Pyrenean Chamois Hunting in France

The hunt

What to expect.

Pyrenean chamois hunting in France, the izard, is free range spot and stalk on open mountain between 2,000 and 5,900 feet, one to two hours from Toulouse. Three hunting days recommended, from mid September, with the November rut as the best window. Univers Chasse Peche is a licensed French travel agency, Atout France n° 031950034, APST member. The Pyrenean chamois is scored as a distinct trophy by SCI and CIC, and is one of the recognised European chamois categories for a Caprinae slam.

Why hunt Pyrenean chamois in France rather than Spain

Pyrenean chamois hunting is dominated commercially by the Spanish side of the range, which is a matter of marketing rather than of ground. The French side offers three things a hunter can verify. The stalking is genuinely free range, on open mountain with no enclosure and no put and take stock. The logistics are unusually simple for a mountain hunt, with the hunting ground one to two hours from Toulouse Blagnac and direct connections into Toulouse from London, Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Madrid, so a hunter flying from the United States connects once and is at the hotel the same day. And the base is a proper hotel rather than a shepherd’s hut, which matters more than it sounds after three consecutive days above 5,000 feet. Univers Chasse Peche, a licensed French travel agency, Atout France n° 031950034, APST member, has built and tested this programme over more than thirty years. The species is called the izard locally, and it has been hunted in these mountains for centuries.

The izard, and why it counts for a slam hunter

The Pyrenean chamois, Rupicapra pyrenaica pyrenaica, is a distinct trophy in its own right and is scored as such by both SCI and CIC. For a hunter building a Caprinae slam, it is one of the recognised European chamois categories and it cannot be substituted by an alpine chamois taken elsewhere in Europe. That single fact is what brings most North American mountain hunters to the Pyrenees, and it is worth knowing before comparing this hunt on price alone against a chamois hunt in Austria or Slovenia. The animal itself is small, hard eyed and built for the ground it lives on. Mature males are judged on horn hook and mass through a spotting scope at distance, and the mistake a visiting hunter most often makes is to commit to the first group seen rather than to let the guide build a picture of what is actually available on the mountain that morning. Free range means no guarantee of a class, and it also means the animal you take was never fenced, fed or released.

How the stalk works, and the shot it asks for

The izard is hunted by spot and stalk, and the rhythm of the day is set by the animal rather than by the guide. Outings start just after first light, when chamois are feeding in the open grass. The guide glasses several groups from distance and builds a picture of the available animals before committing to any approach, which is the part inexperienced hunters want to skip and should not. Around the middle of the day the chamois move into dense scrub and lie up, so the hunt pauses and resumes for a second feeding window in the late afternoon, working back down at last light.

The ground between the glassing position and the animal is rarely straightforward, and the stalk is the substance of the hunt. Animals are usually located at long range, so you should be confident shooting prone off a bipod or a pack at 110 to 330 yards. The guides work to shorten the distance without blowing the stalk, but open mountain sometimes gives no better option than a long shot. Practically, that means a flat shooting cartridge such as the .270 Winchester, 6.5×55 Swedish, 7mm Remington Magnum or a .300 class, a variable scope in the 4x to 16x range, a rifle zeroed at 200 metres, about 220 yards, with your drop known out to 330, and a bipod or shooting pack in the truck.

The ground, the fitness it asks and getting there

The hunting ground for this Pyrenean chamois hunt covers several thousand hectares of open mountain in south western France, running between 2,000 and 5,900 feet of altitude. It is demanding country and there is no point dressing that up. Expect three to five hours of walking a day with a day pack, on steep and often loose ground, and expect the last part of a stalk to be the hardest part of it. A hunter who does not hike regularly should give the trip several weeks of cardiovascular preparation, and that preparation does more for the outcome than any equipment decision.

Access is the counterweight to that difficulty. Toulouse Blagnac is one to two hours from the hunting ground by road, with no domestic connection and no bush flight at the French end. The same mountains hold a free range European mouflon population, which is why an izard hunt is often extended into a two species mountain trip on a single stay, a sensible option for anyone crossing the Atlantic for three hunting days.

A licensed agency to organize your izard hunt in France

Univers Chasse Peche is a licensed French travel agency, Atout France n° 031950034, APST member, fully insured, with more than thirty years of experience in hunting travel. The Atout France registration imposes a financial guarantee on the sums you pay in advance and professional liability cover, and it places you in a defined contractual position if the trip is altered or cancelled. Wiring a deposit from another continent for a mountain hunt, that is the difference between an organizer bound by French travel law and a booking passed down a chain.

The work starts long before you land. Dates and the choice of window between pre rut, rut and late season, the temporary French hunting licence, firearm formalities or rental, transfers from Toulouse, the hotel, and trophy preparation and the export file afterwards. The zones and the method are known first hand. What is demanding about this hunt, the walking and the shooting distances, is said before you book rather than discovered on the first morning.

The ground

Why this area.

• Genuine free range stalking on open mountain, no enclosure, no released or artificially held stock.
• Several thousand hectares of managed izard ground between 2,000 and 5,900 feet of altitude.
• One to two hours from Toulouse Blagnac, with direct connections from London, Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Madrid.
• Pyrenean chamois recognised as a distinct trophy by SCI and CIC, a required category for a Caprinae slam.
• Free range European mouflon on the same range, so a two species mountain hunt fits into one stay.
• Hotel base used to hunters, early breakfasts, packed lunches and late dinners as standard.

Day by day

How the hunt unfolds.

Practical details

In the field.

Planning your trip

Paperwork and climate.

What the hunt includes

Included and not included.

Open season

When to go.

In pictures

Hunt gallery.

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Our previous trips

Trophies taken.

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Your questions, our answers

Frequently asked questions.