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Lyon's Coyote Journal

LYON

PMA Member
I'm going to start a little thread on my coyote season this year. I won't be actively hunting them until probably January but every once in awhile stuff just works out nicely, so I'll post as I either shoot them and/or once I start hunting them.

Just dropped #1 on the year this morning. My house sits on a hilltop that overlooks a pasture and a pond. Here's the back of my place.
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There's a nature reserve immediately to my south that has a small amount of timber, and there's more timber about a quarter mile to our north. Over the last two years since we've moved here, I've gotten multiple shots at coyotes that are just meandering along through the pasture from one timber to the next. Sunday morning, we were getting ready for church and I see a coyote hanging out way up at the top of the hill above the pond. It's about 340 yards from the back of the house. So of course I have to take a shot...I didn't have the most ideal rest and missed, twice. But it still didn't run off like a maniac even though it had been shot at twice. I don't think it knew what happened.

So Monday about noon, I get a text from my wife and she says there's a coyote laying just above the pond on the opposite side. I finally talked her into taking a shot, coached her through loading my gun and she missed. I'm pretty proud that she even tried. A 220 yard shot is quite the poke for anyone, especially someone who rarely shoots.

Yesterday evening I was getting curious about my gun's zero. I'm not completely surprised with either of our misses but I still wanted to make sure it wasn't the gun. So I set a target up at 350 and put three shots into about a 3" group that was about 3" low. Can't complain about that, the misses were obviously human error.

So now I have full confidence in the guns ability after checking it and then this morning I'm leaving for work, get about 100 yards down the road and she calls me and says there's a coyote on our side of the pond. I throw it in reverse, back up the road and up the driveway, go inside and grab my gun. My shooting sticks weren't handy at the moment so I went out the front of the house, walked around to the north side and leaned against a post that is for our bird feeders. He was moving left to right and not too far from getting into the standing corn so I barked him to a stop at somewhere around 100 yards, and flinched when I shot....My heart was racing a little too much and that dang bull barrel on that gun is supper heavy and hard to hold still if you don't have a great rest. So I missed a chip shot and he took off trotting away. I quick moved over to our picnic table and kneeled beside it with the gun on top. I barked a few times and he finally stopped behind a tree. 10-15 seconds later he walked out and was within 10 yards of being into the corn field, I barked again, he stopped, I took my time squeezing it off and dropped him in his tracks at about 230 yards. Absolutely huge male. Probably the biggest I've shot. I had to head to work but I'm hoping he stays cool enough today that I can skin him tonight and tan his hide. Very nice fur on him. Sorry for the crappy pic, but my 4 year old who didn't want to stand beside it is pretty fresh on his photography skills! 14720380_10103665489321980_4712598018182260944_n.jpg
 
Well, I'm regretful to say that I SHOULD have been posting another harvest photo in this thread yesterday. I missed. On a positive note, there is a coyote out there that has a cold spot on his belly due to the missing fur :D. Nearly laid him open with that buzzcut.
 
bigbuckhunter88 said:
Loved getting that snap. TH is proud I'm sure with the kitty in the background

I didn't see it until now! I was gonna call him a copy-cat but you called it out too quick so I can't meow.
 
TeenageHunter said:
I didn't see it until now! I was gonna call him a copy-cat but you called it out too quick so I can't meow.

Those dang cats will follow our kids anywhere. I went out across the field last night to attempt to call in a buck i was watching. On my way back, my oldest daughter was waiting for me at the top of the hill (100 yards from the house). She started walking down through the corn towards me and I can see three cats bounding along behind her through the cut corn. Pretty funny really.
 
Nice job on the yote. I missed one the other morning with the bow. Misjudged distance (didn't have time to range) and probably rushed the shot.
 
I see yotes more often that I like but only one time have I ever had one close enough to shoot. How do you get them close?
 
I see yotes more often that I like but only one time have I ever had one close enough to shoot. How do you get them close?

I'm assuming you are talking about within bow range? Luck of the draw with the bow in hand. The one I missed the other day just took the right path that brought him into 30 yards. I did however almost have another one a couple mornings ago. I was ground hunting and he was about 100 yards away out in a corn field. I tried lip squeaking and he didn't care. I grabbed my phone and opened a predator hunting call app that I have and played a cotton tail distress. He turned immediately and started coming in. He got to about 30 yards and I just wasn't quite hidden well enough. He saw me, turned and trotted away.
 
Give them the KISS of death. Pretend you're kissing your wife so your lips squeak and more times than not they will be in your lap! Works like a charm
 
Give them the KISS of death. Pretend you're kissing your wife so your lips squeak and more times than not they will be in your lap! Works like a charm
I've tried this multiple times on coyotes within easy earshot and it hasn't worked once. Not sure if I'm doing it wrong or what. I don't think I am, I've heard it done on videos and I'm doing the same thing.
 
I about had one in my lap a few years ago while hunting in a brush blind I had made at the base of some cedars. It came in on a trail about 25 yards upwind from me, turned and headed straight toward me. Unfortunately I didn't have my bow ready when it first appeared, and with it coming straight at me, I didn't think I could move much without it seeing me. It came literally to the edge of the brush I was behind, about 2 1/2 ft away. I had walked around the front of the brush right at the edge to get to the blind. I'm not sure if it smelled my tracks or not, but it turned and went back to the trail at the same speed, not like it was spooked, and out of sight. I then grabbed my bow and tried the kissing sound, but it didn't come back as far as I could tell. Being on the ground and too many cedars to see it, I'm not sure if it heard me or not, and if it did, what it's reaction was. I'm guessing it didn't hear it. Closest I've ever been to a live wild coyote. Pretty cool, but still wish I would have had my bow ready!
 
Give them the KISS of death. Pretend you're kissing your wife so your lips squeak and more times than not they will be in your lap! Works like a charm
I've done this a couple times with decent success. I shot a coyote with my bow in October doing this and brought him to 6 yards from the tree.
 
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