Wow folks! I just go the Savage model 10 Pred in .223 and it is a blast. I hunt in Iowa where unless you are hunting over a picked corn field you don’t often have to shoot real far. That taken into account I decided to go with the .223 for the woods and my 22-250 for the more open areas.
Plus sides to the new .223 is it is lighter than my 22-250 and shorter as well. These small differences showed their true worth last night.
Negative sides to the .223 is the cartridge capability, great for shots out to 400 (when your scope is dialed in) but much beyond that they drop off too quickly to really be affective.
So enough about the rifle on to the hunt!
I got off of work last night at about 3:30 and booked it home. On the way I called my wife to let her know that I was planning on stopping by the house to grab my rifle and head out to the river bottom. When I walked in the door she had already put my rifle by the door. I LOVE MY WIFE!
Off I went to the river. For those of you who have never been to Boone Co. Iowa the Des Moines River runs through the county cutting very sharp ridge lines as it goes. Being the moron that I am I parked at the bottom of the ridge. I geared up and began to hike up the ridiculously steep hills. After a 15min break half way up the hill, and a few minutes of cussing the holiday weight that I have put on, I made it to the top of the ridge to an old logging trial.
The top of the ridge line was covered in Coyote tracks. With the cold temps and 6 to 8 inches of snow hunting must be getting hard for them. I moved along the tops of the hills for a mile or so and found a nice spot above a saddle in the line. From my position I could nearly see the river to the North, and the next hillsides to my East and West. I could hear the wind blowing through the tree tops but my little bluff was left untouched and still.
I pierced the serenity of the woods with my Knight & Hale 920 Cottontail Call. A series of short blasts that gradually fade to a soft squeak seem to work best for me. With in 10 minutes he popped up over the western hill top 500yrds out. He was moving at trot, sneaking his way through the oak trees and windfalls. At 200yrds half way down the gully I made a kissing sound to stop him. He stood broad side ears pointed as I squeezed off the round. The Savage rang out its victorious report through the river valley as the large yote tumbled to the bottom of the hill.
I slide to the bottom to collect my kill, then deciding that it was going to take a while to get back to the truck I headed out. To my surprise the dog was much bigger than I had anticipated, the average weight of a coyote around central Iowa is about 35 to 40lbs. Knowing that he weighed a bit more than that I was anxious to get him home and on a scale.
A good evening if I have ever had one.
Live weight total: 56lbs
Weapon used: Savage Model 10 Predator
Optics used: Hawk Optics 4.5-10X50 MAP 8
Cartridge used: .223 Federal Power Shock 55gr Soft point
Back out when I get the chance.