This month had allot of business to deal with so I was hoping to get in a few sets along the way, and things got crazy as usual., but Sept. is a crazy coyote month.
Decided to stop at the dunes on the way, after hunting in the sand for 2years without so much as a shot this year is paying off,( it took me that long to figure out how to hunt the dunes) anyway parked got set up wind is good, sun is good and the moon is 2 hours away from rising with the sun, perfect.
I Blow the rabbit distress wait a few minuets and right below me hugging the bottom of the dune is a dog, ears back, tail straight, nose out front sneaking along the edge of the sage, it's 10 feet from me, it stops looks up takes a good whiff and smells me, it turns and trots out in front of me, I bark, it stops and painless drops the first one of the day. That took about 5 min. I better wait, I blow a pup distress, get turned around to my left, wait a few more min. yep there comes another one running in full blast ears up nose in the air head up high looking for a treat, well I got a treat for you buddy I hit the squeaker its stops 150 yards and it gets the smack down hard. Wow 10 min. in the dunes and a double this might be a good trip after all.
Got to get to my next camo stop take care of business and try to get some more sets in.
Next morning nice chill in the air no wind, the moon is still a few hours from rising the day is just breaking light and I'm in the mood to shoot coyotes.
This is a new spot had a hard time deciding where to park, so I thought I found the low spot in the road and had to park it right on the shoulder, got out walked down the road 100 yards and set up on the bank in some rocks, out front of me is several miles of heavy sage rabbits everywhere and a stock tank about a mile out in front of me, (I still get goose bumps thinking about it) set up blow the distress 3 times and wait 3or4 min. I see a white face looking at me thru the sage 400 yards, I hit the squeaker, it trots off headed for the downwind side, oh I do hope it works it way in, sure enough I see it's little white face looking around for that rabbit, 300 yards, one more squeak, here it comes I lost sight of it, wait, don't blow anymore, I turned slowly to the downwind side, there it is 100 yards looking right me, it looks to my right, oh no the car, it sees the car, off it goes on a slow trot. I bark it stops turns sideways and looks back, thank you little buddy, the 22-250 cracks thru the morning chill, I hear the unmistakable splat of the 52 grain hp, down it goes in a spinning mad twist of dust, I'm jacked up now and can hardly hold still, but I think there might be another one, I look thru the scope at the down dog, wait a minute its up and dragging itself over the hill, I get up and head out on a slow trot, I can't believe that dog got up I find a blood spot some flesh looks like some fur and a trail of blood headed over the hill, I'm on it like hound dog, I come over the hill there it is down in front of me on a large dirt pile I pull up to shoot it disappears, what the heck, I follow the blood down the hill right into the middle of 3 or 4 dens, there it is, down the hole, blood guts meat and all, I'm sure its dead I'm still shaking my head over that one that dog made it 300 yards to a hole and left half his body and blood on the way (wow ya got to respect this little varmint.). Well I'm here I see a pile of rocks in front of me I set down, blow the rabbit distress and before I can even get my mask down here comes another one, oh baby I can hardly hold myself down, 150 yards it stops looks around I think this guy might bolt, I level down on it, let one fly, down it drops, omg another double I can't hold myself down any more I jump up and start running for the dog, this guy is not going any where. Sure enough it's dead. Wow what a start to the day. I get my pics calm down a little and all of a sudden I hear a familiar high pitch whistle a low flying jet makes going about 500 mph right before its on top of you, I turn look to my left and sure enough to jet fighters scream by me in formation going like a bat out of hell, straight up they go hit the after burners and the fight is on, so I set down on the rocks and watch these 2 jets in a dog fight for about 20 min. brought back old memories from the Nam. Wow I could of quit right there and been happy, when I got back to the blazer I looked back up and felt lucky and proud to be am American and still able to enjoy the freedom to get in my truck drive into the desert and enjoy the outdoors and all it offers. Freedom is worth fighting for.
Next morning back to another set of dunes, I set out in the dark and have a 45 min. drive, as usual I hit several rabbits and the road is full of dead meat from the trucks at night, now I have a theory about dead rabbits and the road, and we'll leave it at that, that's for another discussion, anyway I come around a corner sure enough there's a coyote in the road eating on a dead rabbit, I stop pull over get out and find a high spot of rocks a couple hundred yards out. I sit down and wait it's still really dark I just see the breaking of light on the skyline, I hear dogs howling off in the distance I feel a chill run up my back, I don't know if it's the cold or the excitement of the day to come. Either way I have a strange feeling about what's about to happen.
I'm sitting in the chilled morning on a rock pile 200 yards from the truck, I hear some more dogs howling off in the distance they could be miles away, I wait for shooting light, and for the sound of a car coming down the road, It's early I hope a truck comes by soon. Yep I hear the throaty rumble of a big rig coming my way, I get my call ready I'm set up, the truck drives past, I count to 20 and let out 1 loud rabbit distress, put the call down and wait, out of no where comes a dog trotting for the road I hit the squeaker it stops, the crack, the splat, and the flash are all in harmony and down it goes in a pile. OMG I haven't even made it to the dunes yet this could be a record day for dogs down. (Oh and my theory was right. I just found another little trick of the grey ghost.)
Get a quick pic get in the truck and get going, light is breaking and I know the dogs are out on the hunt.
The next set was a new spot I tried last month and had dogs running all around me. Got set up was still early the sun hadn't broke the horizon yet, so I was in time since I was facing East I didn't need the sun in my face. Let out a rabbit distress and the whole area let out with dogs, 2 in front of me 200 yards, 4 or 5 more off to mile right maybe a mile it's hard to say once they start howling. Out of nowhere right in front of me comes a dog slowly headed for the caller, I squeak it stops and I dropped it like a rock. no sooner had the smoke cleared here comes brother right down the same trail. splat
Oh my, another double, this is a record, 3 doubles in a row,
Oh ya I forgot I got a bonus on the way home.
This was a great hunt after 5 years of trial and error I think I'm getting to know the coyote a little better, I love hunting the dunes, after 2 years of not even a shot I am seeing some success, the dead rabbit in the road theory, call me crazy, but I will be testing that one out again. I didn't mention in the above that during all of this my phone went dead, I drove 280 miles in 2 days just to take care of camo business, stood up a friend who wanted to hunt with me, sorry tom, I'll make it up to ya. Lost all the data on my phone, made 4 other sets and missed 2 dogs forgot to chamber a round on one and had a misfire on another. The memory of the 2 dogs, the one that went in the hole and the other tried, along with the jet dog fight, will make this one right up there in the top 3 hunts.
Remember freedom is worth fighting for.
Predators West
Decided to stop at the dunes on the way, after hunting in the sand for 2years without so much as a shot this year is paying off,( it took me that long to figure out how to hunt the dunes) anyway parked got set up wind is good, sun is good and the moon is 2 hours away from rising with the sun, perfect.
I Blow the rabbit distress wait a few minuets and right below me hugging the bottom of the dune is a dog, ears back, tail straight, nose out front sneaking along the edge of the sage, it's 10 feet from me, it stops looks up takes a good whiff and smells me, it turns and trots out in front of me, I bark, it stops and painless drops the first one of the day. That took about 5 min. I better wait, I blow a pup distress, get turned around to my left, wait a few more min. yep there comes another one running in full blast ears up nose in the air head up high looking for a treat, well I got a treat for you buddy I hit the squeaker its stops 150 yards and it gets the smack down hard. Wow 10 min. in the dunes and a double this might be a good trip after all.
Got to get to my next camo stop take care of business and try to get some more sets in.
Next morning nice chill in the air no wind, the moon is still a few hours from rising the day is just breaking light and I'm in the mood to shoot coyotes.
This is a new spot had a hard time deciding where to park, so I thought I found the low spot in the road and had to park it right on the shoulder, got out walked down the road 100 yards and set up on the bank in some rocks, out front of me is several miles of heavy sage rabbits everywhere and a stock tank about a mile out in front of me, (I still get goose bumps thinking about it) set up blow the distress 3 times and wait 3or4 min. I see a white face looking at me thru the sage 400 yards, I hit the squeaker, it trots off headed for the downwind side, oh I do hope it works it way in, sure enough I see it's little white face looking around for that rabbit, 300 yards, one more squeak, here it comes I lost sight of it, wait, don't blow anymore, I turned slowly to the downwind side, there it is 100 yards looking right me, it looks to my right, oh no the car, it sees the car, off it goes on a slow trot. I bark it stops turns sideways and looks back, thank you little buddy, the 22-250 cracks thru the morning chill, I hear the unmistakable splat of the 52 grain hp, down it goes in a spinning mad twist of dust, I'm jacked up now and can hardly hold still, but I think there might be another one, I look thru the scope at the down dog, wait a minute its up and dragging itself over the hill, I get up and head out on a slow trot, I can't believe that dog got up I find a blood spot some flesh looks like some fur and a trail of blood headed over the hill, I'm on it like hound dog, I come over the hill there it is down in front of me on a large dirt pile I pull up to shoot it disappears, what the heck, I follow the blood down the hill right into the middle of 3 or 4 dens, there it is, down the hole, blood guts meat and all, I'm sure its dead I'm still shaking my head over that one that dog made it 300 yards to a hole and left half his body and blood on the way (wow ya got to respect this little varmint.). Well I'm here I see a pile of rocks in front of me I set down, blow the rabbit distress and before I can even get my mask down here comes another one, oh baby I can hardly hold myself down, 150 yards it stops looks around I think this guy might bolt, I level down on it, let one fly, down it drops, omg another double I can't hold myself down any more I jump up and start running for the dog, this guy is not going any where. Sure enough it's dead. Wow what a start to the day. I get my pics calm down a little and all of a sudden I hear a familiar high pitch whistle a low flying jet makes going about 500 mph right before its on top of you, I turn look to my left and sure enough to jet fighters scream by me in formation going like a bat out of hell, straight up they go hit the after burners and the fight is on, so I set down on the rocks and watch these 2 jets in a dog fight for about 20 min. brought back old memories from the Nam. Wow I could of quit right there and been happy, when I got back to the blazer I looked back up and felt lucky and proud to be am American and still able to enjoy the freedom to get in my truck drive into the desert and enjoy the outdoors and all it offers. Freedom is worth fighting for.
Next morning back to another set of dunes, I set out in the dark and have a 45 min. drive, as usual I hit several rabbits and the road is full of dead meat from the trucks at night, now I have a theory about dead rabbits and the road, and we'll leave it at that, that's for another discussion, anyway I come around a corner sure enough there's a coyote in the road eating on a dead rabbit, I stop pull over get out and find a high spot of rocks a couple hundred yards out. I sit down and wait it's still really dark I just see the breaking of light on the skyline, I hear dogs howling off in the distance I feel a chill run up my back, I don't know if it's the cold or the excitement of the day to come. Either way I have a strange feeling about what's about to happen.
I'm sitting in the chilled morning on a rock pile 200 yards from the truck, I hear some more dogs howling off in the distance they could be miles away, I wait for shooting light, and for the sound of a car coming down the road, It's early I hope a truck comes by soon. Yep I hear the throaty rumble of a big rig coming my way, I get my call ready I'm set up, the truck drives past, I count to 20 and let out 1 loud rabbit distress, put the call down and wait, out of no where comes a dog trotting for the road I hit the squeaker it stops, the crack, the splat, and the flash are all in harmony and down it goes in a pile. OMG I haven't even made it to the dunes yet this could be a record day for dogs down. (Oh and my theory was right. I just found another little trick of the grey ghost.)
Get a quick pic get in the truck and get going, light is breaking and I know the dogs are out on the hunt.
The next set was a new spot I tried last month and had dogs running all around me. Got set up was still early the sun hadn't broke the horizon yet, so I was in time since I was facing East I didn't need the sun in my face. Let out a rabbit distress and the whole area let out with dogs, 2 in front of me 200 yards, 4 or 5 more off to mile right maybe a mile it's hard to say once they start howling. Out of nowhere right in front of me comes a dog slowly headed for the caller, I squeak it stops and I dropped it like a rock. no sooner had the smoke cleared here comes brother right down the same trail. splat
Oh my, another double, this is a record, 3 doubles in a row,Oh ya I forgot I got a bonus on the way home.
This was a great hunt after 5 years of trial and error I think I'm getting to know the coyote a little better, I love hunting the dunes, after 2 years of not even a shot I am seeing some success, the dead rabbit in the road theory, call me crazy, but I will be testing that one out again. I didn't mention in the above that during all of this my phone went dead, I drove 280 miles in 2 days just to take care of camo business, stood up a friend who wanted to hunt with me, sorry tom, I'll make it up to ya. Lost all the data on my phone, made 4 other sets and missed 2 dogs forgot to chamber a round on one and had a misfire on another. The memory of the 2 dogs, the one that went in the hole and the other tried, along with the jet dog fight, will make this one right up there in the top 3 hunts.
Remember freedom is worth fighting for.
Predators West
Last Edited:
