best caliber for coyote hunting

[FALFire]

That would be incorrect. . .it would be illegal to hunt coyote with a .24 centerfire during any big game season that you don't hold a valid tag for the big game season that is currently open. . .

. . .you circumvent needing a big game license and tag by hunting coyotes with a .22 centerfire or smaller. . .but you can legally hunt a cougar with a .22 centerfire. . .hope that's clear as mud

That is not how the State Game laws read. Below is copied directly from the game laws, read it carefully.


1. Modern Firearm Regulations
Rifles: Big game, except cougar, must be
hunted with a minimum of 24 caliber (6mm)
centerfire rifle. Cougar may be hunted with
22 caliber centerfire rifle. Rimfire rifles are
not legal for big game.

Handguns: Big game, except cougar, may
be hunted with handguns with a minimum
barrel length of 4 inches per manufacturers
specification, and fire a minimum 24 caliber
centerfire cartridge. Cougar may be hunted
with 22 caliber centerfire handgun. Rimfire
handguns are not legal for big game.
Shotguns: Deer, bear, and cougar may be
hunted with 20 gauge to 10 gauge shotguns
shooting slugs or #1 or larger buckshot.
Other big game may be hunted with a 10 or
12 gauge shotgun using slugs

 Hunting during modern firearm deer or
elk seasons: You may not hunt wildlife during
any modern firearm deer or elk season, with any
firearm 24 caliber or larger or containing slugs
or buckshot for big game, unless you have a
valid license, permit and tag for one of the following:
deer, elk, black bear, cougar, mountain
goat, bighorn sheep, or moose. During any
modern firearm deer or elk season, it is illegal to
hunt any wildlife after legal hunting hours.

So the way I read it, is you are required to have a valid license and valid big game tag for ANY big game species during any modern firearm deer or elk season. And it states that Cougar MAY be hunted with 22 centerfire (May) being the key word here.

It does not state that one must have a valid deer tag to hunt coyotes with a 24+ caliber during MFdeer season IT READS any BIG GAME TAG.

[atomicjoe23]

  So the way I read it, is you are required to have a valid license and valid big game tag for ANY big game species during any modern firearm deer or elk season. And it states that Cougar MAY be hunted with 22 centerfire (May) being the key word here.

It does not state that one must have a valid deer tag to hunt coyotes with a 24+ caliber during MFdeer season IT READS any BIG GAME TAG.
[/quote]

No it states that you have to have a valid big game license and tag for whatever big game season is open to hunt with a centerfire over .24. . .so if you are using anything .24 and larger you had better have a big game license and a valid tag for whatever big game season is open. . .otherwise you are gonna get hosed by the man. . .

. . .semantics was my job for the last 10 years. . .

[tlbradford]

Just got around to reading this since I thought it was a rehash on a long debated topic.  I added the .204 to the poll for all of you "real" coyote hunters.  

I love the .204.  I have shot over a 100 with every available factory round and have recovered every single one that was hit.  No runners, very few spinners.

JoshT.  Before that I shot everything with a .25-06.  It did 10 times the damage to coyotes, but did not kill them as quickly as a .204.  I have no idea where or what you were using when you had all those runners.  Maybe you had too aggressive of a twist rate for the bullet weight you were using so you had bullets coming apart too easy?

Anyway, all those calibers will kill them just fine, but I get tired of hearing people bag on the .204.  I would not hesitate to shoot a cougar with the .204 either.  I wouldn't tell the warden but I am sure it would die just the same as a .22 caliber.  

[bowhunterforever]

Hey tlbradford, Whats the best 204 factory load you like best for yotes and how do you like the 45 gr hornady's? Whats your farthest DRT so far?

[FALFire]

  So the way I read it, is you are required to have a valid license and valid big game tag for ANY big game species during any modern firearm deer or elk season. And it states that Cougar MAY be hunted with 22 centerfire (May) being the key word here.

It does not state that one must have a valid deer tag to hunt coyotes with a 24+ caliber during MFdeer season IT READS any BIG GAME TAG.

No it states that you have to have a valid big game license and tag for whatever big game season is open to hunt with a centerfire over .24. . .so if you are using anything .24 and larger you had better have a big game license and a valid tag for whatever big game season is open. . .otherwise you are gonna get hosed by the man. . .

. . .semantics was my job for the last 10 years. . .
[/quote]

So you are saying, I need a deer tag to hunt coyotes during deer season, then a elk tag to hunt coyotes during elk season, etc. etc. even if I am not hunting any one of these animals?

I'm not reading that in the description of the laws I quoted directly from the hunting regs. 

Semantics is one thing, which is the meaning of a word and that which varies in interpetation. In criminal court, the law written, is the law enforced, it is not open for interpetation by onlookers.

...Law Enforcement was my job for the last 24 years...

 

[MHWASH]

To be safe just buy the bear, cougar combo and you should be safe. I check the regs  and between the two this would allow you to hunt August thru March. You might get hasseled for bear hunting the Palouse during deer season, but you would be legal.

[FALFire]

To be safe just buy the bear, cougar combo and you should be safe. I check the regs  and between the two this would allow you to hunt August thru March. You might get hasseled for bear hunting the Palouse during deer season, but you would be legal.

Hey Matt,

How ya doing?

That is the very reason I purchased a cougar tag. 

You see, when the deer or elk tag is filled, it becomes invalid, (only one deer per tag) which then puts you in violation of the state game laws for hunting with a 24 caliber for coyotes during modern firearm deer or elk seasons. I have no real desire to take a cougar, so the tag will likely never be filled, therefore it's valid throughout the entire deer and elk seasons.

Not to mention, the law only applies to the game unit in which you are hunting that is open for deer or elk seasons. If the game unit is closed to deer or elk, then it becomes illegal to hunt those species anyway, moot point.

[280win]

I use my 300wby ,no runners

[atomicjoe23]

Yes. . .a cougar tag would work. . .I didn't mean you had to buy a tag for every single season. . .you just have to have an unfilled tag that is valid for the time period/area that you are in. . .

. . .I didn't write the laws. . .I'm just reading them. . .that's why I don't use a .24 centerfire or larger for coyote hunting. . .then I don't have to worry about it at all. . .

[FALFire]

Yes. . .a cougar tag would work. . .I didn't mean you had to buy a tag for every single season. . .you just have to have an unfilled tag that is valid for the time period/area that you are in. . .

. . .I didn't write the laws. . .I'm just reading them. . .that's why I don't use a .24 centerfire or larger for coyote hunting. . .then I don't have to worry about it at all. . .

Exactly my original point.

I didn't write them either, just merely enforced them and sometimes it's like

[ivarhusa]

I just figured out MF stood for "modern firearm"... 

[alanger]

I've got a few... most were lost in a spooky fire... along with my 6/284 and some other stuff I really wish I had back. Truth is... for a long time I wasn't much of a recovery and hero picture kind of guy, I just liked hunting and shooting coyotes. I didn't shoot all the coyotes in my massive sample of terminal ballistics... but I was there... and I saw what happend. There was about 15 years between high school and kids... when that's about all I did was hunt coyotes. I hunt deer a little... and bears a little... but like I said, coyotes are what I love to hunt. I've personally only shot a couple hundred. Besides... if  was Jim Shockey... I'd have shot them all with a muzzle loader!

Here's a picture of one day back in 2005... that's about as many  coyotes as you've killed with your .204... all killed with 55 grain Noslers in the 6mm Rem.
 

jeezus
i wish that could happen this weekend. but hey anything is possible.

[Gutpile]

Apparently not unless you have something larger than a 22-250. 

[AWS]

Random thoughts on the 22-250.  You can always down load 35-40gr bullets for cats and fox, hot load 40-50's for coyote fur loads and if you bought a fast twist barrel you can go heavy for realy long range stuff or larger targets.  It's versatility that makes it a great varmint /pred. cartridge.  It's not my go to rig but for a factory round it covers alot.

AWS

[deaddog]

I think that there is a lot of useful info on this post.  It is interesting to look at everyone's experience and logic and see what has worked for them and why.  A thread like this will always contain a lot of B.S., but if you read the entire thing, you should come away with a few points that may help you make a more informed decision when the time comes to buy a new 'yote rifle.   

hup a 22-250.