Well as the title says, I'm just getting into hunting. Predator hunting appealed to me the most, so I wanted to start with coyotes.
After spending many hours reading and watching videos, I bought a rifle dedicated for varmints. I purchased a used Stevens 200 in .223 Rem off the EE. I choose the Stevens because it was cheap and reliable, but offers the ability to customize as my skill improves. I have been pretty busy but managed to do some scouting and talked to a few landowners. Then I bought some calls the week before thanksgiving. A Knight & Hale Mega Howler, and a Primos Raspy Coaxer. I practised a bit and hit the fields today for my first serious try at coyote hunting.
My friend and I, both of us very inexperienced, set up in a field off the highway. We started in a hay stack yard and tried a few interrogation howls....... nothing. My calls didn't sound very good to me and my buddy was laughing, said it sounded like a elk. So then I moved onto the raspy coaxer and tried a few jackrabbit distress calls. Waited for a while and glassed the field....... nothing. We then decided to move to a new spot.
We moved farther into the field and set up behind a few straw bales about a 1/4 mile from of first spot. The wind was blowing left to right probably 10kph. I let a howl and it didn't sound too bad. I followed it up with a few rabbit distress calls. Then it happened, my buddy spotted a 'yote across a small dip, probably 250-300 yards away coming towards us. He lost it when it went into the dip. I was trying to find it, having some trouble locating the spot were he lost it. We kept glassing for a few seconds, standing against the bales. Then that little coyote popped up directly in front of us about 70 yards out coming in on a trot. I stopped him with a soft grunt. I dropped my binos and picked up my rifle lying on the bale in front of me. The coyote was looking at us trying to figure out what the heads sticking out from the bales were attached to. I took quick aim, the coyote was standing straight on to me. I put the cross hairs square on the middle of his chest and squeezed the trigger. He folded up, dead right there. He never made a sound, no response just came in on the trot the whole way.
To say the least I was a little excited, the adrenaline hit me after the fact and I was almost shaking. I am totaly hooked, what a blast!!!!!!!
I didn't have a camera with me, but I took the photos when I got home a few hours later after trying another spot. I paced the shot off at 65 yards.
Probably beginers luck but here he is, my first coyote.....
A nice healthy male, approx 35 lbs.
After spending many hours reading and watching videos, I bought a rifle dedicated for varmints. I purchased a used Stevens 200 in .223 Rem off the EE. I choose the Stevens because it was cheap and reliable, but offers the ability to customize as my skill improves. I have been pretty busy but managed to do some scouting and talked to a few landowners. Then I bought some calls the week before thanksgiving. A Knight & Hale Mega Howler, and a Primos Raspy Coaxer. I practised a bit and hit the fields today for my first serious try at coyote hunting.
My friend and I, both of us very inexperienced, set up in a field off the highway. We started in a hay stack yard and tried a few interrogation howls....... nothing. My calls didn't sound very good to me and my buddy was laughing, said it sounded like a elk. So then I moved onto the raspy coaxer and tried a few jackrabbit distress calls. Waited for a while and glassed the field....... nothing. We then decided to move to a new spot.
We moved farther into the field and set up behind a few straw bales about a 1/4 mile from of first spot. The wind was blowing left to right probably 10kph. I let a howl and it didn't sound too bad. I followed it up with a few rabbit distress calls. Then it happened, my buddy spotted a 'yote across a small dip, probably 250-300 yards away coming towards us. He lost it when it went into the dip. I was trying to find it, having some trouble locating the spot were he lost it. We kept glassing for a few seconds, standing against the bales. Then that little coyote popped up directly in front of us about 70 yards out coming in on a trot. I stopped him with a soft grunt. I dropped my binos and picked up my rifle lying on the bale in front of me. The coyote was looking at us trying to figure out what the heads sticking out from the bales were attached to. I took quick aim, the coyote was standing straight on to me. I put the cross hairs square on the middle of his chest and squeezed the trigger. He folded up, dead right there. He never made a sound, no response just came in on the trot the whole way.
To say the least I was a little excited, the adrenaline hit me after the fact and I was almost shaking. I am totaly hooked, what a blast!!!!!!!
I didn't have a camera with me, but I took the photos when I got home a few hours later after trying another spot. I paced the shot off at 65 yards.
Probably beginers luck but here he is, my first coyote.....
A nice healthy male, approx 35 lbs.
