Somedays yer the windshield....
Posted: Sat Jan 30, 2016 5:28 pm
........and somedays yer the bug.
Went out after coyotes this morning. We've got a pretty good snow cover on the ground and the lake and creeks are frozen over good enuff to trust them fer walkin' on. However it got up into the high forties today so the top of the snow pack was wet and I could move somewhat quietly on it.
Went to spot that is a hay field, bordered on three sides by timber. Set out my caller and my distraction decoy about 60 yards upwind and sat myself down b'tween some hay bails on the north edge of the field. Wind was out of the west and my position is at the top of a hill that the hay field is on with some timber behind me. Looking across the field I have a pretty good view through the timber on the hill side south of me, across a small creek that is at the bottom of the hills.
This being the end of January, the yotes are starting think about lovin' so after about 20 minutes I fired up the e-caller with a challenge howl and got an instant response from two places, in the timber across the creek. One from the south west and one from the south east. I shut down the caller and waited about 5 minutes then I sent out the challenge howl again, followed by a cottontail distress....kinda sayin' "Hey I'm here to kick yer butt and I'm taking yer food too" in coyote lingo. ( At least that's how I like to think it sounds to them)
Within minutes I see two yotes coming through the timber to the south, easy to see them against the snow under the trees. Then I spot two more about 300 yards west of the first two coming towards the field. Both pairs are coming in, but angling to get down wind. I'm thinkin" "I got ya! Just keep comin' and by the time you get to my scent stream it'll be too late." I got my AR15 so I figger when they cross the creek and come up over the bank I'll take the second one to come up and then swing on the first one and get a double. Got my rifle on the cross sticks and now it's all over but the waiting........then I hear a sharp bark from my left I glance that way and right at the end of the bail row stands a yote looking right at me from about 8 yards! It barked again and spun around and hightailed it into the timber behind me. Of course the ones coming in from the south reversed gear immediately and ran back up thru the timber to the south.
All the while I was concentrating on those yotes to the south that other one had been sneakin' in on me from behind and I was caught clean! It's bark warned the others off. Guess today was my day to be the bug.
Went out after coyotes this morning. We've got a pretty good snow cover on the ground and the lake and creeks are frozen over good enuff to trust them fer walkin' on. However it got up into the high forties today so the top of the snow pack was wet and I could move somewhat quietly on it.
Went to spot that is a hay field, bordered on three sides by timber. Set out my caller and my distraction decoy about 60 yards upwind and sat myself down b'tween some hay bails on the north edge of the field. Wind was out of the west and my position is at the top of a hill that the hay field is on with some timber behind me. Looking across the field I have a pretty good view through the timber on the hill side south of me, across a small creek that is at the bottom of the hills.
This being the end of January, the yotes are starting think about lovin' so after about 20 minutes I fired up the e-caller with a challenge howl and got an instant response from two places, in the timber across the creek. One from the south west and one from the south east. I shut down the caller and waited about 5 minutes then I sent out the challenge howl again, followed by a cottontail distress....kinda sayin' "Hey I'm here to kick yer butt and I'm taking yer food too" in coyote lingo. ( At least that's how I like to think it sounds to them)
Within minutes I see two yotes coming through the timber to the south, easy to see them against the snow under the trees. Then I spot two more about 300 yards west of the first two coming towards the field. Both pairs are coming in, but angling to get down wind. I'm thinkin" "I got ya! Just keep comin' and by the time you get to my scent stream it'll be too late." I got my AR15 so I figger when they cross the creek and come up over the bank I'll take the second one to come up and then swing on the first one and get a double. Got my rifle on the cross sticks and now it's all over but the waiting........then I hear a sharp bark from my left I glance that way and right at the end of the bail row stands a yote looking right at me from about 8 yards! It barked again and spun around and hightailed it into the timber behind me. Of course the ones coming in from the south reversed gear immediately and ran back up thru the timber to the south.
All the while I was concentrating on those yotes to the south that other one had been sneakin' in on me from behind and I was caught clean! It's bark warned the others off. Guess today was my day to be the bug.