BEATING ODDS FOR A HUNT TO REMEMBER RECORD RAM WAS AN ADVENTURE RIGHT FROM THE BEGINNING.

Byline: Lorna Bernard and Tammara Anderson Special to the Daily News

Desert bighorn sheep continue to be among the most valued big-game animals in North America.

The Department of Fish and Game estimates about 3,000 desert bighorn sheep in 47 populations scattered throughout the desert regions of Southern California; six of the populations are hunted. Hunting tags issued to target the prized beasts represent less than one-half of 1 percent of the state's numbers of bighorn sheep.

This year, 10 bighorn sheep tags were awarded from about 5,000 applications. And if you beat the 500-1 odds by getting drawn, you can't reapply. What follows is one hunter's tale of his hunt of a lifetime as told to Tammara Anderson.

"OPENING THE MAIL THAT DAY, I couldn't believe my eyes. Just like thousands of other hunters, I have been sending in my application to hunt bighorn sheep since the program started but have never been lucky enough to draw a tag. Well, today was my luck day."

John Bauder, a Rancho Cucamonga resident, not only beat the odds in the June 1998 bighorn sheep tag drawing for the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area, he wound up taking the biggest sheep in California record-keeping history. The specimen received a preliminary scored of 182 in the Boone and Crockett Club's "Records Book for North American Big Game." A minimum score for inclusion in the record book is 168 for desert bighorn.

"Many of my weekends were spent scouting prior to the start of the hunting season. Finally, opening day arrived. The weather was hot and dry, the terrain steep. During one trip, my companions and I spent a long uncomfortable night on the side of a mountain. It was steep enough that we had to carve out a flat area to sleep on. On another trip it got so cold that water was frozen and the wind was howling. Getting into sheep country involved backpacking for long distances over rough terrain. This was just a taste of what we would encounter over the next several weeks."

Bauder and three companions hunted hard without success. After two weeks, he hired professional guide Terry Anderson and they were soon tracking a group of rams.

"All of us scouted the rams together that day. Within this group, two rams stood out. Terry described the No. 1 (biggest) ram as having good length, mass and symmetry. The No. 2 ram also had good symmetry and length, without the mass. While watching them Terry said to me, `You need to name the No. 1 ram.' This was something I had never heard of. He told me that he names all of the significant and important rams. The No. 1 ram was given the name `Moses.' This was because Terry hikes with a walking stick made from sororo cactus stalk, reminding me of Moses' staff.

"A sheep's horns are ever-growing, unlike antlers, which are shed yearly. A bighorn sheep that reaches `trophy' size is a product of good genetics, good nutrition and longevity."

Anderson continued to watch the group of sheep while Bauder returned to his job in Rancho Cucamonga. Bauder resumed the hunt a week later.

After waiting out another day of bad weather, the group got a break.

"Believing that the rams were moving to higher ground, we climbed the ridge opposite from them. This was an almost vertical climb. About halfway up Terry and I stopped to assess our position. To our amazement, the rams were almost straight across the canyon from us feeding. Terry got out his Bushnell range finder. They were out of shooting range at 400 yards. Fortunately, they moved westward across a small raving onto a ridge finger. This narrowed my position to 314 yards from Moses. I aimed my Winchester .270 with its hand-reloaded 150-grain Speer bullets, pulled the trigger and misfired. Ejecting the bullet, I started fumbling with it to see what had gone wrong. Terry grabbed the bullet and refocused me on the task at hand. Thankfully, Moses was still in position to get a good shot. The sheep remained unaware that we were even there. I repositioned myself and fired off a second shot, this time shooting over Moses at 315 yards. He moved out of sight. I couldn't believe it. Now what?

"The No. 2 ram was still within range. He certainly was beautiful. Just then Moses reappeared over the ridge. What luck. Terry checked his range finder - 348 yards. I placed Moses in the crosshairs of my scope and fired. Terry was sure I hit him; I wasn't.

"We quickly counted. There were six rams where there had been seven. We were sure he had dropped in the canyon below. However, the longer the companion rams stood there the more unsure I became that he was hit. Twenty to 30 minutes went by before the group moved off.

"We started to move toward the cliff that they had left. This was an incredibly steep and difficult climb. It took two hours to reach the area. . . .

"I started climbing down to (where the ram dropped under thick brush). The closer I got the larger than life he became. . . . I tagged him immediately.

"Terry rough-scored him and we knew we had a new state record. All of us were kids again. I was elated with the team effort to harvest an incredible ram. Moses was perfect. He only had a small `V' cut in the left horn. His coat was in great condition and his estimated weight was 225 pounds. It was unbelievable that such a ram could exist.

"After all our whooping, hollering and picture-taking, we did the necessary picture-taking. We spent four hours packing out.

"That evening at dinner we reflected on what it took to accomplish the harvest of such a great animal. It is important to have great optics. These animals are difficult to get close to. This is one hunt where scouting is crucial to success. This country demands that you be in the best possible shape.

"This is one adventure that will be impossible to top. I have deepened my appreciation for the importance of having great hunting partners and a knowledgeable guide. It makes the harvest even greater when your wife is as supportive as mine about my hunting."

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Photo: The DFG estimates there are about 3,000 desert bighorn sheep scattered throughout Southern California's desert regions.

Thom Knodle/Special to the Daily News