First Day Of Coyote Hunting

[younggun]

well, i just finished my first day of coyote hunting and it turned out just as i suspected...it ended up being another day of scouting but this time carrying a rifle. I ended up having to go around noon because i had to finish up sighting in my dads ole relic .222 rem. needless to say the scope from the 70s was a little finicky to get spot on.

i got some calling in but im pretty sure it was just too late in the day for coyotes to be out and about. this is all just theory because i didnt see any but i did hear them taunting me on my way out. i did find some prestine spots to set up stands but ill have to try them out tomorrow bright and early. i did end up clipping a prarie dog in the head right before i made my exit.

enough with the story of the day its time to ask the predator pros some questions.lol

when you set up a stand how long do you stay?

how long do you call for and how much time do you allot between calling sessions?

how do you locate coyote dens?

everything ive read says set up where you think they are going to be coming from but how do i know where they are going to be coming from?

Im sure all these questions make me look like i dont know what im doing and by all accounts that is completely accurate. If any of you have answers to any of my questions that is greatly appreciated or if you have any advice or pointers please share them cause currently im just out there scaring up birds with my distressed cottontail call which is fun but i feel getting a coyote to come running would be even more fun.

[royinidaho]

Welcome to the world of yote calling!

"but i did hear them taunting me on my way out."

What does this mean. On your way from the house to your vehicle or from your vehicle to your 'spot'.

If from your vehicle to your setup......you've been busted!

The next trap to fall into is you've gotta hand at least 25 different calls around your neck. That's mostly for intimidation of other yote hunters you may meet.

A pointer is that when you are without the aid of a second shooter, the yote will come to the call and circle the source of the call and come in with the wind in his favor.

With two shooters or one shooter and an electronic call, place the source of all that noise, 50 yards or so, depending on terrain and cover away from the second shooter.

Ensure max stealth during the approach to the set up spot. Getting busted is pretty easy.

Once you get yotes coming in you'll settle on your techinque. Some blow constantly others infrequently as in every few minutes to every 5 minutes.

The less you're blowing the more apt you are to see their approach.

My experience is that in close cover, shots under 50-60 yards there is less than 2 seconds from seeing the yote to making the shot. There have been many yotes disappear from the scope just as the rifle goes boom.

If you're in the open there is more time to get on the yote, get the jitters prep for the shot. Then the sucker disappears from about 200 yds out and magically reappears at about 20 yards and ya miss anyway.

Keep at it. That magic moment will happen!

Oh, I noticed my luck improved when I camo'd my face and hands. I like the camo head net head cover and gloves. (Keeps the bugs off your face)

[younggun]

sorry with the lack of specifics on the taunting. i heard them barking as i was leaving my spot and headed to the car. i woulda turned right around but unfortunately i didnt leave myself much time before i had to head to class. i had a setup with a cross wind so if they did circle around it would bring them right into one of my shooting lanes. i live in colorado so where i hunt out east there are rolling hills covered in probably 8-12 inch high CRP grass. its filled with wildlife from birds to rabbits to snake and prarie dogs making it pristene location for yotes and ive even seen them around but i think i was just forced to pick the wrong time of day to go for it. ill be back out this weekend and my goal is just to call one into sight. if i can do that i know i have got my calling to be at least decent enough to make them curious.

as for camo on my hands and face i did have a camo head cover and i had surplus millitary black cotton gloves. not the best gloves but at least it covered up my skin

my dads rifle also has a glossed barrel and highly varnished wood stock. i cant paint it cause he has "waaaayyyy to many memories" with it. but i am thinking about just taking so ace bandage and camo coloring it to just wrap the gun with to at least get rid of its reflective finish. eventually im gonna get a 22-250 with either a camo or matte black finish but i dont want to do load development for a type of hunting im not proficient at yet. its one of those "how do i develope a load to fit my needs if i dont know what my needs are" kinda deals.

thanks so much for the reply and if you or anyone else has any pointers please share i need all the help i can get. lol

[Don Ward]

Here's basically what I like to do and it has proven to be consistently successful. #1 is getting into your set up w/o being detected. Easier said than done on many sets and sometime you can't avoid being visible to a big chunk of prospective area. Thats ok as long as your call will reach some spots that you didn't blow out.

Set-up with back cover if possible. After getting set, glass for a minute. You will be surprised at how many times you see a coyote, plus you pick up any deer, etc that may effect the stand.

Start with a howl and see what you get. Many stands will produce coyotes with just that or you may get a response so you have some more info on their location. If you aren't comfortable with howling, skip it but work on it at home or in the truck. Different howls have different meanings.

Start your distress calling. As stated above, with experience you will find your rhythm on timing and cadence. Less is more when you are starting out but in windy conditions I call a lot.

Minimize movement on stand, but don't be afraid to use binos between calling. Move slow.

Once you have one coming...let him come on his own as much as possible. The closer he gets the more he zeros on your calling and you risk getting busted. They are amazing at how they can lock on a sound but when they are far out its hard for them to get the distance correct. You will need to get one started again occasionally if they hang up way out and need some convincing.

Once they are in range let them stop on their own unless they are getting too close, heading into your wind or into a bad shot location. If you need to stop them, give a "WHOOP" and don't mess around. They will often lock on you and the clock is ticking.

Don't worry about doubles and triples at the moment. Just get some successful stands in.

I sit about 20 min if theres no activity but if the area looks good, I get a vocal response, or its bobcat country, a longer sit is in order.

When you kill one, do a few coyote distress calls immediately and sit tight for few minutes. This can yield another coyote or let any escaping dogs get out of sight before they see a human stand up. If I kill one early in a stand, I often just sit tight and keep up my sequence as if nothing happened. Its not uncommon to get more action.

Every stand is different and once you get a couple years experience, you will find a process that works for you. Try new stuff and make a lot of stands. Every successful caller I know has their own way of doing things.

Lastly, try not to educate too many. Ideally, you want them dead or getting out of the area without ever really knowing exactly what put their buddy to sleep so quickly.

[SBruce]

Originally Posted by younggun

i got some calling in but im pretty sure it was just too late in the day for coyotes to be out and about. this is all just theory because i didnt see any but i did hear them taunting me on my way out. i did find some prestine spots to set up stands but ill have to try them out tomorrow bright and early. i did end up clipping a prarie dog in the head right before i made my exit.

If they were barking on your way out of the setup, they were probably warning barks.....you had been busted. Possibly even before you started calling. Yotes have different types of barks however, and not all barks are warning barks. You may have even had one coming in but didn't see it. It may have been on it's way into the call and spotted you when you got up and left?

Here's a link: We sneak into AND out of our calling stands

when you set up a stand how long do you stay?

I usually stay at least 10 minutes, usually 20 to 30. I've stayed up to an hour when my calls are covering a huge area and it's the time of day when the coyotes are up and moving about.

how long do you call for and how much time do you allot between calling sessions?

I call very little usually. I spend way more time viewing the landscape and glassing than I actually spend blowing on the call. Usually blow for 20 to 40 seconds (panning it left and right, even sometimes up and down) then sit and watch/listen for 3 to 5 minutes.....Then repeat if needed. Possibly repeat another time or two if I feel there are coyotes within hearing distance. I also spend some time ranging markers before I ever start calling. That way, I don't have to deal with the question of "how far is he" when the yote shows up. As mentioned in anothers post, "the clock is ticking" is usually exactly the case.

how do you locate coyote dens?

Many methods of locating dens, but the most popular is using a howler or siren. Then listen for the pups to begin howling. Denning is kinda a specialized part of coyote hunting and takes some savy on the hunters part.
Coyotes aren't using dens this time of year. They only use dens while the pups are too small to get out and hunt with the adults. They quit using dens a few months ago.

everything ive read says set up where you think they are going to be coming from but how do i know where they are going to be coming from?

You dont always know. I've been suprised many times by coyotes coming from somewhere other than where I was looking. You can usually get an idea of where they will come from if you've located them first by howling or glassing; but even then, sometime one will suprise you by coming from somewhere else. Not all coyotes in the area are "together".

The other posts on this thread have mentioned alot of good things too.

You'll find that Binoculars will become invaluable hunting the open spaces you mentioned. There is no substitute for them. I've lost count of the times I've spotted coyotes within shooting distance or calling distance before I ever even made a sound.

I always hunt the same land, and hunt it year around. Therefore, I don't use the howler until later in the fur season (don't want to show my hole card till I need to). Same goes for the coyote distress (save the best for last). This time of year, a simple prey distress sound will call in more coyotes than you can shoot, providing they are in earshot and haven't been recently educated (by yourself or others).

Another thing about howlers........there are many many different sounds made by coyotes. Some are only used certain times of the year and for specific reasons. Certain barks and howls are actually saying the wrong thing to the coyote. Howling is another type of calling that is kinda specialized.

My advice, for whatever it's worth.......get proficient and confident with the rabbit distress before confusing yourself even more by trying to "howl them in". When you're ready to graduate from the rabbit/fawn type of calls, get an instructional DVD or audio by Bill Austin or Randy Anderson or a host of others and practice first. Often times, simply immitating the coyotes vocalization is good enough, provided they aren't doing the warning barks and howls.

Some basic tips for new coyote hunters

Best of luck to you and let the coyote be your teacher.

[codogbuster]

Hey younggun, you know everybody should be learning something new each time they go out! I'm struggling too right now!

Some advice I hope it helps. Try to set up w/ the sun to your back always. This makes spotting those critters easier, and it makes them seeing you harder.

I like to set up higher looking down on things. I don't like hunting in to much wind. My own preference no wind is best (oh boy here comes the hate replies), but seriously not feasable most of the time.

I try and hit a locate first, unless I know there is dogs. Generally distress animal calls work. Start quietly work your way louder. You never know how close a dog is to you.

Waiting time man that is a hard one, as anybody else who replies to this can agree. I have had them come in like a hobo on a hotdog, then other times when I had nothing else going on I waited an 1 1/2 hr time period (killed one too)!.

Good luck man- codogbuster