Good Starter Info?

[trippledigitss]

Hi all - I am totally new to this forum and have never hunted in my life. I have always been interested in target shooting and firearms and more so as of late after picking up a few more rifles & pistols. My 9 yr old son has been asking me about taking him hunting and I have no idea where to start, what kind of gear, general areas, etc etc. Can you guys give me some good tips on getting started? Like a good hunter's ed class, good varmit rifles, general areas to plan on going - west Wa or east Wa, calls and other gear we might need? We have some property we can hunt on by Index, Ellensburg, and also around the Tri-Cities but I dont know if they are good areas or not. I have seen a few coyotes around our property here in Sno Co. and Index so I'm assuming that's a good place to start??

I have a few 22's, an AR Style .223 MP15, a Marlin 30/30, and a 12ga shotgun - are these good rifles for varmits or should I get something like a .243 or .17HMR? I just have no idea where to start at all and I have been browsing quite a few posts - problem is I am SO green I dont understand alot of the terms. Do you need a hunting license for any/all varmits?

And what do you do with a coyote or other 'varmit' once you've shot it? Do you have to drag it's dead a$$ out of the woods with you? To be honest, that is one of the big turn off's for me & hunting big game & stuff, having to cut it open & pull the guts out! (Maybe I should just stick to targets!?) I'd rather just pop dogs & bobs, bunnies, groundhogs, squirrells - whatever, and leave them out there if that is 'socially acceptable'? Expecting to catch some flak over that but I can handle it. Sorry for the long post but any info to help me get started is greatly appreciated!

[BIGINNER]

well it looks like you have the guns down.    there's area's all over the state,  public lands,  shech out the go hunt page on the wdfw.wa.gov website.  tri-cities has some pretty good areas for coyotes,  if you're ever around here, p.m. me,  i can point you in a couple good derections.  and as far as packing out the animals,  if its an animal that has good edible meet, (deer, elk, ect..)  pack it out.  if you need help with gutting, skinning, i'm pretty sure you can find plenty of guys who will be more than happy to help you with that in exchange for some meet.     with coyotes, i usually have a pile that i throw them into at the lands that i hunt at, (doing a favor for the rancher)   and if you ever get a bobcat and don't want the skin, or scull, i'll be first in line to take it  .  well you will get lots of help on this site    good luck 

[bobcat]

You've got about all the guns you really need. Even the shotgun is good for coyotes when you're hunting on the westside. I would shoot 3 inch magnums with BB size shot. Or you can get the "Dead Coyote" shells which are probably better but also more expensive. The 223 is a very good cartridge for use as a coyote/bobcat rifle anywhere you hunt. It's good out to about 300 yards.

You can leave your coyotes where they drop with no need to feel bad about it. Just think of all the deer you're saving with each one you kill. Basic things you'll want to buy before even thinking about any new guns, would be binoculars, spotting scope, GPS, and a rangefinder can be really helpful, especially if you're hunting on the eastside.

If you have private land to hunt around Ellensburg and the Tri-Cities, you should go over and scout it out. You'll want the items I mentioned above first. The optics and GPS will be invaluable for both scouting and hunting. Also pick up a "Washington Atlas & Gazeteer."

[BIGINNER]

http://fortress.wa.gov/dfw/gispublic/apps/gohunt/default.htm  check it out,  play around a little with this map,  its pretty helpfull

[Oldguy]

You will need to look at the WDFW hunting regulations in regard to what licenses you will be required to purchase. It will depend upon what you choose to hunt. Also your son will need to attend and pass a Hunter Education course prior to being able to buy a license and I assume that you were born after January 1, 1972 and won't need to take Hunter Education.

[trippledigitss]

Right on - thats a good start. Thanks for all the info guys and I'm sure I'll be back with more questions!

[trippledigitss]

http://fortress.wa.gov/dfw/gispublic/apps/gohunt/default.htm  check it out,  play around a little with this map,  its pretty helpfull

And I did checkout this map and play around with it a bit but I dont have any idea at all what I'm looking at?? IS the WDFW/Public lands areas where its OK to hunt?

[BIGINNER]

http://fortress.wa.gov/dfw/gispublic/apps/gohunt/default.htm  check it out,  play around a little with this map,  its pretty helpfull

And I did checkout this map and play around with it a bit but I dont have any idea at all what I'm looking at?? IS the WDFW/Public lands areas where its OK to hunt?

http://fortress.wa.gov/dfw/gispublic/apps/gohunt/default.htm

TRY THIS,

GREEN DOTS= FEEL FREE TO HUNT.
RED STAR= REGISTER TO HUNT AREAS,

CLICK ON THE LEGEND TAB FOR MORE INFO

[BIGINNER]

ALSO CHECK THESE OUT. 

http://wdfw.wa.gov/lands/wildlife_areas/

[trippledigitss]

http://fortress.wa.gov/dfw/gispublic/apps/gohunt/default.htm  check it out,  play around a little with this map,  its pretty helpfull

And I did checkout this map and play around with it a bit but I dont have any idea at all what I'm looking at?? IS the WDFW/Public lands areas where its OK to hunt?

http://fortress.wa.gov/dfw/gispublic/apps/gohunt/default.htm

TRY THIS,

GREEN DOTS= FEEL FREE TO HUNT.
RED STAR= REGISTER TO HUNT AREAS,

CLICK ON THE LEGEND TAB FOR MORE INFO

Ahhhh - the legend tab explains alot - much more helpful now. Thanks again!

[trippledigitss]

OK - so I finally got all geared up and got my license I went out last weekend up to my buddies property in Index, Mt Index properties or something up off Mt Index Rd. I found a few good spots (or so I thought) to set up and started calling with rabbit distress, fawn distress, and howler mouth calls. I bought a Yipper Yapper and Randy Anderson Hot Dog.

I blew the calls for one or two minutes at a time then waited 5-10mins before trying again. NOTHING. I waited about an hour at each place then moved around to new spots kinda calling as I moved. Nothing. I didnt even see a freaking squirrel. I was hunting just about 6pm to dusk then about 530am to 830-9am and didnt hear anything. I even went outside about 10pm and called with the howler but heard nothing back. I dont know what the heck I'm doing wrong?? (or if I'm doing anything right).

My buddy and another guy who owns property up there said they hear them once in awhile and told me where to look but I'm wondering if they were even there, wrong time of year, wrong time of day, wrong calls, what the heck? I expected to bark on that Hot Dog and they'd all howl back and come-a-running! Sadly not the case!

Any pointers you can give me? Anyone care to let me tag along to try & learn something? How long do you normally call for and wait between calls? How long do you call before you switch call types? I also bought these Cass Creek Electronic Callers - Predator I & II but they are not very loud at all and I didnt have much confidence in them so I mainly used the mouth calls - anyone have any luck with them? Thanks for your time!

[Machias]

Well first off calling coyotes is not like the pied piper, it takes some time to learn areas, learn your calls, see what does and does not work.  This is not to insult you but this is not a video game, results can happen fast and furious but more times than not you'll have a day like you had.  It's not automatic.  You need to scout as much for yotes as you do for deer.  Fresh sign, sightings, hearing them all play into your approach.  Plus you need to be stealthy when you go in and set up to call, don't skyline yourself.  Watch the wind.  You may have had dogs respond, come in check things out, see or smell something they didn't like and leave without you ever knowing they were there.  Keep at it and don't get frustrated.  Good luck.

[Bofire]

 :)You are hunting the animal that kills other animals!! Do not be surprised if it takes you a year or more to call one let alone call and kill it.
Carl

[trippledigitss]

Thanks for the replies guys. That helps put it in perspective for me.

I've been looking for a DeLorme WA Atlas & Gazetteer but having trouble finding it in stores, they had them at Sports Authority but they were for Colorado?! I may just order one from Amazon for $13 plus shipping. Does it have to be the DeLorme edition? I found one in Fred Meyer by Benchmark Maps and it looked similar but I dont know what info I am looking for in either edition so not sure if it was as good. What am I looking for in the Atlas, hunting areas?

Anyway, I'm gonna head out to the Sultan/Index area this weekend with my MP15 and see if I can scare anything up - unless someone has an area they'd like to suggest!  Do you think the yotes will be in those areas?

Also, I think I'm gonna send in my membership form to the WWPHA this weekend. I've been told thats a good resource for beginners as well. Thanks again for all the help guys.

[MikeWalking]

Some of the bigger book store may have The DeLorme. But 13$+ S&H is pretty darn good. I bought mine at Ace Hardware in Silver lake.

[trippledigitss]

Well I went out to Sultan tonight after work for a few hours and no luck. I went out off Sultan Basin Rd and didnt see or hear hide nor hair of anything except birds.

I am so freaking lost I dont know what the hell to do. I dont know what I'm doing, where to find them, how to call, what to look for, how to setup - I just feel lost and in the dark and already slightly discouraged.... I tell ya, I was not prepared for or appreciated how challenging this would be! Kind of reality check these 1st few times! I guess its no different from steelhead fishing in a way. My son got a 24# nate our 1st trip ever and I expected to be catching them the same but it took me 3yrs to get my 1st one - now talk about discouraging! But I've never hunted for anything before in my life - except squirrels & birds as a kid - so I had no idea what to expect.

But alas...I'll just keep trying to soak up the info, look for areas to go and hopefully I'll get lucky and stumble over a coyote dumber than me! I am planning to head over to the Tri-Cities at the end of the month so I think I'll hit up "Biginner" for a nudge in the right direction. PLus my dad knows a guy over there who hunts for them alot and he's gonna line me up with him, hopefully between those two I'll get a clue!

And great comments Bofire and Machias, no insult taken at all. I appreciate you being blunt & straight forward with me, I needed that reality check since I was not prepared for the challenge and didnt have realistic expectations. Thanks to everyone for all the info and help - I need everything I can get!

[Bofire]

 :)here is my drill.1. do not hunt areas that look like coyotes live there, scout, make sure they are in the area, tracks, scat, hear howls, etc.
2. I do not think it makes much difference what your call sounds like, but for a go to, I like puppy whimpers. 3.take your time, sneak all the way from your rig to the site, sneak into or cross wind. Sit for a few minutes before you call, study the area, use binos, lots of time you will see a spot, that turns out to be a coyote. If you study the area you will spot the difference.
4. If nothing comes SNEAK OUT!
5. set up in a position you can shoot from, learn to shoot!!! try to stop the coyote with a bark or whistle, you will have 1 second to get off your shot before he splits. 6. Do not move unless you must to call, they spot movement at a LOOOOOOOON G ways.
In the morning as things warm up scent moves up hill, evening as it cools it goes down hill.
7,8,9... LEARN TO SHOOT, in field conditions.
Carl

[rasbo]

wait till winter

[MikeWalking]

I gotta laugh at a lot of this. No insults or disrespect meant or anything like that...it's just that I see 3-8 coyotes a month driving around at night, Main Street in Bothell, Downtown Redmond, Totem Lake, Woodinville, parts of Everett.  Of course touching off a round or two might not be  good idea...

[trippledigitss]

Thanks Carl, lot of good info in that post. I just need to take more time to learn and LOOK! I need to learn to look for tracks and scat and be able to recognize it and basically scout more altogether. So far I just picked areas I THOUGHT they would be at and that I knew were open to shoot in. I'm sure I am moving too much, not sneaky enough, and getting scented - if there is even anything around to smell me! I'll do more homework and keep at it. Thanks again for all the pointers, I really do appreciate it.

[trippledigitss]

I gotta laugh at a lot of this. No insults or disrespect meant or anything like that...it's just that I see 3-8 coyotes a month driving around at night, Main Street in Bothell, Downtown Redmond, Totem Lake, Woodinville, parts of Everett.  Of course touching off a round or two might not be  good idea...

Oh I know, and no insult taken at all. I see them in town around Bothell just off the road driving around during the middle of the day! I've even seen a bobcat around the detention pond behind Fred Meyer at Thrasher's Corner. And I've seen the damn coyotes up on my deck and roaming around in my yard and street in front of my house here in the Maltby area. So instead I drive 25-30mi out to the woods where I THINK they are at when I KNOW the damn things are right here in the neighborhood! Maybe I'll just sit out in the backyard in my kids' treehouse and try to call them in from there! I guess its good practice - but the neighbors will no doubt think I've cracked!

[billythekidrock]

Maybe I'll just sit out in the backyard in my kids' treehouse and try to call them in from there! I guess its good practice - but the neighbors will no doubt think I've cracked!

I think that is a great idea for learning what sounds work and how long to wait. Take a camera and see how much movement you can get away with.

[trippledigitss]

Maybe I'll just sit out in the backyard in my kids' treehouse and try to call them in from there! I guess its good practice - but the neighbors will no doubt think I've cracked!

I think that is a great idea for learning what sounds work and how long to wait. Take a camera and see how much movement you can get away with.

What do you mean about using a camera to see what I can get away with? Like a video camera or still and put in a another area or what?

Maybe I will head outside later tonight or some night soon and try the pups yips/whimpers or a bark/howl or two or maybe some other distress calls. Who cares what the neighbors think!?! Plus one of my neighbors is a BIGTIME hunter and he knows I'm getting in to this so he'll understand. We had a few cats disappear around here and I have a kitten sound on my caller so that may be a good idea too. Do you think the 'yotes in these neighborhoods and more populated areas would be more used to people/pets/movement and maybe not as skittish or cautious as some out in the woods?? I mean there really is nothing for them to worry about here around town like out there is there?

[trippledigitss]

Oh - and we do have ALOT of wild rabbits and squirrels running around the neighborhood too.

[billythekidrock]

Maybe I'll just sit out in the backyard in my kids' treehouse and try to call them in from there! I guess its good practice - but the neighbors will no doubt think I've cracked!

I think that is a great idea for learning what sounds work and how long to wait. Take a camera and see how much movement you can get away with.

What do you mean about using a camera to see what I can get away with? Like a video camera or still and put in a another area or what?

Still or video.
Call a little, sit back and wait and if a yote comes in then try to take pics or video. Try to mimic actual hunting scenarios. If you call in a hunting area you will need to see the dog and then try to get into position. This can be replicated in non-hunting areas by trying to photograph or film.

The gist is to learn yote behavior. Though they are all different, you can learn a lot by watching them and how they act/react.

[trippledigitss]

Maybe I'll just sit out in the backyard in my kids' treehouse and try to call them in from there! I guess its good practice - but the neighbors will no doubt think I've cracked!

I think that is a great idea for learning what sounds work and how long to wait. Take a camera and see how much movement you can get away with.

What do you mean about using a camera to see what I can get away with? Like a video camera or still and put in a another area or what?

Still or video.
Call a little, sit back and wait and if a yote comes in then try to take pics or video. Try to mimic actual hunting scenarios. If you call in a hunting area you will need to see the dog and then try to get into position. This can be replicated in non-hunting areas by trying to photograph or film.

The gist is to learn yote behavior. Though they are all different, you can learn a lot by watching them and how they act/react.

Ahhh, I get it. Great info, thanks for the help man!