Bubba and Mikes most excellent adventure - 25 coyotes -THE END-
- Thread starter mikegranger
- Start date
mikegranger
Active member
November 5, 2008
Our very first stand had a coyote circle downwind, never presenting a shot. I kept calling and herd howling about 1/2 mile behind us and into the wind. Bubba and I take off as I could see a small depression which contained a wetland and thought that’s where the howling was coming from. As we got closer, a quick look with the binoculars revealed a bedded coyote. There was a small rise between us and the coyote that I had to belly crawl to before trying to squeek the coyote in. I begin crawling and Bubba starts running around looking for a coyote. Next time I looked, the coyote was gone. Darn, where did it go? Kept crawling hoping it hadn’t moved far. All of a sudden Bubba barks back from where we came. I turned around to see the coyote standing at the very fence we had just crawled under, and down wind! Double Darn! The coyote bolts when it caught my scent and Bubba gives chase. She stopped when I stopped Bubba and that was all she wrote! I love getting a coyote on the very first stand. Takes all the pressure off for the remainder of the day, which by now wasn’t looking so good. It was overcast, windy and spitting snow. Could be another long one. We head for the rougher stuff hoping to get out of the wind as best as possible. I’ve learned as the wind increases, coyotes will circle further and further out. I’ve had them smell me 1/2 mile away or more. Around noon a nice big dog comes in but doesn’t stop before catching my scent. He takes off but stops for a quick look back at 250 yards. By now I’ve killed 9 coyotes and two fox without a miss. I’m feeling pretty smug with myself thinking coyote #10 is in the bag. God has a way of humbling us, especially as I watched a really nice coyote run away!
Ok, that wasn’t fun, I already have all the character I need. Bubba looks at me in disgust while hopping into the truck.
What I love about predator hunting is how quickly things can turn around. Our next stand finds us in a rather deep ravine with an excellent downwind view. Within 3 minutes of blowing the first series of calls, two coyotes appear directly below us and less than 50 yards away. I shoot the first coyote that stops and the other bolts back to where it came from. I run up the ridge we’re sitting on and see the second coyote on it’s way up the coulee. Bubba is in hot pursuit and the coyote stops to face him. It died too! I’m back to feeling smug having just redeemed myself with a double.
While dragging the coyotes back up the ravine I find these.
Both pictures are from the same spot. Look at the rocks on the ground in a large circle. This is a tepee ring. Another was 10 yards away and I'm sure others were close by but I didn't want to take too much time looking for them. Actually, these were the first tepee rings I found on the trip, once doing so I watched more closely for them and saw at least 20 other rings during the hunt.
The wind played havoc with us the rest of the day. It was blowing, snowing and swirling. Coyotes on 3 separate occasions responded but they all circled downwind 2-300 yards and would not stop, no matter what.
Ok, the rest of our story will have to wait until next week when I get back from elk hunting. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Our very first stand had a coyote circle downwind, never presenting a shot. I kept calling and herd howling about 1/2 mile behind us and into the wind. Bubba and I take off as I could see a small depression which contained a wetland and thought that’s where the howling was coming from. As we got closer, a quick look with the binoculars revealed a bedded coyote. There was a small rise between us and the coyote that I had to belly crawl to before trying to squeek the coyote in. I begin crawling and Bubba starts running around looking for a coyote. Next time I looked, the coyote was gone. Darn, where did it go? Kept crawling hoping it hadn’t moved far. All of a sudden Bubba barks back from where we came. I turned around to see the coyote standing at the very fence we had just crawled under, and down wind! Double Darn! The coyote bolts when it caught my scent and Bubba gives chase. She stopped when I stopped Bubba and that was all she wrote! I love getting a coyote on the very first stand. Takes all the pressure off for the remainder of the day, which by now wasn’t looking so good. It was overcast, windy and spitting snow. Could be another long one. We head for the rougher stuff hoping to get out of the wind as best as possible. I’ve learned as the wind increases, coyotes will circle further and further out. I’ve had them smell me 1/2 mile away or more. Around noon a nice big dog comes in but doesn’t stop before catching my scent. He takes off but stops for a quick look back at 250 yards. By now I’ve killed 9 coyotes and two fox without a miss. I’m feeling pretty smug with myself thinking coyote #10 is in the bag. God has a way of humbling us, especially as I watched a really nice coyote run away!
Ok, that wasn’t fun, I already have all the character I need. Bubba looks at me in disgust while hopping into the truck.
What I love about predator hunting is how quickly things can turn around. Our next stand finds us in a rather deep ravine with an excellent downwind view. Within 3 minutes of blowing the first series of calls, two coyotes appear directly below us and less than 50 yards away. I shoot the first coyote that stops and the other bolts back to where it came from. I run up the ridge we’re sitting on and see the second coyote on it’s way up the coulee. Bubba is in hot pursuit and the coyote stops to face him. It died too! I’m back to feeling smug having just redeemed myself with a double.
While dragging the coyotes back up the ravine I find these.
Both pictures are from the same spot. Look at the rocks on the ground in a large circle. This is a tepee ring. Another was 10 yards away and I'm sure others were close by but I didn't want to take too much time looking for them. Actually, these were the first tepee rings I found on the trip, once doing so I watched more closely for them and saw at least 20 other rings during the hunt.
The wind played havoc with us the rest of the day. It was blowing, snowing and swirling. Coyotes on 3 separate occasions responded but they all circled downwind 2-300 yards and would not stop, no matter what.
Ok, the rest of our story will have to wait until next week when I get back from elk hunting. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
John Leslie
New member
Now, that's what I'm talking 'bout!!!! Breaking the story up into chapters makes it even more exciting! Bubba and you are off to a great year!! Thanks for a most excellent read.
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urbankilla
New member
Excellent story. My only concern is the lack of skill and training with the dog. You should try to get a better partner to help with your hunts and perhaps you will have better luck. PM me and I will give you an address to ship that dog off to a new home so you can get a better one. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowingsmilie.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowingsmilie.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowingsmilie.gif
billyho11
New member
My poor dog is getting real concerned because every time I read about Bubba I look at my dog a little different. His training might begin real soon. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif Thanks for the stories and keep them comming /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowingsmilie.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowingsmilie.gif
mikegranger
Active member
November 6, 2008.
We woke up to overcast skies and a 10-15 mph NW wind. Yuck, not the best of calling conditions! Coyotes blend in perfectly in the sagebrush without snow or good lighting. I’ve lost count of the times they’ve snuck right in, caught our scent and were heading the other way before either Bubba or I saw them. Today would be no exception. I will be the first to admit that getting out of the truck and calling 10-15 minutes at each stand is a lesson in perseverance during such conditions. This is one of the reasons I travel so far from the house to call. It forces me to keep at it instead of throwing up my hands and heading to the house. Sometimes though, the rewards are far greater and more satisfying when suffering is involved. Well, I suffered plenty as temps were in the 20’s, no sun to heat me up and wind blowing right through my wool clothing. I mostly hunt in wool. It’s warm, quiet and one can lay in the snow without getting too wet. But, it’s sucks as a wind breaker. I have a great wind proof vest to wear as a layer underneath the wool coat but it was forgotten at home. By 11 am we had called 5 stands without seeing a coyote. Grrr, it surely was going to be a long day. Sometimes when things seem like drudgery, a silver lining will suddenly appear in the clouds.
I had walked at least 1/2 mile from the truck trying to find the “perfect” calling spot when I stumbled upon this, a bison horn sheath from a by gone era.
A little history lesson; Montana held the last herds of bison prior to being virtual extirpation from the continent in 1882. This horn has been lying on the prairie for over 130 years. Imagine the stories it could tell! Was the bison killed by wolves, indians, buffalo skinners or died in the wind swept prairie wandering from horizon to horizon looking for the last of it’s kind? I often contemplate what the Great Plains was like when my ancestors (Kiowa) were the only one’s here? Sorry, I easily get off track. I was stoked having looked for an old bison skull or horn sheath for years and years. Now I have one for my collection. Okay, back to coyote hunting. It’s now noon and we haven’t seen a coyote. Believe it or not, but I’ve killed more coyotes at noon than any other time of the day. I call it the “wishing hour” for no other reason than if there’s not a coyote in the truck by now I’m really wishing for one. We set up on an old railroad bed which overlooked a nice coulee. A few minutes into the call and nothing was showing. All of a sudden Bubba looks to my left and takes two or three steps then barks. I quickly look to see what he was looking at and there was a coyote, having snuck in on us not 75 yards away and almost directly downwind. How he got there without being seen, I’ll never know. Unfortunately, he caught our scent and was gone! Bubba gave chase but to no avail. We were both bummed going back to the truck. That could very well be the only coyote we see. It’s now late in the day and we’re looking over a large drainage. I could easily see over a mile down and 1/2 mile up the drainage and the sun had popped out of the clouds. Yippee! We call and call with no response when I see a coyote about a mile away, coming up the drainage towards us. All of our attention shifts to this coyote. Bubba can’t see it but he can tell something’s up. It’s slowly coming as enticing dying rabbit sounds are emitted profusely from the Tebbe call. Next thing I know Bubba’s running down the hill 90 degrees from the coyote I’m looking at. I crank my head around to see the prettiest coyote in the world standing 100 yards away. It had walked across the bottom, which was in the shadows, and was now standing in the bright sunlight just a glowing. He stood his ground as Bubba approached and the .204 put a quick end to a long day.
That was it. A hard day of hunting produced one coyote, a buffalo horn sheath and more perseverance for me.
nightwatchman
New member
man those are awesome pictures and that last coyote is worth the trip alone... great job mike...
mikegranger
Active member
November 7, 2008
I liken my calling style to carpet bombing in that I try to hit everything along the way. Most coyotes will have heard my calls one or two times as some stands aren’t that far apart. Especially in wide open country where they can easily hear the call a mile or two away. So it was time to move Whitey 25 miles further west and into new territory. The beauty of this move was there was snow on the ground when I got there and it was familiar calling territory. No hunting and pecking for just the right spot. They were already marked on my maps!
The beginning of a fabulous day.
The first two stands were dry but on the 3rd stand, 2 groups of coyotes responded to howling. I had walked a fair piece from the truck and wouldn’t you know it, looking back to where I came revealed a coyote sitting on a hillside 400 yards from the truck. The terrain was broken enough to allow a quick sneak back and when we were within shooting distance I spotted 4 more coyotes milling around behind another hill not 300 yards away. I crawled and Bubba ran to the top. When I finally got there, two coyotes were staring right at the hound and he was waiting for me to shoot. I did and our first dog of the day was down. We scurried back to the truck and headed down the road to where we had previously heard the howling. Normally I skin a coyote immediately after shooting it. That’s my rule, but sometimes rules are meant to be broken and this was the time. I drove by several great skinning posts but forced myself to keep going. We stopped about a mile from the previous stand behind a very small depression. The pickup was hidden, but just barely. Now this was a Redfrog stand. As some of you know, my cannuck buddy to the north is a little aged and has slowed down to a crawl. I liken him to Uncle Joe on the old Petticoat Junction show. He likes calling coyotes but really doesn’t prefer my marathon distance from the truck ways. After walking all of 15 yards, I sat up on a little hill and began calling. Almost immediately two coyotes top out on another hill 700 or so yards away. They just sat there and wouldn’t budge no matter what. Several minutes into the stand I was convinced the could see the truck and was about to give up when two more coyotes joined them. Things changed immediately. The dominate male was one of the late arrivals. A short blast with the Tebbe call caused a stampede! Bubba was 100 yards away and closing the gap to the lead coyote quickly. I figured Bubba could hold his own and focused on the 2nd in line. When she stopped at 200 yards, she died. I then focused on the lead dog who was now circling my buddy. He stopped and died at 100 yards. Now coyote #3 was heading back to where it came but held up, turned around and sat down. Honey Bunny bought me this wonderful gizmo several years ago and I use it constantly. The Leica rangefinder said 371 yards, the cheat sheet said hold over a few inches and give it a touch of windage. I did and coyote #3 fell over. SWEET! Bubba got there in time to scrap a little, so he was ecstatic too. Now I had 4 dead coyotes and the skinning post was 10 yards behind the truck! Like I said, the perfect Redfrog stand!
The perfect stand. A great dog, gun, truck, short walk, skinning posts and three dead coyotes!
Ten a.m. and four dead coyotes. Does it get any better than this? The day was shaping up to be “one of those days”.
It took an hour to take hero pictures and skin four coyotes.
Noon finds us overlooking a huge drainage. I’ve killed coyotes from this exact spot and was giddy with anticipation. A few blasts with the howler causes 8 mule deer to bolt out of the bottom to the other side. Son of a gun of there wasn’t a hunter who blasted the only buck in the bunch. Shortly a pickup and three guys were standing around a dead deer. I figured the stand was pointless but kept calling. I know they saw Bubba running around and could surely hear my calls. Just when we were going to give up, I looked behind me to see 3 coyotes sitting on a hill 400 yards away. It was rather obvious I was busted as the wind was blowing right to them and no matter what I blew, they would not budge. I’ve killed many coyotes at such distances. The scope was cranked up to 20X and I was just about to squeeeeeeeeeeeze when Bubba took off in the other direction. I be dogged gone! A coyote was charging us from the exact opposite direction I was laying. I was neither graceful nor slow swapping directions and of course the coyote saw me. But, with Bubba the wonder dog, that doesn’t really matter. He causes coyotes to do strange things. This one tried to circle and stopped at 200 or so yards. The .204 barked and both dog and coyote took off. Bubba had the angle on him so I lay back and watched the show. He was caught within 100 yards and was dead after a short scuffle. Later in the day another coyote made a fatal mistake and made #6 for the day. We saw 15 and called in 10. Like I said, What a day!
Before you guys think coyote hunting is easy, keep reading.
November 8, 2008
It was extremely foggy this morning. Couldn’t see 40 yards in any direction and it didn’t clear until noon. Winds were SE 8-10 mph and a low pressure on the horizon. We called and called, 16 stands to be exact, and did not see a single coyote. I repeat, a single coyote! The pedometer said we walked over 5 miles and drove 70. This was in the same country as the previous day.
November 9, 2008.
Another cloudy, rainy, windy (10-20 mph) day. Geez, I was getting tired of this. It was everything I could do to get out of the truck at each stand, but hunt we did. I must admit to not being quite the eager beaver though. Even Bubba lost a little zeal.
My buddy getting a little tuckered. We had been at it a few days by now.
By days end, we had called 15 or so stands and saw 4 coyotes. One was actually coming but circled at 1/2 mile to get our scent and was gone. The only real excitement was when a herd of cattle decided they wanted to blow snot on me and the hound. He protected me well and they finally tired of the game. I decided if the wind was blowing tomorrow we were heading home!
I liken my calling style to carpet bombing in that I try to hit everything along the way. Most coyotes will have heard my calls one or two times as some stands aren’t that far apart. Especially in wide open country where they can easily hear the call a mile or two away. So it was time to move Whitey 25 miles further west and into new territory. The beauty of this move was there was snow on the ground when I got there and it was familiar calling territory. No hunting and pecking for just the right spot. They were already marked on my maps!
The beginning of a fabulous day.
The first two stands were dry but on the 3rd stand, 2 groups of coyotes responded to howling. I had walked a fair piece from the truck and wouldn’t you know it, looking back to where I came revealed a coyote sitting on a hillside 400 yards from the truck. The terrain was broken enough to allow a quick sneak back and when we were within shooting distance I spotted 4 more coyotes milling around behind another hill not 300 yards away. I crawled and Bubba ran to the top. When I finally got there, two coyotes were staring right at the hound and he was waiting for me to shoot. I did and our first dog of the day was down. We scurried back to the truck and headed down the road to where we had previously heard the howling. Normally I skin a coyote immediately after shooting it. That’s my rule, but sometimes rules are meant to be broken and this was the time. I drove by several great skinning posts but forced myself to keep going. We stopped about a mile from the previous stand behind a very small depression. The pickup was hidden, but just barely. Now this was a Redfrog stand. As some of you know, my cannuck buddy to the north is a little aged and has slowed down to a crawl. I liken him to Uncle Joe on the old Petticoat Junction show. He likes calling coyotes but really doesn’t prefer my marathon distance from the truck ways. After walking all of 15 yards, I sat up on a little hill and began calling. Almost immediately two coyotes top out on another hill 700 or so yards away. They just sat there and wouldn’t budge no matter what. Several minutes into the stand I was convinced the could see the truck and was about to give up when two more coyotes joined them. Things changed immediately. The dominate male was one of the late arrivals. A short blast with the Tebbe call caused a stampede! Bubba was 100 yards away and closing the gap to the lead coyote quickly. I figured Bubba could hold his own and focused on the 2nd in line. When she stopped at 200 yards, she died. I then focused on the lead dog who was now circling my buddy. He stopped and died at 100 yards. Now coyote #3 was heading back to where it came but held up, turned around and sat down. Honey Bunny bought me this wonderful gizmo several years ago and I use it constantly. The Leica rangefinder said 371 yards, the cheat sheet said hold over a few inches and give it a touch of windage. I did and coyote #3 fell over. SWEET! Bubba got there in time to scrap a little, so he was ecstatic too. Now I had 4 dead coyotes and the skinning post was 10 yards behind the truck! Like I said, the perfect Redfrog stand!
The perfect stand. A great dog, gun, truck, short walk, skinning posts and three dead coyotes!
Ten a.m. and four dead coyotes. Does it get any better than this? The day was shaping up to be “one of those days”.
It took an hour to take hero pictures and skin four coyotes.
Noon finds us overlooking a huge drainage. I’ve killed coyotes from this exact spot and was giddy with anticipation. A few blasts with the howler causes 8 mule deer to bolt out of the bottom to the other side. Son of a gun of there wasn’t a hunter who blasted the only buck in the bunch. Shortly a pickup and three guys were standing around a dead deer. I figured the stand was pointless but kept calling. I know they saw Bubba running around and could surely hear my calls. Just when we were going to give up, I looked behind me to see 3 coyotes sitting on a hill 400 yards away. It was rather obvious I was busted as the wind was blowing right to them and no matter what I blew, they would not budge. I’ve killed many coyotes at such distances. The scope was cranked up to 20X and I was just about to squeeeeeeeeeeeze when Bubba took off in the other direction. I be dogged gone! A coyote was charging us from the exact opposite direction I was laying. I was neither graceful nor slow swapping directions and of course the coyote saw me. But, with Bubba the wonder dog, that doesn’t really matter. He causes coyotes to do strange things. This one tried to circle and stopped at 200 or so yards. The .204 barked and both dog and coyote took off. Bubba had the angle on him so I lay back and watched the show. He was caught within 100 yards and was dead after a short scuffle. Later in the day another coyote made a fatal mistake and made #6 for the day. We saw 15 and called in 10. Like I said, What a day!
Before you guys think coyote hunting is easy, keep reading.
November 8, 2008
It was extremely foggy this morning. Couldn’t see 40 yards in any direction and it didn’t clear until noon. Winds were SE 8-10 mph and a low pressure on the horizon. We called and called, 16 stands to be exact, and did not see a single coyote. I repeat, a single coyote! The pedometer said we walked over 5 miles and drove 70. This was in the same country as the previous day.
November 9, 2008.
Another cloudy, rainy, windy (10-20 mph) day. Geez, I was getting tired of this. It was everything I could do to get out of the truck at each stand, but hunt we did. I must admit to not being quite the eager beaver though. Even Bubba lost a little zeal.
My buddy getting a little tuckered. We had been at it a few days by now.
By days end, we had called 15 or so stands and saw 4 coyotes. One was actually coming but circled at 1/2 mile to get our scent and was gone. The only real excitement was when a herd of cattle decided they wanted to blow snot on me and the hound. He protected me well and they finally tired of the game. I decided if the wind was blowing tomorrow we were heading home!
