The Adventures of Rizzo: A Good Day

The simulated screams of a fox in distress echoed across the brushy terrain and into a nearby draw, bouncing off of rocks and traveling beyond where my eyes could see. It was early in the day and the sun was hidden behind a large patchwork of clouds; the cooler temperatures reminded me that fall was here. Not everyone's mind was on the cooler temps, however - some could think of nothing other than the screams of a fox. I was reminded of this as I watched a gray fox come bounding into stand, heading straight for me. He past my hunting partner's location first, but he was quickly beyond Daniel's line of sight as he crossed into my shooting lane. Hidden in an outcropping of rock, I raised my rifle, found the little fox in my crosshairs and squeezed off a shot. Drat! I missed! The fox was on the move towards the wash, and if he reached the safety of that brush I wouldn't get another chance. I found him in my crosshairs once again, and steady, steady now I placed the reticle at the front of his chest and swung the rifle at his speed as I squeezed off another shot. The fox cartwheeled a few times and came to rest in the sandy bottom of the wash. Another day of predator hunting was underway, and off to a great start.

I met Daniel online through AR15.com, a shooting forum that we both frequent. He was serving our country overseas at the time and was very interested in giving predator hunting a try once he returned home for leave. I told him I'd take him out since he lived here in beautiful Arizona, and we setup a date and were both excited to get out there and whack some predators! It can be a little nerve-racking sometimes when you are taking someone out predator hunting, especially for their first time, because the predators don't always get the memo that they need to come running in to the call through an open shooting lane, and sometimes they just decide to not show up at all. Luckily that was not going to be the case today.

After that first fox we had the chance to get on two more stands that produced gray fox. The first was in a dry riverbed surrounded by rocky outcroppings, and that fox popped up right in front of Daniel. He quickly discovered that a 4x ACOG is tough in close quarters on small foxes, and the fox bolted back into the brush. Daniel was excited to see gray fox up close in the wild, and was determined to get one down with his rifle. He would get another chance about an hour later.

We settled onto the knob of a hill which overlooked two small valleys and one rocky hillside. I placed Daniel in a spot where he would be able to see anything that approached the stand. Just a few minutes into the stand Daniel fired a few shots, and I was hopeful that he had made contact. After a few more minutes of calling with no response, I called off the stand and headed over to Daniel. A fox had come racing down the hillside and Daniel had tried to get on him with his rifle, but that fox must have been wearing a kevlar vest and he made his escape to live another day.

We had a few more dry stands, and then the things became not so dry: rain rolled in across the mountains and poured down pretty steadily. This gave Daniel and I some time to sit and talk and enjoy the beautiful Arizona landscape. Once the rain stopped we hopped out and headed for some granite boulders, hoping for more fox, but just a few minutes into the stand we were again hit with rain. A few hundred yards from the truck, we decided to wait it out under a big oak tree, and had time again to sit and talk and enjoy the beautiful Arizona landscape.

Once the rain stopped again we headed back to the truck and decided to try a new area, as the wind had also kicked up considerably. The wind would decide to taunt us for the rest of the hunt, which we decided to call off a bit early, but not before we found ourselves at the edge of a big riverbed. I decided that the ol' FoxPro would work well in this situation, and set up with the e-caller in front of Daniel, and myself on the hill to his left. It wasn't long before a midday coyote decided to check things out. He was headed right for Daniel and out into a large opening when he suddenly decided to change course and get downwind of the e-caller. My scent was all over that caller and the surrounding area, and I knew that once the coyote smelled that he would be gone - but Daniel had no clear shot. As the coyote stopped and put his nose to the wind I drew down on him with my shotgun and put him to rest. Not exactly how I would've liked it to play out but we were able to bring this one last predator in and put him on the ground.

After one more dry stand and then Daniel's first called stand, we called it for the day. But not before we had one more visitor: a 44" western diamondback rattlesnake.

I always enjoy taking new hunters out, but it was a real pleasure hunting with Daniel. He is heading back overseas in defense of freedom soon, and I want to thank him for all that he does - God bless those that keep us free. I am looking forward to hunting with Daniel again when he returns to Arizona.