Where Are You From & Where Do You Hunt Varmints?

**lmabra** · 08-27-2004, 04:11 PM

Originally posted by smallblockfuelie@Aug 3 2004, 07:45 PM
lwmabra,

Welcome to the group; I look forward to reading some of your stories! How do you like your home made caller?

The caller works great.

I've only tested it once, without hope of calling anything in. I just wanted to give it a try.

Just waiting on some cold weather.

**catmando** · 09-16-2004, 10:06 PM

Hi my name is Ron from Hillsboro Tx I shot marlin 17 hmr or shotgun i do alot of nite calling mainly bobcat and coon and yotes will pass up a yote if it fills good for cat. am 43 now have guided deer elk bear and mountion lion hunters in Wy.and Az. My dream hunt would be to call in 20 bobcats at one time at nite.Thats whats i'm talking about. you all passing thou give me a holler we;ll go bust a yote.

**gonehunting** · 09-16-2004, 10:58 PM

I am currently in Cali, and I have predator called in WI, AK, and NV. I use a .243 for all my predator hunting. My dream hunt would to be able to call in a mountain lion in any of the western states ( well one that it is legal to hunt them in anyways...hint hint) My odds are probably better at winning the lottery than calling one in, but hell, gotta have something to do, right?

Ryan

**Winchester_wrf** · 09-28-2004, 08:06 PM

I live in Wisconsin (but my heart is still in South Dakota). Ben killing varmints and predators for most of my life. (44 now and started killing rats with my pellet gun in the early 70's).

I mostly hunt varmints and predators in South Dakota, North Dakota, Wyoming and Colorado. Can't seem to get enough of shooting those dogs though. Praire Dogs (or praire rats as we call'em) are my favorite. Gone through more than 15,000 rounds since I started in 1992. (Some of that is from my boy who has been going for the last 4 years).

Guns of choice:

3 - 223's. One ruger and 2 rem varmint specials.
2 - 22-250's. One ruger and one beautiful Cooper Arms
5 - .17's. Two H&R, one ruger, one remington and one Tarus pistol
1 - 22 mag, remington
4 - 22's. 2 browning levers, one ruger 10/22 and one old remington pump
3 - 22 WRF. all three winchester 1890 pumps
And on that rare occation that I get a little silly....my ruger 338 with 200 gr nosler ballistic tips......OUCH.

I KNOW.....I KNOW.....Too damn much fire power.

favorite call is still my homemade mouth piece for the yote's....they seem to love it.

Dream hunt is to spend more than just 4 or 5 days shooting praire rats. Would love to just camp out for a week or two on the praire.

Love the forum.....keep'em going

Tom

**RoxanneK** · 11-09-2004, 07:48 AM

I live in East Texas and hunt coyotes with my night vision scope on my 22-250. It is a blast to see all what goes on back in the woods at night, undetected(usually). My hubby built me a platform stand way up in a tree back in our woods and I hunt there 2 or 3 times a week. It has just started to get cool enough here to hunt and I have killed one coyote a couple of days ago. We have a resident grey fox that I watch everytime I go back there and 3 or 4 bobcats that move through there every evening. The coyotes are really thick out here and I do not like them a bit. They do not seem to be afraid enough of people and I know they would love to eat my weenie dog! I would not shoot any other varmits. My hubby got me interested in hunting years ago when we were dating (thought he was such a stud to be able to shoot a squirell clear out of a tree!) and our kids were brought up loving hunting and the outdoors.

Found this site a few months ago and this is my first post. I have enjoyed reading everybody's posts! Roxanne

**WYOBOY** · 11-09-2004, 10:38 AM

I live in Socal, and hunt ground sqirrells and coyotes with a .22-250 built on a Rem 700 action. My favorite all around rat rifle is a Sako .243. I grew up in Wyoming shooting prarie rats, porcupines,rock dogs, coyotes, fox, badger.....feild mice.
My first ever hunt was actualy over a prarie dog town with a marlin bolt .22 with my Grandfather. My dream varmint hunt would probobly include the same prarie dog town with the same old man, and a few thousand rounds for a truck load of rifles.

**MLP** · 01-12-2005, 07:36 PM

New to the group, this is my first post. Originally from Southern California, I have lived in Corona since 1987. I have a sports photography business.

Got my first hunting license in 1968 and have hunted on-and-off ever since. I'm primarily a bird hunter and I'm currently training my second Labrador to work upland game.

Mostly self-taught, I have had the opportunity to hunt ground squirrels, rabbits & hares, crows. Interested in coyotes too but have not yet taken one. My favorite locations are in the high-desert. BLM land in the Randsburg management area: El Paso Mtns, Randsburg/Red Mtn, Trona, Panamint Valley. Also public lands in and around Imperial Valley.

I use the following firearms:

Ruger Mark II .22LR w/Bushnell 2x32.
Remington 1187 12GA w/Trijicon OEG.
NEF HandiRifle .223 w/Leupold 4x28.
Remington 700PSS .308 w/Leupold 8x40.

My current "project rifle" is a Savage 110 short action .22-250, Timney Trigger, varmint barrel, synthetic stock w/Bushnell 10x40.

mark

**Barnes** · 01-13-2005, 11:55 PM

my name is tom, i live in chicago
i go dogging out in SW montana every summer

my guns of choice for these little guys is
.22 LR
.17 HMR
and for the really dumb ones .223
every night there are jack rabbits every where, i use the 12 G on them
always rewarding and always fun

**BAR01** · 02-20-2005, 05:14 PM

From wellington, NV hunt rabbits in Minihaha and have started goin after yotes in the sweetwaters. Hope to take a lion this year

Prefer my Bushmaster Carbon-15 (.223) backed up by a .45 auto
Use a Rem. 597 22LR for the bunnys

freind of mine got me into predator hunting about a week ago and have yet to burn a yote myself.

About the biggest predator hunting aspiration is to call in a M lion.

looking for area yote busters to join forces with and improve my virtually nonexistant calling ability....

**bzzrd feeder** · 03-02-2005, 08:09 PM

Howdy From central cal. shoot mainly grnd sqrl. Use 17 remington in a Stolle action and a 17 hmr in a VQ and a Anshutz. Also have the 223's, 22-250's and a 243 wssm but I'm partial to the 17 centerfire cause I can see what I shoot. Last year had a good year 4178 total on grnd sqrl. I doubt I'll ever top that unless I go up north and shoot sqeaks & gophers.

**smallblockfuelie** · 03-02-2005, 08:30 PM

That is a lot of ground squirrels! Apparently I've been going to the wrong places to find 'em!

**bzzrd feeder** · 03-03-2005, 07:20 PM

I've been doing it along time, have alot of country to shoot on and alot of time. Spent 66 days in 2004. Thatcount doesn't count my shooting partners.

**Chief** · 03-15-2005, 06:49 AM

Been reading this site for awhile now and thought I'd join, seems like a nice place to be. I'll try to answer all the questions: From Southern AZ, been hunting/calling for longer than I care to remember, have hunted the entire world from Africa to Australia to Iran to Europe to the Orient but the best place has been right here in the USofA. I normally use whatever rifle I'm going to us for whatever I got drawn for big game, if drawn for elk I go calling with the 270WSM or 7Mag, Antelope I'll use the 270 or 243, if drawn for Sheep I'll use the 308 or 270WSM, however my preference is the 223 or 22-250. Got started/hooked on calling about 1948 maybe 49, self taught and made enough mistakes along the way for everyone on this board!!! I use the FoxPro with remote and decoy, but ALWAYS have a few calls in my pack or around my neck. Due to age and other reason I don't get out as often as I would like, down to about 3 or 4 days a week now. Don't kill coyotes from Feb to Sep, however have no problem if someone else does, just not for me. Any of you get around this way give me a holler and we'll go out any try to bust a few.

**ShooterJohn** · 04-15-2005, 08:42 PM

Hello everyone, my name is John and I'm a huntaholic! There I admitted it so I've made the first step. I have been a sneak reader here and on several other forums for a long time usually while at work. I figured it's time to jump in. But here's my story.

Where are you from and where do you hunt varmints or predators?

I was born and raised in Sacramento, California. I hunt most of California and Northern Nevada.

Do you use a bow, rifle or shotgun? What kind?

Yes, yes and yes! I wish I could say I only had one of each of the above but like days in a year I have too many to list. Just ask my wife who I think is more important.

Who taught you how to hunt varmints or predators and when was your first hunt?

I taught myself to hunt varmints and predators technically. My grandfather had a ranch with walnuts which had ground squirrels and crows. But he and my uncle were hunters and passed that skill onto me. My grandfather would give me say ten .22LR's rounds and say bring me back ten of something. That was when I was nine or ten about 1962. It taught me to shoot straight using my old J.C Higgins .22. I moved onto yellow bellied marmots in the late 60's when I discovered them while trout fishing some lakes in the Sierra's. I bought my first real varmint rifle in 1969 a Remington model 788 in .22-250. I had a Trashco 3-9 scope on it but could pop those marmots with ease. No more having to put the sneak on them to within .22LR range. I still have the gun and it is a tack driver to this day. That old Tasco is history though. I'll never forget the first ground squirrel I shot with this gun. I pulled the trigger and it basically disappeared. I saw something flying and I thought maybe I hit dirt. That is until I went to the spot and found small pieces of remains. I was hooked! Predators were just a logical step and I shot my first coyote with my .22LR while hunting jack rabbits. I was hooked immediately. I still have the first book I bought about varmint hunting. THE VARMINT AND CROW HUNTER'S BIBLE by Bert Popowski. That was hundreds of thousands of rounds ago. I've shot competitively in trap, skeet, rifle and pistol. If it has to do with shooting something sign me up.

What is your favorite call?

My old Weems and Circe Calls were my first and favorite. But I have to say my FoxPro is fast becoming my favorite as the animals are so pressured these days.

What is your dream varmint or predator hunt?

Every hunt is a good hunt. I guess a dream hunt would be go back to the days of marmot hunting when I was a kid. There was something special about those days.

**Jay Nistetter** · 04-20-2005, 09:17 PM

Hello all. I'm from the Phoenix area since 1977.
Born and raise in OK, lived in both MO and KS '72-'77.
Been an avid predator calling for a long time.

I hunt several states with pistol, rifle, sometimes shotgun. Used to use a bow a lot but anymore I only use one to bow fish.

I am self taught as far as predator calling. First time I called in a coyote was 12 years old and was fooling with a piece of tin I folded into a whistle. My dog started growling and I looked up and saw a coyoted walking toward us.

Favorite call is a Weems whether the Wild Call or All Call.

A dream predator hunt I suppose would be in a place I've never been.

**smallblockfuelie** · 04-20-2005, 09:21 PM

Welcome, Jay. Where in MO did you live?

**Jay Nistetter** · 04-20-2005, 09:28 PM

I lived in KC but spent 3 years surveying on the Mississippi.

**Eric Mayer** · 05-01-2005, 08:26 AM

Folks,

Jay has a very good book called, "Predator Calls The First 50 Years" that is a very interesting read and probably a must have book for folks who like to call predators. Forget the "Foxpro" or "Loudmouth". This book is not only the history of Predator Calls, but probably the history and evolution of calling itself. A ton of great pictures too!

I know for a fact that Jay spent a long time putting together this book and it shows his love for our predator calling passion.

Nice to see you again, Jay! Welcome to Jesse's!

Eric A. Mayer

**Frank** · 05-01-2005, 11:53 AM

Welcome to Jesse's, Jay, glad you found us......

Boy, have I got some questions for you. lol And I still have a couple of old original Weems back from the 1960's. GREAT Calls!

Happy Hunting

Frank

**reesounds** · 08-02-2005, 02:54 PM

Hi -
From OC, Ca. Like to hunt coyotes when ever possible. Cant shoot any lions here. they need it tho. Too many hikers getting munched. I hunt usually in D13.

**smallblockfuelie** · 08-02-2005, 03:05 PM

You hunting deer or bear in D-13 this year?

**reesounds** · 08-03-2005, 03:40 PM

I have been hunting deer in D13 for three years. tough going. I hope to hunt bear there too. they are out there and some big ones.

**smallblockfuelie** · 08-03-2005, 03:46 PM

Yea, myself and two other guys are going to be up there in D-13, too.

**reesounds** · 08-04-2005, 11:53 AM

I know there is a big buck out there, D13. I have seen tracks that were 5 inches from tip to end of hoof & four inches wide, damn, I freaked when I found that one. Too bad it was on the run and cant tell where he went to.

Deer in D13 are very wary and hard to find. I love the country up there. Fighting the LA traffic is a bitch tho, but we gotta do what we gotta do!

**smallblockfuelie** · 08-04-2005, 04:10 PM

I've got you beat there, I live North of LA and miss all that blasted traffic on my way to D13.

**drewjunr** · 12-30-2005, 07:57 PM

I live in Waller, Texas and I will be hunting in my backyard (5 semi wooded acres) but have seen a deer, coydog (or stray that looked wild) and foxes. I saw the owner of the tracks 4+ years ago when doing tractor work. I thought it was one of my cats playing in a dirt hole...after getting withing 50 yards of the hole the cat it got up...I backed back to the tractor and the cat started to walk back into the woods and kept watching me as I watched it. The cat was as black as night and beautiful. The next time I see her/him...I will be making a wall rug. These were only 60 yards from our chicken/rabbit yard and 100 yards from the house and 5 kids, can't take a chance on one of them getting hurt.

**fbuckner** · 01-05-2006, 09:42 AM

Well I seem to be the only Michigander here if im not mistaken.
I enjoy All types of Hunting In the summer Woodchucks AKA Groundhogs mainly.
Currentlly trying to learn coyote hunting. I have a johnny Stewart electronic call and 2 mouth calls I hunt with either my Marlin .22 or my T/C Encore in .223 SS Target barrel with a Bushy 3x9x50 trophy scope equipted for all light conditon hunting Any tips would be greatly appreciated PM me so we dont eat up space on the forum.
Quote:
I KNOW.....I KNOW.....Too damn much fire power

Is there really a such a thing?
Nahhh!

**detrio** · 03-26-2006, 07:23 PM

I am new to the group and live in the Chino Hills area. I hunt ground squirrels in Cedarville, California and hunt p-dogs in Wyoming. I plan to do some coyote and bobcat hunting locally towards the end of the year. I reload most of my ammo and have a Tactical 20 (20 caliber)rifle that is a laser. I also have two Remy 700's VS 26" and an LTR that will shoot under 1/2" with handloads. I also have a CZ 452 in 17HMR and it's a fun rifle to shoot.

**smhuntley** · 04-05-2006, 06:25 PM

Howdy all, new guy here. I just relocated back to SoCal after living in CO the last 8 years or so. I'm living in San Diego, but try to split my time between SD and a place we have in Silverthorne, CO. I've hunted elk, mule deer, antelope, and upland birds in CO and WY when I was in CO full-time. Just getting into Varmint/Predator hunting after briefly starting to do so prior to our move. My current varmint rifle is a Savage 12FV in .22-250. Don't have any favorite calls yet, I was hoping to get some input from the folks here on that. Also looking to find some good spots around here and hook up with some like-minded people.

Cheers,
Scott