What a blast we had last night! Brian Hoerler and I went coyote hunting and it turned into a three-ringed circus with coons. The first stand of the night we were set up in a corn filed in a spot that I hadn’t tried yet this year so I was almost sure we would have some action but I didn’t think it would be a coon marathon.
After the first series of distress sounds I picked up a set of eyes in a tree row near the edge of the field and I thought it was a fox as they are common in that area. I kept panning the light because we were more concerned about coyotes than we were fox. After a couple sweeps of the light we seen that our fox was now about 30 ft up a tree so we obviously new it was a coon. A few minutes later we spied 2 more coons at the base of the tree. We finished out the stand with no luck so we decided to go try for the coons.
We headed for the tree grove and found the one in the tree right off the bat and I took a couple of shots at him with my K-22 and missed. I was working around the tree to try and get another shot at him when I heard Hoerlers .223 sound off fallowed by a big boar coon cart-wealing out of the top of the tree. I heard the coon hit the ground but I didn’t hear the familiar death kick that they are known for and sure enough when we got down their, he was gone. We looked around and couldn’t even find any blood. At that point we were about to give up when Hoerler said hay hay looky here. I went over and about 4 feet down in a spillway pipe we saw some fresh blood. The spore told the tail. Hoerler didn’t get a good scald on the critter and he holed up in a pipe that angled off at the bottom of the spillway.
It was time for my terriers to earn their food. We jumped in the pickup and ran to town to get my dogs. I thought we might be in trouble because my female was in heat so I wasn’t going to hunt her with my male which is currently my best dog so that left me with Gizmo my older male and Hannibal my pup. Hannibal is a patterdale terrier but is still several months away from his first birthday so I wasn’t expecting much from him.
When we returned we entered Gizmo and he shot down the pipe and almost instantly all hell broke lose. Gizmo and the coon went at it for a while and then Gizmo started baying hard. A few minutes later he came out so I reached down into the spillway and pointed my pistol 22 down the pipe and let off a few rounds. I then entered Gizmo again and again he engaged the coon. The fought for a while and then here came gizmo with a huge bore coon hot on his tail. When they came out they were at the bottom of the spillway, which was a large pipe about 3 feet across and about 4 ft deep. The fought in their for a while and I thought the dog would finish him their but he lost his hold and the coon got back into the pipe but this time Gizmo was ahead of him. The only way out for the dog was through the coon so the fight was on. After a few minutes I decided to let Hannibal in because I didn’t want Gizmo pined in-between two angry coons.
I dropped Hannibal into the spillway and he was in the pipe like a shot. I could here him engage the coon and then soon after I heard the death cry off the coon. For those of you that have never heard the cry, it is a high-pitched squeal that they make when they are being throated. I thought “FINALLY” its over. Another ten minutes or so passed and then Hannibal came out but there was no sign of Gizzy? We weighted and weighted and eventually Gizmo emerged from the pipe muddy and bloody. He was exhausted by now because we have already been there for about an hour and a half.
I thought to my self now what? We have a dead coon in the pipe and no way of getting him out. While we were contemplating on what to do we started to hear heavy breathing in the pipe again and growling!! I couldn’t believe it. The coon had several 22 rounds in him, was winged by a .223 and choked “nearly to death” by my dog!!!! What must of happened was that Gizmo choked him down in the pipe until the coon was unconscious and then crawled over the top of him thinking he was dead and then came out. The pipe its self was only about 10 inches around so it must have been a very tight fit. I don’t know how he did it?
I reached down there again and then fired a few more blind shots down the pipe and entered Gizmo. Gizmo engaged the coon but then backed off and bayed. We continued shooting and entering the dogs until I must have finally got a good hit on the coon and then the dog got him drug out.
I was ready to pack up and go when Hoerler said I wonder if there are any more coons in there? I said well lets find out. I dropped Hannibal in and off he went. Soon later I heard a steady baying. We then knew that the other two coons that we had seen earlier must be in there as well.
Our 22-shell supply was now severally depleted so each shot must count. But how can we make a shot count if we cant even see the coon or our sights to aim with. Well I had a brainstorm. I thought HA HA I got it. I would have Hoerler lower me down the larger 3 foot pipe by my legs and I would rest on my head, shine the Mag-light down the pipe and then shoot the coon precisely between the eyes. Well….it all sounded good on paper so we gave it a try.
Because of the tight fit I shed my jacket and my sweatshirt leaving me half naked. I then reached down the hole and placed the light just inside of the pipe so I wouldn’t have to hold it when I shot. Hoerler then began lowering me down until I came to rest on my head. I focused my eyes and then seen a pair of red coals burning at the end of the pipe about 20 foot down. I giggled to my self and thought this is a peace of cake. I centered the sights of my pistol as best I could between his eyes. Now I don’t know how many of you have had much experience shooting while standing on your head but it don’t work to well. I Fired. BOOM went the pistol and the pipe was flooded with blue smoke. I heard the coon squeal and growl. Less than a second later those burning coals that were 20 feet down the pipe were now emerging out of the smoke a mere ten and closing!! Here came a pissedoff, wounded boar coon growling and snarling at now less than ten feet. I was screaming at the top of my lungs “GET ME THE F#@K OUT OF HERE” and shooting as fast as I could. Hoerler grabbed my belt and pulled. Off went my pants. Now I am stuck bare-assed, head first in a 3-foot wide hole 4 foot below the ground with an enraged coon charging my face. Did I mention that I wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif Anyway by the grace of God one of my shots that I fired in a blind panic hit its mark. We then entered Gizmo and he drew the coon out.
After that we knew that we had to get the other coon and I wasn’t crazy about going head first again down the pipe espessualy after tearing all the hide off my back, elbows, stomach and head trying to get out the first time. But then I thought hell, why not? After all it worked once. LOL
Are game plan changed a little this time. We decided that he would lower me down I would shoot a couple of times and then he would hoist me back up “BY THE LEGS” instead of the belt. It worked out pretty well that time. I shot 3 times at the remaining coon and was out of their in no time flat. I entered Gizmo and he headed down the pipe only to find a very healthy and angry coon. At this point poor old Gizzy had had enough he was tired and had literally been chewed on from one end to the other. He was ready for bed not another battle.
I thought about going back to town and getting “sweaty pee” my female and some more shells and come back. I was talking about it with hoerler and one of us flashed a light into the spillway and there he was. He looked at me and I looked at Brian. It then dawned on me to shoot the damned thing so I scrambled for the pistol and fired the last shell to our name into his forehead. What a night. We went out for a little while longer and managed one more coon and a coyote but the spillway coons stole the show. I will remember that hunt as long as I live.
Good hunting.
Q,
