diamond hitch
Well-known member
As I was sitting in my living room this morning a coyote appeared in my front field kind of like how sometimes elk do. In a mass of 50 acres of snow he worked out section after section in a random pattern not unlike a fine bird dog. There is steady snowfall, no wind and 1-2 ft of winter snow on the ground. No indicators of a likely location for breakfast.
After you hunt elk for a while, you develop a sense about you where an elk might/should be. Initially you might glass or study topos for those locations but after you hunt the ground a few times you just know those spots that attract them. There are cow spots and there are bull spots. The latter are usually isolated, recluse, and cool. Often they command a view of a basin from a dark hole where they can chew their cud in piece while seeing all approaching objects from up to a mile away. They like them so much that given time a trail will be developed for both the approach and the exit. When you stumble into those spots you need to make note of the wind direction, a safe approach and potential observation points. If they can see out - you can see in. The key is patience, memory, and curiosity. You reach a point after hunting a number of years that you can feel those elk and you are drawn to those places much like how the elk are drawn to them.
As you work your way through the country you will see things that subconsciously draw you to them from past experieces that you don't immediately remember. I don't get excited very often any more but when you work your way into a thick little patch of second growth and a nice bull stands up 5 or 6 ft away it kind of starts your heart a little bit. Three out of four times they are just instantly gone but every once in a while they just stand up and take that brief period to try to figure out what you are and if you are a threat. A clean kill at 5 - 10 ft is almost as exciting as shooting them in their bed sleeping or coming in the backside and shooting them while they are chewiing their cud and staring at the basin below. There is an extra special feeling of revenge when you can catch them at their own game.
Now back to the coyote. Why didn't I shoot him out the front window? The answer is two fold. One is that at 350 - 400 yds my success is limited on small objects. The biggest one is that my wife of nearly 43 years is still sleeping, values her saturday morning rest, and when I torch off that 7 next to the bedroom it tends to set the tone for the rest of the day and maybe the week. Patience and memory is the key to many things.
After you hunt elk for a while, you develop a sense about you where an elk might/should be. Initially you might glass or study topos for those locations but after you hunt the ground a few times you just know those spots that attract them. There are cow spots and there are bull spots. The latter are usually isolated, recluse, and cool. Often they command a view of a basin from a dark hole where they can chew their cud in piece while seeing all approaching objects from up to a mile away. They like them so much that given time a trail will be developed for both the approach and the exit. When you stumble into those spots you need to make note of the wind direction, a safe approach and potential observation points. If they can see out - you can see in. The key is patience, memory, and curiosity. You reach a point after hunting a number of years that you can feel those elk and you are drawn to those places much like how the elk are drawn to them.
As you work your way through the country you will see things that subconsciously draw you to them from past experieces that you don't immediately remember. I don't get excited very often any more but when you work your way into a thick little patch of second growth and a nice bull stands up 5 or 6 ft away it kind of starts your heart a little bit. Three out of four times they are just instantly gone but every once in a while they just stand up and take that brief period to try to figure out what you are and if you are a threat. A clean kill at 5 - 10 ft is almost as exciting as shooting them in their bed sleeping or coming in the backside and shooting them while they are chewiing their cud and staring at the basin below. There is an extra special feeling of revenge when you can catch them at their own game.
Now back to the coyote. Why didn't I shoot him out the front window? The answer is two fold. One is that at 350 - 400 yds my success is limited on small objects. The biggest one is that my wife of nearly 43 years is still sleeping, values her saturday morning rest, and when I torch off that 7 next to the bedroom it tends to set the tone for the rest of the day and maybe the week. Patience and memory is the key to many things.
