DoubleCK
New member
Shane Trotter from over the mountain and I have been PMing and emailing for awhile. Happens he is working a job here in Sheridan this week. He has a young cur dog, Dusty that he got from Lucas Smith up North, who got it from Tim Mix, who got his dogs from Dasher. Well that makes his dog a relation of some sort to Tucker. You Know Family!
Being his first season of predator calling, Shane has been having a little trouble putting coyotes in front of his young dog, so I told him to come on out to the ranch and we would at least get Dusty some exercise so he would sleep good in the motel.
Well we headed up into the south pasture on the ATVs with Tucker and Dusty on the run. I asked Shane to keep the ATV RPMs low and that we would always shut the ATVs off before we tried to whisper out any plans. We had time to hit one of three stands that I had in mind and I knew I would know which one when we got to the top of the first ridge and get a better read on the wind. We stopped the machines in a little saddle at a salt lick and when we shut them down....well we already had a coyote scolding the dogs. The wind and the sun weren't right for that one and I figured we were busted anyway so we took the two track fork to the east that put the sun behind us and the wind in our face. We got set up and after a couple of long friendly howls from the Brand X caller I could hear the first coyote back to the west. He sounded mad and was headed our way. Then suddenly a coyote really lit it up just to the east, and he was close! Hard to spot them in that country with broken sage and rock. I finally spotted him by striking a line off Tucker's nose as she was burning it that way. I could tell it was a pup. So figured there wouldn't be potential for dog work. Might have been fun to see if the pair that I know lives there would show up, but as we really needed to put down a coyote for Dusty I told Shane to go ahead and kill him. He squeezed off a round and the coyote started the "unhappy dance." I told him to put another one in him, then quickly corrected that thought with a "Hold IT" as Tucker arrived on the scene. The Coyote pup was just creased. Well long story short, it couldn't have worked out better for Dusty. After the fact he was covered in Coyote Juice and after rolling in the snow he left a big red patch. That stand really fired him up. I think he's going to be all in!
Next day when things slowed down for me at school today I texted Shane and asked him what he was into. He immediately texted back, "Wanna go calling? I can get off!" Well we have a big storm coming in and I knew a spot we could make for one stand before dark. He texted back he would meet me at the ranch.
We got set up overlooking a dry creek bed with big cottonwoods and wild plums about 200 yards below. The wind had come up and was blowing from our left to our right down the creek. Started with my regular stuff. Tucker was down wind working a hay meadow. I decided to try something that would carry upwind a little better and went with some loud Pileated Woodpecker. I am watching Tucker at about 15 minutes in and I see her head suddenly snap to her left into the wind and I think Okay, game on. With her head high she heads into the wind to the sage flat and then her head goes down and she hits the creek with her big horn going. She trails up the creek and I know it's not a coyote by the way she's trailing and bawling. Suddenly she's treed. Careful not to jinx anything I tell Shane she's treed. I turn off the Brand X and head across the sage flats and up the creek at a pretty good pace for an old fat guy with a mechanical knee.
I see that Tucker is treed at a big ole cottonwood and head that way. Shane who was right behind me said, "I see it. It's a Lion." I do keep a Mountain Lion Tag in the pocket of my calling vest. After taking a good look with the binocs I can see it's a Bobcat clear at the top of that big ole cottonwood tree. I work my way to about 60 yards sit down, take the shot and down he comes. Being the old coon hunter that he is, Shane takes of at a blazing rate of speed to make sure the deal is closed. It was. Tucker and Dusty are very happy to have a taste of the warm fine fur, but of course a seasons worth of gas money must be preserved.
FUN! (-:
Being his first season of predator calling, Shane has been having a little trouble putting coyotes in front of his young dog, so I told him to come on out to the ranch and we would at least get Dusty some exercise so he would sleep good in the motel.
Well we headed up into the south pasture on the ATVs with Tucker and Dusty on the run. I asked Shane to keep the ATV RPMs low and that we would always shut the ATVs off before we tried to whisper out any plans. We had time to hit one of three stands that I had in mind and I knew I would know which one when we got to the top of the first ridge and get a better read on the wind. We stopped the machines in a little saddle at a salt lick and when we shut them down....well we already had a coyote scolding the dogs. The wind and the sun weren't right for that one and I figured we were busted anyway so we took the two track fork to the east that put the sun behind us and the wind in our face. We got set up and after a couple of long friendly howls from the Brand X caller I could hear the first coyote back to the west. He sounded mad and was headed our way. Then suddenly a coyote really lit it up just to the east, and he was close! Hard to spot them in that country with broken sage and rock. I finally spotted him by striking a line off Tucker's nose as she was burning it that way. I could tell it was a pup. So figured there wouldn't be potential for dog work. Might have been fun to see if the pair that I know lives there would show up, but as we really needed to put down a coyote for Dusty I told Shane to go ahead and kill him. He squeezed off a round and the coyote started the "unhappy dance." I told him to put another one in him, then quickly corrected that thought with a "Hold IT" as Tucker arrived on the scene. The Coyote pup was just creased. Well long story short, it couldn't have worked out better for Dusty. After the fact he was covered in Coyote Juice and after rolling in the snow he left a big red patch. That stand really fired him up. I think he's going to be all in!
Next day when things slowed down for me at school today I texted Shane and asked him what he was into. He immediately texted back, "Wanna go calling? I can get off!" Well we have a big storm coming in and I knew a spot we could make for one stand before dark. He texted back he would meet me at the ranch.
We got set up overlooking a dry creek bed with big cottonwoods and wild plums about 200 yards below. The wind had come up and was blowing from our left to our right down the creek. Started with my regular stuff. Tucker was down wind working a hay meadow. I decided to try something that would carry upwind a little better and went with some loud Pileated Woodpecker. I am watching Tucker at about 15 minutes in and I see her head suddenly snap to her left into the wind and I think Okay, game on. With her head high she heads into the wind to the sage flat and then her head goes down and she hits the creek with her big horn going. She trails up the creek and I know it's not a coyote by the way she's trailing and bawling. Suddenly she's treed. Careful not to jinx anything I tell Shane she's treed. I turn off the Brand X and head across the sage flats and up the creek at a pretty good pace for an old fat guy with a mechanical knee.
I see that Tucker is treed at a big ole cottonwood and head that way. Shane who was right behind me said, "I see it. It's a Lion." I do keep a Mountain Lion Tag in the pocket of my calling vest. After taking a good look with the binocs I can see it's a Bobcat clear at the top of that big ole cottonwood tree. I work my way to about 60 yards sit down, take the shot and down he comes. Being the old coon hunter that he is, Shane takes of at a blazing rate of speed to make sure the deal is closed. It was. Tucker and Dusty are very happy to have a taste of the warm fine fur, but of course a seasons worth of gas money must be preserved.
FUN! (-:
