It also means you would be wise to do most of your calling from topmost areas for a variety of important reasons. First, coyotes move farther and
Water is a natural magnet for varmints that travel its banks, hunt for food in waters and leave their tracks showing numbers and recent usage. Always study creek beds, wet or dry, for the passage of varmints along their banks.
do so faster than either fox or bobcat. They’re far more wide ranging animals. This means stands for high country coyotes, especially after the snow flies, should be at least 30 minutes per setup because it takes more time for coyotes to climb and cover ground to reach you. Another big advantage to calling from the top is that you can see preda- tors coming over a white background easier and at a greater distance than in any other type of country. I like to make my stands on ridges, saddles or points with timber leads or scattered brush for natural blinds where I have a good view not only up and down a ridgeline, but also anything coming up from below on either side, which means you can cover a whole lot more country from just one spot. Choosing top country stands also
means you can move from place to place for other stands easier and faster by keeping your elevation without having to climb up or down. That’s equally important traveling very far between stands. A ten-minute hike can put you in position to call down a series of new canyons or basins your original calls did not reach, and that’s a big edge. With elevation, your calls will reach out and travel farther, covering more ground than they would in lower can- yons or bottoms. All these things give you an edge on success. Early snows also have a decided
affect because plummeting tempera- tures mean both prey and predator must stay out longer each day and often all day to hunt and feed to keep body temperatures up. It has been my experience that the elevation I find deer in, for example, I also find coyotes and their tracks. Winter coyote hunts up high can be one of the finest times of the year to go out. Never pass them up after the snow flies. MESA LANDS
I’ve relied on nothing more than homemade camo for winter hunting. This is my “bed sheet” poncho, cut to boot length, with holes for arms and legs. It’s light, covers me right down to the ground when sitting, and matches all white backgrounds.
Page 88 Spring 2013
Regardless of what country you call in, the use of a varmint decoy like this is always a big plus for success. To approaching varmints, seeing one of their kind already on scene rings the bell of authenticity that brings them all the way in to solid gun range.
In lower elevations at the knee of
high country comes a region of buttes, foothills, and tablelands where tall timber is replaced by lower, tougher shrubs, cedars, and oak brush. This country does not get the killing snows of higher elevations and because of it I’ve always found that both preda-
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