SEASON: Hunting season for Bezoar ibex officially starts by early August and runs through the end of March the following year. However, as a general rule, we do not start hunting Bezoar before mid November since the temperatures will be high and the animals will stay high on mountain tops and/or in shaddy parts of the mountain.
The general opinion for the best time to hunt Bezoar ibex is to hunt them during rutting time in order to have a better opportunity on bigger trophies. As a general rule, rutting season for the ibex starts by mid November and comes to an end by the end of December.
AREA: There are about seventy different areas in Turkey where Bezoar ibex hunting is allowed for trophy hunting. Bezoar widely spread along the Taurus range that extends from western Mediterranean all the way through east. Different populations are also found in almost all high mountain masses of eastern and northeastern Anatolia.
No outfitter has the exculisive rights of any areas since all the areas belong to the government. Beware of the companies that advertise their own hunting areas in Turkey. There is no such thing as a privately owned hunting area in the country. Hunting permits are obtained at government auctions.
HOW TO GET THERE: Hunters are required to fly into Istanbul. They will be met by our representative at the airport and be asssited for the rifle clearance at the customs. This is a 10-15 minute procedure in general. Later on hunters take a domestic flight to their final destination where they will be met by their PH/interpreter. This flight may take around 1 to 1 ½ hour. Hunting areas can be reached from the airport within a 1-4 hour ride on highway.
ACCOMMODATION: Accommodations differ from one area to another. While in some areas it is possible for our hunters to be accommodated in the best nearby hotels or village houses, in others, it has to be roughed by staying in shepherd huts or small hunting cabins. But due to common interest or demand, we started to accommodate our Bezoar ibex hunters mostly in local hotels in recent years that are available in the hunting area. These hotels can vary anywhere from four star to less. However we make sure that, we pick the best one available near the hunting area, and hunters stay in clean and comfortable environments.
WEATHER: Weather conditions also vary greatly during the hunting season. In most areas the weather conditions can be quite nice until mid December. Although first snow may have fallen some time in November, this melts away quite fast. During the month of November, temperature can be in the 18-25C (65-77F) degrees range. Towards the end of December the weather conditions tend to change as the cold weather conditions can move in. Temperatures can drop down to anywhere around 10-0 (50-32F) Celcius. For the most Bezoar hunting areas, January and February can be considered to be the coldest time of the year. At times, temperatures can remain around and below zero Celcius during these months. By March day time temperatures start rising once again.
ALTITUDE: Like any other wild goat species, Bezoar ibex is a dweller of steep terrain and generally inhabits the alpine zone of the mountains. Since steepness has got nothing to do with the altitude, Bezoar also occurs even at low altitudes along the Mediterranean coast. It is possible to find them at any elevation between 5000 to 11,000 feet (1,500-3,300m).
DURATION of the HUNT: Our Bezoar ibex hunting organisations are for 9 days including the 2 days of traveling time. So actual hunting time is 7 days although majority of our hunts ends within the first 4 days.
HUNTING METHOD: As each area has its own characteristics, the ways the hunts are carried out also vary, but as a general rule, the hunts are almost always conducted on foot. 4-wheel drive trucks are used to transport the hunters to the hunting areas. These short trips between the hotel and the hunting areas can take as long as an hour or as short as 15 minutes. A regular hunting day starts at a very early hour of the morning, most of the time even before day break.
