Night hunting for coyotes - gear needed?

[jrm]

I am thinking about night hunting for coyotes when season comes around again. Plenty in the area and they are very active at night.

I have done some homework on the topic. Most information seems to be based on hunting in much different terrain than upstate NY. Where I would be hunting a _daytime_ shot would not likely exceed 100yds. At night, range would obviously be less.

Proper gear has me a little confused. Specifically lights and scopes. Thinking along the lines of a green LED light attached to the rifle. Spending big bucks on a night-vision setup doesn't make sense for me.

For a scope, what is recommended? Illuminated recticle seems the way to go for night shooting. What about magnification and other features? I don't know much about scopes at all.

For such a short range, would iron sights or a red dot sight do the trick? I realize it would be dark out, but it the light is enough to illuminate the target, it should be enough to use the sight. Seems like these options would also provide a better field of view.

[BKhunter]

Can't help you with the scope issues, but a thought to keep in mind is what is behind the coyotes in the dark. Make sure you are very aware of what is past your target as you will not be able to see it.

[deerpassion]

I've got 2 Cree Green LED's that wound to my regular deer scope on my 30-06 .... I would have to look but I think they are both around 500 lumens with I can easily illuminate out to 150 +.... Reticle shows up just fine , like having night vision in your scope when the LED's on .... You may want to opt for a light that comes with a pressure switch ...

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[verminater71]

a strong headlamp, my preference  http://nighteyeslights.com/LED-headlamps?product_id=50

 

a good led gun light, green is usually brighter, however it washes out with a light snow falling, I prefer red 

 

a good scope 2-7X is plenty, you won't be shooting to far at night

 

personally I don't like lighted reticles, they seem to wash out with the light on

 

also don't overlook a good shotgun, depending on where you're hunting a good shotgun is all you need

[NFA-ADK]

I use true glow sights.  They work great for open sights.  Otherwise a really good scope that gathers good light in low light conditions will work with the spot light.  Leupold makes some good ones that are in the 500$ plus range.  A 40 mm objective or better is great for light gathering with 50 being good for night.  These are basic scopes but they are top of the line and side by side comparison proves it and you can still use it during the day.

[stoneam2006]

I use a handheld spotlight with green or red shades....if it doesn't come with colored lenses layout dye works real good...i use a 22_250 with 3x9 scope non illuminated as said above make sure know target behind and if lights good enough should be able to see nicely thru scope...good luck it's a blast....early am fun too

[jrm]

Thanks for all the great info.

First off - I FULLY understand the importance of knowing what is behind the target. I would be hunting on my own land and know it - as well as the surrounding area - very well. I have a few locations picked where to hunt from. At those points, there are clear shooting lanes in a maximum number of directions. If something comes in from one of the few "bad" lanes, I simply pass on the shot. I have thought that part through quite a bit. Any direction I would shoot has a natural berm as a backstop. Excellent point as I am sure some people don't fully consider that.

From the responses, it seems that a lighted reticle is not the best idea... the flashlight apparently provides enough illumination to make a standard reticle work. Cool. That makes one part of this simpler.

Truglo sights... aren't they the fiber optic type used on bows? Is the flashlight enough to make them visible? Or do you mean a tridium type of sight?

Scopes... so low power is fine (I though so) but a higher objective is better for light gathering (I know nothing about scopes). Great. That will definitely help to narrow things down. It's a little intimidating to walk into a store and see 50-60 different scopes to choose from.

Hadn't thought of a headlamp. Sounds like a good idea. Would you use that in lieu of or in addition to a rail mounted flashlight? Do you scan with the headlamp (always on) and then just turn on the gun light (pressure switch) when you have a target? All that light doesn't spook the coyotes? Everything I have read says the green or red light doesn't bother them, but it seems like all those lumens should have some effect.

Shotgun - Hadn't considered that. I have a SxS, but it has a polished chrome barrel which may cause a problem for night hunting. My rifle can easily mount a light and scope. It also has a matte black barrel which should eliminate reflections.

Green vs Red light - I knew green was brighter. Didn't realize about the light snow problem. I may get a light with interchangeable red/green LEDs just in case. Can you use red and green at the same time? (i.e. red headlamp and green gun light?)

Thanks again for the help.

edited to add... any thoughts on red dot sights in the application?

Edited May 13, 2015 by jrm

[jrm]

I use a handheld spotlight with green or red shades....

How do you manage that... handheld light + rifle?

[deerpassion]

Think about trying to keep a headlamp on target while bringing your cheek to the rifle/scope... Not gonna work n one more thing you have to think about in that high pressure situation sometimes... Like I said earlier I have two Cree LED's both in green ... I mount one the scope with the pressure switch , and then I use the other handheld to periodically scan so I'm not having to move the gun around for light... And it is a lot of lumens but doesn't seem to bother em....

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[stoneam2006]

How do you manage that... handheld light + rifle?

It's awkward but with practice not to bad....and I've gotten into using a bypod on my rifle also witch helps dramaticly...but hold light in fore hand sideways I prefer

[jrm]

Interesting. Not sure a bipod will work in my situation.

I do like the two flashlight idea. Thinking flashlight instead of spotlight it makes more sense. Originally I pictured one of those large searchlights. With a small flashlight in your off-hand you can still maintain a good grip on the fore stock. It also makes sense that this is better for sweeping than a head mounted light.

Again, thanks everyone for the great info.

[turkeyfeathers]

IMO 12 gauge with #4 buckshot

[Big_Bean_Dog]

I'll second the 12gauge with #4 buck. Best coyote medicine for night hunting.

Beandog

[verminater71]

Think about trying to keep a headlamp on target while bringing your cheek to the rifle/scope... Not gonna work n one more thing you have to think about in that high pressure situation sometimes... Like I said earlier I have two Cree LED's both in green ... I mount one the scope with the pressure switch , and then I use the other handheld to periodically scan so I'm not having to move the gun around for light... And it is a lot of lumens but doesn't seem to bother em....

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not sure how long you've been doing this, however over the last 30 years, I've never hunted without a headlamp

 

if you do, you're missing a lot of eye's,

 

turn your headlamp on when you get out of the truck, and don't turn it off until you get back to the truck

 

once you get them in your headlamp cone, turn your gunlight on and bring your gun up, once you hit them with a light, never take the light off them

[deerpassion]

not sure how long you've been doing this, however over the last 30 years, I've never hunted without a headlamp

if you do, you're missing a lot of eye's,

turn your headlamp on when you get out of the truck, and don't turn it off until you get back to the truck

once you get them in your headlamp cone, turn your gunlight on and bring your gun up, once you hit them with a light, never take the light off them

That's what the second hand held LED is for , same deal as ur talkin about with shining em, but I thought you were saying your head lamp was your only light cause as u cheek up to the stock to look through the scope that head lamp beam is no longer on target but at an angle , but you added the gun light so that solves that issue ...

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