Mason
New member
The stars aligned and allowed our schedules to open up. We decided it was time for a calling trip. With plenty of time to hit any and all places we've got permission on it was looking like it might turn into a heck of a trip! (we would at least make a lot of stands) The three of us met plenty early at my father-in-laws Thursday morning. It would be me, my father-in-law Shannon, and a young man, Spencer, who has been learning how to trap from my father-in-law.
We thought we were plenty early, but as things usually work for us we ended up being too late for our intended first stand. A quick change of direction put us underneath an old cottonwood tree. The coons fighting in our Foxpro didn't convince anyone to pop out though. I wasn't terribly surprised however as we had squalled a coon out of the tree a week or so before.
A quick jaunt up the road brought us to our next property. We had called it before this year with no luck but it had worked there in previous years. The big difference was this year a oil well was drilled right where they usually bedded. We approached it slightly different this time and within a few minutes of sitting down I heard it. Bam! Cha-Chunk! Bam! from Spencer's direction. A pair had come running in from straight downwind. Spencer was able to pick off one and our trip was under way!
We split up to make two seperate stands. I struck out sitting above the dried out creek bottom. Shannon and Spencer sat farther down the creek underneath an old cottonwood. After about 15 minutes they decided to try to squall a coon again. Right after they switched the call a coyote ran in but it dropped into the creek and never reappeared. As a consulation prize a coon bailed out of the tree and they got it.
By that time nature was calling my name and with it being 25 degrees with the wind blowing I didn't feel like hanging it all out. I dropped them for a final stand there and headed for the nearest gas station (besides, I needed some Twizzlers).
When I returned they had another coyote to show for their efforts. They had setup down in a thicket with cat on the brain and ended up with this coyote rushing in. A quick skinning session and we were ready to move onto the next property up north.
We ate on the road and arrived a little after noon. The wind was right for a stand Shannon had in mind. Previously he had called it in the snow without seeing anything but on his way out saw two sets of coyote tracks that had circled him.
We slipped in quietly and setup five yards from each other in a triangle each covering a different direction. I set out the decoy and Foxpro in the clearing. Walking back I told Spencer he was going to have a coyote rush straight into the clearing so stay ready with the shotgun. The spot just looked great. Shannon covered the field with the rifle, Spencer covered the clearing, and I watched our downwind side for anything coming down the cow trail.
Within 90 seconds of the call starting I heard the familiar sound of an 870 firing and cycling. I glanced over to Spencer and he whispered... "bobcat!" with a thumbs up! That was quick! We kept the call going and three minutes later I saw a pale figure trotting down the cow trail towards us. He stopped as he crossed my shooting lane and this time it was my shotgun going off!
It was the first dual species double that any of us had ever gotten. Spencer's cat was a big beautiful cat. Easily the best Oklahoma cat I'd ever seen (colorwise that is). My coyote was no slouch either. After taking pictures it was 12:30. What a midday stand! It was time for more skinning!
Our confidence was peaking and just knew the rest of our day was going to be a slam dunk. Which made the next seven stands a little hard to believe. Nothing! Didn't see a thing! A few really good looking spots too.
With the sun set we decided to head towards our next ranch out west. Stopping in a small west Oklahoma town we were quite shocked by the new rate at the hotel! Oil field guys have nearly everything booked up for rooms and the hotels are taking advantage. But it was a hot shower and a soft bed out of the wind and sub-freezing temperatures.
Bundled in most of our clothes the next morning it was time to get back at it! Our first stand was a bit of an awkward spot but it had worked before. Just not this time!
Our second stand was uneventful for Spencer and I until we heard Shannon pop off a shot downwind of us. I glanced over to see a pair of coyotes sprinting back to the safety of the mesquite. The pair had sit down 300 yards out and wouldn't commit so Shannon tried the shot but didn't connect. He was also afraid they looked a little mangy.
Our third stand was a tried and true spot. I was setup looking down the pond dam while Spencer and Shannon climbed up a small mud mesa. Sure enough several minutes in I heard a bark, a rifle shot, and a bullet connect. Shannon scored us our first coyote for the day.
The wind began to pick up driving us down into the creek bottoms and the thick stuff. Even with the change of strategy our next 5 stands through midday were duds.
As dusk approached the wind laid down bringing us back up to the flats. On a whim we parked at a new spot and popped over the hill and sat down. I expected a coyote to show up out at 80 yards so I laid my shotgun off to the side opting to default to the rifle. As things often turn out when calling I was surprised by a coyote rushing into our decoy from my left. I was able to get the shotgun up and hit him on the run at 35 yards.
We rushed to our next and final stand of the day. Setting up on a sand bar with thick brush on both sides we set the decoy and Foxpro out to be visible for a long way. We hoped to suck a cat out to where it would be easily visible. Ten minutes into our calling I heard someone shift behind me. Slowly turning my head I saw a coyote standing on the sand bar trying to figure out what it was shifting a rifle into position. Spencers shot from the 22-250 rang out, breaking the silence and putting the coyote into a spin. Another shot halted the spin and our final count for the day was three coyotes, one for each of us.
There's a dead coyote in this picture somewhere.
Saturday morning found us back to the east on some new property. The owner brought his .243 and joined us for several stands. Fantastic looking places that were sure to be full of coyotes and bobcats. If they were home, they weren't interested in what we were selling. The owner showed us some more of his place that looked promising and we dropped him back at his house after noon.
A late lunch at the local cafe killed some time during the warmer and windy afternoon. Spencer had Gus's Gut Grenade (open face burger with chili and all the fixuns) much to our amusement. This would later bite him back as we walked out of our last stand when he commented "I think someone has pulled the pin on the Gut Grenade."
After our late lunch we returned to a promising property with cedar choked canyons that opened onto a very nice creek bottom. As we tried a few different stands it became apparent that the area was full of deer but three stands failed to produce a coyote. Our last stand ended with a lone coyote barking out his warning that we weren't what we advertised. The best we can figure is that he saw us walking in.
A disappointing day to end what was a fantastic few days of calling. Our final count added up to 6 coyotes, 1 bobcat, and a coon. I've thought back to the trips and mornings spent calling with nothing to show for our efforts. This time however we were able to pull off an excitement filled weekend to remind us what calling was all about.
We thought we were plenty early, but as things usually work for us we ended up being too late for our intended first stand. A quick change of direction put us underneath an old cottonwood tree. The coons fighting in our Foxpro didn't convince anyone to pop out though. I wasn't terribly surprised however as we had squalled a coon out of the tree a week or so before.
A quick jaunt up the road brought us to our next property. We had called it before this year with no luck but it had worked there in previous years. The big difference was this year a oil well was drilled right where they usually bedded. We approached it slightly different this time and within a few minutes of sitting down I heard it. Bam! Cha-Chunk! Bam! from Spencer's direction. A pair had come running in from straight downwind. Spencer was able to pick off one and our trip was under way!
We split up to make two seperate stands. I struck out sitting above the dried out creek bottom. Shannon and Spencer sat farther down the creek underneath an old cottonwood. After about 15 minutes they decided to try to squall a coon again. Right after they switched the call a coyote ran in but it dropped into the creek and never reappeared. As a consulation prize a coon bailed out of the tree and they got it.
By that time nature was calling my name and with it being 25 degrees with the wind blowing I didn't feel like hanging it all out. I dropped them for a final stand there and headed for the nearest gas station (besides, I needed some Twizzlers).
When I returned they had another coyote to show for their efforts. They had setup down in a thicket with cat on the brain and ended up with this coyote rushing in. A quick skinning session and we were ready to move onto the next property up north.
We ate on the road and arrived a little after noon. The wind was right for a stand Shannon had in mind. Previously he had called it in the snow without seeing anything but on his way out saw two sets of coyote tracks that had circled him.
We slipped in quietly and setup five yards from each other in a triangle each covering a different direction. I set out the decoy and Foxpro in the clearing. Walking back I told Spencer he was going to have a coyote rush straight into the clearing so stay ready with the shotgun. The spot just looked great. Shannon covered the field with the rifle, Spencer covered the clearing, and I watched our downwind side for anything coming down the cow trail.
Within 90 seconds of the call starting I heard the familiar sound of an 870 firing and cycling. I glanced over to Spencer and he whispered... "bobcat!" with a thumbs up! That was quick! We kept the call going and three minutes later I saw a pale figure trotting down the cow trail towards us. He stopped as he crossed my shooting lane and this time it was my shotgun going off!
It was the first dual species double that any of us had ever gotten. Spencer's cat was a big beautiful cat. Easily the best Oklahoma cat I'd ever seen (colorwise that is). My coyote was no slouch either. After taking pictures it was 12:30. What a midday stand! It was time for more skinning!
Our confidence was peaking and just knew the rest of our day was going to be a slam dunk. Which made the next seven stands a little hard to believe. Nothing! Didn't see a thing! A few really good looking spots too.
With the sun set we decided to head towards our next ranch out west. Stopping in a small west Oklahoma town we were quite shocked by the new rate at the hotel! Oil field guys have nearly everything booked up for rooms and the hotels are taking advantage. But it was a hot shower and a soft bed out of the wind and sub-freezing temperatures.
Bundled in most of our clothes the next morning it was time to get back at it! Our first stand was a bit of an awkward spot but it had worked before. Just not this time!
Our second stand was uneventful for Spencer and I until we heard Shannon pop off a shot downwind of us. I glanced over to see a pair of coyotes sprinting back to the safety of the mesquite. The pair had sit down 300 yards out and wouldn't commit so Shannon tried the shot but didn't connect. He was also afraid they looked a little mangy.
Our third stand was a tried and true spot. I was setup looking down the pond dam while Spencer and Shannon climbed up a small mud mesa. Sure enough several minutes in I heard a bark, a rifle shot, and a bullet connect. Shannon scored us our first coyote for the day.
The wind began to pick up driving us down into the creek bottoms and the thick stuff. Even with the change of strategy our next 5 stands through midday were duds.
As dusk approached the wind laid down bringing us back up to the flats. On a whim we parked at a new spot and popped over the hill and sat down. I expected a coyote to show up out at 80 yards so I laid my shotgun off to the side opting to default to the rifle. As things often turn out when calling I was surprised by a coyote rushing into our decoy from my left. I was able to get the shotgun up and hit him on the run at 35 yards.
We rushed to our next and final stand of the day. Setting up on a sand bar with thick brush on both sides we set the decoy and Foxpro out to be visible for a long way. We hoped to suck a cat out to where it would be easily visible. Ten minutes into our calling I heard someone shift behind me. Slowly turning my head I saw a coyote standing on the sand bar trying to figure out what it was shifting a rifle into position. Spencers shot from the 22-250 rang out, breaking the silence and putting the coyote into a spin. Another shot halted the spin and our final count for the day was three coyotes, one for each of us.
There's a dead coyote in this picture somewhere.
Saturday morning found us back to the east on some new property. The owner brought his .243 and joined us for several stands. Fantastic looking places that were sure to be full of coyotes and bobcats. If they were home, they weren't interested in what we were selling. The owner showed us some more of his place that looked promising and we dropped him back at his house after noon.
A late lunch at the local cafe killed some time during the warmer and windy afternoon. Spencer had Gus's Gut Grenade (open face burger with chili and all the fixuns) much to our amusement. This would later bite him back as we walked out of our last stand when he commented "I think someone has pulled the pin on the Gut Grenade."
After our late lunch we returned to a promising property with cedar choked canyons that opened onto a very nice creek bottom. As we tried a few different stands it became apparent that the area was full of deer but three stands failed to produce a coyote. Our last stand ended with a lone coyote barking out his warning that we weren't what we advertised. The best we can figure is that he saw us walking in.
A disappointing day to end what was a fantastic few days of calling. Our final count added up to 6 coyotes, 1 bobcat, and a coon. I've thought back to the trips and mornings spent calling with nothing to show for our efforts. This time however we were able to pull off an excitement filled weekend to remind us what calling was all about.
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