I have always loved bowhunting mountain goats. But now, I was beginning to wonder why. A wicked north wind raked my face, raising welts of pain and making my eyes water. I jammed my fingers into the half-frozen sod and clawed upward, pushing my bow with arms, chest, and chin. One slip now would mean a sickening slide into cold, empty space. I didn't know how high the cliff was below me, and I didn't care to find out.

In British Columbia, floatplanes ferry bowhunters deep into the heart of mountain goat country.

Mountain goat hunters tend to take chances. For one thing, a goat is desirable enough to make you forget danger. For another, the goat inhabits North America's steepest and most dangerous terrain. This can be a deadly combination.

I risked a glance under my right arm-pit, and noted the grim expression on Keith Holmes' face. My guide was lean, muscular, and cool-headed -- the sort of guy who makes clients feel safe. Keith was below me, gripping the icy mud with determined fingers. Five more yards and we'd be out of danger. With luck, we might also be in bow range of a giant mountain goat.

Three hours before, Keith and I had spotted a goat from our lakeside camp. The animal had popped into view like magic a thousand feet above us, slowly picking his way up a rock chute in the predawn light. A look through the 30X scope showed a high-shouldered billy with thick horns longer than his face. My heart leaped to my throat. This goat would score high in the bowhunter's record book -- if I could stalk close enough to plant an arrow in his engine room.

Mountain goat territory has a heavenly beauty that belies the hellish climbs to reach goats. A comfortable base camp helps to ease the pain.

The difference between an average goat and a world-record goat is only three or four inches of horn. This makes field judging difficult. But a patient and observant bowhunter, with good optics, can assess these animals.

Billies and nannies can both have excellent horns. Billies usually score better because their horns carry more mass, but the longest goat horn ever recorded was from a female -- 124⁄8 inches. To make the bowhunter's record book, a Rocky Mountain goat must score 40 points or more. Seven-inch horns with fairly heavy bases normally make the grade.

Goats are easiest to judge when viewed from the side. The distance between the tip of the nose and the front of the eye is about seven inches. Distance from the nose to the base of the horns is about nine inches, and the distance from the nose to the base of the ears is about 10 inches. Goat horns curve, so they look about one inch shorter than they really are.

THE DAY BEFORE, master guide Keith Holmes and I were in a Beaver floatplane, twisting among giant mountain peaks in north-central British Columbia. I had booked this hunt because Holmes had a great reputation as a bowhunting guide, and because British Columbia has more mountain goats than Alaska and all other goat habitats combined. Some parts of B.C. literally swarm with goats, giving a hunter his pick of trophy heads. Keith had assured me that his goat area was one of the best.