Out of breath, I had just gathered the five coyotes I shot on one stand. I made it back to my gear when I spotted another one slinking in, long after I had stopped calling. I was still breathing heavy, and he was almost to the call when I fired. The shot felt low. I went to rack another round—on top of an empty mag. By the time I single-loaded one, he had made it into a drainage. Still, it was a stand to remember.
About an hour before first light, I slipped into the middle of a section and dropped three. Dragging them back to the truck, I spotted another coyote cutting across the neighboring section, headed my way. I scrambled to set up, let out a single howl to grab its attention—then, right on cue, a truck rolls down the county road.
Through my thermal, I watched as they pulled up next to my truck, sat there for a minute, then eased off the road across from me and killed their lights. Well, that’s not sketchy at all. I grabbed my gear and started toward them, keeping an eye on the situation. Three guys hopped out, set up their tripods, and started calling.
As I crossed the fence, I flicked on my red headlamp and dragged my coyotes through the dead weeds as quietly as possible. They were close enough that I just walked over to talk to them.
“You hunting the contest?” one of them asked.
“Nope,” I said. “Just thinning them out for a farmer.”
They asked how many I’d gotten. I shrugged. “Not sure. I think thirteen.”
They’d shot seven. They said they were hunting a contest and one asked, “What are you gonna do with your dogs?”
I told them I was going to go make another stand before light, and then take a picture of them to post.
To me they are not “dogs”, they are coyotes.
I see many comments from people talking about all the kills they see, but they rarely mention the reasoning behind choosing a specific setup location for calling. So, here’s an aerial map with contour lines to illustrate how I select my stand locations.
I set up my stand to call the coyotes down into a small canyon that had been dammed up for a pond. The contours highlight the highest elevation extending out over the canyon—my vantage point. One year ago, I scouted the area in daylight, marked the exact spot, and dropped a pin. I made this same stand last year and killed three. Last weekend I went back a year later and shot six. Two stands and nine coyotes shot from this spot.
The numbers on the map indicate where the coyotes were shot and how most of them circled downwind, to the edge of my scent cone. I was using the county road as a natural block. While coyotes don’t always avoid crossing roads, they often hesitate if it means losing visibility. That said, sometimes they ignore the roads and cross without a second thought.
About an hour before first light, I slipped into the middle of a section and dropped three. Dragging them back to the truck, I spotted another coyote cutting across the neighboring section, headed my way. I scrambled to set up, let out a single howl to grab its attention—then, right on cue, a truck rolls down the county road.
Through my thermal, I watched as they pulled up next to my truck, sat there for a minute, then eased off the road across from me and killed their lights. Well, that’s not sketchy at all. I grabbed my gear and started toward them, keeping an eye on the situation. Three guys hopped out, set up their tripods, and started calling.
As I crossed the fence, I flicked on my red headlamp and dragged my coyotes through the dead weeds as quietly as possible. They were close enough that I just walked over to talk to them.
“You hunting the contest?” one of them asked.
“Nope,” I said. “Just thinning them out for a farmer.”
They asked how many I’d gotten. I shrugged. “Not sure. I think thirteen.”
They’d shot seven. They said they were hunting a contest and one asked, “What are you gonna do with your dogs?”
I told them I was going to go make another stand before light, and then take a picture of them to post.
To me they are not “dogs”, they are coyotes.
I see many comments from people talking about all the kills they see, but they rarely mention the reasoning behind choosing a specific setup location for calling. So, here’s an aerial map with contour lines to illustrate how I select my stand locations.
I set up my stand to call the coyotes down into a small canyon that had been dammed up for a pond. The contours highlight the highest elevation extending out over the canyon—my vantage point. One year ago, I scouted the area in daylight, marked the exact spot, and dropped a pin. I made this same stand last year and killed three. Last weekend I went back a year later and shot six. Two stands and nine coyotes shot from this spot.
The numbers on the map indicate where the coyotes were shot and how most of them circled downwind, to the edge of my scent cone. I was using the county road as a natural block. While coyotes don’t always avoid crossing roads, they often hesitate if it means losing visibility. That said, sometimes they ignore the roads and cross without a second thought.
