Well they are about to drive me bonkers! I can't even move in my stand without one sounding the alarm for all the woods to hear. Kids aren't hunting them anymore and I will have 3-6 of them around me on every hunt. :help:
I love them! To this day squirrel hunting is some of my fondest memories and how many of us "cut out teeth" on hunting.
I carry 2 blunts on all my bows and manage to kill a couple a year, but miss a bunch!!! Those buggers are wicked fast.
I agree - you rarely meet anyone that squirrel hunts anymore. Of course, I'll admit - even when young - I only squirrel hunted until deer season came in.
Here in my zone in NC, bow season comes in BEFORE squirrel season does and I think that has a MAJOR impact on squirrel hunting. People are already deer hunting before it even opens up.
Yep, they can be rather pesty critters sometimes!!!
Bisch
Same here, The way I see it is I have a late season God given 3D course. And I know that will be good practice and maybe a decent meal who knows.
I call them PRACTICE!! Bill
Why do I only see them when I'm deer hunting!!!!
Truly a worth adversary. Here is my first Trad squirrel from last year. 15 yards quartering away. Got him on the side of the neck. 1 yard tracking job!;-)
(http://i.imgur.com/5ugXBeu.jpg?)
I bet I had 20 of them by me Saturday morning. They were the tiny grays too. Not even worth shooting at with a $10 arrow. Every move elicited a response of some sort. Woods were so dry that they sounding like deer even more than normal. I'm going to get the quietest air rifle I can afford (Gamo Silent Cat?) and start picking the dang things off.
I carry a sling shot and take it and shoot at them sometimes to pass the time. Quiet, inexpensive and enjoyable!
They are very tasty in the slow cooker as a stew.
QuoteOriginally posted by Bigmagic:
They are very tasty in the slow cooker as a stew.
I've always wanted to try squirrel in the crock... Would you just place the whole squirrel into the cooker and then the meat will peel from the bones? (Whole squirrel after skinned and gutted obviously).
Thanks
Squirrel in a dutch oven with a couple tomatoes and an onion, cooked all day over the fire...mmmmmmmmm
What I do with them is to quarter them up, ring the meat all the way around to the bone in several places, batter and fry them as usual, then place them in the crock pot on top of some crumpled aluminum foil so they don't stick, then slow cook them for a couple hours. Sooooo tender and tasty.....
I had one in my tree the other day batting at my quiver. Something new it hadn't seen there before. Don't piss one off, they have wicked sharp teeth.
As for cooking, they can be tough, but 20 minutes in the pressure cooker and your granny can gum them.
They sure can be bothersome when they start barking at you. That alarm call can sure mess you up. But when I hear one barking in the distance, I get still and quiet. Sometimes its a deer that is being hassled by them.
Entertaining and aggravating at the same time. The last couple days in the woods it's the only critter I've had to look at. I think I'm gonna start shoot'n em!
I find the farther I get back in the woods the nicer they are.
Squirrels can be annoying but I find those damn chipmunks even worse. That alarm they sound just drives me nuts. They keep at it a lot longer than an alarmed gray. Not going to waste a $10/15 arrow plus broadhead on one although I would sorely love to. Definitely seen a lot more tree rats than deer so far. This season has sucked so far.
I hunt them on days that the weather and conditions aren't good for deer. In all honesty they are my favorite game to hunt but the return in meat is better on deer. Last weekend the conditions were PITIFUL for deer so I did some spot and stalk hunting on squirrels and got more than 30. It was an excellent weekend in the field and maybe it'll help thin the herd to make my deer hunting more quiet.
I saw about 30 this morning. Several tempted me. I waited until I was about to get down and was just about to draw down on one when a Cooper's Hawk cleared the deck of all the squawker's for a while. I need to hire him fulltime :)
I was feeling pretty good about finally getting one with trad gear today. Then I read you got thirty in a weekend. Never really just went after them only, might be fun. Made probably the best 2 shots of my life today on this one. Head shot on a log Knocked him out but he came too before I could get to him and climbed 20' up a maple and I heart shot him and knocked him to the ground. I was pretty pumped.
Squirrels rarely get excited about me, they may see me and be curious but rarly bark ( unless they see me moving ). I know years ago they would often bark at me even if I wasn't moving. I used some of the UV blocking clothes wash and it made a huge difference in how often the squirrels barked. Now I just wash them in no scented wash or baking soda. Just something to think about.
I felt the tree shake the other day and looked up and seen this guy running down towards me
(http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee206/Marylandbowhunter/544677B5-D648-4D39-8611-23FC525ECCC6.jpg) (http://s233.photobucket.com/user/Marylandbowhunter/media/544677B5-D648-4D39-8611-23FC525ECCC6.jpg.html)
As Sam just stated they can be a good indicator of approaching Deer, if they will just stop warning the Deer about us!
As Sam just stated they can be a good indicator of approaching Deer, if they will just stop warning the Deer about us!
I saw a squirrel that totally blew my mind a few days ago while I was deer hunting on public land.
It was big and WHITE! It took me a moment to realize what I was even looking at. I never seen a white squirrel before and it was the size of a big red one, not a little grey. I have decided to go after this ghost squirrel and put off deer hunting until I get it. Normally I wouldnt mount a tree rat but this will be an exception if I harvest it. It was in a very thick area so I imagine thats why it even made it this long. We will see how this ghost fares against my bear takedown or if my arrow just flies right through it haha
I will definatly post some pics if I get it.
Thats cool Brian. Hope you get it.
I did watch one squack and take off the other day and I was wondering what frightened it and then I see a doe coming behind it. I've had that happen before so It can be a good thing sometimes. Ok I won't shoot them all.
White squirrels are pretty famous at my Alma mater, the University of Louisville - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LLcx5VXyq0
My first rack buck in Indiana was announced by a friendly squirrel. Friendly to me at least :)
Squirrels and birds are good indicators of what may be coming your way. Squirrels, crows, jays, and wrens will fuss when anything gets in their territory. First though, you have to be invisible to them. More than once I have gotten excited over a squirrel or bird being agitated by what I thought was an approaching deer, and then realizing that it was me they were fussing about. Ouch!