I did go strictly with mouth calls only last year for a couple of reasons. First is the weight issue, some type of noise maker and the tapes to go with it get heavy during the day and I ain't gettin' any younger /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-006.gifSecond is the fact a lot of the competition is using them almost exclusively because it is easier than learning the rythem of mouth calls.They fear using the mouth call because they don't believe in themselves. Coyote is not particular as long as it sounds like it is in trouble.
Calling the thickets is easy compared to working big timber. Cover to hide your silhouette is everywhere in the thickets. In big timber you don't have anything except the trees. You have to watch even the color of the bark of the tree you choose to sit by. As long as the tree is dark your camo will work pretty good. If you sit against a white oak your asking to be seen, all you are is a blob that doesn't belong against that white bark.
Wind is something I check over and over before sitting. I want to know where it is going to dump my scent if at all possible. In steep hills thermals are my worst enemy. These winds swirl and eddy in ways I don't yet understand for certain. I do know that care must be taken to get high enough on the hillside to be in the predominant winds. A foot in the wrong direction and everybody knows where you are. I have been in situations where I thought I was calling cross wind in areas like this and had coyotes scent me 400 yards across the valley, directly crosswind to where I was sitting. My only explanation for this is the terrain and thermals swirling against the hills at the head of the valley bringing my scent back down the oposite side to them.I checked it afterwards to find out what went wrong.Six or seven coyotes giving an alarm bark at one time is something you don't want.I haven't forgotten that lesson!
In this kind of cover and terrain noise is a big problem. Snap crackle and pop in the woods is normal to some extent. But we humans have a walking rythem that is not normal in the woods. When I think I am close enough to the area I think is holding the animals I stop and setup. I don't want to get close enough to spook something that may be bedded nearby.Just close enough that a blast from the call can be heard. If that doesn't work I move a few hundred yards further down ridge and setup again. This way I am not dropping into the bed grounds unanounced. I get them to come out to me.
This is a very good habit to get into when you hunt regularly with a beginner. It takes a while for the newby to get used to the rythem of the woods and to pace themselves.Stop and go patterns are normal for everything out there and we humans have to learn to do this as well.Move a short distance and stop. Talk very softly when you do speak to answer his questions. Use these stops as oportunities to show them what you are looking for in a setup or to answer their questions. It helps to relax them and makes things easier on them.If your not in a rush or impatient, you will both enjoy the time out there much more.That is what we are about anyway, having a good time in the outdoors /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif Jimmie
