Simply put the wolf hunting is very slow - other than one walking out 2 doors down, wandering by my neighbours as they were talking at the end of the driveway, where it veered, came up my driveway, sniffed around (I had left earlier with the baitmobile with a wolf carcass in it), and then proceeded to walk around downtown. We are only seeing one wolf on the hydro line (and it appears to have mange), and little wolf activity north of town either.
Coyotes are everywhere - in town, out of town, at all times of day. Despite our efforts at the snow dump and golf course, we havent had them show up or howl back at us. Last time at the golf course I heard a raven squawking like hell and sure enough it was flying above a lynx that walked up to the tree the caller was sitting in, before proceeding down the trees at the edge of the fairway.
Early in the morning of Dec 23, a transport carrying a load of live cattle went off the highway north of town - luckily the driver wasnt hurt but about 20 or so cattle were killed or put down at the site. The rest fled into the bush, right where another hunter has been baiting for wolves with lots of wolf tracks. Then the #### show started with folks flocking to the scene from as far away as 150 km and shooting cows. My wife and I drove up on Christmas eve and it was quite something, a log truck with a cherry picker on it loading the dead and frozen cattle that were stacked like cordwood on the side of the highway. People with orange vests dragging cows out of the bush to the side of the highway and loading on trailers and trucks. I found out there were at least 4 left alive and My72Jeep drove up to check it out but it was too much of a wild show for him to get out of the truck.
On Boxing day, M72J, his wife (M72JW) and I drove up at first light to see if the wolves had found the gut piles, but there were 5 guys and a skidoo there looking for cows. We drove north to the blind and low and behold, there was a very fresh wolf track walking into our baitsite. Beautiful morning, no wind, mild so we set up in the blind for a while and called but nothing came out.
Then we drove back and stopped at the scene of the carnage and picked up some bait!. You can see gutpiles on the bush road behind M72J!
That afternoon, Gunner410, Paddle2DaC (who was home ona surprise visit) and I went out to the hydro line - sunny, warm and no wind. I started with coyote howls and immediately had a pack response in the distance. Tried some more howls, they responded and then one started barking, yipping and howling right behind us - sounded less than 100 yards away. It was across the road where M72J and M72JW usually set up (but M72J decided to have an afternoon nap and they didnt come out). This thing was really ticked off and raising hell and Gunner410 and I turned around as we expected it to come running down the road and up the ridge to us. After 5 minutes of chewing us out, it went silent and we didnt hear from it. About that time, Paddle2DAC spotted a coyote crossing the hydro line on the other side of the road into the side where the other coyote had been barking at us. If M72J and M72JW had been there they would have had a shot at it.
After a minute or so I play another howl and now the pack that we heard earlier starts responding - and they are very close. The howls and yips were coming from the same general location where the coyote had crossed a minute or so earlier, so Gunner made his way down the ridge, across the road and set up where M72JW usually sits. The coyotes continued to howl at us for a bit longer and then went quiet.
Now we were down to about 15 minutes of legal shooting light left. I turned around and watched the hydro line and since all of the animals had gone silent, I didnt play any more calls. After a couple of minutes, a coyote walks across the line in front of me about 200 yards down. But I lost him in the grass and raspberry canes (until last night / today, we have had virtually no snow and the grass is still standing quite tall). I told Paddle2DAC I lost him in the grass, and he started looking with his binos. I found him at the edge of the treeline and took a hurried shot as he was disappearing from view. It spun and ran back out to the center of the line where he started running away from us. Fired a second shot and big puff of snow next to him, and he is now in high gear. Tried a 400 yard hail Mary but to no avail.
Most exiting coyote hunt we have ever had even though we didnt get anything. With the lack of wolves this year, the coyotes seem to be ranging further out of town and that is the first time we have ever had coyotes howl like that at the hydro line.
Next morning, M72J and M72JW went out and found where someone had dumped a truck load of cowhides. M72J went and got his tractor, and M72JW and I went up in the truck. We met him coming down the main road and were stopped talking to him when a coyote walked out of the treeline, ran towards us and then into the bush on the other side. Even with the diesel tractor chugging away it didnt seem the least concerned. We were only 50 yards from a hydro line so M72JW and I set up and tried to call it after M72J left, but it didnt show up.
Only a couple more days to use up the 2018 tags and then start on the 2019 tags next week.
Happy New Years!
Coyotes are everywhere - in town, out of town, at all times of day. Despite our efforts at the snow dump and golf course, we havent had them show up or howl back at us. Last time at the golf course I heard a raven squawking like hell and sure enough it was flying above a lynx that walked up to the tree the caller was sitting in, before proceeding down the trees at the edge of the fairway.
Early in the morning of Dec 23, a transport carrying a load of live cattle went off the highway north of town - luckily the driver wasnt hurt but about 20 or so cattle were killed or put down at the site. The rest fled into the bush, right where another hunter has been baiting for wolves with lots of wolf tracks. Then the #### show started with folks flocking to the scene from as far away as 150 km and shooting cows. My wife and I drove up on Christmas eve and it was quite something, a log truck with a cherry picker on it loading the dead and frozen cattle that were stacked like cordwood on the side of the highway. People with orange vests dragging cows out of the bush to the side of the highway and loading on trailers and trucks. I found out there were at least 4 left alive and My72Jeep drove up to check it out but it was too much of a wild show for him to get out of the truck.
On Boxing day, M72J, his wife (M72JW) and I drove up at first light to see if the wolves had found the gut piles, but there were 5 guys and a skidoo there looking for cows. We drove north to the blind and low and behold, there was a very fresh wolf track walking into our baitsite. Beautiful morning, no wind, mild so we set up in the blind for a while and called but nothing came out.
Then we drove back and stopped at the scene of the carnage and picked up some bait!. You can see gutpiles on the bush road behind M72J!
That afternoon, Gunner410, Paddle2DaC (who was home ona surprise visit) and I went out to the hydro line - sunny, warm and no wind. I started with coyote howls and immediately had a pack response in the distance. Tried some more howls, they responded and then one started barking, yipping and howling right behind us - sounded less than 100 yards away. It was across the road where M72J and M72JW usually set up (but M72J decided to have an afternoon nap and they didnt come out). This thing was really ticked off and raising hell and Gunner410 and I turned around as we expected it to come running down the road and up the ridge to us. After 5 minutes of chewing us out, it went silent and we didnt hear from it. About that time, Paddle2DAC spotted a coyote crossing the hydro line on the other side of the road into the side where the other coyote had been barking at us. If M72J and M72JW had been there they would have had a shot at it.
After a minute or so I play another howl and now the pack that we heard earlier starts responding - and they are very close. The howls and yips were coming from the same general location where the coyote had crossed a minute or so earlier, so Gunner made his way down the ridge, across the road and set up where M72JW usually sits. The coyotes continued to howl at us for a bit longer and then went quiet.
Now we were down to about 15 minutes of legal shooting light left. I turned around and watched the hydro line and since all of the animals had gone silent, I didnt play any more calls. After a couple of minutes, a coyote walks across the line in front of me about 200 yards down. But I lost him in the grass and raspberry canes (until last night / today, we have had virtually no snow and the grass is still standing quite tall). I told Paddle2DAC I lost him in the grass, and he started looking with his binos. I found him at the edge of the treeline and took a hurried shot as he was disappearing from view. It spun and ran back out to the center of the line where he started running away from us. Fired a second shot and big puff of snow next to him, and he is now in high gear. Tried a 400 yard hail Mary but to no avail.
Most exiting coyote hunt we have ever had even though we didnt get anything. With the lack of wolves this year, the coyotes seem to be ranging further out of town and that is the first time we have ever had coyotes howl like that at the hydro line.
Next morning, M72J and M72JW went out and found where someone had dumped a truck load of cowhides. M72J went and got his tractor, and M72JW and I went up in the truck. We met him coming down the main road and were stopped talking to him when a coyote walked out of the treeline, ran towards us and then into the bush on the other side. Even with the diesel tractor chugging away it didnt seem the least concerned. We were only 50 yards from a hydro line so M72JW and I set up and tried to call it after M72J left, but it didnt show up.
Only a couple more days to use up the 2018 tags and then start on the 2019 tags next week.
Happy New Years!
