I spent over a hour yesterday watching and slowly stalking the same fox squirrel. I kept thinking he has to give me a shot sometime. He finally spooked when I moved to get a better angle around a tree. What I love about squirrels is how much more prepared I am for deer season. When deer season comes around I know every nut producing tree in the country, my shooting is usally at its best, and my gear has been tested. In one day I got about a half page of notes. I also decided to order a GFA haversack after trying to get to my camera on my back with a doe at 15yds. Best practice there is IMO.
They are great practice for sure. I've always warmed up on 'em before whitetails back in MI.
they sure teach you to pick a small spot.
Chipmunks are great pratice too! Not as hard to stalk but they are FAST!!! With that said I usually chase both and shoot at whichever I get a shot at first, havent done it in sometime though I miss it!
Reaching into the way back machine I have a pic of a day I'll never forget. It's not a great picture by any means.
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/SquirrelsnearVersailles.jpg)
It's hard to tell that I have 3 fox squirrels in hand. And you can't see the spot where I'd layed out my sleeping bag the night before to the calls of an old barred owl and coyote howls.
You can't see how I'd slipped away from my bed in the predawn light or how I'd slipped silently within range of the regal buck or how my arrow had just barely "ticked" against an unseen branch and missed cleanly.
You can't see how, dejected, I suprised 3 fox squirrels in a big oak or how in a few moments of fast and furious action I killed all of them.
But the picture tells me the story over and over.
After watching me put a perfect neck shot on a big red last year from a treestand my wife asks "How do you miss so many deer?". :banghead: Thats a sweet deer hunting rig Charlie!
Charlie,
It sure is something how a picture can re-ignite an entire story eh?
Cool photo.
Brian
good insight and thought Charlie....every pics should have that affect!!!
Charlie, Loved the picture & story. 3 out of a tree is some fine hunting and shooting.
I intend to take my son on some practice squirrel hunts, but I've trained him to eat what we kill. Is this an old-fashioned notion? Any good tips on how to clean them and good recipes?
Red Boar,
The fastest way to clean a squirrel is to make a cut on the underside of the tail, at the base. Cut completely through the tail bone, then stop. Stand on the tail and pull th back legs straight up. This will skin the squirrel, mostly, in one smooth motion.
IMHO- fried squirrel can be tough. I prefer them slow cooked for a day. Barbeque is always good.
Charlie, That is a great story. I love how pictures can bring back all those wonderful moments, and sometimes painful lessons, of the hunt!
I love squirrel hunting, opens here in May... I've taken several this year already just while out stump shooting. Kinda cool how hunt mode takes over when game is in sight!
To me squirrels were made for the crock pot... you can pick your mixture, but I like BBQ myself... Stew is good also... or mushroom soup base tastes good too. Nice corn bread muffin to go with it... MMM, MMM, good!
Numerous ways to clean a squirrel, just work through your personal favorite. I too, cut through the tail and stand on it and pull the back legs, then disembowel (sp?), and cut the head and feet off. Works really well before they stiffen up.
longbow fantatic,
Your method is the exact one my dad taught me and I've used for about 45 years! I prefer to skin a squirrel solo. I know where each hand has to be and when. I finger pinch a bare spot (removing the hair) off this base of the tail area before I make my first cut -- to keep hair cuts to a minimum.
A key in skinning squirrels is to keep the knife and hands clear of hair. Squirrel hair really sticks to skinned squirrel parts and isn't near as easy to get off as rabbit hair.
I've seen folks that didn't know how to clean a squirrel end up with more hair on the meat than before the squirrel was killed!
They sure are fun and tasty :thumbsup: Hey Charlie sometimes the misses are better remembered than the hits.
Bowwild,
Wow! That's amazing that you were taught that method 45 years ago. Somethings are timeless when they work so well, like this method of cleaning squirrels. Great tip about the hair issue!
season opens on sept 1st and i cant wait to go out and miss a few. i like to practice on the chipmunks causing proterty damage at my friend house. hard but i managed to get one haha. need to get back up there with the new bow and give it another shot
Charlie, how about the shot of the squirrel falling out of the tree with you standing underneath? I love that picture!
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/fallingsquirrel1-640.jpg)
Those are some cool pictures Charlie!
(http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a281/sf1oak/scan0001-2.jpg)
Most underated game animal for a bowhunter out there in my opinion. When deer hunting goes away for the average guy in Illinois...I will hunt tree rats.
Here is a tip for guys worried about arrows. Buy some wood shafts. Just parallel shafts are what I buy. I then paint the entire shaft Blaze orange...and I fletch them with blaze orange fletching. I just normally use spray paint, and I don't even bother to coat them with clear coat. Put an ace hex head on them and you are good to go. Alot of people do not believe me...but since I started doing this...I have not yet lost an arrow shooting at tree rats...including when they are in the tree. I HAVE broken alot of them, but when they don't break...I find them.
Makes things much cheaper. And since tree rats spend alot of time in trees, I prefer to be able to shoot at them in trees.
Alot of guys use flu' flu arrows to shoot at tree rats.
I consider this a waste of time. Even big midwestern fox squirrels can dodge an arrow with flu flu's.
I have a buddy who is a much better shot than me..who has never killed a squirrel with his recurve despite trying for years because he always uses Flu Flu arrows when hunting them.
In contrast...I shoot plenty of them each year...but I don't use flu flu's.
Also, I have found that it is easier to shoot them out of the tree. They seem less likely to dodge your arrow when they are in the tree.
Charlie...those pics are awesome!
Charlie has done things with a bow and caught them on film that I hopefully can do someday without a camera around.
Tom... thanks for the help with the photo. :thumbsup:
As a young married guy I often had to forego photography because of expense. So there are a lot more pictures that I didn't get.
I'm just happy after all these years that there are those out there that appreciate the photos I did get.
:notworthy:
I will take a day or two in the middle of the season off to chase them around. It is what I grew up hunting and I still love hunting and eating them
(http://buffsblackwidow.com/images/squirrel.jpg)
Great picture Charlie!! You can tell Jon has hunted a lot of squirrels. Bright orange arrows are the way to go.
Great thread. I grew up in west central Illinois and moved west in the early 80s. One of things I miss most is squirrel hunting.
C'Mon guys. You have to parboil, dust in flour with salt and pepper, then fry. No wonder they're so tough. Use that water to thin the gravy after you fry.
Charlie, you bring tears to my eyes. It was my grandfather who was the hunter and seeing that pic brings it back. Thank goodness grandma is around for the recipes.
good lookin' hat Buff.
I usually see squirrels deer hunting and deer squirrel hunting.lol
One more addition to the skinning method explained earlier...After cutting thru the underside of the tail skin and bone and standing on the tail and pullin up on the back legs, the skin will tear around the belly. To remove the "Pants" from the squirrel, use a pair of slip joint pliers to grab the skin where it tore at the belly and pull upward, thus removing the pants. Best to do when fresh. The longer you wait, the harder it gets.