New member check in with hunting story ( long w/ pics )

Arty

New member
Been lurking a few days and must congratulate you guys on a great site with lots of good info. I hope to be more than a lurker and be able to contribute in the future. My success has been limited so far, but I have one coyote hunting story to share. Its long but some may find it entertaining...and it is all I have right now. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-006.gif

Oct 2004

Arriving home around 5PM, as I exited my truck I could hear a group of coyotes in the woods at the end of the road
howling and yipping and carrying on. They sounded pretty close - within 100 yds of the road. ( my road is a dead end)
I decided I was going to try and get a shot at one, and raced into the house to change clothes and grab my shotgun. "Just let me get one shot", I thought. In retrospect, I should have set my goals alittle higher. ( Mistake #1 )
I had hunted coyotes off and on for a few years with no success at calling them in. The only coyotes I had shot had been "targets of opportunity", or the one I called in during turkey season with a hen yelp. It had been very frustrating, but I was determined to keep at it.

Quickly pulling on my bowhunting camo, I grabbed my Mossberg 835 12ga and shoved 4 3inch mag shells in my pocket. ( Mistake #2 - always bring enough ammo ) Two of the loads were turkey loads with #4 shot and 2 were lead BBs I had bought for coyotes. The area by my house is very thick pine and the sight distance is very short. When hunting deer or anything in this area a scoped rifle is a handicap - an open sighted lever action is the perfect deer rifle in these conditions. The shotgun is a perfect coyote gun.

Moving quickly into the woods I can hear what sounds like 2 groups of coyotes howling and yipping. I shoved 3 of the
shells in the gun and chambered one of the BB loads. ( Mistake #3 - if dumb enough to only bring 4 rounds, at least be smart enough to stick them all in the gun ) I move as quietly and quickly as I can to a position between the 2 groups of coyotes. But where to set up that I can see anything? There is no detectable wind. The mature trees form a high canopy of pine, then there is a understory of wispy white pine. Each individual tree is wispy, but hundreds and thousands of them together form a green wall. I find a small circular "clearing" that I later pace off at 18 yds in diameter. Thats where I make my stand with my back against a medium pine barely as wide as my shoulders, right at the edge of this clearing with coyotes yipping on my left and more on my right.

I settle in with my shotgun up on my raised knee. I start a sequence of rabbit distress for about 20 seconds. The
coyotes are about 75 to 100 yds away and I don't want to overdo it. I put the call down and listen. Within a minute I hear something running in the leaves, then a spot of brown motion, then I clearly see a brown paw through the pine. I'm VERY pumped at this point and remember thinking " I'm going to get a shot". The coyote fast trots from about the 11 o clock position to the 1 o clock position ( I'm at 6 o clock ) along the outer edge of the clearing. He stops partly obscured by a pine bough. I was alittle hesitant to shoot with the branch in the way, but he was only 17 yds away and with the extra full choke the pattern was pretty tight at that range, and I figured he would scoot any second so I aimed for the front shoulder and fired. Down he goes, then he thrashes for about 2 seconds, then he is up and running the way he came in. But before I can shoot again and still within sight he goes down again, this time for good. Talk about an adenaline rush! It had all happened so fast, but I sat there thinking, " I did it...I called in and shot a coyote...there he is laying right over there".

Other coyotes were still yipping and howling. I figure "what the heck" and blow another sequence on the call. I put the call down and within 2 minutes I hear running in the leaves from the same direction the other one had come from. A coyote comes running into view on the same route the first took and stops in almost the exact spot. More confident now, I fire as soon as he stops. Down he goes, thrashing in the leaves, then up and running back the way he came. Before I can shoot he is in the pine and I don't have a shot. I listen hard for him thrashing in the leaves but all I hear is other coyotes yapping. I can't believe they are still around yipping after 2 shotgun blasts. I don't have much time to sit and reflect because I hear more running in the leaves and then another coyote, smaller than the other two, comes running right into the clearing and stops. This coyote is about 12 yards away and the 3 inch round of #4 shot hits her behind the shoulder and she goes down hard. This one is not getting up. ( anybody counting shots?? )

At this point I'm pumped and amazed by all this coyote action, relishing every second of this incredible experience. I sit listening to coyotes still yapping, and can hear some moving to my right but out of sight. But instead of relishing and being pumped I should have used my head and been aware I was sitting there with an empty gun. I don't remember if I called more, but then next thing I knew a coyote ran right into the clearing by the dead one. I take aim and CLICK!! At that point everything seemed to go into slow motion. I'm reaching into my pocket for my one remaining shotgun shell as I'm watching a coyote run frantic back and forth in this tiny clearing about 10 yards from the tips of my boots. The thin cotton of my camo glove got caught between the magazine tube and the base of the shell. I'm amazed the coyote hung around as long as it did as I fumbled to reload. It seemed to go on forever and by the time I was reloaded the coyote was gone.

Then a different barking started and all the other coyotes shut up and a few minutes later the woods were quiet. I sat awhile trying to get my wits back together. I searched until dark for the second coyote I shot - even went back the next day but never located him. The woods are so thick and without an obvious bloodtrail locating an animal is very difficult.

So that is my "perfect storm" of coyote action. I have been out many times since this day in Oct 2004 without getting a shot, so I know how unusual this event was - a literal "once-in-a-lifetime" experience.

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Congrats! As you mentioned, it's not too often you get coyotes in the East much less TWO! But as you've proved, it can be done. Great job!
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
Beautiful black guard hairs on them! Nice tails for the East also!

John
 
Great story and pics, thanks for sharing ! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
Jeb
 
Arty,

I have to say, that was the best coyote hunt story I've ever read to date.[Felt, like I was right there]. Nice pr of yotes, BTW. I like your way of story-tellin. Your sense of humor, fit right in /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif. I look forward to reading your story's in the future.

Take more ammo next time /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
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Excellent story and photos too! Doesn't get much better than that. Welcome to PM.



+1!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif
 
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