SDHowler
New member
I just wanted to share a story of a coyote and deer hunt from the 1980’s in South Dakota. The day started at sunrise with an attempt to fill my deer tag. It didn’t take very long before I spotted several mule deer does on a hillside of the Lyman County ranch. After glassing over these deer, I also spotted a nice 4 X 5 mule deer buck. I made a short stalk on these deer and when I got within 150 yards, the buck stood up and I couldn’t pass on this opportunity for a shot. My shot connected and the deer hunt was over so fast.
Then I thought that I should also try and call up some coyotes from the same area. I only moved about 100 yards from where the buck was laying and picked a spot with good visibility in some river break hills. I made several howls with my open reed call and to my surprise, had responses from three separate family groups of coyotes. Now the fun was only beginning, since I had to watch three different directions to see which coyotes would be spotted first, hopefully coming in to my howls.
Watching back over my shoulder to the northeast, then to the west, and next to the big draw to the south, which coyotes would I spot first or which ones would see or scent me FIRST? Finally after several minutes of glassing and watching, I spotted some movement close to a mile away along a creek to the south. This turned out to be six coyotes coming in to my stand from the southerly direction. I kept watching every few minutes to the northeast and west, but never did see the other coyotes that answered my howls.
As the group to the south got to about 400 hundred yards, I made some rabbit distress cries with my call and four of the coyotes continued their approach and two remained back. As they came into my stand, they went out of sight on the front side of hill I was using for my stand. I made a few squeaks with my lips and noticed a coyote to the south jumping up through the yuccas as it approached looking for it’s hopeful meal. Finally it got close enough for a full shoulder shot and my shot connected. I blew a few kiyi’s and noticed a coyote on a west ridge at about 150 yards; my second shot stopped this coyote. I still hadn’t seen two of the other four coyotes that had come in from the south. Hence I started to move to the south to look at a blind spot over the hill, where the coyotes made their first approach.
Finally I went far enough to view the draw where the coyotes had made their approach and down on the lower edge of the hill were the two remaining coyotes. One was standing and the other was in the sitting position. I put the crosshairs on the standing coyote and fired a shot, putting an end to the third coyote. The remaining coyote stood up looking at its dead partner, I quickly chambered another shell, shot and hit the coyote in the front leg and now the departure was on. I took a couple more running shots but didn’t make contact.
The rancher heard the multiple shots and drove out to see if I had any luck? I was picking up the first coyote when he arrived and he was happy to see that I killed a coyote. Little did he know what a FANTASTIC morning hunt that I had. We went on to pick up the second coyote and the rancher was really smiling and when I told him we had one more to go, he was in disbelief. After I picked up the last coyote, I looked at their teeth to see how old they were from the wear on the incisors and the canine teeth. These three coyotes were all pups. If you remember my story, I had six coyotes approaching from the south and two coyotes stayed back and four came into my call. I can only presume that the two adult coyotes sent the four pups in for breakfast and as it turned out, three of the pups had their first and last education.
I could have shot a limit of both pheasants and grouse that day also. I‘m sorry that I did not take any pictures that day, I have often thought back what a great picture and memory that would have made with the mule deer buck, three coyotes, and limits of both grouse and pheasants all hanging from the rancher’s wood corral fence.
Then I thought that I should also try and call up some coyotes from the same area. I only moved about 100 yards from where the buck was laying and picked a spot with good visibility in some river break hills. I made several howls with my open reed call and to my surprise, had responses from three separate family groups of coyotes. Now the fun was only beginning, since I had to watch three different directions to see which coyotes would be spotted first, hopefully coming in to my howls.
Watching back over my shoulder to the northeast, then to the west, and next to the big draw to the south, which coyotes would I spot first or which ones would see or scent me FIRST? Finally after several minutes of glassing and watching, I spotted some movement close to a mile away along a creek to the south. This turned out to be six coyotes coming in to my stand from the southerly direction. I kept watching every few minutes to the northeast and west, but never did see the other coyotes that answered my howls.
As the group to the south got to about 400 hundred yards, I made some rabbit distress cries with my call and four of the coyotes continued their approach and two remained back. As they came into my stand, they went out of sight on the front side of hill I was using for my stand. I made a few squeaks with my lips and noticed a coyote to the south jumping up through the yuccas as it approached looking for it’s hopeful meal. Finally it got close enough for a full shoulder shot and my shot connected. I blew a few kiyi’s and noticed a coyote on a west ridge at about 150 yards; my second shot stopped this coyote. I still hadn’t seen two of the other four coyotes that had come in from the south. Hence I started to move to the south to look at a blind spot over the hill, where the coyotes made their first approach.
Finally I went far enough to view the draw where the coyotes had made their approach and down on the lower edge of the hill were the two remaining coyotes. One was standing and the other was in the sitting position. I put the crosshairs on the standing coyote and fired a shot, putting an end to the third coyote. The remaining coyote stood up looking at its dead partner, I quickly chambered another shell, shot and hit the coyote in the front leg and now the departure was on. I took a couple more running shots but didn’t make contact.
The rancher heard the multiple shots and drove out to see if I had any luck? I was picking up the first coyote when he arrived and he was happy to see that I killed a coyote. Little did he know what a FANTASTIC morning hunt that I had. We went on to pick up the second coyote and the rancher was really smiling and when I told him we had one more to go, he was in disbelief. After I picked up the last coyote, I looked at their teeth to see how old they were from the wear on the incisors and the canine teeth. These three coyotes were all pups. If you remember my story, I had six coyotes approaching from the south and two coyotes stayed back and four came into my call. I can only presume that the two adult coyotes sent the four pups in for breakfast and as it turned out, three of the pups had their first and last education.
I could have shot a limit of both pheasants and grouse that day also. I‘m sorry that I did not take any pictures that day, I have often thought back what a great picture and memory that would have made with the mule deer buck, three coyotes, and limits of both grouse and pheasants all hanging from the rancher’s wood corral fence.
