March marks the end of my coyote hunting season. I usually out solo a couple times during the month after a snow storm to clean up any mangey or aggressive dogs during calving season. While remodeling a kitchen out of town, I decided to make the most of spent fuel and head out early for one last solo venture before switching my AR to an Uglystick in the back of my truck. My first set felt wrong with the wind and the view, so after about eight minutes I headed back to the truck only to spot a coyote that had winded me (as I expected would happen) heading for the hills. I didn't take a shot, but I was glad I didn't waste any more of the morning in a spot that wasn't stellar. My second and final set of the year was right from the start. I had a beautiful view with a crosswind and it just felt right. I've said it before, but you can't plan the good ones, when it looks and feels right, it usually is. After only calling about three minutes on my trustee open reed rabbit call, I saw Wiley trotting in from about 400 yards away. I kissed him up to 69 yards and let the sweet sound of a .223 early in the morning ring across the prairie. I was out of fancy v-max ammo, so I was shooting good ole re-loaded FMJ 55grain bullets that I had been told would leave a pencil sized hole in and out of the dog and usually not drop them. I decided to give it a shot since it was all I had, and in this instance, one shot meant one kill. I plan to try using this ammo to get a census of my own on results because it is cheaper to get, and I have had plenty of dogs run off hit with high dollar Hornady rounds. I went and claimed my prize, he was healthy with no rub marks, or mange, and I was proud to end the season with one last trophy. I hung him over the fence as I climbed over the gate and couldn't resist taking a selfie of us titled "well hung" to give me positive vibes to dream about until next October. I will continue this blog throughout the spring and summer covering experiences on horse back, fishing the Colorado and Nebraska waters, and whatever other man things I find worthy of putting on paper. For now, I believe in giving the little doggies a break, let them breed up, and next fall I will go back to doing my duty of predator control for the locals. In the off season, check me out at predatormastersforums #prairie ghost, and follow Black Wolf Emergency Prep on facebook and twitter to see other man things I'm involved in. Thanks to all of my supporters and land owners, I'll be in touch with more man things in the very near future!
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