coyote hunting newbie.

[7t9cobra]

I've been hunting black tail in western wa since I was 12 ( I'm 24 now) I'd like to try some predator calling, just to have an excuse to hunt all year round. As you all know, hunting western wa ( grays harbor is where I live and I hunt by wynoochee lake for anything other than deer) is a lot different than the open land in the east. Anyone have any tips, suggestions for hunting this area for predators? I went out two days in a row, just for a couple hours each day. I called for an hour in each spot. Not sure if my calling techniques are working. Our stores here dont have much selection for calls so I have a jackrabbit call and a bobcat call. Should I be looking for better calls? It's also hard to get a good comfortable vantage point without moving too much around here.

[MadHatter]

I hunt Pacific County quite often. Just find some farmers, ask nicely and get in there at night. All the coyotes I have killed in that area the last 4mo have been at night. If you are interested PM me, I might be headed down to the Raymond area this weekend and have a farm to go get a few yotes off of.

Probably sent while sitting on the ferry... While using Tapatalk 2

[GEARHEAD]

dont be shy on that call, blast that thing, be loud and go crazy with it....make every sound with it you can all together, squeaks bawwwls etc etc.    good luck.  of course beware of Cougars...

[7t9cobra]

I guess I was doing it right then. I went nuts with it and thought maybe I got carried away. I would LOVE to get a cougar. That's mostly the reason I'm going. I know I probably won't see one but I
I would do just about anything for the chance to get one here, so I might as well go into the woods for something. Turns out the secretary at my work has a big field and a coyote problem, so I think ill give that a try.
      I won't be around this weekend, but next time I might be interested.

[bear hunter]

I still love to hand call,but I picked up a electric call and mojo decoy. I love it. I place the call out 30 to 50 yards out with a cross wind left to right and spray rabbit sent on the decoy. The coyotes go down wind and picks up the sent and moves in for the kill but the shotstops him in his tracks. You should go east for some dogs. It helps with your calling confidence. westsides hard in the thick Forrest. good luck

[7t9cobra]

I'm going to have to get an electric call and a decoy. I picked up a MAC daddy howler tonight. I'd love to go east, but just don't have the time. This year when I hunt in montana, if I get my deer early enough, I'd like to spend some time coyote hunting. They are EVERYWHERE out there.

[GEARHEAD]

you dont need an elecronic call, save your money, dont need a decoy either. you'll just get caught sneaking into the open to set em up...just my 2cents anyways. grab a Circe med/long range  rabbit, and a carlton open reed, medium sized or predator master open reed med size....there are tons of calls out there, these are just the three i use...when you call in a yote just let him come in, if he acts confused and is still looking, give a squeak or squeal just loud enough for him to hear it, then shoot him at 5 yards....lol, maybe

[7t9cobra]

I need some better camo at the very least. I have awesome snow camo but there isnt a whole lot of snow where I've been lately so I've been limited to where I hide. I'm going to try the secretarys property hopefully this week or weekend. I hear of a lot of guys spotlighting. Do you just hide and spotlight every few minutes or what? I would think they wouldn't come in where a lights being shined.

[GEARHEAD]

most any of the camos will work, dont need snow camo, it can help in some areas obviously, but if its just one set, just get some basic woodland camo of your choice...your intent is t0 not be invisible, because that aint happening...you just want to look like some debris, deadfall, stump, boulder, chunk of timber, etc etc, just things that they often encounter...often a yote coming in will stop and look right at me....normally i have seen him first and have his eyeballs in the scope already, just sit still, often he will, settle down, and continue on in....their body language will tell you if they are going to continue or sneak away. this will tell you whether to shoot at that moment, or give it a little more time.  regarding spotlighting, i really have no idea. you can see alot farther in the daylight. but have have taken more than a few from a friends deck, when his dogs get to barking, at night, their eyes show up really well.
maybe get a video, i would recommend, one called "Calling all Coyotes III"  but there are alot out there.

[7t9cobra]

I know what to do as far as camo goes. I just need to go buy some. I have snow camo, because it does miracles in Montana where we go. I don't bother with camo while hunting blacktail here. We've been succesful in blue jackets, orange vests and jeans plenty of times so we dont bother spending money on camo for here    My dad wants to start predator hunting, but he likes to hike and has little patience for sitting and waiting. I figure ill try to kill a couple and get the hang of it. Then I'll try to get him out there.

[predatorpro]

well i like to keep coyote hunting simple, i dont call like crazy...i keep my calls medium loud and short bursts...most things coyotes eat have small lungs which means they dont just squeal like crazy, i only call for about 30 seconds, wait 15 minutes and call again, wait another 15 minutes and call one last time...the last time i get alittle more aggressive and give it about 5 more minutes at the most, good luck and dont move a muscle! all coyotes look for is movement! if you need to move move slow! even your head if you looking side to side!

[7t9cobra]

Thanks for all the advice guys. I'm heading out early tomorrow to see if I can find something to.shoot at.

[Fishaholic]

good lucky man hope you have a good one

[madcow41]

How did it go? Give us a story of your first try Successful or not, maybe we can give you some pointers.

[7t9cobra]

I saw deer. A couple does and a nice two point. I snuck into my hunting nest and crouched down in a brush pile. I gave a good locator howl with no response. I only gave a couple. I didn't want to over do it. After that I used the rabbit in distress for about 20 seconds and waited 5-10 minutes. Nothing. I waited and waited. Didn't move a muscle. I was in a huge clearcut by a creek bottom where I've seen tons of cougar tracks over the past five years. At the end of extended buck I heard coyotes all over that place. So I was on my way out, to call down the road from there when a truck came down the road. It was odd, because its an old gated road. Turns out it was the owners of some land behind this unit. They were very friendly and told me to please kill every coyote I see because they're causing problems for them. They were on their way to drop off two beaver carcasses that some guy with a permit trapped for them. He said they are great for coyote bait, so he put them on some stumps while I hunted another area. Meanwhile I went about 30 miles away to some private property, where the secretary at my work has been having coyotes coming in after their pets. I hiked back in to the pond and tried howling again and again, had no response. After a lot of nothing, I went back to check on the beaver carcasses. This time I went in from the top of the landing and walked in quite a ways. I eased to the edge and saw crows on the meat. I watched until dark and tried howling some more. Again, no response. Normally at sundown you can hear howling somewjere in the valley. But it was silent. I stopped at a few spots on the drive home and howled just to see if i could get anything. I don't think I've heard the woods so quiet before.

[GEARHEAD]

Well atleast you got out, and it looks like ya made great effort. maybe simply the wrong place wrong time, ya cant call them in, if they arent there. keep at it.  im not much for howling, i just start in with the rabbit. i cup the call quite abit while blowing, getting every coarse growl and high pitched squeal i can get out of it...rabbit in distress is an understatement as to how i make my calls go. cup it tight, open it up, wiggle your fingers open and closed all while blowing at a medium volume...after a while, .....when ya have nothing to loose,.... just go friggin crazy loud with it, and let it go till your lungs give out or u see fur running in, whichever comes first. bringing something in from a mile away or more is entirely possible....good luck. just have fun with it.   stay with it, you will get fur coming in eventually.

[7t9cobra]

That's pretty much what I did. My call keeps cutting out now. I would go back out tomorrow but I have to fix the girlfriends car. I'm tempted to check on the bait though.

[Fishaholic]

when i get my rifle sighted in we should go to a few spots i know of.

[Hunting7mm]

I live in clallam county and it's mainly brush but we hunt in the gravel pits or crossroads.  We get a few to come in from time to time.  I talked to a friend of mine who butchers beef and asked if he could save me some bones.  I plan on setting those out and putting up my trail cam to see if any coyotes are coming in.  Good luck in your upcoming hunts.

[7t9cobra]

I should see if i can't get some from a butcher here. That's a good idea. Definitely, ddjj. That property i went to today was actually behind charley creek by the way.

[Fishaholic]

yeah i know there are alot of doogs up there. its to bad it got shut down due to people dumping crap. and michals meats might save bones and expired meat for yeah.

[7t9cobra]

I'm going to have to ask. I could use some bait. I think I might head out saturday morning for a hunt. Id like to set my trail cam up in hopes I catch a glimpse of the cougar that's in there.

[yote]

Well atleast you got out, and it looks like ya made great effort. maybe simply the wrong place wrong time, ya cant call them in, if they arent there. keep at it.  im not much for howling, i just start in with the rabbit. i cup the call quite abit while blowing, getting every coarse growl and high pitched squeal i can get out of it...rabbit in distress is an understatement as to how i make my calls go. cup it tight, open it up, wiggle your fingers open and closed all while blowing at a medium volume...after a while, .....when ya have nothing to loose,.... just go friggin crazy loud with it, and let it go till your lungs give out or u see fur running in, whichever comes first. bringing something in from a mile away or more is entirely possible....good luck. just have fun with it.   stay with it, you will get fur coming in eventually.

  pretty much exactly what I do when calling

[dscubame]

Going out with a fox pro I borrowed from a friend.   Two sections that border Turnbull.  I'll report back.  My taxi is ready to put red eye l.e.d.'s in the mount.  Pics to follow.

[rumrunner]

Charlie creek is pretty much my back yard just as a recommendation stay close to the cosi side get down in the clear timber and call they don't like to break cover and they can move very easy in that stuff they don't tend to get vocal till about 830 pm but move alot during the day if you can get close to the pit

[madcow41]

Going out with a fox pro I borrowed from a friend.   Two sections that border Turnbull.  I'll report back.  My taxi is ready to put red eye l.e.d.'s in the mount.  Pics to follow.

Tomorrow I'm planning on hitting up fishtrap... Im pretty sure that area gets hit hard but Im gonna find out how call shy they are

[flinter]

Hey Cobra and the rest of the Harbor guys, a word of caution on cougar hunting. The game dept. has shut down cougar season in the Copalis, Wynoochee, and Satsop as of Jan. 15. I am heading south in the morning to try to call one in. good luck with your callin!!

[7t9cobra]

Thanks for the info. Didn't know that.
I hunted quite a few spots today with no luck. I saw six deer total and one cow elk that had hoof rot. She was limping and made a few weird noises. Kind of strange, the deer that were bedded down in the first spot i hunted didn't pay any attention whatsoever to rabbit in distress calls. I was being loud and raspy. I hope that doesn't mean im doing something wrong Haha. At the end of the day I decided I would try out my howler since I didn't use it all day. I let out a long howl and had one almost instantly start howling what sounded like two miles to the south of me. It was getting dark so I spent amost an hour after it howled calling with the rabbot in distress, but couldn't get him over to me.

[KenPCPilot]

I live in Olympia.  Send me a PM if you are interested in going out predator hunting.  I have all the gear I would love to check out that area.  Predator hunting is getting more popular.  Hunting all year no tags.  Got excuse to scout and hone hunting skills.  I really think my bow hunting has improved because I am more skilled with managing scent, camo, wind, setup.  Going out tomorrow to try bow hunting  coyotes then do some stands with rifles.  Predators are hard to hunt.  Some of the best eyes, ears and noses in the woods but worth the challenge.

[GEARHEAD]

keep at it buddy.....really work your binos, look for that face thats out there, they rarely break cover on this side of the mountains, look hard at the edges and find that face. forget the scope, work those binos.  good luck, keep at it.

[Fishaholic]

Charlie creek is pretty much my back yard just as a recommendation stay close to the cosi side get down in the clear timber and call they don't like to break cover and they can move very easy in that stuff they don't tend to get vocal till about 830 pm but move alot during the day if you can get close to the pit

so you live down the nishka area its to bad that company bought that land i use to shoot in that pit down the nishka. i cleaned it up a bunch of times and people kep om dumping there stuff. made a few bucks picking up brass though

[flinter]

I had my best day calling ever today. I called in 1 bobcat, 2 coyotes, and a hawk. I only ended up with one dog on the ground. Looked like cosy hill was covered this morning. Rigs on every gate.

[rumrunner]

Was that you in the gray Nissan four door

[flinter]

No, I drive a green dodge ram. I was farther south. Looks like this predator hunting is getting popular. There were rigs parked on several gates from Cosy to Joe Ck.

[rumrunner]

Ya I was on the Joe yesterday too windy

[7t9cobra]

I found a new spot I would like to try, so hopefully I'll make it out Saturday again. If one you guys are out and see me around my truck, feel free to stop and BS. It's a lifted blacked out Ford with a red stripe towards the bottom of the doors. I may need to buy a new rabbit call. Mine keeps cutting out and doesn't have that good raspy sound anymore. Sounds like a worn out duck call Haha.

[dscubame]

Good luck to you Cobra and report back after the weekend. 

First time ever out last Saturday and heading out again this Saturday.  I did have shots on dogs last Saturday, they were on a full run and instead of having my AR in hand I had the .243 Tikka and had to cycle that damn bolt.  I will not make that mistake again.  Did see 7 dogs only had opportunity of 2 of them.  Did figure out the Foxpro which was a plus.  I did not realize you had to "send" to change the calls so for the first hour I just thought all the calls sounded the same until I realized they were the damn same and I figured out my mistake.

Good luck this weekend.

[7t9cobra]

I went out to a new spot Saturday morning. Only tried the one spot before having to go into work to diagnose some engine troubles on one of our trucks. No luck. I called from some open timber with ferns everywhere. No wind. Little pokes of sunshine. Then nonstop rain until I got back to the truck. I went to another new area after work and set up my game camera. While setting it up I heard two yotes yipping what sounded like 1/2-1,mile away so I quickly crouched down under a tree that had low hanging branches and I called. I could hear them yipping again and really thought they would show up. Two ravens kept circling and making noise, so I must be doing it right. I called for approx. 20 secondsand waited ten. I was laying on my stomache and not moving at all. I never did see them. I waited for about an hour and called every 5-10 minutes.

[GEARHEAD]

keep at it, your on target, there is no need to lay down, you can sit or even stand, just becareful on your movements, your not trying to be invisible, just look like a chunk of wood or something, more important to see them first, so keep your eyes as high as you dare, glove your hands and wear a face mask, looking around and working that call,  is like flashing code out there. covering them up, limits this....really scan like crazy with the binos, look for that face. odds are you have called in something, and just dont know it. Bino bino bino...good luck.

[7t9cobra]

I probably have called something in. The problem is I have awesome eyesight and believe it or not, it makes it difficult to pick out animals if they don't move. My dads friend is color blind and he can see deer laying down a long ways away. The first part of the morning I was actually perched up on a stump in the timber, kind of hidden behind the bushes growing on it. I had gloves and a face mask on. I was laying because the branches Hung too low to sit and I could see the area really well in army crawl position. I am anxious to check my game camera. I put it in an area where I've seen a cougar, lots of cougar sign and a few bears. Hopefully ill get something on it.

[GEARHEAD]

seeing an animal on the move no matter how far is easy, what i mean is this, kinda assume from time to time that you have called something in. You know that feeling you get when you think you are being watched....So I'm saying, in between calling, and looking, for animals coming in, look for that face peaking over a deadfall, or just inside a tree or brush line. about a quarter of the yotes i kill are found and killed in just this manner. some yotes are just naturally suspicious, or just not that hungry but curious, these are the dudes that flank you, come in from the side, then just sit there staring at you wondering what the heck you are.

[Fishaholic]

i did not know that good info right there

[7t9cobra]

I will definitely start looking closer. I need to invest in some good binos. Mine aren't very clear. Next time I go out I will try to borrow my dads swarovskis. I ordered rainshadows hand call package a couple days ago. I figure someday I will be glad to have it. Saturday morning I will only be able to do a quick morning hunt and grab my game camera.