Explain how you setup

[Doesniper]

What do you look for when you go out? Do you call with the wind in your face, or at your back? Do you set up on top of a hill or down low? Is morning better or evening? In the woods or out in the open? I am new to this, and am not having much luck. Thanks for any help.
P.s. I live and hunt in Ky and Oh.

[kyelkhunter3006]

I'm pretty new to it too......  I usually set up on a hill, maybe a field edge.  Honestly, I set-up just like I was deer hunting.  Try to find some well used trails in the woods, places where trails cross fields, etc.  All animals will use the trails that are available.  I try to have the maximum amount of visibility available to me, without sacrificing my potential hiding areas.  Where do you live in KY??

[twocan]

I dont like to hunt open places. I try to park and walk into the thickest woods i can find, only about 50 to a 100 yards deep. I always set with a big tree to my back and my knees up and my shot gun to my shoulder. If i can see 25 yards im happy. I dont move my head alot. You can allways hear a yote come running in. Cats are stupid you can almost stand up and shoot at them. I also never call one place more than twice a year. Also i always move at least a mile down the road for the next setup.   

[STexhunter]

Here in the heavy south Tex brush I usually hunt from deer blinds due to the fact that our only shooting lanes are ranch roads and senderos.  I place my electronic call about 50 - 75 yards in front of the blind.  If I choose to hunt from the ground, I try to blend in with the brush.  You need to try and hide any movement because you are now on their level.  Again I put the call about 75 yards from me.  I have had coyotes come in from a few seconds to about 15 minutes.  I usually move after about 20 minutes.  I've had more luck from the blinds.  Usually the young coyotes are the first to respond.  I usually get a response to the call about every 10 setups.  If you have coyotes just keep trying, it will happen and when it does you are hooked forever.  Been doing it about 30 yrs.  Most of the time you will do more calling than shooting, but when you get that shot it makes up for all the other times.  Just my 2 cents worth and what works for me. 

[Rancher]

I usually set up in some trees, not necessarily thick brush, but sitting at the base of the tree on the shady side.  Preferably I like the sun at my back and the wind in my face or a cross wind will work too.  Choose a spot where you can see best in the direction you think they will come from and this will only come with experience.  I like to be on higher ground if possible, and some camo always helps but it isn't absolutely necessary for success.  Keep movement to a minimum and don't give up.  Could be the place you're calling in doesn't have a lot of coyotes or maybe they're called on quite a bit and are wise to the sounds.  Keep trying and it'll all come together.

[Ahab]

If your a smoker all bets are off. Around here close in 'yotes will turn tail when they smell smokers breath. I like being high, facing the wind. Sun from either side, back to scrub oak or creosote bush. If using an electronic call it's 50' below me. The day before the hunt the camo's are washed in baking soda. After drying, get a couple of horse apples (more or less dry) put them with the clothes in a paper bag overnight. You can hardly smell them but horse smell doesn't bother 'yotes. Works for deer too.

[onecoyote]

Ahab, I want to make sure I'm getting this right. Coyotes don't like smokers breath right. The coyote would have to go downwind of you to smell that bad breath. So why are you facing upwind?....Just asking.
Before you go hunting you wash your clothes in Baking Soda. That well hid your human smell from a coyote? Then use Horse Apples " scat "on your clothes to finish the job? First time I ever heard of that. I find your information interesting.

[kyelkhunter3006]

That's interesting about the smoker's breath bothering coyotes.  I have to older friends in their 50's that swear deer are attracted to tobacco smoke.  One of them smokes like a freight train, the other doesn't smoke at all.  The non-smoker has hunted with the guy that smokes for years, and the smoker got a couple of deer every year while smoking, regardless of where they hunted.  The non-smoker has watched deer walk right past his stand (and his scent bombs) to where the smoker was.  Now the non-smoker lights a cigarette and just sets it on the stand and lets it burn.  I've been with both of them, and sure enough, they always see a deer, and I swear it always comes from the direction that the smoke is drifting towards.  Makes me wonder how many deer I'd see if I burned a tobacco field?      Anyone else ever seen/heard such a thing?

[twocan]

Last night I washed all of my camo with tide and used a downey sheet. This morning i went out and called in 4 yotes and a cat. I dont shoot the yotes unless its over 15min into the call i like given the cats a little time to get there. All of the coyotes were within 10 yards of me. Also if you call some place where you know that no other has been in a year or so you will get it done. So far this year i bet i have educated 50 yotes by passen on them.

[onecoyote]

"THE REAL TRUTH ABOUT PREDATOR HUNTING"

Doesniper, don't worry about all this mumbo jumbo some people are telling you. You got to wash your clothes, your bad breath well scare the coyotes, always watch upwind etc etc. Just go hunting and enjoy it. 

For starters you may want to invest in a video so you'll get the basics. You don't need to do ALL the things the books, magazines and videos tell you to do, and you don't need to go overboard like many do. You'll get your own style of hunting as time goes by.

The smart thing to do is make sure you can hit what you aim at, practice alot with your rifle or shotgun. Find out where the animals are, it's hard to kill a coyote if it ain't there.

This is not a hard sport to learn like so many think. It's really kinda of simple and easy. Again, all you need to know are the basics. That's the real truth about predator calling.

[Glanceblamm]

Twocan, very nice cat  .. we have them here but few & far in between and they have been protected for as long as I can remember. Numbers have increased in the last two years but I have still never called one in.

Some good replys here to doesnipers question. I don’t really care if I am high or low but will blend in or use the brush to break my outline at all cost. Some will recon that it is easier to call a coyote uphill than downhill. I cant say if this is true or not but do know that if you are high and have even a moderate amount of brush in between you and the low ground you may see the coyote slip in but then disappear. This can come as a shock as you were depending on the rifle to cover that brushy expanse. This is something that you can work with but you may need to Stop Calling and just use a lip squeak every three to five min and stay still and keep your eyes open. If you get a shot, it could be a thriller!
Far better to allow for some shooting lanes or more open areas to begin with unless you are using the shotgun.

I really do like to get a tree (can be a small sapling) up against my back as it provides great support for the offhand shot. A lot of times you can get a knee up for elbow support that will really let you lock those crosshairs on.
I will usually make sure that the stand site has decent shooting lanes at right angles to my position. In my experience, if you cant take one out before they circle downwind they will smell you every time. Ranchers selection was excellent, I do like to be in the shade with the sun at my back when applicable.

I will hunt the wide open several times a year. I lay flat on my belly but is usually in picked corn stalks or pasture ground or isolated brush patches among other brush or stubble. That Coyote doesn’t like the wide open real well here. I am always within 150yds of a drainage or wooded finger or such so he feels safe enough to close in to where he will expose himself for a shot.

Try to utilize some cover when working your way in to the stand via what ever is avalible to you such as foothills, levy’s  or what ever you terrain allows to avoid skylining yourself.
Sometimes I will cross a large area exposing myself but will wait at least 30min before calling once in position. It is suggested that the attention span of a Fox or Coyote may be as short as 10min. You may have been seen coming in but after a time period, these animals may forget that they ever saw you providing that you are out of sight. It is a good practice to wait at least 10min before calling even if you did make a stealthy approach as it gives the area time to quiet down.
Good Luck and have fun.

[Glanceblamm]

Onecoyote,
I would have simply posted Amen to your reply but I didnt see it because of that cyber timmer.

doesniper, this is excellent advice as you really will find your own style. It is also a fever that wont go away.

[bigjeepman]

Doesniper .... this is my opinion ....

ditto what onecoyote said ... and ...

Predator hunting is a lot like everything else we do in life ... we all do it a little different. If that is you in your avatar, then you are already have hunting skills for deer. To answer your questions, I think I have tried all of them. I do not ever sit in the skyline but always make sure I have a tree, brush, or fence line behind me to break up my outline. I have used mouth calls (open reeds mostly) and we use a JS Preymaster caller to mix things up. We occassionally use a decoy (many choices on the internet) but have called them in without as well. I have always believed being very quiet (from where you park to where you hunt) is one of the most important skills needed for any hunter. I also hunt with the wind at my back or a crosswind when at all possible.

Good luck and good shooting ....

[twocan]

glanceblamm... Here are 4 more i got last weekend.  If you wait they will come

[Glanceblamm]

twocan,
Great Job

While I endorse the shotgun 100%, I know that you have toyed with the idea of trading in your 9mm rifle as said in other threads.
Your skills obviosly would make purchasing another rifle a very worthwhile. A .22 Hornet may work very well inside 150yds and I have been thinking bout going there myself. A .223 would be more versitile giving you a greater power range but it appears that you are accomplished enough to get by with the former.