2024 Open Season | Once in a Lifetime: Shoshone Lodge Outfitters Guide Wyoming Bighorn Sheep Hunters  

Hunting the bighorn sheep beckons skilled hunters worldwide. The majesty, athleticism, and beauty of a Bighorn ram is awe-inspiring to those that pursue them, and a successful hunt is a most prestigious accomplishment.  

What’s more, to complete the North American Sheep Grand Slam – the Dall, Desert, Stone, and Bighorn Sheep – lands a hunter in an exclusive group.  

Josh Martoglio has helped many hunters to achieve this goal by hunting what is often the final sheep, the Bighorn. Even those that only pursue the Bighorn tag in Wyoming have achieved a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  

Martoglio owns and operates Shoshone Lodge Outfitters in Cody, Wyoming, specializing in sheep, goat, and elk hunts.  

He is passionate about sheep hunting for its sheer difficulty. “The toughness is what I love. The country you see is what I love. Sheep live in wild places. Elk hunting and deer hunting, you see a lot of cool stuff, but sheep takes you that extra step further. You see stuff a lot of people don’t get to see. It’s highly rewarding because worked your ass off for it. To me, they’re beautiful animals. I think they’re one of the coolest animals out there,” he said.  

He first fell in love with it, he says, at age 16 when he went on his first sheep hunt. At 18, he received his guide’s license and guided his first sheep hunt. Martoglio has guided 300 sheep hunts since, averaging 20 per year. 

“Once you go on a sheep hunt you either love it or hate it,” he said.  

The statement rings true for one of Martoglio’s clients, Joe Michaletz, who stumbled upon his first wild sheep by accident while mountain goat hunting in British Columbia. “I snuck up on one and I just watched it for a long time.” He was mesmerized, and hooked. He pursued a decade of sheep hunting until he finally achieved a grand slam with Martoglio. “He was the only guy I was ever going to hunt Rocky Mountain Bighorns with. It’s the ultimate adventure and hunting experience.”  

Martoglio has not achieved his grand slam yet, though he has bagged two of the four required. He killed a Dall sheep in Alaska and a Desert sheep in Baja Mexico. He has a Stone sheep hunt booked for August of this year. Drawing the Bighorn tag in Wyoming could happen at any time for Martoglio.  

“If you get to kill a couple sheep in your life, you feel pretty lucky. It doesn’t matter where you’re sheep hunting, it’s still incredible,” he said. 

Exclusivity 

One reason that Bighorn sheep hunting is so exclusive is because of the difficulty in drawing the tag or the expense in buying a Governor’s Tag in the United States.  

Wyoming issues five Governor’s tags, usually auctioned off with charitable organizations to raise funds for conservation. In 2024, the first four tags have been sold for $190,000, $185,000, $192,500, and $185,000, respectively. Martoglio states that on average, a Governor’s tag in North America is upwards of $350,000-$400,000.  

Wyoming operates on what is called a preference point system. Points are built every year as the hunter applies for the annual license. “In a preference point system, they draw a certain percentage of tags from the highest number of preference points,” he explained. The longer one pays for preference points each year, the higher his preference points are. Those with the highest odds of being drawn have over 23-24 points, which equates to as many years paying and waiting. 

“Essentially, the Wyoming system guarantees one in your lifetime.” Because of this system, however, Martoglio says his average client is 65-70 years old. 

“In Wyoming, to draw a tag on random points is a .02% chance. That’s another reason it’s special. I feel really lucky because I get to hunt them all the time,” he said. Though he is not the one pulling the trigger, he finds satisfaction by guiding his clients on that once-in-a-lifetime hunt. Odds for drawing the tags are similarly low in any state.  

A better system, in Martoglio’s opinion, is a bonus point system.   

“The bonus point system takes the number of points you have, squares that number, and that’s how many times your name goes in the hat.” The randomized nature of the bonus point system would not necessarily favor hunters who have been putting in the longest. “I think the bonus point system is better because it gives everyone a chance, but they both have flaws.” One down side to the bonus point system is that one may never draw the tag.  

Martoglio is confident the Wyoming Game and Fish will eventually switch to a bonus point system to align with other states’ systems. In 2023, the Wyoming legislature voted down a bill that would have made sheep and moose a bonus point system instead of a preference point system. 

Interestingly, a client and friend of Martoglio’s, Quint Gonzales, has drawn two sheep tags: one before the preference point system was installed in 1995. He shot his first at 14 years old. After the preference point system, he built up points for over 20 years and drew his tag last fall.  

Wanting a bigger ram than his first, Gonzalez said, “I knew that tag would definitely be my last sheep tag in Wyoming, since they switched to once in a lifetime. I knew if I was going to get a good one it was going to be with [Martoglio].” 

Keys to Success 

Because sheep hunting is such a rare experience, most of Martoglio’s clients are extremely prepared and they achieve a high kill rate – up to 98%.  

One simple switch helped his success as a guide. Most of his clients will use Martoglio’s rifle. Able hunters can shoot their own rifles with accuracy at sea level, but a sighted-in rifle at 10,000 feet is entirely different. “Everybody shoots high [with their own gun],” he said. With his, he is familiar with wind readings and can help his clients make adjustments quickly. “We take the misses out of it.” The Best of the West rifle is a 6’5×284 and mounted with a Huskemaw scope. “It’s the rifle I’ve used forever, and it’s killed probably 70 bighorns, which I don’t think you can say about any other gun,” he said.  

For his clients to be best prepared, he recommends physical fitness first and foremost, even though elevation is difficult to prepare for. He also recommends horseback miles as part of a regimen, if possible. Finally, practicing with and shooting their weapon is paramount. Taking care of one’s feet is crucial for the sheep hunter, according to Martoglio, and his favorite hiking boots for long days in rocky country are Zamberlans. Martoglio does not often wear camo, and solid colors such as Stone Glacier gear serve him just as well.  

Management 

Though wild sheep appear hardy and live in mountainous country, they are vulnerable to disease. Thanks to focused efforts by the Wild Sheep Foundation, the state of Wyoming has removed all domestic sheep grazing from state and federal land areas such as Cody and Meeteetse, where wild sheep populations are higher.  

“Pneumonia comes from domestic sheep,” Martoglio said. “It’ll literally wipe out a herd. Keeping domestic sheep away is crucial.”  

Martoglio also advocates for managing licenses year to year, and disagrees with the drawing of ewe/lamb tags in times where herd numbers are lower.  

Predators are another major issue in Wyoming. “We are overrun with predators here,” he said. “The biggest predator for sheep – and I’m not the only one who thinks this – is eagles. Golden eagles will absolutely hammer the lambs. And we’ll never control eagles.” Furthermore, lambs have to contend with wolves, coyotes, black and grizzly bears before they ever reach adulthood. “It’s tough for a lamb,” said Martoglio.   

Day by Day 

In addition to owning Shoshone Lodge Outfitters, Martoglio also owns and manages Trails West Outfitters, which offers additional hunting and pack trips, which fill what is left of Martoglio’s yearly calendar. He owns 100 head of horses and mules and puts up 300 acres of his own hay in the summer. His wife, Laci, is a full-time dentist in Cody, and they are raising their two daughters, six- and one-years-old.  

Despite all of his other responsibilities, Martoglio’s passion for sheep hunting is a driving force.  

Michaletz’s unforgettable hunting trip with Martoglio and his crew was recorded on the Best of the West Arms YouTube channel under the title “Slam Ram – Wyoming.” Josh, his brother Jordan, and another guide, Ty, were a part of the hunt. 

“I just really appreciate Josh and his team,” Michaletz said. “They’re great people, so committed. They work so hard for you to be successful. I’ve never seen anybody work harder than these guys.”  

Gonzalez, who has guided and hunted with Martoglio for years, knows his skills. “He definitely has a knack for finding big sheep,” he said.  

What Martoglio said he loves the most is, “pretty much solely the adventure, the challenge.”