Snow Day? Ok! Went hunting instead

[vancelw]

My place of work decided the roads were to dangerous this morning for us to go to work. Broke my little heart when they called at 0630 to give me the bad news.

Spent the day outdoors traipsing around in the snow. We got well over 6 inches of sleet and snow. It was mid-shin to me as I was walking across the fields today.
Went to the deer lease (had to pass work to get there )and there were coyote tracks everywhere. Called one in-something spooked him and I missed a running shot.
I went the same direction he did and I sat in my deer stand about 20 minutes later. Called two in within 2 minutes and got one of them. They came in so fast I barely had time to put down the call and get the rifle into play. I think the wary one that got away was the one I missed shortly before. I needed a shotgun for those last two.

B92 .44 mag

coyote 2011-01-10.jpg

Got this Saturday Morning. Gave it to a friend who is going to help his oldest boy make a rug out of it.

Tikka T3 .243 Win

Bobcat 2011-01-08.jpg

I may change my opinion of snow after all (if it gets me out of work) I'm praying for more tonight.

My pasture looks like a dog kennel ran through it there are so many coyote tracks. I live near a very large military camp that is all scrub, grasslands, and woods. I found tracks where a coyote killed an armadillo and crawled under my back fence with it. You could see the bulldozer path of the 'dillo merge with the path of a coyote and then a place where the mashed snow had imprints of his shell. Then only coyote tracks leading away with an occasional drop of blood. It surprised me how small the struggle area was. An armadillo would be a mouthful.

[kimwcook]

Wow, looks like you're doing okay traipsing around those fields.

[Ysabel Kid]

One of the few problems with working out of one's home - no snow days!

[86er]

Pretty cool!

[RIHMFIRE]

way to go...that definately better than work

we get hurricane days in florida....ya get the day off....
but ya pray everthing is still there the next day!

[JReed]

Nicely done. Do you have your call on a lanyard? If not you need to put it on one. I have had dogs come into a mouth call and just spit it out of my mouth to take the shot much quicker then then trying to drop it in a pocket.

[vancelw]

Nicely done. Do you have your call on a lanyard? If not you need to put it on one. I have had dogs come into a mouth call and just spit it out of my mouth to take the shot much quicker then then trying to drop it in a pocket.

Jeremy, I have a Sceery rabbit call and a Circe squeaker on a single lanyard. My method with the Sceery takes both hands. If a dog comes I just drop it. I may put the squeaker in my mouth to coax them in. Sometimes I spit it out-sometime I get excited and forget to and nearly choke on it Deer never get my heart pumping like coyotes do. I was having to finesse the call to make it work right, too. Found out later this afternoon that the reed was split up the middle so I had to go buy a replacement call. I've had that call for over 15 years and use it for mule deer and coyotes, so I can't complain that it finally wore out.

My deer stand is a homemade ladder stand. It is moveable but not very portable (that means heavy.) I have it on a grown-up fence row on the largest tree there-a cedar that has a 3 or 4 inch diameter at the height the stand hits. I have to sit very still or the whole tree moves. That means my rifle has to lay in my lap, not on a hook or any place that I would have to turn and reach for it. Where i would normally drop the call, I had to lower it so it wouldn't strike the rifle and make a noise. Then I had to lift the rifle up without shaking the tree. My mind was trying to figure out a way to get them both, but the second coyote kept darting back and forth between some cedar trees. I decided to go for the dog in the sights rather than the two in the brush.

Best thing is you don't have to gut them

[RKrodle]

Good hunting and thanks for the invite. Oh that's right, you DIDN'T invite me! Glad you made the most of your snow day. I waited around the house all day waiting to see if UPS would show up with some parts I needed for work. They didn't, so I have the same plan for today. If they don't come this morning I may see if Joe wants to go up to Black Cat Thicket and see whats roaming around that may need shooting .

[vancelw]

Good hunting and thanks for the invite. Oh that's right, you DIDN'T invite me! Glad you made the most of your snow day. I waited around the house all day waiting to see if UPS would show up with some parts I needed for work. They didn't, so I have the same plan for today. If they don't come this morning I may see if Joe wants to go up to Black Cat Thicket and see whats roaming around that may need shooting .

You didn't get my smoke signal? I should have called. I needed a tail gunner.

[RKrodle]

Good hunting and thanks for the invite. Oh that's right, you DIDN'T invite me! Glad you made the most of your snow day. I waited around the house all day waiting to see if UPS would show up with some parts I needed for work. They didn't, so I have the same plan for today. If they don't come this morning I may see if Joe wants to go up to Black Cat Thicket and see whats roaming around that may need shooting .

You didn't get my smoke signal? I should have called. I needed a tail gunner.

Needing a tail gunner reminds me of a time my son and I were out coyote hunting when he was young. We set up along a woody fence line calling. He was on one side on the fence looking out and I was on the other looking opposite. We heard a loud noise in the distance form my side and he had turned around asking what I thought it was. I told he it was just a truck jake braking over on the interstate. He turns back around and lets out a loud holler of his own. It seems in the few seconds that he was turned around two yote's came up on his side and were standing about 5 yards away just staring at him. It startled him pretty good . The yote's took off before he could regain composer and get his 20ga up and going. It was classic and to this day I don't let him forget about it.

[mouthpiece]

What is a, "Snow Day"? Never heard of that here and don't think we have 'em in MI.

[dennie]

I also hate snow and cold. But then, back during the summer it was so hot that I saw a coyote chasing a rabbit thru our yard, and they were both walking!

[Nath]

Fresh snow gets preds hungry. I love it.

Well done

Nath.

[vancelw]

What is a, "Snow Day"? Never heard of that here and don't think we have 'em in MI.

That's why we live in the South! We don't have to trudge through the armpit deep snow to get to work or school, uphill both ways, from October to April with the wind blowing so hard that if it let up we'd fall on our faces. We may get snow 5 times a year or we may get it one time in 5 years. But when we do get it, no one remembers what it looks like, let alone how to drive in it. The world comes to a stop.

My employer decided that we were too dumb and fragile to make it to work in the mess, so they canceled work!

For those of you not lucky enough to be born in Texas, get here as fast as you can

But if you stay we'll call you names. (Right, 2ndovc???)