Predator Call

I drove to Trinidad, Colorado to shoot a TV show with Fred Eichler, host of PREDATOR NATION.  I was there to represent Savage Arms as I guess I am their “predator expert”.On the first day of hunting, Jake took me to where he had seen coyotes the day before.  They were ganged up where a hunter had taken a mule deer.  The dogs were no doubt enjoying a large gut pile.  We move in about daylight and were greeted by a coyote that was sitting across a draw and looking longingly down into the area where the buffet was served.  She had no doubt observed two rednecks approaching from the east as she appeared to be watching a tennis match, going from us to the gut pile. 

I turned on the COMPUCALLER III and she wanted to go to the distress sound.  She came up the draw and studied the situation from every possible angle but her feet would not carry her across it.  Later that morning after moving to another ranch with the wind picking up tumbleweeds, we had a coyote approach about 250 yards downwind.  Had it not been for Jake this gyp would have escaped but his warning gave me just enough time to turn almost 90 degrees.  I had my Nikon Coyote Special set at 6 power and wished I had time to increase the magnification but simply did not.  I got lucky and ran the 50 grain Winchester Ballistic Silvertip through her chest.

We made a couple of calls in the 80 degree heat and wind that afternoon.   The Compucaller III produced a beautifully furred gray fox at about 20 steps.  Furbearer’s season does not open until Nov. 1, so Fred gave him a pass.  We made made a fruitless call that evening as the wind shifted from the north.

The next morning, it began to snow and did not stop until late that afternoon.  The high temperature was 31 and the low was 27 and there were 14 inches of snow before it stopped.  We were unable to make a call that day.  To make matter worse, the wet snow falling on warm ground was the recipe for sloppy roads.

The third morning, Fred, Jake and I made it to some beautiful rolling country where we found several coyote tracks in the snow.   We managed to kill three coyotes on five calls and Fred said that we had a TV show.  It was really beautiful, watching the coyotes come to the COMPUCALLER III in the snow.

See you outdoors!

Adios,

Gary