Coyotes spend a lot of time not on deer trails, in farm country anyways. Big woods and mountain country might be a different story.
What's a better decoy than a coyote bouncing around in a trap.

"I don't plan to be the poster child for why Nebraska laws become more restrictive. "

If more people had the foresight to think like this a lot of problems we as trappers have and and will have would be not existent.
Ma

Ya I just can't imagine blending In a blind set In 6" of snow.

There are a few trappers I have heard that use footholds blind in the deeper snow quite successfully.They will slip a foothold in from the side of the trail directly under a foothole in the snow(you need to pack a solid base for the trap with your fist first).When snow gets deep,canines will put their feet in the same track.This is what makes this set so successful.A very fast and efficient set to make when used with a drag,which work very well in deep snow and brushy terrain.
A lot of times many canines will use the same trail,but it only looks like one has made the track.If you follow the track for a ways,especially a wolf track,you will see where several wolves have fanned out from what looked to be a single wolf track.
I have caught fox with this type of set,and a couple wolves,but I prefer dead animals for various reasons where I trap so I do not use this set.
I believe Lotsofmink,who posts on here occasionally uses this set quite successfully for western coyotes.
As far as blending,all you need to do is brush out your tracks a little ways from the trail with a spruce bough.

That works.

Unless you have wind.

Everything works In theory.

More snow and like Boone said wind. And how long are you going to wait for a catch? Dry snow is a must any wet snow like we have around here Is going to give you fits.

I can see blind setting for those that go that route In the fall but when winter rears It's ugly head I'm hanging cable.

Asa often spoke of setting like Boco said. I rarely get those conditions. Many of us have differing conditions and terrain, sure like reading of this.

Works very well with the right snow conditions without thaws. If it stays below 20 so the snow stays dry powder its deadly. But we rarely get those conditions. I use a broom and a waxed sifter to handle the snow. Trails in cover are best that have some wind protection. The problem is Just when the trails get established another big snow comes thru and changes their pattern. But when it's right its deadly.

The one good thing about a true “blind” trail set,........


It can be turned into a patterned, lured set real easy!

Yep the remakes are a natural

What kind of surprises me somehow ,,,,is how tough we trappers make it on our selves when simple dirt hole ,flat sets, blind sets get it done most of the time.

Good point.

Ill agree with that whole heartedly. So would it be a good take away for the newer guys to trapping to consider using only a handful of items and methods? At least this may teach them location and finding opportunity

The thing Is that some locations don't allow you to make certain types of sets. In my area you would be hard pressed to find many blind set locations. While you can make a flat set or a dirt hole just about anyplace.
So practice practice and practice some more on a set that will produce In your type of country.

Coyotes in your area don't walk around beav?

I some times think the coyotes are getting plenty practice with hole sets. How many they see in a run through their turf in Pa I'll never know.
I need a beginner to run with me, maybe I can unlearn some things lol. A good hole digging beginner.
I think we have more people trapping per mile than anywhere, and I think it shows. But what could I know.

How many beat down trails do you find In bean fields and corn fields. Then you have all those hay fields. Then just about when trapping season starts they plow It all up. Not many coyote trails until snow covers the ground.
Tons of coon trails leading from the corn to the creek or to the culvert. But those aren't coyote highways.

I don't know about your last statement Beav. Maybe not if you have a 160 on a trail or a snare sitting a couple inches off the ground for coons. Coyote's got to cross a road too. Here they really like those culverts (they're large enough I can stand in them) to cross underneath highways without being seen. I seem to pick up coyotes in trails I never would have thought would hold a coyote and I would say the number of blind sets I run in the past to be minimal at best in ratio to dirtholes/flat sets. I would say 90% of our farm ground is no till, and there's always a crossing in the fencelines in the four corners (where all four fence lines come together in the middle of the 1 mile by 1 mile section). Last season on multiple occasions the coyotes showed me where they were crossing the road in the snow, and I would have never guessed it the majority right at those culverts.

No simple is The key, ,,
Go look at a dog's dirthole or a coyote better yet.
A blind set is just that blend them in to look like the rest of the trail .
A flat set whether it has lure ,bait ,or urine, or if you got a dog and he tell you where the coyote peed bury a trap there.
And then patients. Lol out west coyotes have bigger range takes some time to get back.

I don't expect to find beat down coyote only trails. That doesn't mean they don't come past everyday either though. Field roads are obvious choices, field edges even grassy fields require some experimenting and then the confidence to set them. Following tracks in the snow will show a lot of things they will still do with no snow.