My pal & I met up at one of the ranches we stay at to wire up his Jeep off road lites and do some coyote calling this last weekend. We slept in late Sunday as we finnished at about 1am Sat eve.
I had high hopes anyway for the day and we headed to one of the spots we dropped 3 coyotes in a few hours time 2 weeks back or so and had counted lot coyotes around.
As they were then, this weekend was tough to get them to even lift a head & look for the vocals/sounds we played. We just left the calls in the truck after a bit and used hand calls and did a lot of glassing for coyotes. Now everything we did was spot & stalk.
Sunday sitting on a hill over looking a valley of 3 ranch properties we have access on that runs about 3-5 miles long & 1-2 miles deep we spot 5 right off the bat.
I see 2 eating on a dead cow and spot 3 more about 900 yards from them in a drainage area.
We dump the hill and head right into spot & stalk in the drainage/creek area to hide our shapes. We see one pop up & down in this area. The grass is knee high & we freeze as it pops up at 60 yds & beams us (breeze in our favor) It drops down and we drop to crawl a bit. It again pops up full body out of the grass and my pal drops it at about 80ys with his 22-250, its 920am.
We make for a low dam bank and spot 4 more about 400 yds from #1. I then see ol Mr. Mange a blackish looking coyote I have tried to drop at least 5 times in the last 6 months, just always to far out, or got busted, but he needed to be taken out. He is trotting to my right as we are watching the others, I swing around to follow it and see it head right over to the dead cow and drops out of sight. Well we head fast towards it on another SnS. Cows all over the spot, we manage to crawl up a rise over the dead cow spot & the other cattle want to play so they tromp all around us and Mr mange stands up at about 60yds. All I see is the head & neck and I draw on it and BOOM..BOOM...HUH? Pal shoots also, we both hit it in the neck and its DRT of course. Both our shots hit within inches of each other and we did not know the other shot till that second with me being a gazzilion second faster. #2 and its 930 am.
We count it as 1/2 each of course.
We move maybe 300yds and spot another moving to the dead cow.
We head back to the area, spot it mousing around & stalk in by crawling and lay down as the dip is anly 60 ys from us and we cant move anymore. It finally pops up but is not stopping, moves then feels it aint right...I drop it at about 80yds through the grass as its making an exit...950 am.
The rest of the day was seeing over 20 coyotes. Stalking another one and missing it at 330yds & I should of had it DRT.
I over estimated and dialed up 2" to high, it was laying down dozing.
That evening we made it back out there and from a hill side as we are glassing & pal spots 3 coyotes about 800+ yds out in the field drainage area. I see 2 more back over towards the dead cow area.
As we are talking how to get into them we see a lone coyote come trotting down a funnel area they all seem to like and its looking over its shoulder a lot. Then here comes 5 coyotes in single file after it and they tangle for a tad a couple of times and it makes a break and blows out of coyote town.
Those 5 hook up the the other 3, so we have 10 coyotes below us! I have never seen something like that & its sure was entertaining.
We put up female & male challanges, puppy cries & even toss out the pig distress. Yea they all look at us & know where its all coming from, BUT never respond or even give a second thought to us. Not a single one breaks towards us, usually at least one does...not this time.
Its dark 30 and they all head out in 2 groups with howls & barking and thus ends the day.
Monday:
We set up in the fields at about 5am and start glassing.
I see one about 1/2 mile away laying under a yucca near a dead cow and 2 mousing around and coming up towards us quickly.
We are set up where the 6 came down through last eveening.
We jamb around a hill that blocks them and I set up high & failed to realize my pal made it below me about 50 yards out. I spot them closer and blow mouse sounds & slight coyote whines.
They pop up in the yucca and Im trigger squeezing, they move and go low and pop up another 60 yards to my left and BOOM I hear a shot as I am squeezing. They hit full afterburner and I get off 2 running shots...both a tad low at 400yds...they are gone.
I see my pal stand up, he got there and went prone as I was still crawling to line myself up on the pair.
We stalk all the rest of the day & miss 3 total coyotes...man what a bummer day it was. Sun was cooking us out there and though we saw a lot, they just were not coming into any vocal/sounds. They like the ground mice & squirrels over us!.
Heck we decided to take a break and sat up below some rocks and glassed, then laid back...yup fell asleep for an hour!!
We buzz awake and see a 3 legged coyote at 600yds out and by glassing it looks to perhaps be the one the 5 finally got and tried to kill, its left front foot below the joint was nice & red & gone.
It was mousing about & going slow. About 1300 yds away from him laying down was another coyote also that seemed to have been in a fight as it was also walking/stopping like it had been hurt.
We put the stalk on it to remove his pain. We get to within 100yds of it as it laid down to rest, then get back up a handfull of times.
As my pal hits the top of the dam & drops prone fast, it stands up as 20 or so cows come blasting in front of us, it sees us, my pal shoots, I see it spin 2x and it full out rockets out of town like it has not been hit. So much for being hurt I think to myself. It stops close to the other one on the other side of the rangeland, who got up & walked away. Its licking at his foot and backside...he did hit it someplace.
The rest of the day is fruitless even though we counted over 14 coyotes again.
I had high hopes anyway for the day and we headed to one of the spots we dropped 3 coyotes in a few hours time 2 weeks back or so and had counted lot coyotes around.
As they were then, this weekend was tough to get them to even lift a head & look for the vocals/sounds we played. We just left the calls in the truck after a bit and used hand calls and did a lot of glassing for coyotes. Now everything we did was spot & stalk.
Sunday sitting on a hill over looking a valley of 3 ranch properties we have access on that runs about 3-5 miles long & 1-2 miles deep we spot 5 right off the bat.
I see 2 eating on a dead cow and spot 3 more about 900 yards from them in a drainage area.
We dump the hill and head right into spot & stalk in the drainage/creek area to hide our shapes. We see one pop up & down in this area. The grass is knee high & we freeze as it pops up at 60 yds & beams us (breeze in our favor) It drops down and we drop to crawl a bit. It again pops up full body out of the grass and my pal drops it at about 80ys with his 22-250, its 920am.
We make for a low dam bank and spot 4 more about 400 yds from #1. I then see ol Mr. Mange a blackish looking coyote I have tried to drop at least 5 times in the last 6 months, just always to far out, or got busted, but he needed to be taken out. He is trotting to my right as we are watching the others, I swing around to follow it and see it head right over to the dead cow and drops out of sight. Well we head fast towards it on another SnS. Cows all over the spot, we manage to crawl up a rise over the dead cow spot & the other cattle want to play so they tromp all around us and Mr mange stands up at about 60yds. All I see is the head & neck and I draw on it and BOOM..BOOM...HUH? Pal shoots also, we both hit it in the neck and its DRT of course. Both our shots hit within inches of each other and we did not know the other shot till that second with me being a gazzilion second faster. #2 and its 930 am.
We count it as 1/2 each of course.
We move maybe 300yds and spot another moving to the dead cow.
We head back to the area, spot it mousing around & stalk in by crawling and lay down as the dip is anly 60 ys from us and we cant move anymore. It finally pops up but is not stopping, moves then feels it aint right...I drop it at about 80yds through the grass as its making an exit...950 am.
The rest of the day was seeing over 20 coyotes. Stalking another one and missing it at 330yds & I should of had it DRT.
I over estimated and dialed up 2" to high, it was laying down dozing.
That evening we made it back out there and from a hill side as we are glassing & pal spots 3 coyotes about 800+ yds out in the field drainage area. I see 2 more back over towards the dead cow area.
As we are talking how to get into them we see a lone coyote come trotting down a funnel area they all seem to like and its looking over its shoulder a lot. Then here comes 5 coyotes in single file after it and they tangle for a tad a couple of times and it makes a break and blows out of coyote town.
Those 5 hook up the the other 3, so we have 10 coyotes below us! I have never seen something like that & its sure was entertaining.
We put up female & male challanges, puppy cries & even toss out the pig distress. Yea they all look at us & know where its all coming from, BUT never respond or even give a second thought to us. Not a single one breaks towards us, usually at least one does...not this time.
Its dark 30 and they all head out in 2 groups with howls & barking and thus ends the day.
Monday:
We set up in the fields at about 5am and start glassing.
I see one about 1/2 mile away laying under a yucca near a dead cow and 2 mousing around and coming up towards us quickly.
We are set up where the 6 came down through last eveening.
We jamb around a hill that blocks them and I set up high & failed to realize my pal made it below me about 50 yards out. I spot them closer and blow mouse sounds & slight coyote whines.
They pop up in the yucca and Im trigger squeezing, they move and go low and pop up another 60 yards to my left and BOOM I hear a shot as I am squeezing. They hit full afterburner and I get off 2 running shots...both a tad low at 400yds...they are gone.
I see my pal stand up, he got there and went prone as I was still crawling to line myself up on the pair.
We stalk all the rest of the day & miss 3 total coyotes...man what a bummer day it was. Sun was cooking us out there and though we saw a lot, they just were not coming into any vocal/sounds. They like the ground mice & squirrels over us!.
Heck we decided to take a break and sat up below some rocks and glassed, then laid back...yup fell asleep for an hour!!
We buzz awake and see a 3 legged coyote at 600yds out and by glassing it looks to perhaps be the one the 5 finally got and tried to kill, its left front foot below the joint was nice & red & gone.
It was mousing about & going slow. About 1300 yds away from him laying down was another coyote also that seemed to have been in a fight as it was also walking/stopping like it had been hurt.
We put the stalk on it to remove his pain. We get to within 100yds of it as it laid down to rest, then get back up a handfull of times.
As my pal hits the top of the dam & drops prone fast, it stands up as 20 or so cows come blasting in front of us, it sees us, my pal shoots, I see it spin 2x and it full out rockets out of town like it has not been hit. So much for being hurt I think to myself. It stops close to the other one on the other side of the rangeland, who got up & walked away. Its licking at his foot and backside...he did hit it someplace.
The rest of the day is fruitless even though we counted over 14 coyotes again.
