[Tvov]

Son and I may try some coyote hunting next weekend in Vermont. I am not expecting to get anything, looking forward more to taking a nap in the quiet morning woods... but you never know.

What I can't find an answer to is if coyotes need to be tagged and checked? I don't think they do, but I can't find a definite yes or no.

Also, my friend (whose cabin we'll be staying at) is concerned that we may be mistaken for deer or bear hunters (out of season). Has anyone run into this? Son and I have the appropriate hunting licenses.

[mangkukhan]

For most states coyotes are considered varmint, and most states don't require tags for varmint hunting. Generally it's open game when they are in season, and some places they're in season year around. You'd need to check what vermont state law is. I love me some coyote hunting, hope you have fun.

[sourdough44]

You can read tips at predatormasters.com until your eyes ache, check out the forums. I very much doubt you have to worry about many other hunters in the woods this time of year, check the VT regs 1st about coyote hunting though.

I've done predator hunting in MI,WI, & IL, mostly with mouth calls & a Foxpro electronic caller. My usual timeline is the 1st minutes of dawn on a cold Winter morning, outside of any deer seasons. One will learn from a hunt at about any time though, go when you can.

A few biggies are - location, can't call predators that aren't within earshot. The 2nd is very quietly getting into position paying heed to any light breezes & wind direction. A coyote's nose tells them a lot of what they need to know to survive, they will use it to detect you. This isn't like a casual stroll in the Fall woods looking for grouse.

This time of year a coyote is of zero value. Hunt safe, the gun handling & know where your partner is at all times. There are other ways to hunt coyotes, calling is the most common.

[Tvov]

We did go up and sit in the woods. We surprised a possum at the edge of a field, heard grunting or snuffling at the edge of the woods, almost had a bird land on my head, almost had a mouse run over my legs, had chipmunks playing next to us... and saw no coyotes! We did hear at least one outside of the cabin late at night just after we went to bed the first night. The next evening we setup near the cabin, hoping the coyote would return, but didn't see anything. Mosquitos! Lordy, my son was almost carried away. They managed to get up under his pants and he had bites all over his legs. We will be buying mosquito head nets, securing our pant legs (lol), and possibly getting Thermacells for next time. DEET works! We are also going to look into calling.

As usual, I had a great time in the woods, whether or not we saw what we were going after.