The seemingly never ending raccoon battle…new pics

[Flintsack]

I usually try to get a walk in right before dusk. It was incredibly windy. Which concerned me because it covers sound. I was concerned that Penny would run ahead and get herself in trouble. 

So I was trying to keep her close to me. And I was talking loud and yelling to her so that we wouldn’t startle anything. I was way over the top, I don’t know if I had a premonition or what. 

penny ran around the corner and started heading down for the draw, the draw where the raccoons live. So I started jogging, and kept talking loud, then I called her back with me, and ran down the hill to where I could see into the draw. And a 40 pound raccoon was scuttling away quickly. 

I pulled my 22 Magnum semi auto out of my pocket as quickly as I could, called penny back to me, I was able to get one shot in just as it was diving into its Den. I don’t think I hit it. It was a good 60 yards away, but the pistol is really accurate.

The other night we were out, and I saw four of them go into their den. I was about 100 yards away with Penny. Sitting there wishing I could take a shot with my 22 mag pistol . But the background wasn’t quite right.

There seems to be a large group living about 250 yards from my office.

Stay tuned…

mike

 

[wimpanzee]

40lbs is one big ass raccoon!

 

[qball]

40lbs is one big ass raccoon!

NEVER seen a coon even close to that big! That sounds like trouble waiting to happen. 

 

[Ezana4CE]

40lbs is one big ass raccoon!

I was just thinking the same thing. Sounds like my kind of hunting. That’s a trophy raccoon for me. Good thing she didn’t run up on it. 

 

[FelixS]

I assume Penny is your dog?

 

[Peashooter]

We dont have racoons here, but we have Badgers, and they are nasty too. ( EURO badger larger than US badger )

A old saying go they bite until they hear bone crunch, so when i find a den in the forest i wonder ????? fox or badger, and have my hand on the big Bowie,,,,, cuz the sucker is only getting 1 bite out of my ass,

I would prefer to have a .22 or something along those lines under my arm instead of just sharp steel, but society here force me to do things in the old way.



"wiki" say a racoon can get to 57lb.

 

[Peashooter]

I assume Penny is your dog?

I think having kaley cuoco on a leash would be frowned upon, it would at least be,,,,, kinky.

 

[Flintsack]

Whatever she weighs, her and her litter need to go.

mike

 

[N2 Shooter]

40lbs is one big ass raccoon!

NEVER seen a coon even close to that big! That sounds like trouble waiting to happen.

I have, and it scared the crap outta me! Ever since then, I use the Benjamin Bulldog .357 for raccoons.

https://youtu.be/ftsl2voWcZw

 

[MosesM]

At 60 yards with a pistol, a coon would have to be at least 400 pounds for me to have a chance to hit it But I can remember clean back to your posts on the Yellow, and I wouldn't bet against you making that shot. 

But if you had a dog like Toby you wouldn't worry about him catching the coon

Moses in Pa

 

[crosman2016]

40lbs is one big ass raccoon!

NEVER seen a coon even close to that big! That sounds like trouble waiting to happen.

I have, and it scared the crap outta me! Ever since then, I use the Benjamin Bulldog .357 for raccoons.



https://youtu.be/ftsl2voWcZw

Yeah, that would do the trick...even on a 40 pound Raccoon.

 

[Flintsack]

Moses,

always good to hear from an old yellow forum member… was the golden age.

mike

 

[Corvid_hunter]

 

[Ezana4CE]

Whatever she weighs, her and her litter need to go.

mike

I realize it was an estimate, but I am intrigued by the weight. If you bag one and have the opportunity to weigh it, I’m curious about the specifics. 40lbs is approaching the size of beavers. A 30 pounder is big to me and that sort of thing catches my attention. A coon that size will definitely give a dog a hard time and an aggressive coon that size would be a real problem. I think you have the right idea about protecting Penny. Shoot em good.

 

[Flintsack]

The D wolf is ready for battle. Down below is the view of my reticle from 60 to 100 yards. It’s upside down so when I flip the gun towards me it’s right side up. Just like I would set up for mule deer out to 600 yards. I would like to get within 80 yards of the raccoon so I could safely shoot them in the head.

I think I’m in the mood for partially open canned tuna…

mike

E. As far as the size goes. Up here in the north country things seem to in general grow bigger bodies. Deer grow bigger, bears grow bigger. These are general statements. You can get a monster anywhere.

there’s a huge difference between an adolescent raccoon and a four year old. I think most of the troublesome raccoons, are the adolescents. So that’s what most people see and run into. 

It’s like anything else, the big ones get big for a reason. Hanging out on peoples front porches is not one of them.

A 30 pound raccoon is not rare up here. It just means it’s a more mature animal. I probably exaggerated the weight, the thing looked huge. I was watching it through my scope the other night from 110 yards, it was really windy so I didn’t shoot.

I have a plan to get closer involving tunafish, a tree to hide my background, and an early arrival before dusk.

mike

 

[Flintsack]

I didn’t make it to the grocery store so we had to improvise. They need to be delivered from about 50 yards away. I have old peanut butter jars plastic, which I tighten the lids on really tight, and I filled with three different things. In addition to the peanut butter that’s not completely removed. Blueberry jam in one, shredded Parmesan cheese in another, powdered chocolate peanut butter spread in another. And a can full of peanuts that should blast open upon impact. I will fill them partially with rocks so that I can throw them further.

mike

 

[Ezana4CE]

@flintsack Good point about the mature ones living long enough to get that size. I’ve caught some nice sized coons with dogs and seen them on my trail cams. My dad has been trying to get me to stake out his garbage can because they’re making a mess scavenging. I don’t recall weighing them and I haven’t hunted any as pests before. I’ve tried catching them eating my melons in the garden, but never caught them red handed. Now that I’m thinking about it, get a big one for me damn it! 

 

[Flintsack]

From my house to yours Mr. raccoon. I can’t believe I was able to get my throw that close. I probably got up to about 40 yards away. I tried scittering it across the snow, it landed above the den and then kind of rolled in front of their den. I figure about two or 3 feet from the front door.

I also figured out I could see it from my office window. Here are some pictures which is how I found out that I made such a great throw. So now I can watch when they come out. Although I plan to be out there well before dusk. 217 yards.

Second picture from the top, the crosshairs are resting on the top of the peanut butter jar which is sideways on the ground.

The third picture shows the cross hair right on the den mouth. The peanut butter Jar is below and to the right.

The very first jar I threw, I hit a tree about 12 feet in front of me dead center. The jar blew up and I got jelly all over me. I think I was a little nervous being that close. I will send you pictures of what the den area looks like later.

mike

 

[Flintsack]

white camo is in the dryer with the scent proof stuff to go beneath.

If you’ve ever been ice fishing, there’s a device called a tip-up. It’s kind of a fishing pole that you put out by itself. And when a fish grabs your bait and starts taking line, the flag shoots up in the air. And then everyone who’s been drinking all day out on the ice, goes running to see what you’re going to catch. As a sidenote, lots of coaching takes place. You really don’t want to miss that fish.

That can of peanut butter is my tip-up.

mike

 

[Flintsack]

I went out about 20 minutes before dusk. My gut was I didn’t need to go out any earlier after firing one at them last night.

I was 71 yards from the den, 67 yards from the peanut jar, and 61 yards from the path. I was mentally completely dialed in. I knew exactly what my hold was from any distance between 30 and 100 yards. Odds were they would be somewhere around the peanut butter. 

I was completely scent free, and decked out in my Woodland white camo which I’ve never worn. Once I sat down next to my log identified previously, I was invisible.

I was quite content and warm. It was getting towards dusk, actually getting a little past dusk. 
And then a big old raccoon walked out. Tentatively edged toward the peanut butter jar. Touched it, jumped back and then looked around. I was watching all of this through 12 X, which at 70 yards which put me right in her kitchen. Literally.

I had decided I was not going to take one unless I could get the big boar. The only way I could guarantee this, was to see at least two of them together. I wondered if I would be able to hold onto that concept when reality hit…

Then out came another one. It stood right next to her in profile. It was a full-size raccoon. The big boar dwarfed it in all aspects. I now mentally give myself permission to shoot. I’ve been sitting finger on the trigger, watching all this take place, practicing putting the cross hairs where they need to be. Trying to be patient.

then I hold the appropriate cross hair for the distance, right above the neck and wait. She turns sideways to me and the rifle goes off...A high velocity 34 grain 25 caliber pellet makes a very distinct thump when it hits a raccoon in a very quiet draw at 70 yards. I had been shooting blades of grass at that distance earlier today. She kind of fell backwards and down, and then her limp tail flipped through the scopes view and she disappeared. I’m quite confident she’s an unconfirmed kill.

I sat and watched the den for another 15 minutes until it was too dark to see. At one point I was sure I saw the outline of a raccoon head peering out of the den door. It was too indistinct to shoot.

My hope is the big one is dead. The rest will eventually go out and eat that food I put out. I’ll be out there tomorrow night watching.

mike

If you are wondering why I didn’t try to retrieve it. Take a look at the draw that the raccoons live in. The middle picture. That’s an old cement bridge and the big huge steel railings.