An 8 Coyote weekend
Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2008 6:49 pm
I had an unbelievable past weekend and wanted to share it with all of you. It's long so bear with me.
I took last Friday off to take care of some business and during the day we got a good 3†of snow. When I got home around 3:30 the skies had cleared and I thought I would go out and see if I could get a coyote. I went to one of my favorite spots and got set up in a fencerow and waited. I’ve had better luck at this location sitting and watching than trying to call. There were deer in the field from the time I got there until I shot a coyote coming across the field just about dark. It was walking casually broadside to me at 92 yards. I gave a couple lip squeaks and it stopped to look my way. Dropped him in his tracks. I was shooting my 22-250 to see how my new loads with the 50 Gr. V-Max’s would perform. Normally I’d be carrying my CZ 527 Varmint in .204.
The next morning was clear with a full moon and in the low 20’s. I went to one of my other favorite places and got set up before the first hint of daylight and waited. I figured I’d wait till good light before I started calling. The moon was still in the sky and it was about 15 minutes before the sun came up when a pair of coyotes came up along the far side of the bottom headed for some brush straight across from me. The lead coyote stopped to smell around and I took the shot at 186 yards. I heard the distinct “whack†of the 50 gr. V-Max hitting home. Both coyotes ran into the brush. I sat quietly and in about 10 minutes the other one came out where the first one had been when I shot it. I had my monopod instead of my shooting sticks, lesson learned. I shot and missed. The coyote started running back to the south. I gave a mouth bark and it stopped and looked my way. I shot it at 192 yards and it took off running back to the south. I watched it run down to the end of the field and stop and lay down.
I sat for another 20 minutes and then made my way across the bottom to check out the first coyote. I found this where the first coyote was standing when I shot it.
I tracked the coyote through the brush and found it in the edge of the field behind the brush. I hit it a little low, darn monopod.
I then made my way down to the other coyote. It made it about 250 yards before it gave up the fight.
As I was heading back up to where I had been sitting, I spotted something at the north end of the field a little over 800 yards away. I looked through the binoculars and saw it was another pair of coyotes.
I stood still and watched as they went behind a hill in the field between us. I figured I’d get back to my spot and see if I could call them in. I walked back up to the road way and just as I headed back east, they appeared again heading back to the east also. They saw me or thought they saw something strange.
I had my snow camo jacket on and my regular camo bibs. I think at that distance they may have thought I was another coyote. They stopped and sat looking at me. The range finder said it was 623 yards to them.
By this time the sun was up and about an hour later and I’m standing out in the open. They started giving me challenge barks and then went into a complete serenade. Another group of coyotes chimed in back off to the northwest over the hill. Finally after what seemed like a 15 minute stand off, they turned to each other and one of them started dogging the other one. I started to walk slowly and they turned their attention to me again. They again started challenge barking at me and started my way. I didn’t want to get caught in the open so I started doing the foot shuffle so it wouldn’t look like a human walking.
The only thing I can figure is the difference in camo broke up my outline as a human. I had about 60 yards to get to the edge of the brush. I finally made it and they had closed the gap to about 450 yards.
They again started throwing challenge barks at me so I started barking back with a hand call. They didn’t like this and started coming again and swinging to my left toward a hillside in the field. If you look close, you can see the dead coyotes on the hillside.
They stopped on the hillside and kept barking. I decided I would be quiet and see if curiosity would bring them closer. They gave up scolding me and the one started dogging the other one.
This whole thing has lasted about 30 minutes up till now. They stopped what they were doing and turned and started to walk up the hill. I gave a couple lip squeaks and they both stopped and looked back. I dropped the male in his tracks at 214 yards. The female started running up the hill so I gave a mouth bark and she stopped and looked back. I dropped her at 243 yards. Here's a better picture zoomed in.
I picked up the coyotes and headed home. To say the morning was unbelievable would be an under statement. The sun was so bright off the snow I couldn't keep my eyes open for the picture. The coyote 3rd from left weighed 39 lbs.
A few things I realized that morning,
1) Only use a monopod when I don’t have my shooting sticks.
2) The safety on the Savage 12FV is hard to work with a thick glove on.
3) Take the CZ .204 the next time so I can watch the hits through the scope.
4) The 50 gr. V-Max has nothing on the .204 shooting the 39 gr. Sierra B.K.
Sat. afternoon Lucas and I went out to the place I’d shot the coyote the evening before to see if we could get another one. Lucas was carrying my CZ .204 and I had my Savage 12FV in 22-250. Lucas sat in the same location I was the evening before and I cut down through a pasture to watch the lower side of the woods where there was a dead animal the coyotes had been feeding on.
As I slowly rounded the side of the hill near the bottom, I saw several deer out in a field ahead of me.
I had just finished taking some pictures when I turned around and looked behind me to see a coyote come up out of the creek out in a big bottom about 300 yards out. The coyote looked bad even at this distance. It looked like no hair on its tale and its body was very thin. I quickly got set up and ranged the end of the fencerow it was heading for and got 274 yards. I figured the coyote would hit the fence line and head my way. When it got to the fence, it turned and headed toward me. About half way to me the coyote crossed the fence and continued coming. When it cleared a thorn bush out in front of me I shot it at 82 yards. It’s the first mangy coyote I’ve ever seen around here.
I moved on up to the top of the hill I was planning on sitting and took in the view. About 700 yards across the bottom there were turkeys and deer feeding along the hill side.
Zoomed in for a better look. Notice the deer in the lower left and upper right of the picture.
About a half hour before dark I did some howling but didn’t see anything. Just as it was getting in the last minutes to see and shoot, a coyote came out of the woods 86 yards from Lucas and he shot it.
The next morning I got up and found out it was snowing. I went out and walked a half mile down to a creek bottom and didn’t call anything in. Around 3:00 in the afternoon I went to a new place I had just recently gotten permission to hunt. I had never been on this property so I pulled up some aerial photos on the computer to see the lay of the land.
I found what appeared to be a small field along the main draw running through this property. The wind was coming in from the SW so I came in from the NE and sneaked into the field and set the FoxPro in the grass along the north edge. I sat up toward the top of the hill by the field just below sky line so I wouldn’t stand out.
I started the FoxPro up on the Jack Rabbit distress and in about 30 seconds I saw something moving in the brush across the creek as it crossed the remaining patches of snow. It was a coyote so I immediately shut the FoxPro off. The coyote stopped at the edge of the creek and looked for what was making the noise. I gave a couple lip squeaks and the coyote dove off into the creek. It came up on my side and stopped to look around. I dropped it on the spot with a 39 gr. Sierra out of my CZ .204. It was a male and weighed 37.5 lbs.
This past weekend was an adventure I may never experience again. I hope you enjoyed my story, I sure enjoyed living it!
ME
I took last Friday off to take care of some business and during the day we got a good 3†of snow. When I got home around 3:30 the skies had cleared and I thought I would go out and see if I could get a coyote. I went to one of my favorite spots and got set up in a fencerow and waited. I’ve had better luck at this location sitting and watching than trying to call. There were deer in the field from the time I got there until I shot a coyote coming across the field just about dark. It was walking casually broadside to me at 92 yards. I gave a couple lip squeaks and it stopped to look my way. Dropped him in his tracks. I was shooting my 22-250 to see how my new loads with the 50 Gr. V-Max’s would perform. Normally I’d be carrying my CZ 527 Varmint in .204.
The next morning was clear with a full moon and in the low 20’s. I went to one of my other favorite places and got set up before the first hint of daylight and waited. I figured I’d wait till good light before I started calling. The moon was still in the sky and it was about 15 minutes before the sun came up when a pair of coyotes came up along the far side of the bottom headed for some brush straight across from me. The lead coyote stopped to smell around and I took the shot at 186 yards. I heard the distinct “whack†of the 50 gr. V-Max hitting home. Both coyotes ran into the brush. I sat quietly and in about 10 minutes the other one came out where the first one had been when I shot it. I had my monopod instead of my shooting sticks, lesson learned. I shot and missed. The coyote started running back to the south. I gave a mouth bark and it stopped and looked my way. I shot it at 192 yards and it took off running back to the south. I watched it run down to the end of the field and stop and lay down.
I sat for another 20 minutes and then made my way across the bottom to check out the first coyote. I found this where the first coyote was standing when I shot it.
I tracked the coyote through the brush and found it in the edge of the field behind the brush. I hit it a little low, darn monopod.
I then made my way down to the other coyote. It made it about 250 yards before it gave up the fight.
As I was heading back up to where I had been sitting, I spotted something at the north end of the field a little over 800 yards away. I looked through the binoculars and saw it was another pair of coyotes.
I stood still and watched as they went behind a hill in the field between us. I figured I’d get back to my spot and see if I could call them in. I walked back up to the road way and just as I headed back east, they appeared again heading back to the east also. They saw me or thought they saw something strange.
I had my snow camo jacket on and my regular camo bibs. I think at that distance they may have thought I was another coyote. They stopped and sat looking at me. The range finder said it was 623 yards to them.
By this time the sun was up and about an hour later and I’m standing out in the open. They started giving me challenge barks and then went into a complete serenade. Another group of coyotes chimed in back off to the northwest over the hill. Finally after what seemed like a 15 minute stand off, they turned to each other and one of them started dogging the other one. I started to walk slowly and they turned their attention to me again. They again started challenge barking at me and started my way. I didn’t want to get caught in the open so I started doing the foot shuffle so it wouldn’t look like a human walking.
The only thing I can figure is the difference in camo broke up my outline as a human. I had about 60 yards to get to the edge of the brush. I finally made it and they had closed the gap to about 450 yards.
They again started throwing challenge barks at me so I started barking back with a hand call. They didn’t like this and started coming again and swinging to my left toward a hillside in the field. If you look close, you can see the dead coyotes on the hillside.
They stopped on the hillside and kept barking. I decided I would be quiet and see if curiosity would bring them closer. They gave up scolding me and the one started dogging the other one.
This whole thing has lasted about 30 minutes up till now. They stopped what they were doing and turned and started to walk up the hill. I gave a couple lip squeaks and they both stopped and looked back. I dropped the male in his tracks at 214 yards. The female started running up the hill so I gave a mouth bark and she stopped and looked back. I dropped her at 243 yards. Here's a better picture zoomed in.
I picked up the coyotes and headed home. To say the morning was unbelievable would be an under statement. The sun was so bright off the snow I couldn't keep my eyes open for the picture. The coyote 3rd from left weighed 39 lbs.
A few things I realized that morning,
1) Only use a monopod when I don’t have my shooting sticks.
2) The safety on the Savage 12FV is hard to work with a thick glove on.
3) Take the CZ .204 the next time so I can watch the hits through the scope.
4) The 50 gr. V-Max has nothing on the .204 shooting the 39 gr. Sierra B.K.
Sat. afternoon Lucas and I went out to the place I’d shot the coyote the evening before to see if we could get another one. Lucas was carrying my CZ .204 and I had my Savage 12FV in 22-250. Lucas sat in the same location I was the evening before and I cut down through a pasture to watch the lower side of the woods where there was a dead animal the coyotes had been feeding on.
As I slowly rounded the side of the hill near the bottom, I saw several deer out in a field ahead of me.
I had just finished taking some pictures when I turned around and looked behind me to see a coyote come up out of the creek out in a big bottom about 300 yards out. The coyote looked bad even at this distance. It looked like no hair on its tale and its body was very thin. I quickly got set up and ranged the end of the fencerow it was heading for and got 274 yards. I figured the coyote would hit the fence line and head my way. When it got to the fence, it turned and headed toward me. About half way to me the coyote crossed the fence and continued coming. When it cleared a thorn bush out in front of me I shot it at 82 yards. It’s the first mangy coyote I’ve ever seen around here.
I moved on up to the top of the hill I was planning on sitting and took in the view. About 700 yards across the bottom there were turkeys and deer feeding along the hill side.
Zoomed in for a better look. Notice the deer in the lower left and upper right of the picture.
About a half hour before dark I did some howling but didn’t see anything. Just as it was getting in the last minutes to see and shoot, a coyote came out of the woods 86 yards from Lucas and he shot it.
The next morning I got up and found out it was snowing. I went out and walked a half mile down to a creek bottom and didn’t call anything in. Around 3:00 in the afternoon I went to a new place I had just recently gotten permission to hunt. I had never been on this property so I pulled up some aerial photos on the computer to see the lay of the land.
I found what appeared to be a small field along the main draw running through this property. The wind was coming in from the SW so I came in from the NE and sneaked into the field and set the FoxPro in the grass along the north edge. I sat up toward the top of the hill by the field just below sky line so I wouldn’t stand out.
I started the FoxPro up on the Jack Rabbit distress and in about 30 seconds I saw something moving in the brush across the creek as it crossed the remaining patches of snow. It was a coyote so I immediately shut the FoxPro off. The coyote stopped at the edge of the creek and looked for what was making the noise. I gave a couple lip squeaks and the coyote dove off into the creek. It came up on my side and stopped to look around. I dropped it on the spot with a 39 gr. Sierra out of my CZ .204. It was a male and weighed 37.5 lbs.
This past weekend was an adventure I may never experience again. I hope you enjoyed my story, I sure enjoyed living it!
ME
Good Job, you'll have more days like that just be patient and keep after them. You just experience all of our dreams and then made us feel like we were there with your great story telling. I'm officially ready for it to warm up and can't wait until you and Lucas come out Turkey and Prairie Doggin. Talk to ya real soon, and great job again. 
