Big Sky
SPONSOR
Today I was up before the dawn. I had a day off from work and I was excited to go coyote hunting all day long. Mother Nature had different plans and unleashed her fury on me all freaking day long. I was relentless as well, and kept making stand after stand, hoping to get lucky. The only break I took was to run home once to clean and dry my rifle and e-caller off. Once that was done I headed right back out. I had it all today mud, snow, rain, sleet, freezing rain, and fog. I hiked more miles that I can remember. Finally on the last stand the snow let up for a few minutes and I actually heard some coyotes howl at me. I spotted 3 of them over a thousand yards away on the opposite side of the canyon. I tried a number of sounds to bring them in but they wouldn't budge. Finally I tried something they liked and they began to mosey my way. It took them over a half hour. As they were doing this the temps were dropping and the snow was picking back up. I was getting covered in snow and soaked to the bone. It would all be worth it if I could get the shot though. At around 400 yards they dropped into a low spot and I got myself ready. Unfortunately they circled wide and came out way further to my left than I expected and I was turned too far to the right. They came into view at around 75 yards and closed to about 50 yards and I couldn't get around for the shot. Eventually the lead dog spooked as it got too close to the caller. I spun around to try and get a fleeting shot, only to have them evaporate over the crest of the hill, and out of my sight and life. Somehow the hike up out of the canyon, through the mud and snow seemed longer than a mile and a half. About a half a mile before reaching the truck it started raining and sleeting heavily. I was soaked from the rain and from sweat because of the steep ascent out. When I finally got to my truck I decided to capture the moment when I finally conceded defeat. Normally I like success photographs, but today Mother Nature and the coyotes totally beat me. If you haven't had days like this, you just haven't hunted enough. I've had many good days, but today was the bad and the ugly. My butt is totally kicked, my truck is a mess, I'm a mess...and a day or two from now I'll be ready to do it all again. 
