Kona Goat Hunt – Last Minute Billie

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Spanish Goats can come in many color variations.

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They don’t always spend their time down in the canyons!   

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                     Spanish Goat – Kona, Hawaii

Taken at 600 yards – 257 Weatherby -120gr. Gameking

“Guys, I am going to miss the plane”  “No worry bro, we will take care of it”  My guide was now driving in excess of 80 miles per hour on a twisting road back to Hilo, Hawaii.
One can only imagine what was going through my mind at that time.
I had been hunting with a couple of local Hawaiian Fireman that worked at the airport in Hilo.  They had arranged a goat hunt on thelarge ranch above Kona.  I was on my two days off while on my 21 days of active duty with the Naval Security Group Command at Wahiawa.  If I had missed movement (back on duty), I surely would have been up for Captain’s Mast, the U.S. Navy as no mercy for missing movement.
It had been one heck of a hunt looking for Goats.  During the daytime the goats spend their time in deep narrow rugged canyons.  One wonders how they can find a way out and I know that none of us wanted to venture down into them.
It had been really late into the afternoon when goats started to emerge from the canyons.
I had a 6:30PM flight back to Oahu and it was now 3:30PM as the two goats appeared in the direction that we would have to travel back to the truck, which was about 3 miles away.  Plus the fact that it was more than 60 miles back to the Hilo Airport!

I quickly lay down in the prone position and took rest on the black Billie and made the shot.  “Bubba shoot the other billie too!”  I missed the brown Billie that was on the move with the black Billie going down.  The distance was right at about 600 yards and the wind was blowing as it always does in the ridges above Kona.  The boys could not believe that I had made the first shot and dropped the Billie in his tracks.  Good thing that I did not get both of them.  It would have been a tough pack out with two Goats.

One thought on “Kona Goat Hunt – Last Minute Billie”

  1. I have been to the Big Island, there are lot of them pesky goats there. Some would love to kill them all. Those crevices are quite deep and treacherous to hunt.

    Thanks for the story!
    Lyle

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