TrappingGus
New member
Once December rolls around out west bobcats are on the menu. After months of waiting and time spent scouting locations found on Google Earth it was time to start calling in the cover of darkness.
In the first 3 nights of season, I made fifteen 45 minute to 1 hour stands. I was able to call in 11 gray fox with 4 fox coming in on one stand. I passed on all but 4 fox due to the land owners request to thin out the population in his area. On the forth night the storm clouds started to roll in around 10pm. I left the house late and started my first stand of the night. About 15 minutes into the first stand the sky opened up and the rain hit hard. I wasn't going to let a rainy night stop me from calling that location. It just looked to good... after 45 minutes with no luck, I packed up and moved on. The second and third stand where no different than the first. When I got back to the truck after the third stand it was 1:15AM. I was wet and cold. While driving down the road I was ready to call it a night but I couldn't go home empty handed. I stopped once again and slopped down the trail in the rain. After 30 minutes a large Tom came strolling out from behind the brush to a mix of rabbit and bird distress calls from the Foxpro Fusion. A short time later he gave me the perfect 30 yard shot. He fell in his tracks and I leaped out of my tracks in excitement. My first bobcat of the season!
Taking one bobcat just made me want more. The addiction to calling at night has taken over my entire mindset. My days are now work, family time, help wife get the kids to bed and then out the door I go.
Two nights later I was back at it. It started the same way it always does, form a game plain with call locations taking wind and weather into consideration. With a full moon, I have found that critters are much more aware of my presence. For two nights and stand after stand I had nothing more than 3 fox and a glimpse of a wary bobcat come to the call. I was debating on hanging it up for a few night until the full moon passed. On the 3rd night I was seriously considering staying home for the night. I knew, I would regret my choice to stay home so I headed out with a bright moon over head. No headlamp was needed to navigate the brush and downfall. After walking into a calling location about a mile from the truck, I let the call rip for over an hour. For all that effort I received nothing but a little exercise and long walk back to the truck under the full moon. The 2nd stand product a gray fox with a death wish that I didn't grant him. The poor guy hung out around me and the call for entire stand. He would walk in look at the call and then stroll off, over and over. At one point he sat about 10 yards down wind of me and looked up at the stars for a couple minutes. I though to myself there's no better decoy than a live one. Once an hour passed I ended the stand and verbally Thanked the fox for his efforts (at that point he kicked it in high gear and ran off). I just couldn't bring myself to shot the little guy after all he was some cheap entertainment.
Down the road to next stand at a new location I had never called. I set the call about 15 yards in front of me, where I thought a critter would show its self. I sat back and hit the woodpecker on the Fusion. Just before I turned on the Wicked Light Scanpro Headlamp I saw movement to my hard right. Bobcat! With in 30 seconds! I lifted my rifle hit the Wicked Light Ambush gun light and squeezed the trigger. CLICK! No bullet, Mister safety unloaded his gun before putting it in the truck and never loaded a round before starting the stand. The bobcat looked at me and trotted away. Then he made his last and fatal mistake. He stop and turned for one last look. By then a round was heading down the pipe and the hunt was over 45 seconds after it started. Less than 1 minutes from GO!
Needless to say I'm addicted catching a bobcat slip in on my call when I least expect it.
I can't say enough about the Wicked lights. Wicked Lights ScanPro, A48 Ambush and W403iC Lights all have performed in every situation. The Intensity Control makes a world of difference when trying to pull in the critters that last few yards to take the perfect shot. I'm hoping to get my hands on one of the new A67iC and 3-n-1 scanpros before the season is over. I will up date when I get my hands on one.
![2ZH1Y0[img]](https://www.flickr.com/photos/186051969@N06/shares/2ZH1Y0[img])
In the first 3 nights of season, I made fifteen 45 minute to 1 hour stands. I was able to call in 11 gray fox with 4 fox coming in on one stand. I passed on all but 4 fox due to the land owners request to thin out the population in his area. On the forth night the storm clouds started to roll in around 10pm. I left the house late and started my first stand of the night. About 15 minutes into the first stand the sky opened up and the rain hit hard. I wasn't going to let a rainy night stop me from calling that location. It just looked to good... after 45 minutes with no luck, I packed up and moved on. The second and third stand where no different than the first. When I got back to the truck after the third stand it was 1:15AM. I was wet and cold. While driving down the road I was ready to call it a night but I couldn't go home empty handed. I stopped once again and slopped down the trail in the rain. After 30 minutes a large Tom came strolling out from behind the brush to a mix of rabbit and bird distress calls from the Foxpro Fusion. A short time later he gave me the perfect 30 yard shot. He fell in his tracks and I leaped out of my tracks in excitement. My first bobcat of the season!
Taking one bobcat just made me want more. The addiction to calling at night has taken over my entire mindset. My days are now work, family time, help wife get the kids to bed and then out the door I go.
Two nights later I was back at it. It started the same way it always does, form a game plain with call locations taking wind and weather into consideration. With a full moon, I have found that critters are much more aware of my presence. For two nights and stand after stand I had nothing more than 3 fox and a glimpse of a wary bobcat come to the call. I was debating on hanging it up for a few night until the full moon passed. On the 3rd night I was seriously considering staying home for the night. I knew, I would regret my choice to stay home so I headed out with a bright moon over head. No headlamp was needed to navigate the brush and downfall. After walking into a calling location about a mile from the truck, I let the call rip for over an hour. For all that effort I received nothing but a little exercise and long walk back to the truck under the full moon. The 2nd stand product a gray fox with a death wish that I didn't grant him. The poor guy hung out around me and the call for entire stand. He would walk in look at the call and then stroll off, over and over. At one point he sat about 10 yards down wind of me and looked up at the stars for a couple minutes. I though to myself there's no better decoy than a live one. Once an hour passed I ended the stand and verbally Thanked the fox for his efforts (at that point he kicked it in high gear and ran off). I just couldn't bring myself to shot the little guy after all he was some cheap entertainment.
Down the road to next stand at a new location I had never called. I set the call about 15 yards in front of me, where I thought a critter would show its self. I sat back and hit the woodpecker on the Fusion. Just before I turned on the Wicked Light Scanpro Headlamp I saw movement to my hard right. Bobcat! With in 30 seconds! I lifted my rifle hit the Wicked Light Ambush gun light and squeezed the trigger. CLICK! No bullet, Mister safety unloaded his gun before putting it in the truck and never loaded a round before starting the stand. The bobcat looked at me and trotted away. Then he made his last and fatal mistake. He stop and turned for one last look. By then a round was heading down the pipe and the hunt was over 45 seconds after it started. Less than 1 minutes from GO!
Needless to say I'm addicted catching a bobcat slip in on my call when I least expect it.
I can't say enough about the Wicked lights. Wicked Lights ScanPro, A48 Ambush and W403iC Lights all have performed in every situation. The Intensity Control makes a world of difference when trying to pull in the critters that last few yards to take the perfect shot. I'm hoping to get my hands on one of the new A67iC and 3-n-1 scanpros before the season is over. I will up date when I get my hands on one.
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