Kansas Coon Calling

Cookie125

Cookie125

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This fall I have been very excited to get out and do some calling, especially after last season figuring out how to call raccoons. Earlier this fall while out scouting some spots to deer hunt I was able to locate some promising den trees.
2017-10-10_09-12-57 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
2017-10-10_09-02-54 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
I even found some that had inhabitants.
Screenshot_20171005-210253 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
I have mostly been focusing my efforts on deer hunting but with a busy schedule and just some of the worse luck, it’s been a bust so far. So after an uneventful morning hunting, I hung a new stand and as I was driving home stopped at another spot with a den tree only about 100yds in so I decided on making a quick stand. After about 30sec of young raccoon distress, two poked their heads out of the same hole. Eventually both were sitting on the edge of the hole with the bigger of the two closest to me. I set the crosshairs on the middle of his chest and fired. He bucked back hitting the second one and fell forward out of the tree. The second one disappeared into the hole. I then switched sounds and the second one came back out and part way down the tree but behind some branches and not allowing me a shot. He then turned back into the hole to never be seen again.
2017-11-25_03-31-12 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
It’s great to be able to get out and call and to finally have some success especially with a very slow deer season.


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This post and all the replies by the OP are nominated for Hunter of the Month. Sorry, the nifty little .gif isn't rotating, so all you see is "Nominated" for now.
 
Now that deer season is mostly over I would like to get out and start calling. I don't know if I could combine coyote and coon calling or not. Maybe call coyote and if they don't show switch to calling coons. Or maybe there is a call that would get either to come? Anyone have a magic sound that brings both the coyote and coon running in?
 
On Saturday after having a close call deer hunting, I went back to the same area where I took the last raccoon from. This time I went quite a ways further into the area. At the first tree I called I had four raccoons respond from two other trees, both over 150 yards away and the three that offered shots were on the neighboring property so they got a pass. At the next tree I had one poke his head out but never exit the tree. On the last set that I called I set up between two different den trees. Right away I had one show up at the tree to my right and since he came from around the tree I made a quick shot without worry of him making it back to the hole. After a few minutes of watching out for the other tree I noticed movement from the first tree again. This one made it to the same spot as the first, I took aim, shot and down it went. It was a very fun trip and I saw a lot of raccoons, just wish the first three were about 40yards closer and they would have been on my side of the property line.
2017-12-03_06-11-01 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
The smaller of the two weighed in at 15lbs 11oz and the bigger weighed in at 22lbs 5oz, making for a long half mile walk back to the car.
 
Today I had a father daughter day with my little girl. We made several stands and really tested her five year old attention span. She did a great job and on our last stand we finally had some luck. When we first got to the den tree I wanted to call I realized that I had left the remote to my Hellfire back at the car and we had to make a quick trip back to get it. Once we get the remote and returned to the tree we got settled in and I opened up with raccoon puppy distress. The call hadn’t been going 30sec when I notice movement at the first fork of the big den tree. She comes out of the hole and begins down the tree. As I am about to take my shot she turns and moves back up the tree. I can hear my daughters breathing pick up and in the corner of my eye I can tell she is struggling to hold still with excitement. The raccoon get above the hole that she came out of and I place the cross hairs on her back right between her shoulders. At the shot she rocks back and lands in the fork of the tree and I had to climb the tree to knock her out of the fork.
Though all this I thought I was getting some great video of the hunt, but after getting home I realize that I forgot to start the camera. But the memory of hunting with my little girl more than makes up for that.
2017-12-09_03-58-09 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
20171209_144819 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
The whole way out she wanted to try and carry it. This coon weighed in at 22lbs 3oz and it was all she could do to try and pick it up.
20171209_145731 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
 
Originally Posted By: Stub2Now that deer season is mostly over I would like to get out and start calling. I don't know if I could combine coyote and coon calling or not. Maybe call coyote and if they don't show switch to calling coons. Or maybe there is a call that would get either to come? Anyone have a magic sound that brings both the coyote and coon running in?

Several times I've had coyotes show up when den calling. Problem is I was watching the den holes, while catching movement out of the corner of my eyes or by sound. Course by the time I switch mind set the coyote is in high gear getting out of the area.
 
Today my little girl didn’t have school since it was the start of her Christmas vacation, so I took a day off from work to spend some time with her. So we packed a small lunch of sandwiches and chips and took off to a place where a good friend of mine manages. When we got there we tried three den trees that I had taken raccoons from, with no luck this trip. On the last set of the small section we were on we had two poke their heads out. The first one got out of the hole far enough and had the second one pushing on his back so I took the shot and down he went. Once he hit the ground she was already cheering with excitement and the second one was never seen again.
2017-12-22_02-32-36 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
2017-12-22_02-31-38 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
Coon calling is tough work.
2017-12-22_02-32-04 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
That last set sure was icing on the cake for this trip, we went to a few other spots but there were other hunters bowhunting so we continued on home so not to disturb their hunts.
 
On Christmas after the family left I was feeling a little cooped up and decided to try some calling. I started at a spot to try for a bobcat but all I saw was an owl that hit my decoy and then tried to eat it. He eventually flew off with it only to drop it after he hit it on a barbed wire fence. No cat showed up so on the way out I tried a couple den trees. The first one I had a raccoon sitting outside of the hole but apparently not far enough out as he rolled back in. Feeling bummed I examined the tree for a later extraction and moved on. At the second hole I had one come out and I shot with the B-mag and he climbed up and into the hole. I am pretty certain that I hit a twig as he didn’t act like he was hit or concerned. I switched sounds and he came back out and I hit him this time with the trusty 870 using some Hornady heavy magnum BB’s. I’ve been looking for a chance to use this and was not disappointed.
I am hoping that work will ease up just long enough to allow me back to the first tree as that hole is easy to get too and I have a piece of wire set up to get him out, I just need enough light to be able to see what I am doing while I’m on the tree.
2017-12-27_06-23-53 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
 
It’s been a while since I have been able to get out to do any kind of hunting, with battling some illness and work being busy. This weekend I was finally able to get out and it happened to be a day that wasn’t in the teens. I decided to try some trees that I wasn’t able to get to at one of the spots while I had my daughter, since her little legs had her wore with the few trees we got to. The first eight trees I called were all trees that in the past at least had raccoons peek out of holes. Not so much this day. So far with only three armadillos to account for,(no family safe pictures) I try several new trees and finally at about 4pm I finally see a raccoon, actually there were five that came out of this tree. At first there were three lines up climbing down the tree and I drop the first one. I go to reload the rifle and end up short stoking the bolt and it doesn’t fully eject the shell, so I lay it down and grab the shotgun. At this point the excitement and the sense of urgency I was feeling in trying to quickly switch firearms gets the better of me and I miss. The next two hit the ground and run off with no shot through the tall grass. The fourth one out of this tree has moved out on a limb after I changed sounds and gave me a chance to get the spent case out of the rifle. I pull on him and place my crosshairs and the base of his neck as he is looking at me. I shoot and I can see a twig go flying, he instantly takes off for the hole before I can get another shot. I let the call run a little longer and out of the first hole that first three came out of was the fifth one. He sits in the crook of the big cottonwood and I knock him right out of the tree.
IMG_20180115_074906_810 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
I set these two where I can easily find them on my way out and continue downstream. I find a tree with lots of tracks and scat but nothing poked its head out. I continued further with no luck and turn back to pick up my raccoons and head to the car. As I get near to where I left them I noticed a promising tree that I somehow missed. I set up and start calling and one quickly appears. At first he was too sure and drops back into the hole. But soon climbs back out. He stays in the hole with both his front legs sticking out but just not enough for a shot. Switched sounds and he was quick to move out and down the tree. I aim pull the trigger and he hits the ground. I continue to let the sound play and another one cautiously pokes it nose out. This one plays peek-a-boo for a while before coming all the way out and down the tree but not the same route as the first. I aim, shoot and again I see a twig go flying and the raccoon return to the hole.
IMG_20180115_075030_638 by Cookie1125, on Flickr
On this trip my plan was to skin them out in the field but after I shot the first two I realized I forgot a knife, so in my attempt to get back to the car with three raccoons I was crossing the river and fell just before reaching the other side. This made for a long, cold and wet walk back. I’m just glad that the day turned out much warmer than it started and I was able to get to the car, dry off and warm up. All in all it was just great to get out of the house and away from work.
 
This weekend my wife’s family came over as well as he brother who has been in California for most of the last year. I’ve been taking him hunting with me a few times over the last two years, but he usually brings me bad luck. My wife is usually bad luck for hunting as well so maybe it’s something to do with her family. Well this weekend we broke that slump as I took him coon calling with me. On our second stand I went ahead a bit and looked at three trees. On the first one I couldn’t find any holes but found that the other two each had promising looking holes in them. So we set up next to the first one as it offered a great view of the other two trees. About a minute into calling we both heard a noise over out left shoulders, and turned to see a raccoon halfway down the tree that we were set up under. I raised up and made a quick shot and he somersaulted down the tree and into the little stream at the base.
2018-01-20_03-12-44 by Cookie1125, on Flickr

We continued upstream and had a few very good looking trees come up dry and eventually came up to the tree that I took my last raccoon of last season. After a little calling one showed up at the base of the tree but spotted me as I was having to readjust to shoot and disappeared back up the tree and in the den before I could get the safety off.
The next tree had one poke its head out of a den hole clear at the top, high enough that we almost didn’t see it. He poked his head out a few times but never committed to coming out of the hole. By this time it was getting quite warm as the high made it to 60, so we called it a day with just getting the one raccoon. Glad to finally get my brother inlaw on a hunt where we have some success since he is very much new to hunting and with working in California he hasn’t had the opportunity to hunt.
 
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