him for about an hour, It was a PERFECT set-up the ram bedded below a 60-70' ledge looking down the mountain.  He was alone and fell so asleep at one time that he had his head flat on the ground.  If only it were Sept!
Here I am lookin' for sheep.
The ram is right where the red and white cliffs meet.


see the two white spots that are left of the little round pine?  The one on top is the sheeps fanny.

Lots of water in the High Country this year.

Lot of rough country up there.
 
It is a blast exploring the new places.  I have to say it was REALLY cool seeing the ram.  You couldn't have knocked the smile off my face with a stick as I hiked out today!
I took this pic though my bino's.  If you look above the white dot and right at the end of the long triangular shadow(pointing left) you can make out the rams face and horns above his rump (the tan spot).
 

Sweet!! Wish you the best on your upcoming hunt. Keep the pics coming.

Gluck bud.

Add some extra arch support for your shin splints...and ice em after workouts/scouting trips.  20 minutes ice 40 minutes rest repeat for total of 3 times.

Thanks DB, I'll give that a try!

Steve, if you have a high school close go up and down the bleachers.  Really good workout to get you ready for climbing.

Joe

Last year, I did the bleacher workout in preparation for a Colorado elk hunt. Loaded up the backpack with all kind of junk to get about thirty pounds. The bleacher workout was a killer!!

Jason, you pics are awesome... brings back memories. Colorado is really a beautiful piece of country.

Good luck on your adventure.

Ah, nice photos and update.  Seeing that ram was a nice reward for your efforts!

Hey SteveO, if you want to get used to the high altitude, do your morning jog with a ziplock baggie over your head, HA!
I don't know of anything that can get you used to the altitude except being there.
Good luck to all you skinny, long legged dudes on your sheep hunts, and don't forget stories for the PBS magazine.  
I'm too old, fat and short to do any sheep hunting in the high country...

Awesome thread looking forward to tagging along.      

great pic's  

btt

I'm hoping to get out at least one day this weekend.  Work gets in the way of everything fun! I'll post again as soon as I get back.

Ok I've got to chime in on the Shin Splints thing. In the army I got these alot until someone told me to try and jog backwards a little each time. I know it sounds weird but it worked for me. As I undersatand it shin splints happen because your working one muscle alot and the oposite one not enough. Basicaly your muscle is pulling itself away from the bone. At least that is how it was described to me. Running or jogging backwards a little helps strengthen the oposite muscle.  

Like I said it seemed to work for me. May be worth a try.  

Oh and thanks for taking us along. And good luck on the hunt.

about the shin splints, i take a athletic training class in school and it's a lot like snailskin said. they happen when your calf muscle gets caught in the front of your shin bone and rubs. like snail skin said jogging backwards can loosen it up or you can stretch your calves to loosen it up.

good luck to your on your hunt. looks like some awesome country. maybe someday i'll get around to trying it.

SnailSkin description of a shin splint is perfect.  I am a massage therapist by trade, and I work with these sorts of injuries a lot.  He is also correct with the notion of the calf being over strengthened, but realize the problem is in the front.  
A couple things that will help besided running backwards:  Massage both the back and front of your leg.  Before you go hiking or running, you can wrap strips of tape along your shin (might want to shave first) this will give the muscles in the anteiror compartment (the shin) more support and thus help reduce the tearing away from the bone.  Also ICE for 20 min every two hours as much as you can especialy after exercise.  Oh and taking an anti-inflamitory BEFORE you exercise will help as well.

One thing I will say NOT to do is to stretch the muscles in the shin, just stretch the muscles in the calf.  *this is counter to a lot of age old teaching, but I have been doing it this way for the last two years after learning it from one of the top sports M.T.s in the nation (James Wasaski) and have seen much quicker healing times.
Derek Wrigley L.M.T.
oh and if pain persists or gets worse, see a doc. last thing you want is stress fracture.

Looking forward to more photos.  I'm headed to Colorado myself next weekend for scouting and to participate in the CODOW sheep count on 7/2.  Can't wait to see and hike in the high country!

Glad to see I was informed correctly. Shin splints realy hurt sometimes. I know I had them enough in the army. Once I learned the jog backwards thing I made shure I did it enough to keep from repeating the problem.

I hope the info helps. I'd hate to miss a hunt or an opertunity with something that is fairly easy to correct.

Good luck.

Hmmm.... you guys are way ahead of me, gotta get out, gotta get in shape, gotta get to shooting more, gotta.....    

Great thread by the way    Seems to be lots of sheep tag winners on TG this year.  :D

Doug

Thanks for the info on the shin splits.  They are way better now that I have been running for awhile now.  For a short time frame I though I would have to give up the running for something else!  I am thinking of starting some swimming just to mix it up.
Since I started getting into "Sheep shape" I have lost 25lbs, from 235 to 209-210.  Amazing what a person can do when they have the drive to get it done!  

Doug - Good luck on your hunt!  I hope we get to tag along with you on your hunt also.