Calling Coyotes Upwind and Downwind

Jim Phillips

New member
Now most of you are going to shake your head and laugh and the rest are just going to laugh but here is my question. I keep reading that you need to call coyotes upwind because if they are downwind they will smell you. OK, fine. How the [beeep] do you know where the Coyote is before you start calling. If the wind is blowing in my face and the Coyote is in front of me he is upwind. But, if the Coyote is behind me and I turn around 180 degrees he is now downwind of me! So how can I position myself upwind to call the Coyote in if I don't know where he is to start with?
 
In my parts of Pa....coyotes 80% of the Times are comming out in the thicket parts of the woods or the edges...I'll usually check with farmers where's he's been seeing them and then scout around..looking for scat.tracks etc...then depending on my setups area is going to tell me down wind or crosswind sometimes try useing fenced areas or something to force that dawg in my shooting lane,but the winds going to steer him 50% of the time in my area.
 
Usually coyotes won't come in from the way you walked in. (USUALLY) If wind is blowing in your face and you can't do it any other way then so be it. Hopefully you walked in with the wind in your face to start with? Mostly plan to have different set up that will work with the wind that day. Place your caller upwind so when the predator tries to come downwind you will have a shot before it gets your scent.
 
I have spots dedicated to wind directions. It depends on where I park and walk in. For example: if thewind is out of the north, I want to park/walk in from the south. And call into or across the wind direction.
 
Originally Posted By: GCHey Jim... crosswind...
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That's the ticket. Scout scout scout. If you can have your wind blowing into the open and hitting you on the ear or the cheek, the ones on your face, that's the best possible set up. Coyotes want to get downwind. So make them show themselves from cover to get what they want, the scent of what's making all that racket. When they show, you shoot.
 
There are a few things you will learn to do over time, walk in with wind in face , set up cross wind when possible ( best of both worlds) Now , a coyote is rarely going to skyline itself when coming to a call .Most will use low ground or cover to approach you. when you choose a stand take all that into consideration as well as sun position and a good back drop to hide in be it shade or vegetation. get elevation so you can see the areas most likely for a coyote to approach, You want to be able to see down into that sagebrush or thicket your calling.If its early in the morning i can get away with calling downwind as the thermals are lifting my scent use that to your advantage if you have no other choice but to call downwind.NOW NOT EVERY COYOTE WILL COME IN DOWN WIND, So be prepared for the exceptions.Wind is a big deal BUT it does not RULE my stand.Have i lost called in coyotes due to the wind, Not very often, Usually have them down before they can smell me.Pay attention to the details but the most important thing is get out and call,dont give up,and learn, they are not as clever as you CAN be .
 
If coyotes were that smart they would be hunting us!

If they come in form downwind? Then so be it. My gun is always pointed slightly downwind of the call when I am calling into a cross wind.
 
Where are you located in SC?

In my area (southeast SC) I am generally hunting and targeting a pretty small block...generally 10-300 acres depending on the spot. For the most part I'm trying to bring them out of a clearcut or thick area to something more open where I can see and shoot with night vision. Scouting is key in terms of knowing your approach options for different wind directions. Hunting pressure on them in my area is slim to none other than me, so I don't get too wrapped up in the wind direction as long as it isn't blowing directly into the cover I think they are in. Ideally I look for it to be blowing from the cover out into the field. For the most part they come straight to the call when they do respond to it. If they do circle, it's within about 10 yards or less of the call. I do get busted from time to time when they make a big circle or are already downwind of my set up, but it's so thick here that you can't do anything about it anyway.
 
Originally Posted By: rudymontanaUsually coyotes won't come in from the way you walked in. (USUALLY) If wind is blowing in your face and you can't do it any other way then so be it. Hopefully you walked in with the wind in your face to start with? Mostly plan to have different set up that will work with the wind that day. Place your caller upwind so when the predator tries to come downwind you will have a shot before it gets your scent.

+1 on entering the property you intend to call with the wind in your face.
If you use an electronic call you can somewhat control the wind by where you place the caller and where you place your arse. As others have said, crosswind is excellent.
 
You'll get all kinds of opinion about how to use the wind. Naturally, the rules change some at night since you want to be able to see the coyote's eyes when he comes in to the sound being used. In daytime, it is a bunch different, or at least it is for me. I can take you to farms where I have killed many coyotes over the years where 100% of them come in from the downwind side. In fact, on those farms, you are wasting your time to call them from upwind. Other guys have different methods, possibly due to the prevailing wind in the areas they hunt. Never say never in coyote hunting, as you will get busted sometimes no matter how hard you try to avoid it. I set up where the coyotes are most apt to come in downwind of the ecaller, not downwind of me. I plan my approach to my calling spot with that in mind.
 
The theory on approach/setup is easy, the application is not. Recently, I had a post on calling in hilly terrain-another factor. On the stand I made, I walked in and set up 100 yds facing the edge of a timber area. The wind was on my right cheek like I prefer it, as I am a right-handed shooter. Coyote came in right in front of the path I walked in on. I was just sitting there watching him approach, thinking when he circled downwind, I'd shoot him. When he got close to my trail, he looked like he hit a brick wall, his head and tail swapped ends and a foolish running shot as he rounded the base of the hill ended the stand. Minutes later he was in those woods barking to alert all others in the ares.

Bottom line-I made plenty of mistakes, but I learned a lot. The approach/setup goal is kind of a perfect storm. It doesn't come along very often. If we all waited for the perfect setup, wind in our face, sun at our backs, and perfectly concealed, we'd rarely go hunting. You just have to go hunting and TRY to achieve as many of those goals as possible, take what you get, and analyze each hunt to try and get better each time. Look for what you did right and what you did wrong.
 
Originally Posted By: cmatera The theory on approach/setup is easy, the application is not. Recently, I had a post on calling in hilly terrain-another factor. On the stand I made, I walked in and set up 100 yds facing the edge of a timber area. The wind was on my right cheek like I prefer it, as I am a right-handed shooter. Coyote came in right in front of the path I walked in on. I was just sitting there watching him approach, thinking when he circled downwind, I'd shoot him. When he got close to my trail, he looked like he hit a brick wall, his head and tail swapped ends and a foolish running shot as he rounded the base of the hill ended the stand. Minutes later he was in those woods barking to alert all others in the ares.

Bottom line-I made plenty of mistakes, but I learned a lot. The approach/setup goal is kind of a perfect storm. It doesn't come along very often. If we all waited for the perfect setup, wind in our face, sun at our backs, and perfectly concealed, we'd rarely go hunting. You just have to go hunting and TRY to achieve as many of those goals as possible, take what you get, and analyze each hunt to try and get better each time. Look for what you did right and what you did wrong.

Brother I learned by hard knocks to take the first good shot I have at a coyote. In my steep, hilly and heavily timbered Ozark terrain I don't have the time or open territory to play with them. If I want to kill coyotes I take the first good shot, otherwise there are too many things that can go wrong and with surprising speed to wreck a stand. My experience...
 
Guys, this is great stuff and the bottom line is I need to go ahead and buy a caller and get out and give it a try. I have a telescope and go out at night observing. My observatory is in a pasture that has a several hundred acre hardwood forrest lining the East (about 50 yards away and South (about 500 yards away) sides. I hear the coyotes at night in the woods immediately to the East and occasionally to the South as well. Where I am hearing them is pretty thick. About 100 yards North there is a draw starting almost at the pasture line leading to a bottoms further East. The draw is pretty open. I fact all around this one thick area is pretty open mature hardwood forrest. I am only going to hunt (at least initially) during the day. I am thinking of setting up in or next to the draw. What do you think? What time of day would you go?
 
I learned quickly that hunting hilly terrain is a lot different than the small, broken, relatively flat to slightly rolling terrain I am used to.
 
This is what I would do. Buy a caller. Your learning curve will be shortened immensely. Hand calls are easy enough to learn to use, and very productive, BUT require a lot more movement and the coyote can pinpoint the sound, and when he does, he'll be looking right at YOU. Familiarize yourself with the basic operation of the caller at home.
Go out in the evening (not morning) about 1 hour and 15 minutes before sundown and set up (wind permitting, relatively speaking) in the spot you have chosen. Just sit there as still as you can. One half hour before sunset, put your gun on the rest and start calling, watching where you think the coyotes will come from, with a view of the downwind if possible. When you turn on that call, be ready to shoot-gun pointed in a safe direction, round in chamber, safety off. Here's one I learned the hard way. If you are calling and call in crows or other birds above you, call for another minute and stop calling. A coyote is probably on the way. If nothing shows after about 10 minutes, call again, intermittently, until you cannot see well enough to shoot anymore. Do not take a shot at a running coyote as a beginner, unless you are an excellent shooter on those kinds of shots. Better to let a coyote walk away than take a marginal shot and educate him. You will kill him another day.
 
Oh yeah been there in the school of get my butt kicked on "winding". Here is what I have picked up.
Seems like calling with the wind at your back is a major no no or not preferred,but guess I'm different.
Calling with the wind at your back..
ALWAYS have a good "cone" for your downwind. (200 yards=cash money)
Crosswind preferred,but if the wind is at my back and I have a solid downrange "cone", I'm not bothered.You know where there going..DOWNWIND 90% of the time.
Make your shot BEFORE they hit your "cone".(At what range they present a logical shot)
Never be upset to bag a set based on wind.You will just be more frustrated on a botched set.
Most all my coyotes are shot right at the 200-250 mark.Open country permitting..
Keep a log...you can really dial in morning/evening wind and base your sets on predicted wind direction.
Granted an e-caller can give you and edge and allow you to play the wind better,but I gotta say using mouth calls first gave me a little more "schooling" before i jumped to the foxpro.




 
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Some good things to think about would be your past experience in the area and the lay of the land. Past experience and scouting could solve some of this problem. You may then be able to determine the most likely direction the coyote would come from. Wind direction can change in a heart beat so don't get stuck on always being upwind of the coyote. Do your best at the beginning but continue to call of the wind shifts. Coyotes are omnivores of opportunity and will still come in if they are hungry enough.
 


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