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Wolf tracks

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Posted: Sat Jan 6th, 2007 06:18 AM

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wolfkill
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These tracks are under 12 hours old. I know the wet snow that fell and then froze makes them look a little bigger but this is a nice size wolf nonetheless.

I dropped off a road kill deer for a coyote/fox hunt I plan on taking in February. I'll just have to be careful knowing the wolf is in the area. Their demeaner is quite different compared to a coyote/fox. You know right away, "That ain't no coyote that's walked into the bait."

Plan on another "meat run" in two weeks. I'll post what's left of this deer carcass and or tracks around it.

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Posted: Sat Jan 6th, 2007 09:51 AM

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Timberghozt
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That is wicked.You can tell that is a big dude.It would be a great pic if you catch that guy coming in to feed on a carcass.

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Posted: Sat Jan 6th, 2007 02:20 PM

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WildBill
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Them wolves are gettin thick around here. They will have to start letting people hunt them again before they get so many that our deer popualation gets to thined out to hunt.

Bill

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Posted: Sat Jan 6th, 2007 04:33 PM

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wolfkill
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I hope I'm not repeating a tale, if I am please inform me:

"Dude your story changed from the last time." or "Dude you told the tale before but at least it was the same." :rolleyes:

Couple of years ago I was in the sniper bunker all night and it got cold, somewhere around minus twenty, but I roughed it out in my T-shirt with the wood stove, a good book, and plenty of pop and snacks, anyway...I was exhausted come dawn and craving pancakes. I walked the half mile back to the cabin and fired up the stove and ate half a dozen os so. Around 9 a.m. I drove the ATV back down to the bunker to get my gun and stuff. Halfway down I pick up fresh wolf tracks heading right to the bait and bunker. The wolf went right to the carcass, dragged it off 15 yards and proceeded to munch.

If I had only stayed another hour I would have seen a show.

Timberghozt my thoughts exactly about getting some pic's over the carcass but the new digital camera not looking good for a night shot. I experimented a little with a full moon but looks like I'll have to invest more money if I want the picture (and I do). Here's a full moon night shot of cabin I took couple nights ago.

I put the carcass up next to cabin because the ravens were tearing it apart pretty good already down at the bunker and I only had the one carcass. Attached pic shows the shooting lane out the cabin window with a sheet of plywood in background painted white to highlight critters that visit at night.

Next pic shows the 25-06 with the Schmidt and Bender (extremely heavy crosshairs) ready for action. WildBill I know what your thinking...that your custom rifle rest could do the same, and it would! The crosshairs sit exactly on the carcass and I only shift it a little for the shot. I set the bait up about 60 yards out at the cabin and 100 yards at the bunker. I seem to get the same amount of action at the sniper bunker or cabin. I like to bait both locations because sometimes only the one location is active while I am up for a weekend whatever. My best night I did blast a coyote at the bunker and a fox at the cabin the same night.

Last edited on Sat Jan 6th, 2007 04:43 PM by wolfkill

Posted: Sat Jan 6th, 2007 04:54 PM

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WildBill
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Wolfkill, that sniper bunker is a sweet setup.

I hunt out of 2 different 6 X 6 plywood box blind on 4 X 4 skids. Mine are aweful drafty when the wind blows, it gets down right cold when it's in the 30's and below with a wind. We always talk about making it more wind prof, but never get around to it. I use 1 burner of a 2 burner propane camp cook stove for heat.

Both blind get full of those asian beattles. When it gets warm those dang things wake up and are down my coller chewing on my neck pissing me off.

Bill

Posted: Sat Jan 6th, 2007 05:38 PM

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Texasdoc
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Hey woflkill ,thats a sweet set-up you have and if you ever need help I am just a e-mail away and would love to kill another wolf .

thats is a nice set of tracks and that should be a good one to harvest .

Doc

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Posted: Tue Jan 16th, 2007 10:27 PM

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wolfkill
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Had a good meat run picking up 3 road kill deer carcass. Here's a pic of whats left of the carcass above after wolf been chewing on it. Dropped it 10 days ago.

Wolf like to drag the carcass off a ways from where they originally find it esp if it's in the open. Here's another pic of the spine which is one of the few items they don't eat and I don't why.

Found coyote/fox tracks too in area and left the 3 fresh carcass by cabin instead of my sniper bunker. The ravens and crows are a little shy up around the cabin whereas down at the sniper bunker they can consume one carcass in 48 hours.

One minus 20 degree night at sundown I brought in a big old doe that was a solid frozen chunk of meat. The next morning I found the carcass 1/3 gone just from 2 wolf eating on it.

Will make another meat run in 10 days and post pics/info. Hope to get pic of the wolf and the coyote/fox will get their pics taken too hanging from a tree with a chicken rustler sign around their neck.

Posted: Tue Jan 16th, 2007 11:10 PM

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WildBill
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That's cool.

I just got this in an email from the MNDNR.

"Under a new law passed in 2006, hunters may use artificial lights under certain conditions from Jan. 1 to March 15, to take fox and coyote. Conditions under which an artificial light may be used are listed on page 33 and 46 of the 2006 Hunting Regulations Handbook. An error in the handbook omits fox from regulations outlining the use of artificial lights."

Bill

Posted: Wed Jan 17th, 2007 10:16 AM

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Timberghozt
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Man those pics are awesome wolfkill..I have been checkin in on this thread hoping you are able to get a pic of a wolf.

We have a hatred of yotes here as well.I love to call em,but most ranchers kill em on sight if given the opportunity.

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Posted: Tue Jan 23rd, 2007 03:54 AM

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wolfkill
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I did run across another pic I had taken of a bald eagle eagle on my bait from a couple of years ago. Note how the raven is ready to "bolt" out of there if the eagle makes a move.

A guy at work has volunteered his camcorder (with night vision capabiity) to record the wolf coming into the bait when I take the weeks vaca in Feb. I might have to take him up on it since I hate to pass on an opportunity to get a pic.

My digital cam will take an add on lens (at a very good price) giving me 20x optical zoom but even with the full moon which I planned the hunt around I think the results will be dismal.

Plus my experience is fox/coyote/wolf don't like moon light and are reluctant to visit bait unless they have cloud cover over the moon.

Hope to make one last meat run next week. Will post pics of the 3 carcass above and what's left of them. Wolfie and the ravens probably munching pretty good on them right now.

Posted: Thu Feb 1st, 2007 02:22 AM

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wolfkill
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Just got back from a 36 hour bait run to the cabin. Picked up another 3 deer road kill carcass and dropped them off.

The previous 3 deer I dropped 2 weeks ago are gone. Pic below all I found. You can see fresh wolf tracks upper left. Looks like it's still a single wolf.

There are also fresh coyote and fox tracks in area. I'll be getting some action for sure.

Will be leaving Sunday for one week. I'll be coming into some super cold temps, the coldest of the year, possibly -20 degrees when I roll into cabin :thumbs1:

Tried my buddys camcorder last night which has night vision but no good. It won't focus past 20 yards. Will be limited to my digital 12x camera and delayed shutter.

I just don't think I'm going to be able to get a good pic of the wolf. Will have to invest in a good game trail camera I guess.

The coyote and fox get their pic taken later...after the rifle shot

Posted: Thu Feb 1st, 2007 02:22 AM

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wolfkill
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double post

Last edited on Thu Feb 1st, 2007 02:28 AM by wolfkill

Posted: Mon Feb 12th, 2007 06:36 PM

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wolfkill
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It was a cold artic blast the week I was there, WildBill can attest to it I'm sure since he was only 50 miles way hunkered down like me with a steady pot of coffee brewing. Brrrrrrrr.

I arrived late on a Saturday night around 9 p.m. and the temp was reading -22.

I had action out on the bait already 3 hours later at midnight. It appeared to be a wolf. I tried a couple of pics to no avail. All I got was a blurr on left side of bait. (It was probably a female since the tracks the next morn showed 3 fingers wide, not the big 4 finger wide boy that was in area)

Superbowl Sunday morning hit showing a temp at -26 and I woke up shaking like a bowl of jello. I had not taken out all my sleeping gear, since I was trying to be quiet in the cabin what with the activity on the bait and all.

Here's a pic of the temp in the outhouse reading -18 later that morning.

After a couple of pots of coffee and finally gettng the inside temp of the cabin up to around +32 (the rat shack has no insulation) I was getting a couple of pic's of ravens and a bald eagle on the bait.

A cat nap or two later and I woke up at 1:45 p.m. to find a coyote had come in for a little pre-game superbowl snack of venison.

Note mange on legs. This stuff probably would have spread pretty bad by next winter.

Unfortunately I missed another one about 10 hours later shooting high. It was a perfect broadside with a full moon, but it was extremely skittish, and in fact I had passed on it several hours earlier because the clouds covered the moon and I just couldn't get a clean shot off.

I tracked it the next morn for 200 yards with very little blood, to where it bedded down but simply could not pick up the trail from the bed. Later that
week I continued searching and found one drop of blood 200 yards from the bed.

Here's some pic's of blood high on brush, it was definitely bleeding down the fur on both sides of animal.

Looks like it stood here for awhile bleeding deciding what to do, don't know if that's scat from him or just happened to be there. Strangely the scat was missing later in week. Something ate it.

Blood bed where it lay down for awhile.

The action was over in 24 hours. Never had anything else come in although the committment was not there to sit up half the night either, so something might have come in and I was sleeping.

The big 4 finger wide track wolf came within 100 yards of the bait but did not come in. He would have grabbed one of the carcass and dragged it off for himself.

So ends the one week hunt over bait. It was great.

Can't wait until next year.

Posted: Mon Feb 12th, 2007 06:54 PM

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Timberghozt
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Awesome pics as usual wolfkill!!

If you aren`t pelt hunting,I have something loaded for a 25-06 that will help you not chase em. :wink:

Its fast and its nasty on coyotes...

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Posted: Tue Feb 13th, 2007 12:42 AM

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Force_Recon_Marine
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Thanks for sharing your pics. Those were great!

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