Night hunting in Virginia?

1trkyhntr

1trkyhntr

Well-known member
Hi,
I am recently retired and am brand new to predator hunting. As a matter of fact I just bought a .223 rifle last week, and ordered an electronic caller that won't be delivered until mid-late October, so all I'm doing in the mean time is lining up places to hunt, getting equipped, getting advice, etc.
My question is; Should I plan to hunt coyotes mainly at night, mainly during daylight, or both?
If I need to plan to hunt after dark, what kind of light will I need? I will probably be alone most of the time.
Will I need a red lens?
Some of the local guys that I have talked to hunt foxes and bobcats right from their truck, but they don't have any experience with coyotes. I can't believe that a coyote will walk within shooting range of my white truck, so I'm thinking that I need to be out of sight of the truck. Any advice that you can give me will be appreciated.
Thanks, Mike
 
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Mike, Ill try and help.
Day or night? Both. At night they are more bold as they have darkness as cover. During the day...dusk and dawn are best.

If your alone I recommend a head lamp for spotting and a light mounted on your gun for the id and shot. Be sure you've id'd your target.

Red lens for sure. although some are using LED lights without filters.

My state does not allow me to have a loaded gun in or on a motor vehicle. if it did I would hunt right out of the back.
At night the light shields you from there vision, like when someone shines a light on you at night, you can't see beyond the light, its the same for critters.

I hunt coyotes, cats, and fox the same way around here. Except if I'm hunting fox or cats i won't howl.

check out this link and listen to episode with Randy Watson for night hunting tips. And then listen to the rest of them as all are great. Good luck, hope this helps. Also check out the night hunting board.

http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/talkCast.jsp?masterId=34247&cmd=tc


Bob
 
Originally Posted By: rpc55Mike, Ill try and help.
Day or night? Both. At night they are more bold as they have darkness as cover. During the day...dusk and dawn are best.

If your alone I recommend a head lamp for spotting and a light mounted on your gun for the id and shot. Be sure you've id'd your target.

Red lens for sure. although some are using LED lights without filters.

My state does not allow me to have a loaded gun in or on a motor vehicle. if it did I would hunt right out of the back.
At night the light shields you from there vision, like when someone shines a light on you at night, you can't see beyond the light, its the same for critters.

I hunt coyotes, cats, and fox the same way around here. Except if I'm hunting fox or cats i won't howl.

check out this link and listen to episode with Randy Watson for night hunting tips. And then listen to the rest of them as all are great. Good luck, hope this helps. Also check out the night hunting board.

http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/talkCast.jsp?masterId=34247&cmd=tc


Bob

+1 It dont get any better than that... Welcome to Predator Masters Mike....

Your buddies are breaking the law though....

It is unlawful in Virginia to:
Cast a light attached to a vehicle or from a vehicle beyond a roadway upon places used by deer without written permission of the landowner or at anytime while in the possession of a rifle, shotgun, pistol, archery tackle, or speargun.


 
I am familiar with that law. 29.1-523 Code Of Virginia.
29.1-521 (6) also prohibits hunting any animal at any time from a vehicle, except by disabled persons with a special permit. So I will not use my truck as a hunting platform. That's why I bought a rechargeable spotlight and ordered a remote caller. I'm just saying what other guys have told me about animals being spooked or not spooked by the sight of a vehicle...
Thanks for the reply
 
I have stood right beside my truck and called both coyotes and fox in and killed them at night...Alot of cornfields that I hunt has no cover and open fields also...I pull the truck through the gate, get out of truck and be real easy with the doors... This would work on a dark night and also when I do this I keep the truck behind me while Im calling.....
 
Mike, Always leave your light on during your stand and of course pay attention to the wind, coyotes and fox will likely come in from downwind. Use a backdrop as to not get skylined. A dark moonless night is best.

On a side note i am in the process of building a tripod for night hunting that i can slip right out of the back of my pickup, and hunt/call right there. A light mounted to the swivel chair, along with a head lamp. its about as best as I can get to having a stand mounted to a pickup.
Chad, do u wait at all after parking, or start calling right away?
 
Well I try to wait a few minutes...If Im competition hunting I usually dont because time is a factor...If Im pleasure hunting well Im not as you would say so eager to jump the gun...
grin.gif
I have killed them in both situations....
 
rcp55 your are spot on about getting skylighted...I think people needs to look at this as much as getting winded at night or maybe a little more because here in Va the nights are most of the time dead calm.... If you are skylighted from any distance, game over....
 
I would suggest, as already has been, two lights for night hunting. One to scan with from a ballcap mount such as a coonhunters light, not overpowering enough to spook em (less intense), picks up their eyes fine, not a problem. Then something like a Lightforce 140/170 for I.D and the shot, these mount on the scope, hands free. Both need red lens covers. Turn on you head light the minute you shut the truck doors and start walking away. I've have picked up eyes many times while walking to a perspective setup, just stop and start lipsqueaking. You're already behind the light, they ain't seen you. It's also helpful when you walk up on a skunk hunting the same area you are, or other people. Both stink.

Truck hunting is not only illegal here in Virginia it is adding to many bright shiny objects for light to reflect off of and give you away. We're not the masters of shining from vehicles like the guys who do it legally, elevated platforms etc, no overspray of stray light. I've hunted where it was legal, it works great, but does require attention to your light location, reflections, shadows etc.

Welcome aboard Mike, I am retired too. Good hunting to you.
 
A tripod may not be a good idea out in the open country, unless its really dark. In wooded country i think it will work great. There are miles and miles of logging roads around here. This is where I plan on using the pod.
 
mike the best i can give you is hear out what your fellow virginians have to say. ive come to learn that each state and heck even each county has dogs that tend to act completely different. what works in virginia might not work in WV although small changes in tactics they could mean the world in this ultimate predator pursuit. mcwalk, pruson and the rest of the colonial boys should lead you in the right direction +1 because it looks as though youve read into the game law for VA as far as night hunting. thats one reg that varies from state to state.....welcome to the greatest game on earth my friend
 
Hi Mike , welcome ! Most of the guys on here hunt both day and night . I think it's really a matter of preference. there's advantages of both.

Here's what I've found to generally be true and what Il like about calling during daylight hours.

.predators are more cautious responding to calling. this is the biggest factor . stick to thicker cover where a pred will feel more comfortable , especially after the first 2 hours until the last hour of light.

.the preds you call are easier to kill.I think a daytime caller has a higher success at call in to kill ratio . visibility is better and a cautious animal is slower providing an easier shot.although ,a night caller will have much more action generally they're offered tougher shots like having a grey fox run at them full speed from their side.

.during daylight you get to do some really good off season scouting for other game . If thats your thing. Alot of the guys on here do strictly pred hunting !

.It's nice not having to carry around light's and batteries

Night hunting is a different beast entirely and I'll admit this is a weak spot for me ,especially on yotes . here's what I've found about night hunting.

.your success will really depend alot on how you operate your equipment , lights and batteries. I believe this is what seperates the pros from the newbies.a pro know's how to scan ,Identify a target and shoot it without much difficuly. a newbie will normally have trouble doing this till the quirks get worked out.

.sound travels alot further at night .generally less wind and backround noise such as distant traffic / constuction.

.red eyes look real cool.

as stated earlier will generally have alot more action than hunting during the day.

Hope this helps
 
Mike,

I have some bad news for you. All the predators have left Virginia. Don't waste your time trying to kill them. There is not a fox or coyote left anywhere.
grin.gif
Welcome to the board. Most of the guys around here are full of it but if you weed through the BS you will get answers to your questions. I will tell you this website will cost you a ton of money and you will spend countless hours on here.

I am of the opinion that it doesn't hurt to put distance between you and the truck. I have hunted and killed fox with the truck beside me. However, I think animals are more likely to spook or not come in at all. You never know how many of them that you call in and spook before they show themselves. The biggest challenge is to find coyotes. There are plenty of them around but mostly they are found in pockets. I hunt Hanover and Caroline county. Deer Dog hunting put lots of pressure on the coyotes so they are harder to pin down. The coyotes that I have called in had been previously spoted by others. I have never cold called in a coyote here in VA. I like to hunt the 30 minutes just before sunset. It seems that they are more likely to come at this point since most will have an empty belly. I will hunt one long stand before dark and then at dark I will hunt until I can't take anymore. Some nights it is only a few stands others I will hunt until I start to fall asleep on stand. Good luck!
 
I live in Halifax va (south boston) its also in the southside area? Out of curiousity what part of southside are you from? We hunt at night until we either get to tired or we just are having bad luck. We just use a spot light with a red lense. We mostly get foxes though. We called in a few coyotes but they seem to hold up a ways away. I am fairly new to this myself since i only have about 2 years under my belt. I killed a bobcat during the day but it was about 20 or 30 mintues from dark. Coyotes have been seen during the day but I hardly hunt during that time sicne most of my mornings are dedicated to deer hunting as with the evening time. Just try you will get better and get the swing of things. Don't over hunt the area because alot of the times you will educate the predators. Check the tree lines and cover areas if you hunt during the day and scan it with your scope or binoculars. Sometimes they have already seen you and are looking right at you trying to figure out what you are and whats going on. The other guys might be able to tell you more. Like i said I'm a noob also. The more seasoned guys will be able to tell you better.
 
i live in sturatsdraft va and i hunt coyotes in jetterville just out side of amelia but im from amelia,anyway were i hunt there use to be a ton of pines ,over the yrs i killed a boat load of yoties.now the pines were cut last yr and i havent shot or seen a yotie sincethen and thats day or night.can anyone tell me why
 
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