Another NY Cat. Some of you saw this on the other site but thought I'd share with our NY partners here.
Long read.......
Well I've been whining about my poor luck with the canines, especially the coyotes. And, today was no better. I went to a small piece of public land that has produced for me in the past. I set up my second stand at about 12:30pm. After 40 minutes of nothing I grabbed the caller and headed towards my vehicle. I hadn't gone 40 yards when I saw that a coyote had walked down my tracks and came within 40 yards of me!!! This coyote was standing there watching me while I worked the calls. Then he cut to the left and caught my wind. Game over. The tracks showed that he had walked in my tracks for about 50 yards. Prior to that, he crossed a wide open field. All of this in the middle of the day. Needless to say I was very depressed. I came home and vowed to quit hunting.
After doing the house chores, the misses granted me one last time to prove my worth as a hunter. So, off to the woods I went. It was about 5:20pm when I settled into my stand. The wind was slight cross breeze hitting the right front of my face. I was only about 150 yards off the rural road. I was hopeful as this area was littered with coyote tracks and I had heard them howling here from across the valley a few days ago.
My location was at the base of a big hill with a swamp behind me, a thick pine stand to my left and briars and scrub brush making up the remaining close brush. The hillside was mature hard woods with ledges running through it. I set the FoxPro out front and slightly to the right at about 30 yards. I got settled in and waited 5 minutes. I hit the high pitched snow shoe hare on the FoxPro at very low volume. After 5 minutes, I wailed loudly on one of my new calls. After 90 seconds of blowing I let up. I did this 3 times during my 40 minute sit. Just as I finishing my 3rd set on the mouth call, I thought I heard a branch snap off to my left. I strained to hear it again but nothing. About 2-3 minutes passed and I thought I saw something in the brush. I didn't have a light as I was depending on the full-moon to illuminate the night.
I was straining so hard to see, that my eyes began to water. Just then a bush moved! The whole thing! And like magic he was there. He was moving so slow I thought I was hallucinating. But, as he continued his left to right stalking my eyes began to focus better. Then as if someone turned the lights on, I could clearly see the big tom. The shotgun was up and on him smoothly and silently. As he eased towards the faint sound of the FoxPro, I squeezed the trigger. No thrashing or snarling. When I approached him my jaw dropped. I'm sure there're bigger but I'll take him.
Thanks for bearing with me.
o noon .. Than got busted by a yote on the next set . came to within twenty yards of me . I spotted it at fifty As it was slipping away . took some hair off it at eighty as it was cresting a rock wall..No blood
