Originally Posted By: SouthPaw0180Hello Everyone! First time posting. I've wanted to get in to coyote/fox hunting for a while, and I finally decided this year Santa was going to bring me an ecaller and some other supplies. I've been out a dozen or so times day and night with absolutely no action. I don't know anyone in my area that does this sort of hunting, so I'm learning by reading books and this forum and trying to spend as much time as I can in the woods. By learning this way, I'm not sure what I'm doing right or wrong. My question is what does everyone think are a first timers biggest mistakes?
I think that one mistake that is very common to new callers is not setting your stands up correctly to give you a shot. I think that a lot of new guys are calling in a lot more than they actually see.
I also think that guys are calling stands that "look" good to them but do not look good to coyotes.
Coyotes seem to be pattern oriented. The pattern shifts during different parts of the year. Different call sequences, different stands set up, and when the patterns shift a lot of new guys are hesitant to go away from what had been working.
Originally Posted By: SouthPaw0180Originally Posted By: swampwalker
Last, would probably be overcalling areas.. best to move around a bit and try different spots.
How long do you wait to go back and call an area? Does the length of time differ if you harvest an animal there or not?
I would agree with overcalling areas. Sure, you can hit a spot a few times a season and probably pull coyotes every time. But any more than that and you are going to start drawing blanks. It's hard to stay out of areas that you know have produced. But don't be afraid to roam. Take a look at successful stands and try to find areas that have similar features and see if they hold coyotes.
We also will try carpet bombing. I will start working an area and do a stand every mile, no matter what it looks like. I used to hunt with a guy that would pass on areas that didn't "look good" to him. When I started carpet bombing, I pulled coyotes out of some lame looking areas.
Coyotes can wander far and wide. Look at biologist reports and studies done by game and fish departments. Resident coyotes have a smaller range but a more regular schedule whereas transient coyotes looking for a home range can range 25-50 miles in a single night and keep moving on until they establish a territory. So if you are bombing an area chances are you are going to end up crossing paths with them at some point.
But you have to stay at it. There really is no magic elixir, book or video that is going to magically get you calling coyotes everytime. Don't fall victim to buyer-itis and think that you need to buy a bunch of equipment to solve your problem either. I have a 3 strikes rule. Call 3 stands the same way. if no coyotes show up, change something. But only one thing. It might be using a different call in your sequence, different volume, different set up, but try something. Then call 3 more stands. No takers, change something else. Eventually a coyote will show up. Make note of what calls you used, how long into the stand the coyote showed up, what was it's interest level, how did it approach. Try that same kind of stand again. Try to catch onto the pattern.