Have you ever dreamed of tracking wild animals under the moonlight, feeling the mystery and excitement of nature? If so, then you will be interested in our hunting trip. Last month, I and my two colleagues Gale James and Colbert Doris went to West Goat Peak in Montana and experienced an unforgettable night hunting adventure. On this trip, we used the wildguarder infrared binoculars, which allowed us to clearly observe and capture targets in complete darkness. In addition to hunting, we also climbed West Goat Peak, enjoyed the magnificent mountain views, and tasted the local cuisine. In this article, I will share with you the details and feelings of our hunting trip.
To reach the trailhead for West Goat Peak, we had to drive about an hour and a half from Anaconda, along Hwy 43 and Mud Lake Road, then turn left at an inconspicuous spot, and find a road that looked like a wildlife trail. This was the start of Trail 129, and the beginning of our hunting trip. Trail 129 was a trail that followed the Middle Fork Fishtrap Creek uphill, mostly in the woods, with not much scenery to see. We had to walk about five miles, climbing about 2200 feet, to reach the junction with Trail 128. There was a sign here, telling us that Trail 128 would descend to the road where we parked, but the direction we wanted to go was west, along a faint ridge line. This was where we left the official trail and entered a more wild and rugged area. We followed the ridge line for about a mile, crossing some loose rocks and snow patches, until we reached the Lost Lakes basin. There were two beautiful alpine lakes here, surrounded by West Goat Peak and East Goat Peak. The scenery here amazed us and made us forget the hardship of walking in the woods. We found a flat spot near Upper Lost Lake to set up our camp and prepared our hunting gear. The most important of which was the wildguarder infrared binoculars, which could let us see clearly the shapes and eyes of animals in the dark. We took our wildguarder infrared binoculars and rifles and walked quietly along the lake shore, hoping to catch some wildlife.
In the Lost Lakes basin, we started our night hunting adventure. We took our wildguarder infrared binoculars and rifles and walked quietly along the lake shore, hoping to catch some wildlife. Wildguarder infrared binoculars are a professional outdoor product that can let us see clearly the shapes and eyes of animals in the dark. It has a 5W infrared illuminator that can provide light source up to 984 feet away. It also has a 4.3-inch HD screen that can let us watch and record videos. It weighs only 1.5 pounds, very light and easy to carry. We used wildguarder infrared binoculars and found some interesting animals, such as deer, foxes, owls, and squirrels. We also saw some goats and sheep grazing on the hillside. We were excited but also careful not to disturb them. We chose some suitable targets and prepared our rifles. We pressed the video button on the wildguarder infrared binoculars and started our hunting action. We successfully shot a few animals and brought them back to our camp. We felt very satisfied and proud because we completed an unforgettable night hunting. If we didn’t have wildguarder infrared binoculars, we might not be able to see these animals, let alone shoot them. Wildguarder infrared binoculars are our best partner for our hunting trip, it lets us enjoy the mystery and thrill of nature in the dark.
After hunting, we decided to challenge the summit of West Goat Peak. West Goat Peak is the highest peak of Anaconda Pintler Widerness, with an elevation of 10,793 feet. It is a non-technical climb from the east, south, and west sides, requiring only some Class 2 and Class 3 skills, but its north face has about 1,700+ feet of Class 5 rock climbing, with unstable rocks, very dangerous. We chose a route that started from Upper Lost Lake and climbed northwest along a clear ridge line. This route required about 1200 feet of elevation gain and about 1.5 miles of distance. We took our backpacks and rifles and started our climbing trip. We followed the ridge line for a while and encountered some small snow patches and rocks. We carefully crossed them and occasionally looked back at the beautiful views of Lost Lakes basin and East Goat Peak. We also saw some goats and sheep grazing on the hillside, they seemed not interested in us. We continued to walk up until we reached a small saddle, which was the connection between West Goat Peak and an unnamed subpeak. There was a small wooden sign here that said “West Goat Peak 10,793”. We were excited because we knew we were only one step away from the summit. We turned right from the saddle and followed the southwest ridge line of West Goat Peak. There were some Class 3 climbs here that required us to use our hands and feet to grab the rocks. We carefully found the best route, avoiding some steep and loose places. We also noticed that West Goat Peak had a huge cliff on its north face, below which was a steep snow slope. We felt some fear but also some admiration for those who dared to climb from here. We didn’t stay long and continued to climb up. Finally, we reached the summit of West Goat Peak, feeling extremely excited and proud. We found a small cairn and a plastic can stuffed with notes and notebooks on the summit. This was where climbers left their names and dates. We opened the plastic can and found many notes and notebooks inside, the earliest note was written in 1978, the latest notebook was written in 2023. We flipped through some notes and notebooks and found that many people shared their experiences and feelings of summiting, some people also drew some pictures and symbols. We found it very interesting and touching because we had something in common with these people: hobbies and dreams. We also decided to write our names, dates, and some words on a blank note and put it back in the plastic can. We hoped that someone else would see our message later and feel our joy and friendship.
We stayed on the summit for a while, enjoying the 360-degree views. We could see other peaks of Anaconda Range and Pintler Range in the distance, such as Warren Peak, Mount Evans, Mount Haggin etc… We could also see below Big Hole Valley and Lost Lakes basin, as well as forests and meadows covering the slopes. We felt like we were standing on top of the world, feeling amazed and awed. We took some pictures, recording this unforgettable moment. We knew we couldn’t stay on the summit for too long, because the sky was starting to darken. We packed up our stuff and prepared to descend. We retraced our steps back to the saddle, then followed the ridge line east back to Upper Lost Lake. We carefully descended that section of Class 3 rocks and enjoyed the scenery of Lost Lakes basin again. We returned to our camp, feeling very tired but also very happy. We made a hearty dinner, eating some of the animal meat we shot. We also used wildguarder infrared binoculars to watch the stars and moon in the night sky. We felt this was a perfect climbing and hunting trip, nothing could be better than this.
In this article, I shared with you the details and feelings of our hunting trip. We started from Trail 129, walked to Lost Lakes basin, used wildguarder infrared binoculars to observe and hunt some wildlife, then climbed West Goat Peak, enjoyed the magnificent mountain views, and left our names and dates. This was a very memorable and interesting trip that let us feel the mystery and thrill of nature, and also let us experience some new challenges and achievements. We were very grateful for wildguarder infrared binoculars, which were our best partner for our hunting trip. It let us see animals clearly in the dark, and also let us record our wonderful moments. If you are also an outdoor enthusiast who loves hunting, I strongly recommend you to buy a wildguarder infrared binoculars. It will make your hunting trip more perfect and fun. Finally, I hope you like my article and hope you have a chance to go to West Goat Peak in Montana state and experience its beauty and adventure.
