Squirrels...Seriously?!

Small Game Hunting, Stories and Pictures
User avatar
Racks&Beards
Posts: 431
Joined: Tue May 13, 2014 8:02 am
Location: Missouri
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby Racks&Beards » Thu Feb 06, 2020 3:48 am

I haven't done any squirrel hunting this year yet, but I feel your pain. I've gone back to the same spot I had a had a treestand during bowseason where I'd sit and count 15-20 different squirrels every evening or morning I hunted it (most within 50 yards). I go back literally the weekend after deer season is over and its like a ghost town. :lol: I've always had more luck in past (on public) just still hunting them rather than sitting and waiting.


Speed is fine...Accuracy is final.
dan
Site Owner
Posts: 41588
Joined: Sat Feb 13, 2010 6:11 am
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HuntingBeast/?ref=bookmarks
Location: S.E. Wisconsin
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby dan » Thu Feb 06, 2020 5:12 am

In winter they seem to hole up till its warm and sunny. When I was a kid I shot and ate a lot of them. I would look for nests in the trees and where they were digging in the leaves. Rather than just hunting random spots.
User avatar
Huntress13
500 Club
Posts: 3107
Joined: Wed Jul 03, 2019 2:47 am
Location: NY
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby Huntress13 » Thu Feb 06, 2020 5:47 am

I went and sat in a stand the last couple of weekends, hoping to pop a coyote. First sit was a morning, and I did see a few squirrels but not a lot. It was snowing. There was a little bird activity Second sit was an afternoon and it was light misty snow, on the verge of rain and I didn't see one squirrel, very little bird activity too.
Twigs in my hair, don't care.
User avatar
NorthStar
500 Club
Posts: 1518
Joined: Thu Sep 15, 2016 6:43 am
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby NorthStar » Thu Feb 06, 2020 6:09 am

dan wrote:In winter they seem to hole up till its warm and sunny. When I was a kid I shot and ate a lot of them. I would look for nests in the trees and where they were digging in the leaves. Rather than just hunting random spots.


This is my approach as well. Once I see a nest, I sit and wait because squirrels seem to freeze when they hear/see potential predators but their memory is short and they will start moving again shortly.
“The lazy do not roast any game, but the diligent feed on the riches of the hunt.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭12:27‬ ‭NIV‬‬
User avatar
gmark
Posts: 14
Joined: Tue Sep 24, 2019 6:40 am
Location: S. Florida
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby gmark » Thu Feb 06, 2020 8:33 am

January was the first time that I have ever gone squirrel hunting. I also went to a spot where I had seen 10+ squirrels in a sit during deer season but didn't see or hear any.
I found a slightly different area with some oak trees mixed with some pine trees and I eventually ended up shooting 4 squirrels out of the 5 morning hunts that I did in January (the last 2 were shot within 5 minutes of each other in practically the same spot). I have learnt that the wind plays a big role in whether or not they will be active - if the wind gets close to or over 10 mph then they don't move.
They are also very good at spotting humans and hiding behind branches so I walk very slowly and quietly with a small tripod chair attached to my back pack and as soon as I see or hear one in the trees, I sit down in a place where I can get a shot and wait for them to forget that I am there and to start moving around again. Unfortunately the small game season on this property ended last week so now I will have to find some new spots on a different property.
User avatar
Racks&Beards
Posts: 431
Joined: Tue May 13, 2014 8:02 am
Location: Missouri
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby Racks&Beards » Thu Feb 06, 2020 9:53 am

gmark wrote:Unfortunately the small game season on this property ended last week so now I will have to find some new spots on a different property.


Dang, that reminds me. I wasn't even thinking about it earlier when I posted, but the Missouri squirrel season ends next Saturday so I'll have to get out this weekend and give it a go.
Speed is fine...Accuracy is final.
Moose
500 Club
Posts: 2677
Joined: Sun Dec 29, 2019 12:39 pm
Location: IA
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby Moose » Thu Feb 06, 2020 11:32 am

NorthStar wrote:
dan wrote:In winter they seem to hole up till its warm and sunny. When I was a kid I shot and ate a lot of them. I would look for nests in the trees and where they were digging in the leaves. Rather than just hunting random spots.


This is my approach as well. Once I see a nest, I sit and wait because squirrels seem to freeze when they hear/see potential predators but their memory is short and they will start moving again shortly.

This is the way i was taught also.
User avatar
Archivist13
Posts: 135
Joined: Sat Sep 07, 2019 6:54 am
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nathan.miller.5245
Location: Southern Maryland
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby Archivist13 » Thu Feb 06, 2020 11:42 am

Well, assuming I can make it out this Saturday, well see what happens. One thing I do know, is that beast style hunting has not only upped my deer hunting, but brought me back to basics and my youth with squirrel hunting. Perhaps if I found them everywhere and easy prey on my first hunts I would have lost interest. Being they are proving elusive, I am finding myself challenged and that is a good thing.
User avatar
NorthStar
500 Club
Posts: 1518
Joined: Thu Sep 15, 2016 6:43 am
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby NorthStar » Thu Feb 06, 2020 2:19 pm

Archivist13 wrote:Well, assuming I can make it out this Saturday, well see what happens. One thing I do know, is that beast style hunting has not only upped my deer hunting, but brought me back to basics and my youth with squirrel hunting. Perhaps if I found them everywhere and easy prey on my first hunts I would have lost interest. Being they are proving elusive, I am finding myself challenged and that is a good thing.


Right on! Good luck and have fun!
“The lazy do not roast any game, but the diligent feed on the riches of the hunt.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭12:27‬ ‭NIV‬‬
User avatar
gsquared23
Posts: 330
Joined: Thu Sep 19, 2019 3:54 pm
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby gsquared23 » Thu Feb 06, 2020 3:32 pm

Glad I’m not the only one that was outwitted by these dang things. Went out at 0800 last weekend, and the combination of crunchy snow and 15-20 mph winds landed me zero squirrel sightings. Had fun walking the property and then running the chainsaw, but I woulda loved to bring a few home. I’d agree that a calm, fair weather day would be optimal. They do seem to move during “deery” times (8-10, 3-dark), but not during deery cold fronts.
Bowhunting is not for the faint of heart. But fortune favors the bowed.
User avatar
Archivist13
Posts: 135
Joined: Sat Sep 07, 2019 6:54 am
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nathan.miller.5245
Location: Southern Maryland
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby Archivist13 » Wed Feb 12, 2020 2:28 pm

Well, I did make it out on Saturday. Spent from noon till dark and didn't see anything until the final 20 minutes of light. Shot one, but couldn't find it for some reason. Must have crawled off into a hole or something before I got to it. I have to admit revisiting hunting these critters has been a load of fun. Gonna be sad when the season closes at the end of the month. Of course that just means turkey season is on the horizon!
User avatar
ThePreBanMan
500 Club
Posts: 2632
Joined: Thu Jul 31, 2014 2:36 pm
Location: Fairhaven, MA
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby ThePreBanMan » Wed Feb 12, 2020 2:50 pm

Here in MA... Our woods are filled with red squirrels willing to rat you out to any deer in the area. We only have a grey squirrel season though. All the grey squirrels are in my back yard and bird feeders... It's exceedingly rare I see a grey in the woods. They all live in the suburbs - where you can't hunt them.
User avatar
Archivist13
Posts: 135
Joined: Sat Sep 07, 2019 6:54 am
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nathan.miller.5245
Location: Southern Maryland
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby Archivist13 » Wed Feb 12, 2020 3:03 pm

ThePreBanMan wrote:Here in MA... Our woods are filled with red squirrels willing to rat you out to any deer in the area. We only have a grey squirrel season though. All the grey squirrels are in my back yard and bird feeders... It's exceedingly rare I see a grey in the woods. They all live in the suburbs - where you can't hunt them.

I actually know exactly what you mean. grew up hunting in NW PA and red squirrels were everywhere. Grey squirrels were mostly in town. You would see more fox and black phase gray squirrels in the woods than regular gray squirrels. Also chipmunks were/are everywhere. I have yet to see a chipmunk, fox, red, or black squirrel here in Southern Maryland's woods.
User avatar
ThePreBanMan
500 Club
Posts: 2632
Joined: Thu Jul 31, 2014 2:36 pm
Location: Fairhaven, MA
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby ThePreBanMan » Wed Feb 12, 2020 3:09 pm

Chipmunks... I hate those darn things... They're always borrowing their little hidey holes in my garden and tearing up my vegetable plant roots. One of those little :twisted: killed a squash plant on me this past year...
User avatar
Archivist13
Posts: 135
Joined: Sat Sep 07, 2019 6:54 am
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nathan.miller.5245
Location: Southern Maryland
Status: Offline

Re: Squirrels...Seriously?!

Unread postby Archivist13 » Wed Feb 12, 2020 3:13 pm

I will admit to shooting a lot of them with my .22 when I was younger. They weren't legal for some reason, but made great target practice.


  • Advertisement

Return to “Other Critters”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 14 guests