Solo Calling Coyote

[BabyT]

Any tips for calling Coyotes? And how many times do you care to do it solo?

 

[justin davis]

Same thing if you were with someone. I do it fairly often solo. I think it’s great. Half
The noise and movement when you have less people

 

[WCB]

Pay attention to the wind not only so you aren't blowing it into cover but also if you are solo you want to be able to shoot down wind best you can.

I do it by myself a lot. Hell I take trips out west by myself and call for 3 or 4 days. Best part about doing it yourself...you can go when the weather is right or you have time not waiting or depending on someone else.

 

[mcseal2]

When using a electronic call I set up to keep the coyote's attention away from me. Often I'll try to use a small terrain feature like a ditch that gives the coyote a little cover to feel safer approaching the call, while not limiting my shot opportunity to much. It's worked better than asking a coyote to approach across wide open country like you see on videos. I'm not filming, just hunting. I'll set it so the coyote can approach the call without winding me while I have elevation on the ditch or ravine I want to funnel the coyote up. I like the Coyote Juice or a Predator Bomb to put a little scent out when I set the call to hopefully mask my own. First solid shot I get within 150 yards I take, I don't try to get them in my lap because they might smell where I walked down to set the call.

Also with nobody else to watch other angles, keep movement to a minimum but scan with your eyes. If the coyote doesn't spot or smell you, it's likely to keep coming into one of your shooting lanes.

Last be careful on how you approach a calling location. If you're spotted, heard, or smelled going in you have lost before you even turn the call on.

 

[flyfisher117]

I exclusively solo hunt them.

Sit still and play the wind. That's the biggest tip I have.

 

[swede8200]

To add to what mcseal2 said, coyotes will want to come to the call from downwind. If you are using a remote caller then a little wind isn't bad. Set the caller up so the wind is hitting you on one side of the face and watch for them to circle downwind of your caller and that will put them right in line with you gun and keep you from being winded near as easily. Same goes with using ditches, washes, or ravines; if the wind allows then put your caller sending the sound "down" the terrain feature and sit perpendicular to the wind.

 

[BigTX]

Remember they will circle downwind of you call or source of movement (decoy). Use water and other terrain to you advantage to block the direction they are coming from. Their noses are their be defense, watch where you walk because they will smell you trail if they cross it.

 

[justinspicher]

I want to solo hunt coyotes, but I am hesitant to call as it will also bring in bears and possibly big cats…..

 

[Inky_22]

I want to solo hunt coyotes, but I am hesitant to call as it will also bring in bears and possibly big cats…..

I’ve been solo calling specifically for cats over the last year, it’s a creepy feeling ending a set and walking out into the spot to retrieve your call knowing there easily could be a cat hung up where you don’t see it but it sees you. I guess you just have to risk it for the biscuit.

 

[TheGDog]

Almost always I'm out doing it solo. It's nice.. you can take your time, and properly creep into position without the noise of another person whom might not take being stealth as serious. If you go in quietly, I've had instances where almost immediately after pressing play a yote came in (due to the thickness of this one Juniper patch)

I would just say make sure before you go out to call coyotes a significant ways from your truck, to get one of those tail-strippers that also has a length of paracord and a steel ring on both ends. You loop those rings around a foreleg and a hindleg to help make it easier to carry them back to the truck.

Otherwise it's kinda brutal on your hands/forearms because the fur wants to let the legs slip down outta your grasp, so you're death-gripping it. And it works your trapezius muscles pretty darn well. Some people just drag them back to the car, but my trips involve a long drive, so I wanna make sure the fur is not roughed up.

 

[packer58]

Actually headed out this Tuesday for a 7-10 day trip in N/W Nevada, I almost exclusively call solo. I'm retired so I can pick and choose when I go, best advice I can give is if you can get to your calling spot without being seen, heard or smelled you've won half the battle. Like others have said, scan with your eyes and not your head, iv'e hunted predators for a long long time and it still amazes me how good there eyesight is and how they can catch the slightest movement by the hunter. I carry two guns, AR in 223 and my shotgun, if there coming hard I just let em come and wad em up with 3" #4 buckshot, if they seem a little skittish i take my first opportunity inside 150 with the AR.

 

[yeahkkyle]

I'd say 25% of the time I solo hunt. I do enjoy it occasionally because as others mentioned, its half the noise. I find myself spending more time per set because I take my time getting in and out. Its rewarding going out and shooting 2-3 on a set solo but can also be hectic at times. 2 sets of eyes are better than others though depending on field size. Prime example of last weekend I was in a shorter field (about 130yards) and had a triple pop up. I didn't even noticed the 3rd dog until I went back to review scope video. While back and forth on the scanner is when they ran by the scope. Only ended up shooting 1.

Friday I was out with my normal partner, shot a single and 3 triples. One of the triples was a quad that came in to a grassy field so it would've been very difficult solo. I also run a 640 scanner and my partner runs a 384 with bigger FOV and find he usually catches things slightly before me. I run the call 98% of the time.

 

[TheGDog]

Actually headed out this Tuesday for a 7-10 day trip in N/W Nevada, I almost exclusively call solo. I'm retired so I can pick and choose when I go, best advice I can give is if you can get to your calling spot without being seen, heard or smelled you've won half the battle. Like others have said, scan with your eyes and not your head, iv'e hunted predators for a long long time and it still amazes me how good there eyesight is and how they can catch the slightest movement by the hunter. I carry two guns, AR in 223 and my shotgun, if there coming hard I just let em come and wad em up with 3" #4 buckshot, if they seem a little skittish i take my first opportunity inside 150 with the AR.

Listen to what this brother is saying, especially the part about not letting them see you or hear you or smell you on the way in! You'll know when you did because they'll start yippin' to one another to be aware, that they've spotted "an intruder". BUT... if that happens... make note of from what direction it's coming up. So that next time you come to that area... you work out a better way to sneak in from, where they can't see you or smell you before you get there.

HEARING: What you will learn about them, is that they hear EVERYTHING! The slightest noise! For example, once they're in shotgun range, and you click off the safety? Yeah, if that happens in a lull between the calling.. their head will turn to point directly at you! Once that happens be ready to execute the shot right away. Just an FYI, Humans hear up to about 20KHz on the high end of frequencies. Coyotes can hear up to 44KHz!!! (So they can hear the rodents scurrying about under ground in that hole they're staring at.

Seems to work better when you stuff the caller up about chest height into a Juniper or other bush. Lotta times the tree/bush you've stuffed it into.... you'll see them come from around the back of it, to the "front" where your caller is. And it being off the ground makes them stop for a second and now begin to figure out how they're going to "get up there". Which gives you little more time to raise your weapon and get it done. Just remember to note where that caller is so you're not blasting holes into it!

EDIT: Another cool thing about going out solo... you can take your time to really think about where you need to place the caller, and will that workout well at this spot? Also.. when you pick a spot to sit at in the location, before you bother setting up the caller and such.... take a moment to actually sit down low to the ground like you will when running the caller, in order to verify that sit spot gives you sufficiently clear view and shot path to the caller. Sometimes you just don't have a good spot to sit on, so you'll elect to mosey a lil further in one direction to find one where the sit is better!