# Sun shine friends, and coyotes.



## alleyyooper (Mar 1, 2020)

Mike had called me Friday evening and said he had Saturday afternoon off and wondered if I wanted to go out in the afternoon. He Knew Eric was busy Saturday so I wouldn’t be going with him. 

I told him sure I would be glad to go out with him. 


He then asked if it was OK to bring some one along. I asked if they knew the rules and if they broke the rules we quit right there? He said sure she knew the rules and we could quit if she broke any.


OH a female I said any one I know by chance. He said I had met her a couple times. So I knew it was his girl friend Carol. I said OK what time and where will we meet. He said just come to my house and get here close to noon.


I arrived at Mikes at 11:45 AM, was met at the door by him was told to put my gear in his truck and we could leave had I ate. 

Told him No hadn’t ate since breakfast so he goes in to grab a couple hime made fish subs. I’ve had them before so was going to turn them down.


Had dumped my gear in Mikes truck which was warm. Carol came out said Hi and jumped in the back telling me to set up front with Mike.

We headed out east on M 21 thru Lapeer, Imlay city at M19 we turned north then took a side road off to the east.


We are going to hunt a sheep farm owned by John Lopez who had us hunting there since 2010. 

The farm is on the edge of the Saginaw valley so the land if real flat, but not the best soil to raise soy beans, corn or sugar beets. There is a 40 acre wood lot off in the north west. It is sort of on the spare side for concealment but we had set some stakes some time ago in a fence line and tied dried grasses to them to help break up our out lines.


We walk out and set up the decoys and callers start, with the challenge got two barks back. Mike let me do the dirty talking while he issued the challenges . About 15 minutes two coyotes Show up dead in front of us about 125 yards out. Mike shrugs at me and I point to him and Carol I want to see her shoot.

Mike signed for Carol to take the lead coyote, he would trigger. A pair of booms issued forth, two coyotes lay in the snow near the decoys.


Carols eyes are on fire they were so bright, when Mike signed time to gather gear and coyotes she gets up and fist bumped Mike.

They had shot a pair of male coyotes, Carol wrapped hers up in plastic and shaped my hands when I reached for the tow rope.


Back at the truck we load the coyotes and gear in the truck. Going down the road I could not keep silent any longer. Tell me about the rifle, how long you have it. Carol says they went to a gun shop in Fenton Mi advertises they have over 1000 guns in stock. Said Mike kept picking out ugly rifles for her to handle. She didn’t like any of the hollow plastic stock rifles. 

She saw one with sort of dark wood but with a nice grain on it. Picked it out of the rack and said if the caliber wasn’t to big that is the one she wanted.


It is a S&W Youth Made by Huskvarna in Sweden 243 caliber. Mike had them put a nice Kick ease recoil pad on it for her and they picked out a nice Bushnell elite. 6x24 scope for it. Carol says ya the scope cost more Than the rifle. 

2 boxes of Federal Power shock 85 gr. bullets went out the door the next day with the rifle. 

That was two weeks ago. 

She has put 200 rounds thru it getting to know it. Mike said she can hit milk bottle cap at 200 yards in a 10 MPH wind with it now.

She was using a Trev white 2 piece punters suit for snow camo, works real well.



We’ve Made it to the next farm a small hobby farm, chickens, two horses 80 acres mostly into pasture and hay fields and a 10 acre woods. Ron and Linda are home when we arrive saddling up the horses for a ride on the near by rails to trails and a state game area.

We say our hellos dress up and head for the woods. Woods is full of autumn olive and butts up to the neighboring woods.


We set up in the fence line of one of the hay fields. Set the decoys out about 30 yards from the woods and the callers about 10 yards back.

Once again Mike does the challenge and howls while I get to talk sex with them. The trucks Temp read out said 28F but the sun is bright glad I had put the sun shade on the Swift.

We got a couple answering barks to the challenge but in 40 minutes nothing had showed up and didn’t sound as if they were moving.

Dry hole so we gathered up and left.


I asked carol about her stocking hat where she had found it. She laughed and said Khols had the starter stocking hat but she made the veil from some lace from Joanns Fabrics and some white cloth from there to make the back part that covered her hair.

Said she had got a camo hat at Walmart and some black veil stuff and camo cloth from Joanns at the same time . And put them together.


We are once again at a dairy farm they milk about 300 head 3 times in 24 hours. Have about 500 acres and lease a bunch more. They also have a large wood lot that is pretty over grown having been logged off about 8 years ago. Of course like so many dairy operations of this size the cows are in loafing areas with feed troughs with augers that fill them with insulge and other feed. 


We gear up and head back to the field near the woods where some round bales are setting. 

Walk out and set the decoys and callers out. We had discussed changing things in mid stream if it sounded like the last place but no movement.

Start with the challenge got answering barks about 4 or 5 so I started with the invite for a male to come and check me out. About 15 minutes it sounded as if they were not moving when they answered the challenges. Mike did the curly tail sign so I let the piglet in distress sound come out of the caller while Mike is challenging and doing the coyotes having a party with the little pig.


It worked we had coyotes coming our way thru the woods. Near about 30 minutes one single coyote appears out of the woods my zone. I wait and allow the coyote to start to circle the decoys to see if more were close but not showing. I finally fire as the coyote had went into the slouch they do just before attacking.

The swift gave me the shove off the rest and I see one coyote spin in the snow twice and lay still.

We rain another 2 minutes of piglet then set for 10 minutes to see if any others would show.

Be surprised how some times more coyotes show after we shoot. Doesn’t seem to spook them I feel.


I drag my Female coyote back to the truck and load it up. Strip off my camo and climb in the truck. Time for the last fish sandwich made just how I like them. Offered tea to Carol and Mike and they declined, coffee people. 

 Al


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## alleyyooper (Mar 1, 2020)

We are now north of Peck about 5 miles and coming up on another dairy operation. Not as big and the Noble operation, maybe milk 150 cows.

Ann Ransom came out of the house and told us Dan and his sons were in the woods installing spigots and line to the sugar shack.

They had heard coyotes a few days ago in the evenings having a party near the slough with was away from the wood lot. Isn’t a real big slough as they but full of pampas grass some miserable invasive crap. 

We set up in a corn stubble where they had baled up some corn stalks and left them for later moving.


Again the challenge and return barks, again sounded as if they were not moving. So I cut loose with the Piglet again while Mike was having a coyote party. Still nothing was moving. After 40 minutes we pulled the plug and headed for the truck.


I am going to blame it on the sun shine the first good long day of sun shine with out a cold howling wind in a few days.


We did 5 more sets with the same results, figure the coyotes had found a warm hill side or similar place to lay in the warm sun shine out of the the little bit of wind.


We are about 5 miles out of Sandusky when Carol says don’t you guys always stop some place to get a sweet roll or some thing or just a potty break. So we go in town, and hit up the Dairy Queen. After a restroom visit we order up a blizzard each.

Finish the Blizzards and head down the road. 


Mike asks me about Sundays drawing saying he is on the late night shift again starting Monday From 6 PM to 2 AM maybe possible over time till 4AM.


I like Mike a lot so we work out we will not throw our names in the hat at the meeting and will do two weeks together.


We make it to our next farm a cash crop farm nothing but soy beans, sugar beets and winter wheat and a little corn grown here. They are a huge operation farm close to 5000 acres they lease most but Gail has a bunch of chickens and sells free range chicken eggs from the house and the farmers market in Sandusky.


We can see for a really long ways no fence lines no stone piles but there are drainage ditches and a conversion of drains in to a Slough. 

We make our way across a big winter wheat field and the snow is mushy, won’t be but a day or two and we would not walk in the field as it would be muddy. We start with the challenge and get a couple barks in return I invite them to come and see me and maybe mate up.


At the 10 minute mark we see two coyotes slinking does the sunny side of a drain ditch which has a lot of water in it but is ice covered yet. They cross over in my zone, walking the edge toward the decoys. I sign to Carol to take the lead coyote on my trigger. When they were about 30 yards from the decoys I tripped the left thumb and fires the Swift. We have two coyotes down. Again Carols eyes are bright and you could see the excitement in her body language.


We do 3 more dry holes and decide we will head south down a back road of gravel to the next east west black top Turn west to Clifford Mi and a sheep farm of the Perryies. Is is getting late and if we don’t see any thing here we agrees to call it a day as it was getting late any way.


We walk back to a stone pile to set up in a hay field near the woods.

After 40 minutes of calling and challenges we had not heard any barks of seen any movement other that deer coming out into the hay field Leary of our decoys and trotting off about 50 yard when we got up to gather the callers and decoys.


Arrive back at Mikes about 5:00pm a bit before dark and decide we will skin the coyotes right then and teach Carol how to do her own in the future. 

Turned out we didn’t have to teach her a lot as she had grew up with a dad that hunted and taught his son and daughter to butcher the game they collected.


I’d had a enjoyable day with a good friend and I also liked Carol and put my foot into it. I say You guys were fishing together a lot last summer and now hunting together when ya planing on tying the knot.

Carol said if that clown ever gets so bold I’ll shoot him. Been married once for a while and don’t plan on ever being owned again.

OOPS

 Al


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## esshup (Mar 1, 2020)

LOL. Oops is right! All the snow left us today, in the low 40's but with a 20-25 mph S wind. It's been a warm winter, even my 1 ac pond is about 50% ice free now and most will be gone tomorrow after the rain tonight. 

Good shooting!


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## alleyyooper (Mar 3, 2020)

Got to 50f here yesterday (Monday) really sunny. Our pond also lost a lot of ice and I managed to go down in the dam mud and wollowed like a pig because I could not get the traction to get up till I crwled to a area with lots of leaves.

Really sore today but kept at it trying to work it off.

 Al


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