"There are two ways you can get a permit to hunt a Texas bighorn. First, you can buy one at auction through the Foundation for North American Wild Shee. Just be aware that these permits have sold for as much as $85,000 recently. Second, hunters can buy one of a very limited number of permits from landowners who have the wild sheep ranging on their property. The prices for landowner permits are not a matter of public record but you're unlikely to find a bargain. Jerrell Coburn, president of the TBS, said his organization acts as a go-between for hunters shopping for a bighorn permit and landowners with permits to sell. `We keep a list of hunters who have an interest,' said Coburn. `When a permit comes up, we e-mail or fax the prospectus to everyone on the list.'
"There is a third way to get a desert bighorn permit, and that is through the state's Texas Grand Slam Hunt Program. TP&W doesn't like referring to this as a lottery, but that's what it is. Hunters buy chances for $10 each. The winner receives a fully-outfitted hunt for a Texas bighorn ram, a whitetail buck, a mule deer buck and a pronghorn antelope.........(continued)
