HRM Johnny
Well-Known Member
I would love to see more of the entries.
Ramblings and Such From Hunting Coyote
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In the early years of my control work I had everything marked on maps so that if something happened to me someone could find all of my equipment and either start using it or get it picked up and out of the field. Later on, after GPS came into play it was all set up in my GPS unit as well as marked on satellite maps. Sets using gland lure were marked with the type of lure being used at each of them, sets using bait were marked with the bait used on them. Then I would also note the results obtained by each of the attractants.
After a few years of keeping notes on the different gland lures and baits a couple of them really stood out as having better results in my area. So, then I was able to thin out the number of things that I carried with me. For me the use of urine at my sets got too many unwanted catches most urine that is sold on the market is from penned animals with several animals as well as feces mixed in with it from the way it is collected. If a person was able to read some of the old materials written by say Hawbecker, Nelson or Lucerro you would find them recommending that you collect fresh urine from animals that you had trapped straight from their bladder. But even that caused too many unwanted animals for me.
nealm66
Well-Known Member
Collecting urine doesn't sound like much fun
It's part of the job, kind of like driving or checking to see how many pups a female coyote had some aspects of it aren't what keep you doing it, it's the other things that keep you coming back day after day, the other wildlife you see the fresh air, sunshine and plant life as well as the challenge of getting the troublemaker that others haven't been able to get yet. I always look forward to seeing the young of the year and even the young livestock as they bounce around exercising their new bodies and explore the world they haven't seen yet. Even today I will go out just to see that.
Varmintnv
Well-Known Member
Many years ago, I was just getting started hunting/calling coyotes. My partner and I worked on a 1200acre ranch near Reno. We hunted every morning before work. One morning we decided to go up into the foothills behind Virginia City and see what we could find. Our first setup in in the top of a large canyon choked with sagebrush so we opted for shotguns and #4 buckshot.
As we're calling my partner sees a coyote coming through the brush about 125yds out. I'm straining trying to see this dog but can't find it. About 4 seconds after my partner spotting this coyote, it jumps over the bush in front of me and lands in my lap! We both nearly **** ourselves, and he ran to my left. My partner let him get out a few yards and dropped him. After catching our breathe, and talking about it a few seconds I look down and there on the side of the receiver of my 870 Wingmaster is a dusty footprint of that coyote!
As we're calling my partner sees a coyote coming through the brush about 125yds out. I'm straining trying to see this dog but can't find it. About 4 seconds after my partner spotting this coyote, it jumps over the bush in front of me and lands in my lap! We both nearly **** ourselves, and he ran to my left. My partner let him get out a few yards and dropped him. After catching our breathe, and talking about it a few seconds I look down and there on the side of the receiver of my 870 Wingmaster is a dusty footprint of that coyote!
I am amazed by the number of callers that have had close encounters with animals jumping on or close to them. No matter how many times it happens you will never get used to it. I started finding tracks in the snow behind me from mostly bobcats but a few coyotes and got to wondering why they were coming in behind me, so I got to trying to figure a few things out about it. At that time, I was using hand calls. I learned to use my hands as a directional horn and to not call so loud from that. Then when the cassette tape calls came out that lesson played a part in their use also. After a while when the e-calls came out with two speakers one on each end having different tone ranges I figured out that with them I could use them one speaker at a time and have two different sounds for the price of one and also use that to my advantage and make the caller directional by pointing the speaker in the direction I wanted most of the sounds to go. I still found that the volume needed to be lower than I had originally thought and that often in my situation I would be better off keeping the caller within arm's reach due to the areas that I called. I learned what would and wouldn't work to my advantage by making mistakes and taking notes about things like air temp wind direction, humidity, time of the year, what animals were most active at what time of the day and what was the moon doing, was it rising, setting or high in the sky. The moon came into play not for what stage it was in but because of what its position in the sky it was because of a study that I read about sea urchins being most active just before moon rise and moon set, then they moved them from the east coast to Kansas and they adjusted their eating times to the new moon rise and set in that area. Over time I learned to shut the call off when the coyote was at a distance out so that they would slow down and then to bark at them so they would stop for the shot where it was to my advantage. My area is pretty open country with areas that have deep draws, sage brush of differing heights, open grass land with short grass, willow choked stream beds, rock piles and pine forests depending on where you are what works for me might or might not work to your advantage but it's like going to school it may be a good starting point for you to adjust them for your situation, it's the basics and what you learn to do with them for your own use that will be of importance to you .
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Feb. 9, 2008: I have a lot of coyote coming in to the Prokish pasture from the neighboring ranch, they do their own coyote work and the country there is really rough. 2,10,2008 set two more M-44's in the Merrett pasture along the ridge road next to Smith creek. Called the Merrett, Smith Creek and the Northeast. The power plant called they have a lot of starlings laying around dead. Will get them picked up tomorrow.
2,16, 2008: I checked the Solder Creek unit not much sign at this time no tracks at all in the East Brewer. Checked the Sand Creek unit 1 pair working the Merrett and Smith Creek, 1 pair working the Northeast, 1 pair working the highway pasture, 1male 2females working the Wolf and Clark pastures. I will call Steve and get him to fly it soon if I don't get them on the ground. Disposed of 6 M-44 capsules by deep burial, I drive a trap steak into the ground for each capsule pull out drop the capsule into the hole so that they are at least 12" underground after being fired into the hole.
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2,29,2008: got a female in the Merrett on the M-44 by the electric water well. 3,12,2008 got a male in the Hellen Combs pasture, jumped one in the East Brewer. 3,13,2008: called and shot a bad mangy male in the Wolf Pasture went up from the bottom instead of calling from the top this time it worked 3,15,2008: called the East Brewer had one howling so howled it in a male. Had 3 howling in Nickolas set the fence line up with snares .
Get a set of Bill Austin's instructional tapes on Howling, it will change your calling experiences. Two or three guys hunting together that learn the Coyote Language, howling together will unhinge a Family Unit of coyotes. This type of hunting is about as much fun as you can have with your clothes on!
Years ago, we kept a coiled-up piece of bar wire fence behind the seat of the truck. We would run the barbed wire down the hole, give a couple of twists, and pull out the coyote. This all went along very well till my hunting partner wanted to pull a Badger out of his hole! Things got really exciting in a hurry! The badger was super ****ed when he came out, and lucky he was focused on the barbed wire, not us!
Today, I think that it may be illegal to "fish" for animals in their burrow...don't know for sure, check your State regs.
Today, I think that it may be illegal to "fish" for animals in their burrow...don't know for sure, check your State regs.
I don't know if you can find his tapes now, I went down and visited with him in the early 80's before he died, when he was living in Rawlins Wyoming. His son may have some of them around for sale, he was one of the first to teach others to howl and to have a set of howlers for sale, male, female and puppy. I went up and visited Crag and Dana O'Gorman, in Broadus Montana, as well in the early 80's he was a voice howler at that time as was Vern Dorn from Hanna Wyoming, Vern was one of the best at denning coyotes, Crag O'Gorman still is one of best coyote trappers, Bill Austin and Dan Thomson were some of the finest coyote callers you would ever meet. Bill Nelson, Gregerson, Patterson, James Lusero and others were some of the best trappers and snares men that the U.S. has ever seen. They lived with the coyotes and took great pride in doing their work to the best of their abilities, different times then we live in today.
