It’s a technique that’s been used since the first hunter outsmarted his prey, but the quick-learning coyote needs a new presentation every season.

By Jim Walker

I’m like most hunters out there who have a limited amount of time and money to spend hunting. Factor in the demands of work, family, church, etc., and you end up only being able to dedicate a small fraction of your available time to the field. If you only have four hours to go hunting on a Saturday morning, you want to make sure you are going to have the best chance possible of a successful hunt.

Today, we can use techniques and technologies to make the most of our limited time in the field. Consider this a guide book for getting started.

It All Starts Online

PX readers are a cross section of all Americans today — only they are better shots. Almost everyone uses the Internet for email, browsing the Web, finding a restaurant, or shopping online. Technology makes our life simpler. Why should hunting be any different?

I have been pre-planning all of my hunts with some online tools that help me to determine key information before I ever step into the field. I can bounce a location off of my hunting buddies without having to draw it on a napkin or explain it with some cryptic sign language, and I can save the complete information and retrieve it on demand. I am able to document all of my hunts, sightings, and information in one place so I can refer to it easily and quickly. Before I ever leave the house, I know:

- Best access trail to use to our setup - Position of the sunrise in reference to our setup locations (shadows) - Wind direction relative to calling/entry position - Cover positions - No-Shoot directions (Homes, barns, etc.) - Location of all creeks on the property - Possible Wile E. travel lanes - Distance of most likely shooting opportunity - Stand elevation relative to possible target position - Best positions for second, third, etc.. calling spots - Call range estimate for progressive stand calling

I know all this even if I have never set foot on the property. All you need to get started is a computer with an Internet connection. It doesn’t matter if you are a Windows or MAC user. The techniques I am going to discuss are available to all Internet users. Internet connection speed is also not that big a factor — although faster is always better.

Sites of Interest

The most common maps on the Internet are for planning trips and getting directions to a destination. Many of these sites provide excellent driving directions, but for a predator hunter’s needs they fall short. There are two map sites that have significant advantages for the hunter. Point your browser to one of these: http://maps.google.com or http://maps.live.com.

I use the Google Maps site for most of my work. Either site will work for this exercise, however. Once you have navigated to the site using your browser, type in your home address. It will be much easier to grasp the concepts we will discuss with a familiar address/location. Based on the settings of the map site, it may come up with a satellite view or a road map view.

Satelite view of a residential address

The Devil Is In the Detail

The power of these mapping sites for the predator hunter is the high-resolution satellite imagery they provide. To zoom in on a location click the “+” sign on the slider tool on the left or double click on the exact location you’d like to view closer. As with a lot of computer tasks, there are multiple ways to accomplish the same result. Picking one and sticking with it is the best way to become efficient.

Now Take It Hunting

You now have the basics of navigating a map. You should be comfortable with opening your browser, getting to the mapping site, typing in an address and moving around. For very rural areas where you don’t have a specific street address, type in the nearest road, highway intersection or canyon name or any known, close landmarks. Then scroll around until you center the area on the screen where you want to hunt. Our primary use of this information will be to find possible new stand sites for predator hunting.

I begin by researching and expanding my existing hunting locations. From there, I zoom out to allow the map to include the bordering property. During this exercise, I keep my existing hunting grounds in the center of the display. By looking at the topography of the land and the position of barriers (creeks, rivers, roads, etc.), I try to determine the most likely position (based on call ranges in my hunting grounds of western Pennsylvania, which are about one-quarter to one-half mile) to setup a new or secondary stand. I am browsing for travel lanes that coyotes might use, such as creeks, power lines, fire roads, etc.

Switching from the satellite view to the terrain view provides elevation and topography information. This is essential, especially in unfamiliar territory. Knowing the highest ground in an area can give a predator hunter a leg up when searching for calling locations.

One thing that isn’t apparent when using the mapping sites is your orientation. On the Google Maps site, north is always up. The Bing site does provide a compass for reference in the upper left side of the screen. Either way, it’s sometimes easy to get confused as to where you are. When this happens, zoom out and find a known reference object to reorient yourself.

Real World Example

Talking and doing are very different things. So, let’s try a real-world example. Below is a satellite photo of a farm that has been very productive. I have hunted this site for over a year and am pretty familiar with it. Ideally, I would like to have two to three additional sites depending upon wind and time of day for a setup. So let’s utilize my technique for picking the new proposed sites.

Current location marked with red star

Zooming back from the location provides a broader view of the surrounding property with less detail. Once you determine an area of interest for a second calling location, you can zoom the display to explore that area more closely.

Proposed new calling sites marked with yellow/blue stars

Plan the Work and Work the Plan

So we have been able to pick quickly two possible candidates for new stand locations at an existing site. What conclusion can we draw from the information? What plans can we formulate? Let’s start with what the images tell us about the calling site marked with the yellow star:

- This site has cover as is evident by the tree line.
- This stand should be hunted with a west/northwest wind and never with wind from the east or south.
- From the terrain information it is lower in elevation than the blue stand
- A dirt road runs from the yellow to blue stand
- This should be a morning stand since the sun will be at our back
- A no shoot safety zone exists to the northeast
- Likely target approach from the northwest tree line

Now the calling site marked with a blue star:

- This site also has cover.
- This stand should be hunted with a west/northwest wind and never with wind from the east or south.
- From the terrain information, it is higher in elevation than the yellow stand
- This can be a morning or evening stand depending upon position.
- A no shoot safety zone exists to the east
- Likely target approach from the northwest tree line
- A travel lane exists running northeast (gas line)

Further Planning:

- When planning to hunt this site in the morning, the calling stand sequence should be from the yellow site to the blue site. Progressing toward the wood line. - The dirt road access will provide quiet entry into each stand. - Distance between stands is approximately 1,000 feet.

Considering we have not yet set foot on these sites, I would say that we have gotten some significant help for a first-time setup at these locations. All this requires is a few mouse clicks and a bit of thought.

Limitations

As with all good things, there are always limitations. So what are they, and how can we work around them?

1. Old Satellite Data

The first problem is that the sites may present the satellite data that may not be the best quality for your hunting destination. The pictures could be from years ago and significant changes may have occurred to the landscape. The only suggestion here is to try a secondary mapping site.

2. Resolution/Fuzzy Pictures

Some of the satellite pictures that are available online only provide a limited amount of resolution due to the satellite camera utilized for the photo. Most of these photographs were taken in the early 90s. The good thing is that the sites constantly update the satellite data. So sooner or later, the higher resolution (read a license plate quality) will be there.

;

3. Seasons

The satellite photos presented are a snapshot in time. They are not real time. You would be amazed how many folks I run into that believe the picture they are viewing is a live camera. Additionally, be aware that the photos were taken at any time of the year and they may be spliced together across the seasons. Part of a landscape can look like fall and the rest like summer. Your eyes are not deceiving you, it is just the way the satellite recorded the photos. At this time, there is no way to tell the specific date the picture was captured.

4. Time of Day

Be aware of shadows from tall trees, structures, etc., in the satellite imagery. This can sometimes give you a hint as to what time of day the satellite passed overhead. Not that it matters, but every little bit helps.

The Guide in Your Pocket

Once you have found that potentially great hunting spot on the map, the next step is to get it into your GPS. With Google Maps that is as simple as right clicking your mouse on the position and selecting “What’s Here?” from the menu that appears. The left hand window will show coordinates of the selected location and a marker will appear on the map. Just enter the coordinates into your GPS and press the “Go To” button to find the location in the real world.

If you are out exploring and mark some points with your GPS, just enter the coordinates into the address field of Google Maps and press search. The map will show the location, and now you can zoom in/out and determine other potential spots to complement the one you discovered with your GPS.

Using What You Know

As most PX subscribers do, I constantly re-read articles from past issues looking for additional information. This article is no exception. Put these techniques together with the “Metro Coyotes” article in PX December 2007 or the “Coffee Shop Coyotes” article from PX October 2008, and you have an awesome combination to increase your success in suburban and metro areas. The satellite imagery can quickly point you to likely pockets of habitat for your quarry. Now it’s your turn. Look up that site you have been hunting for a while and see what else is close by or go off the path and chart some new territory. These tools and techniques will help you make the most of the time you spend in the field.

E-mail page

Predator Xtreme. Predator hunters are a diverse lot. If hides are the objective, the months following deer season is nirvana. Woodchucks, prairie dogs and the feral hog fill the summer months. Ranchers protecting livestock hunt coyotes with a vengeance. Urban hunters with limited hunting time pursue suburban fringe-dwelling critters. There’s never a bad time to be afield when pursuing predators, and Predator Xtreme is your vehicle to the adventure. Subscribe Today.