Grand Slam Couple
By: Dan Catlin
In August of 2013 I collected my very first North American Sheep, the Dall Sheep. I never imagined I would achieve the Grand Slam of North American Sheep by August of 2019. Charlotte was my biggest cheerleader and support mechanism as she encouraged me to chase my dream and goals.
Fast forward to August 2024 to when Charlotte collected her Stone Sheep… also completing her Grand Slam. To achieve this goal, one must collect the Dall, Rocky Mountain Big Horn, Desert Big Horn and Stone Sheep. My registered Grand Slam is #2101 and Charlotte’s is #2313; and only the 82nd woman hunter to ever achieve a North American Grand Slam.
Charlotte’s quest for the sheep slam started in Alaska, with Eric Umphenour, for the Dall sheep. In August 2021 she was supposed to make the trip into the mountains; however, the sheep population was slim from past winter die offs. Therefore, Eric asked her to put it off until 2022, as he did not want her to hunt with such slim odds. Charlotte’s return trip in 2022 was just the beginning - and a huge success! On 8/17/22 Charlotte collected her Dall Sheep, fueling the SHEEP FEVER.
Because of our partnership and business with The Wildlife Gallery, we are fortunate to network with great outfitters and hunting guides around the world. San Jose Trophy Hunts in Sanora Mexico, with owner Oscar Molina, is one of those great friends and outfitters. He has been so gracious to us and the clients that we have referred to them over the years. This made our choice simple on where to hunt the Desert Big Horn. Charlotte’s second ram was collected just five months later in Ole Mexico on 1/31/23!
The next ram for Charlotte was one of the biggest adventures she experienced with Scalp Creek outfitters in Alberta; Rob and Brenda Erickson. Horseback riding through the “burn” where I was rescued from during my Big Horn hunt in 2017, was a reminder of the type of adventure she was up for. To make that trip even more special, she harvested her ram in the same canyon I was able to take mine. On 9/26/23 Charlotte connected on her Rocky Mountain Big Horn Sheep which made her only one sheep away from achieving her Grand Slam… the Stone Sheep.
The final ram was the toughest to figure out, mostly based on the cost of Stone Sheep hunting. We were blessed with a cancelation opportunity with Nathan Olmstead of Prophet Muskwa, in British Columbia Canada. Charlotte again, at the age of 58 years old, hung in there like a trooper with several days of horseback and hiking to find that one legal ram that was meant to be hers. On 8/15/24 Charlotte collected her SLAM RAM which etched her name into sheep hunting history.
There’s been many books and stories written about the rigors of sheep hunting. There are many ways to describe it, but the best way I know is “embracing the suck”! Don’t get me wrong, it’s not all miserable. But when you are climbing the mountain and your legs don’t seem to work anymore and your lungs feel as though they can’t breathe anymore, you must be strong willed enough to NOT give up. When you are cold, wet and miserable, and there seems to be no end in sight of the rain and nowhere to get your gear dry because you are living in a one-man tent on the side of the mountain with 30 mph winds, you just can’t give up! As a husband that has already put himself through this EXPERIENCE, I respect my wife that much more knowing what she had to put herself through to complete the Grand Slam. Hunting sheep is about way more than killing a sheep. It’s about GRIT! It’s about TOUGHNESS! It’s about THE EXPERIENCE!!! It’s about NEVER GIVING UP!
