My team was lucky yesterday and won the coyote calling contest we entered. It wasn't a huge one, it was a benefit for the counties 4-H shooting sports program. Great cause to support and a fun way to do it.
We called in 11 coyotes total, with 5 in one group and most of the others in pairs. We got 4 of them shot and all were big males. It was tough hunting with the highs near 70, the middle of the day we got no responses. The morning was foggy and had a real light wind that kept shifting and that cost us shots at a couple coyotes early in the morning. They never cleared the brush before the wind switched and they smelled us. My partner forgot his rifle at home he realized at our first stop, but I'd brought my 6mm bolt action so he used it. It shoots a 70gr Ballistic tip at 3725fps and is a hammer on coyotes. I had both it and my DPMS Prairie Panther AR in the truck. The AR shoots a 55gr V max at 2962fps. He killed the first coyote on our 3rd stand when a pair came in. Then we had no luck until 3:30 pm. We had one that came in behind me and smelled me when he got close and I took a shot at him as he dove through the brush at 40yds. I don't think the little V max ever got to him in the thick stuff, to much to hit on the way. My partner had the shotgun that stand and the coyote came from an unexpected direction. At 4 we started calling a pasture that had some cows in it. The cows all came to the call and decoy and were standing in a half circle right next to it. I heard my partner shoot several times but never could see a coyote. The cows stayed in front of me and weren't bothered. We were calling near a lake and there is a shooting range less than a half mile from where we were, the cows were very accustomed to gunfire. I finally saw a pair of coyotes running away at about 350yds and then saw a second pair pop up at 240yds. I dropped one and the other disappeared. A few minutes later a final coyote came charging in and I dropped him at 42yds from me. The cows were still standing by the call and never moved until we finally shut down the call and I walked out to get it. My partner had been taking longer shots and I think he was underestimating how flat that rifle of mine shoots, he didn't get any of that group. The next stand we had 3 groups howl back at us and a pair came in. My partner shot and I switched the call to a coyote distress immediately. A coyote popped out in front of me at 250yds but was facing me. I was kneeling at the time, I always go from sitting to kneeling when my partner shoots so I can handle running shots or those from unexpected directions easier. I kept switching the call of and on with the coyote distress playing at lower volume each time and coaxed him to 150yds broadside, dumped him. I figured we really needed that coyote to have a chance in the contest and didn't want to risk a shot I wasn't sure of. By the time we got him loaded we had time for one more set that didn't produce. Lots of howls, but nothing that came in before dark. One other team ended up with 4 coyotes also but they had a couple smaller females so we won on weight.
Great day for the conditions, I was very pleased with how many responded. The rancher whose place we killed 3 on was very happy with us. The group of cows we were shooting them by will start calving in March so a group that size could have done some damage.
This morning I got one while feeding cows with the 25-06 and the 100gr Sirocco bullet at 230yds. He dropped and the bullet did very little damage. It went in his hind end and exited through the side, small exit about the size of my pinky. That's the most fur friendly bullet I've tried in a bigger gun like that. That coyote this morning was #14 on the year, I'm off to a pretty good start.
We called in 11 coyotes total, with 5 in one group and most of the others in pairs. We got 4 of them shot and all were big males. It was tough hunting with the highs near 70, the middle of the day we got no responses. The morning was foggy and had a real light wind that kept shifting and that cost us shots at a couple coyotes early in the morning. They never cleared the brush before the wind switched and they smelled us. My partner forgot his rifle at home he realized at our first stop, but I'd brought my 6mm bolt action so he used it. It shoots a 70gr Ballistic tip at 3725fps and is a hammer on coyotes. I had both it and my DPMS Prairie Panther AR in the truck. The AR shoots a 55gr V max at 2962fps. He killed the first coyote on our 3rd stand when a pair came in. Then we had no luck until 3:30 pm. We had one that came in behind me and smelled me when he got close and I took a shot at him as he dove through the brush at 40yds. I don't think the little V max ever got to him in the thick stuff, to much to hit on the way. My partner had the shotgun that stand and the coyote came from an unexpected direction. At 4 we started calling a pasture that had some cows in it. The cows all came to the call and decoy and were standing in a half circle right next to it. I heard my partner shoot several times but never could see a coyote. The cows stayed in front of me and weren't bothered. We were calling near a lake and there is a shooting range less than a half mile from where we were, the cows were very accustomed to gunfire. I finally saw a pair of coyotes running away at about 350yds and then saw a second pair pop up at 240yds. I dropped one and the other disappeared. A few minutes later a final coyote came charging in and I dropped him at 42yds from me. The cows were still standing by the call and never moved until we finally shut down the call and I walked out to get it. My partner had been taking longer shots and I think he was underestimating how flat that rifle of mine shoots, he didn't get any of that group. The next stand we had 3 groups howl back at us and a pair came in. My partner shot and I switched the call to a coyote distress immediately. A coyote popped out in front of me at 250yds but was facing me. I was kneeling at the time, I always go from sitting to kneeling when my partner shoots so I can handle running shots or those from unexpected directions easier. I kept switching the call of and on with the coyote distress playing at lower volume each time and coaxed him to 150yds broadside, dumped him. I figured we really needed that coyote to have a chance in the contest and didn't want to risk a shot I wasn't sure of. By the time we got him loaded we had time for one more set that didn't produce. Lots of howls, but nothing that came in before dark. One other team ended up with 4 coyotes also but they had a couple smaller females so we won on weight.
Great day for the conditions, I was very pleased with how many responded. The rancher whose place we killed 3 on was very happy with us. The group of cows we were shooting them by will start calving in March so a group that size could have done some damage.
This morning I got one while feeding cows with the 25-06 and the 100gr Sirocco bullet at 230yds. He dropped and the bullet did very little damage. It went in his hind end and exited through the side, small exit about the size of my pinky. That's the most fur friendly bullet I've tried in a bigger gun like that. That coyote this morning was #14 on the year, I'm off to a pretty good start.
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