My father-in-law got the Coyote bug hard this winter and got me caught up in his excitement. He just got access to two new sections and we we hunted one of them hard Fri evening and Sat.
After all most running out of gas, and having to make a side trip to the nearest "town", we got to business.
We made 5 stands Fri evening. Used territorial pro hunts on his Turbo Dogg. Got responses on a couple of the stands but no yotes. On our 4th stand they were talking back, but they wouldn't close, so we moved a few hundred yards closer and set up again.
I was prone on the side of a grass mound, looking over 2-300yds of open ground. We'd been on the stand for a good while and I was starting to think it was time to move on when I heard a sound 10-15yds to the right. Just as I turned I see a dog swap ends and start bounding off and a moderate lope.
I whipped around, dialed down my elevation and got him in the crosshairs at about 75yds he stopped and turned behind a mound of grass. I could just see his face. For some reason even though I was holding the crosshairs steady as a rock, offhand
, his face was moving all over the place? I pulled the trigger and the dog bolted at a high rate of speed for the next county.
The next morning came way to early, but it was a perfect day. Great sun, very slight breeze and nice and cool.
On about the 4th stand we really had dialed in setting up in the edge of the rimrocks and decided to mix it up with some prey sounds. I'm watching a doe and fawn in the grass about 200yds to my right, when I catch some movement on the left. Coming in on a string is a yote. He paused and my FIL changed it up to some pup (don't recall frenzy or distress) and he resumed his beeline for us at 130yds he paused and my FIL put a 75gr HPBT right through his ticker. He was DRT.
His "first" coyote! (He dispatched a wounded dog with a quick follow shot on another hunt with a friend.)
On another cool note: On one of the stands I was prone out on the rimrock and a hawk landed on a rock 6ft in front of my nose! Very cool!
Great property, literally 100's of whitetail and few dozen mule deer to boot. Every move we made we were surrounded by deer. EVERY TIME we hit fawn distress we called in a doe to about 25yds.
Several times whole herds fed into or traveled right through our setups. We joked we should come back during deer season deer hunting and we'd see 100's of coyotes.
Anyway when my FIL stopped by to thank the landowner she asked "see any deer". Hmm? "few hundred, maybe". Her response? "Kill all the does, take the straps and leave the rest for bait!"
They are pillaging the grazing land and they can't run as many cattle. I can see their point as we almost had to step over deer to get anywhere.
They did get as many land owner tags as could during deer season. While we were sorely tempted, if we can't do it legally and ethically we won't.
On a final note karma is a "B". Where we parked there was a hawk nest and the hawks screamed at us the entire time we were there. On the way to the stand I stopped to relieve myself and the only tree around was the ancient dead cottonwood that the hawks call home!
Well while we were gone they got their revenge all over BOTH side of my truck! Let me tell you, apparently hawks can poop in great volume with extreme accuracy! Lesson learned.
Cheers
Vince
After all most running out of gas, and having to make a side trip to the nearest "town", we got to business.
We made 5 stands Fri evening. Used territorial pro hunts on his Turbo Dogg. Got responses on a couple of the stands but no yotes. On our 4th stand they were talking back, but they wouldn't close, so we moved a few hundred yards closer and set up again.
I was prone on the side of a grass mound, looking over 2-300yds of open ground. We'd been on the stand for a good while and I was starting to think it was time to move on when I heard a sound 10-15yds to the right. Just as I turned I see a dog swap ends and start bounding off and a moderate lope.
I whipped around, dialed down my elevation and got him in the crosshairs at about 75yds he stopped and turned behind a mound of grass. I could just see his face. For some reason even though I was holding the crosshairs steady as a rock, offhand
The next morning came way to early, but it was a perfect day. Great sun, very slight breeze and nice and cool.
On about the 4th stand we really had dialed in setting up in the edge of the rimrocks and decided to mix it up with some prey sounds. I'm watching a doe and fawn in the grass about 200yds to my right, when I catch some movement on the left. Coming in on a string is a yote. He paused and my FIL changed it up to some pup (don't recall frenzy or distress) and he resumed his beeline for us at 130yds he paused and my FIL put a 75gr HPBT right through his ticker. He was DRT.
His "first" coyote! (He dispatched a wounded dog with a quick follow shot on another hunt with a friend.)
On another cool note: On one of the stands I was prone out on the rimrock and a hawk landed on a rock 6ft in front of my nose! Very cool!
Great property, literally 100's of whitetail and few dozen mule deer to boot. Every move we made we were surrounded by deer. EVERY TIME we hit fawn distress we called in a doe to about 25yds.
Anyway when my FIL stopped by to thank the landowner she asked "see any deer". Hmm? "few hundred, maybe". Her response? "Kill all the does, take the straps and leave the rest for bait!"
They did get as many land owner tags as could during deer season. While we were sorely tempted, if we can't do it legally and ethically we won't.
On a final note karma is a "B". Where we parked there was a hawk nest and the hawks screamed at us the entire time we were there. On the way to the stand I stopped to relieve myself and the only tree around was the ancient dead cottonwood that the hawks call home!
Well while we were gone they got their revenge all over BOTH side of my truck! Let me tell you, apparently hawks can poop in great volume with extreme accuracy! Lesson learned.
Cheers
Vince
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