Coyote hunting, learned the hard way: 101 tips from fifteen years in the field.

How to hunt coyotes

The whole method fits in five steps. Everything else on this site is the detail of one of them.

1. Find them. You can't kill a coyote where they don't live. Look for tracks and scat, water, cattle and crop edges, and ask politely for private ground. If you're not seeing sign, move on. Part 3 is how I find them.
2. Pick your day. Early morning first, and a day when the wind is in your favor. From the breeding peak in mid-February, howls start beating distress. Part 5 is when to go.
3. Get in without being noticed. Hide the truck, walk in with the sun at your back, stay off the skyline, and go quiet for the last two hundred yards. Most stands are lost before the call is ever turned on.
4. Set the stand. Sit high, in the shade, with the wind checked at the stand and not at the truck. Caller 30 to 40 yards out, decoy within three feet of it, and a round in the chamber before you press play.
5. Call, read the dog, shoot. Fifteen to twenty minutes a stand. Open with a howl and wait, then go to distress. Don't move. Know where your downwind is and shoot before they reach it; bark to stop a runner. After the shot, sit still, because a second one is often on its way. Part 4 is the stand and the shot.

That is the method. The 101 tips start below and run through all of it in order, or jump straight to the gear.

The best way to hunt coyotes

It really is a pretty simple process, but you must be disciplined. Find the right locations, and don't waste your time in over-hunted places or places with poor habitat. Find the rich spots, and once you do, don't over-hunt them yourself. Put in the time and effort to find the best locations, then go on days when the weather is in your favor. I hate wasting a day in a prime area just because I wasn't patient enough to wait for the right conditions.

If you asked me how to coyote hunt in one word, it would be quietly. Learning to be stealthy in your approach will be your best friend. Once you're in the right location on the right day, being quiet is your greatest companion. I work so hard at this that it's a habit now, and I constantly have to teach my hunting partners the practice of entering a stand in stealth mode.

Hunting coyotes, thirty-five years in

There's nothing like waking up early on a day you're going on a coyote hunt. I can barely get out of bed for work at 7:00 am, but getting up at 5:00 am for a coyote hunt is no problem. I'm sure you share the same passion. I get all of my gear ready the night before, and I pack it using a checklist to make sure I have what I need.

Hunting coyotes can be one of the most rewarding pursuits in your lifetime. It will make you laugh, cry, and scream in frustration. Most of all it will make you lose sleep at night and daydream about predators coming in to the call. This website was designed to help you in your pursuit of becoming a better predator hunter.

On the way to the day's hunting grounds I ponder over my scouting report. I think about where all of my stands will be and how many I think I can get in for the day. When I get near my first stand the sun will be up within a half hour, and it's almost shooting light. I still get butterflies, just like when I was in high school and our team bus pulled into the opposing team's parking lot.

Hunting coyotes is my way of connecting with nature. In this fast-paced, uber-connected world it's good to get out and disconnect for a while. I put away my cell phone unless I'm using it for GPS or calling home. A coyote hunter has to be in tune with the moment — present, focused, and engaged with the elements. As a friend put it after his first hunt with me, "coyote hunting is one of the few things in life where you have to be 100% present in the moment it all goes down."

Predator hunting demands that you know the weather patterns, the temperatures, the ebb and flow. Will there be cloud cover or sunshine, rain or snow, wind or calm? Every detail down to barometric pressure counts as you build a library of hunting knowledge and experience.

As I begin my walk into the stand I observe and absorb everything. The direction of the sun, the flow of the breeze. There's a set of coyote tracks — they appear to be more than a day old. A broken branch off the shrub, a piece of fur hanging on it. Perhaps a chase happened here recently. Moving quietly I take it all in, registering and deciding how I'll approach the stand. I love the thrill of the hunt.

My name is Chad and I've spent several years working exclusively in the predator hunting industry. I worked day in and day out as a coyote hunter, testing varmint hunting equipment and filming lots of high-intensity predator hunts. With all of that time in the field alongside hunting professionals I picked up a lot of expert advice. I took that advice and spent even more time alone perfecting my craft. Although I rarely pull the trigger these days, I do my best to capture coyotes on camera in one form or another.

Over the last thirty-five years, since the fall I first tried to call one and watched my dad kill one, I have tried to find the best way to hunt coyotes. I have failed a lot at it. I still don't consider myself a master, but I consistently call in coyotes and that stands for something. My best day included nine coyotes, and I have had more goose-egg days than I care to count. After trying just about everything I've found some tips and tricks that work for me.

Predator hunting basics

This website was built to cover all of the varmint hunting basics — the kind of questions I constantly get asked. The tips represent my current methods, but those always change as I improve and learn new things. Get on the email list to hear about the new things I'm learning and having success with.

Many of you will have questions about hunting and calling coyotes. Read through all of the tips first, then get in touch. I can't answer everything, but I do my best to respond and to write posts answering the questions that come up most.

Coyote Hunting 101, part by part

I've broken the tips into six parts. Part 1, the safety and law tips and the pre-flight checklist, is on this page. The rest cover the following.

Coyote hunting gear: see what the pros use, and what I like to use on a daily basis. Everything from predator hunting apparel, shooting sticks, bipods, e-calls, mouth calls, decoys, weapons, ammunition, shooting chairs, gloves and face masks. Part 2 covers it.

Scouting for coyotes: too many hunters go out and try to hunt 'em where they ain't. I can tell you from experience that you can't call a coyote if they don't live where you're calling. This section goes over private and public ground, scouting, locating, habitat, and several land features to look for while searching for that perfect spot. Part 3 covers it.

Arriving on hunt location: now that you have your areas picked out, how do you get into your stand without scaring the critters away? I cover sun location, wind direction, movement, skyline, scent and communication. Mastering these techniques will put more fur in the shed.

Making a coyote stand: selecting a stand can be difficult, and a few simple mistakes can make or break your day. I cover elevation, wind, shade, camouflage, setting up your caller, decoy placement and call direction. These steps create good habits that produce better results over the span of a season.

Using electronic calls: you have an electronic call, now what? What sounds do I play? How loud? How long should I call? Can I switch sounds? How long is a typical stand? There are a lot of methods out there — I'll tell you what works for me.

Using mouth calls: learn the difference between an open reed call and a closed reed call. One of my killer techniques involves a simple squeaker, and I tell you how to make it part of every stand. Part 4 covers calling.

Coyote on approach: you've done the hard work — scouting, getting up early, selecting the perfect stand — and now you've got a coyote on the hook and your adrenaline has gone through the roof. The rush is addictive. I talk about movement, coyote body language, watching your downwind, taking a moving shot, barking a coyote to stop, open spaces, and hunting in the thick.

After the shot: hopefully you've killed a coyote. Now what? It's not unrealistic to call another one. Learning to control yourself after the shot will make you a better hunter.

The next stand: now that you've caused a ruckus in one spot, where do you go next? What happens if I have a blank stand? How far should I move down the road? Should I hit the same place over and over? I'll help you decide the best technique for your situation.

Skinning coyotes: a tough and intimidating job the first few times you do it.

When to hunt coyotes: what time of year is best — summer, spring, fall or winter? What about time of day, and moon phase? All of these are worth asking before you make plans for that secret honey hole. Part 5 covers timing.

Night hunting coyotes: this is becoming more popular by the minute, as more people hunt at night rather than spend their days after a primarily nocturnal animal. Learn the basics — stand selection, scanning, light color and much more. Part 6 covers the dark.

Coyote hunting regulations by state: there's a state-by-state guide to predator hunting regulations right here on the site. Look up your own state's information, laws and seasons, every answer cited to the agency's current rulebook. If you find a news story in your state, or want a hunting contest featured, let me know. Start with the regulations index.

The second part of this site focuses on product reviews. I've spent countless hours with almost every imaginable product related to hunting coyotes, and I'll be honest with you and give you the information you need to make the best buying decision. If you have a question about a specific product, contact me and I'll do my best to answer.

Everything on this page so far is a primer. The full 101 tips start below, and they run in order through all six parts of the series. Thanks for stopping by, and good hunting.