Yesterday was a good day, had a great time, but at the same time, we didn't exactly cover ourselves in glory either.
About the only number I pay attention to anymore is called to killed ratio. I don't really care how many I kill, but it still bothers me to call them in and NOT kill them. I'd rather only call in four coyotes all day, but kill all four of them, than to call in ten coyotes and only kill five or six of them. I feel better driving home knowing I was efficient, than having a couple more coyotes in the truck but knowing I got beat a few times.
I called in twelve yesterday, but me and Tim only killed four!
Temp was single digits on the first stand and we got nothing but yappers.
Next couple stands I tried some vocals and got even more yappers but no customers.
Yappers were all down in the thick sage flats in the bottom of the valley. Just very difficult to make a stand in that stuff. Nowhere to hide the Jeep, single digit temps make for loud walking on the snow. And then even if you can get in and setup undetected, you can't see anything - a coyote can come in within 15 yards and leave without offering a shot even for the shotgun.
But for the fourth stand we decided we had to try and pull one up out of that stuff. Did the best we could to hide the Jeep and not make too much noise walking in. But we made enough noise that we had a yapper start up on us from about 200 yards before even setting up and that one ignited the whole chorus from down in the flat.
Crappy setup, but the best the terrain was offering us. Had a little bit of elevation above the main flat, where it starts to thin out and have some decent sized openings. But just couldn't find anywhere to sit and get any kind of view or decent shooting lanes. But we were there and knew a bunch of coyotes were in earshot so we gave it a go.
Started with the usual jackrabbit, and had the group yip howls going from down in the flat so loud and crazy it was just stupid. Getting late in the stand, about the twelve minute mark, I just started throwing the kitchen sink out there just for the helluvit. I threw out a bunch of vocals, from Coyote Yips to Coyote Fight to Pup Distress to Sore Howls - and others. Threw out a bunch of distress sounds too. Played Ugly Crow and had a gaggle of ravens come in circling and squawking. They flew off towards the flats, but then five or six of them dropped down and lit in the sage brush about 600 yards away and I saw a flash of a coyote near them.
Got my scope up and sure enough, a coyote breaks out into one of the openings headed our way. Then a second. Then a third and fourth. Then a fifth! Five coyotes running in! They get up to an opening within 125 yards of me and stop! But I have a big piece of sage about 20 yards in front of me blocking my shot. All I can see are the faces, but I'm seeing them through that sage. Just didn't think my chances were good of getting a 39 BK through that sage so I held off.
All five of them stop coming straight and start circling up for the breeze and I lose sight of them. I'm happy though. Because the way they need to go for the breeze is going to put them right in Tim's lap. Couple minutes go by, no shot, then one of them shows up going back the way it had come. Then two more and they stop in the same spot as before, with the same piece of sage blocking me. They melt back into the thick and I get up and move about 15 yards and now I've got a view of where they WERE standing. The last two come into view and I'm tacking them for the moving shot, but never got the sight picture and they never stopped and that was that...
Five called. Zero killed. Ughhh...
Next stand, we call a pair and I drop the lead coyote running by at about 35 yards. Second one runs off and disappears before I can get another shot. Tim is confused, says he heard massive meat report but the coyote looked healthy running away. I tell him there were two and one is dead.
Two more called, only one killed...
Next stand, call in another, Tim misses it...
Total of eight called now, only one killed. We are stinking it up...
Couple stands later, a pair comes in on my side and I drop the lead coyote running almost straight at me at about 75 yards. Second one flares but doesn't evacuate, trots down the ridge and turns to look back, I drop it at about 125 yards. Tim later says he never saw either of them. Swears the meat report is louder than the muzzle blast of the .20-250 though - I'm loving the TBAC Ultra 7
. Stay on the stand and I spot another one just sitting and looking about 225 yards out. Wanting to get Tim on the board, I pass up the shot. Coyote eventually circles for the breeze and leaves without offering another shot Tim never sees it at all...
Eleven called and only three killed...
Continuing down the valley, we got completely out of sign. That's the only thing snow is good for, reading the tea leaves while driving. Keep going for a long ways before getting back into heavy sign, but it's pure shotgun stuff and I want a rifle stand for Tim so we keep going looking for some rifle terrain with good sign. Finally, just enough light left for one more stand we find what we are looking for.
I carry my shotgun, no plans of shooting on this stand anyway, figure I'll just camp out by the caller just in case - but this setup is all rifle and no coyote should be able to get to the caller alive.
Tim posts a good ways up the hill from me, with an excellent view and shooting lanes. Two minutes in Tim hits his mouse squeaker to let me know a customer is on the way. I can't see it from where I'm at down below. Tim's .243 bellows. I figure we got a dead coyote out there. He's back on his squeaker almost immediately. Must be more than one! About 30 seconds later, a coyote comes trotting out about 35 yards away heading right for me. I throw up my shotgun and just before I can shoot, Tim's rifle bellows again, not sure what he's shooting at but I shoot the coyote in front of me a split second later. The 1-3/4 oz. load of nickel plated F shot just crushes that coyote.
Come to find out, there was only that one coyote the whole time. Tim had missed him, but he had kept coming, then he had shot at him again a split second before I killed him. Looked like he hit him too, one hind leg was attached by just a strip of meat and fur at the knee.
Stats for the day, twelve called, only four killed...
Had a great time though! Loving, loving, loving the suppressor too. I should have done it a LONG time ago!
- DAA
About the only number I pay attention to anymore is called to killed ratio. I don't really care how many I kill, but it still bothers me to call them in and NOT kill them. I'd rather only call in four coyotes all day, but kill all four of them, than to call in ten coyotes and only kill five or six of them. I feel better driving home knowing I was efficient, than having a couple more coyotes in the truck but knowing I got beat a few times.
I called in twelve yesterday, but me and Tim only killed four!
Temp was single digits on the first stand and we got nothing but yappers.
Next couple stands I tried some vocals and got even more yappers but no customers.
Yappers were all down in the thick sage flats in the bottom of the valley. Just very difficult to make a stand in that stuff. Nowhere to hide the Jeep, single digit temps make for loud walking on the snow. And then even if you can get in and setup undetected, you can't see anything - a coyote can come in within 15 yards and leave without offering a shot even for the shotgun.
But for the fourth stand we decided we had to try and pull one up out of that stuff. Did the best we could to hide the Jeep and not make too much noise walking in. But we made enough noise that we had a yapper start up on us from about 200 yards before even setting up and that one ignited the whole chorus from down in the flat.
Crappy setup, but the best the terrain was offering us. Had a little bit of elevation above the main flat, where it starts to thin out and have some decent sized openings. But just couldn't find anywhere to sit and get any kind of view or decent shooting lanes. But we were there and knew a bunch of coyotes were in earshot so we gave it a go.
Started with the usual jackrabbit, and had the group yip howls going from down in the flat so loud and crazy it was just stupid. Getting late in the stand, about the twelve minute mark, I just started throwing the kitchen sink out there just for the helluvit. I threw out a bunch of vocals, from Coyote Yips to Coyote Fight to Pup Distress to Sore Howls - and others. Threw out a bunch of distress sounds too. Played Ugly Crow and had a gaggle of ravens come in circling and squawking. They flew off towards the flats, but then five or six of them dropped down and lit in the sage brush about 600 yards away and I saw a flash of a coyote near them.
Got my scope up and sure enough, a coyote breaks out into one of the openings headed our way. Then a second. Then a third and fourth. Then a fifth! Five coyotes running in! They get up to an opening within 125 yards of me and stop! But I have a big piece of sage about 20 yards in front of me blocking my shot. All I can see are the faces, but I'm seeing them through that sage. Just didn't think my chances were good of getting a 39 BK through that sage so I held off.
All five of them stop coming straight and start circling up for the breeze and I lose sight of them. I'm happy though. Because the way they need to go for the breeze is going to put them right in Tim's lap. Couple minutes go by, no shot, then one of them shows up going back the way it had come. Then two more and they stop in the same spot as before, with the same piece of sage blocking me. They melt back into the thick and I get up and move about 15 yards and now I've got a view of where they WERE standing. The last two come into view and I'm tacking them for the moving shot, but never got the sight picture and they never stopped and that was that...
Five called. Zero killed. Ughhh...
Next stand, we call a pair and I drop the lead coyote running by at about 35 yards. Second one runs off and disappears before I can get another shot. Tim is confused, says he heard massive meat report but the coyote looked healthy running away. I tell him there were two and one is dead.
Two more called, only one killed...
Next stand, call in another, Tim misses it...
Total of eight called now, only one killed. We are stinking it up...
Couple stands later, a pair comes in on my side and I drop the lead coyote running almost straight at me at about 75 yards. Second one flares but doesn't evacuate, trots down the ridge and turns to look back, I drop it at about 125 yards. Tim later says he never saw either of them. Swears the meat report is louder than the muzzle blast of the .20-250 though - I'm loving the TBAC Ultra 7
Eleven called and only three killed...
Continuing down the valley, we got completely out of sign. That's the only thing snow is good for, reading the tea leaves while driving. Keep going for a long ways before getting back into heavy sign, but it's pure shotgun stuff and I want a rifle stand for Tim so we keep going looking for some rifle terrain with good sign. Finally, just enough light left for one more stand we find what we are looking for.
I carry my shotgun, no plans of shooting on this stand anyway, figure I'll just camp out by the caller just in case - but this setup is all rifle and no coyote should be able to get to the caller alive.
Tim posts a good ways up the hill from me, with an excellent view and shooting lanes. Two minutes in Tim hits his mouse squeaker to let me know a customer is on the way. I can't see it from where I'm at down below. Tim's .243 bellows. I figure we got a dead coyote out there. He's back on his squeaker almost immediately. Must be more than one! About 30 seconds later, a coyote comes trotting out about 35 yards away heading right for me. I throw up my shotgun and just before I can shoot, Tim's rifle bellows again, not sure what he's shooting at but I shoot the coyote in front of me a split second later. The 1-3/4 oz. load of nickel plated F shot just crushes that coyote.
Come to find out, there was only that one coyote the whole time. Tim had missed him, but he had kept coming, then he had shot at him again a split second before I killed him. Looked like he hit him too, one hind leg was attached by just a strip of meat and fur at the knee.
Stats for the day, twelve called, only four killed...
Had a great time though! Loving, loving, loving the suppressor too. I should have done it a LONG time ago!
- DAA
