18 // Grant County Hunting Journal 2020 // MyEagleNews.com
The tag of a lifetime
Laci Wheeler bags
bighorn alongside
father and husband
By Rudy Diaz
Blue Mountain Eagle
M
any try, but few succeed in getting a tag to
hunt for bighorn sheep.
Laci Wheeler got the rare oppor-
tunity at 27 to hunt for an animal
that people spend a lifetime trying
to get a tag for.
Wheeler has been big game hunting since she
turned 12. One of her favorite aspects of hunting
has been working with her family.
“Every big animal that I ever killed has been
with my dad, and that provides some really spe-
cial memories for me,” Wheeler said.
After taking down animals, Wheeler and her
family all pack out the big game together and pro-
cess the meat together at home.
“It’s the relationships and family values that
come with it and being able to provide meat for
my family, and it makes it a little bit cheaper in
the long run,” Wheeler said.
The luck of the draw
Luck plays a big part in getting a tag to hunt for
a bighorn sheep. Wheeler said it is a lottery draw-
ing each year for people hoping to get the tag.
“You don’t have the preference points like you
do with your normal deer and elk where you can
build those points that can get you closer to get-
ting a tag,” Wheeler said.
Her father and grandfather have been putting
in for this tag for most of their lives with no suc-
cess. Wheeler put in for 15 years before she drew
the tag.
The day she learned she drew the tag, it felt
surreal.
“I was on the phone with my mom after get-
ting the tag, and she was freaking out,” Wheeler
said. “I was just a little bit scared because it’s a lot
of pressure because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime tag.”
Preparing for the hunt
Wheeler began preparing in June for the big
hunt at Aldrich Mountain in September.
She had the support of her family as they
prepared by going out shooting together and
See Tag, Page 19
Contributed photo
Laci Wheeler put in for tags for bighorn
sheep for years and made the most of the
opportunity when she drew one in 2019,
taking the ram out in one shot.