Squirrel opener coming up!

[Barbaroja]

Squirrel season will be opening here in Alabama in just 3.5 weeks and I couldn’t be happier. I just moved to Alabama and am excited to be in a state with an actual season for them.
I’ve spent a lot of time hunting them back in Washington but they are an invasive species there so they’re not very wide spread in areas you can hunt.
The leaves are still thick here so I’ll be starting the season shooting my Mossberg 500 12ga with 1 1/4oz of #4s in a WAA12R wad over some bluedot. Off days I will carry my NEF Topper 20ga single shot. For 20ga I shoot 1oz of #5s over bluedot with a sp20 wad.I prefer a full choke for squirrels.
I’ll move on to my .22s and 30-30 roundball loads once the leaves drop and the forest opens up. It’s starting to cool down up here in the mountains already.

Long and rambling I know but I’m excited. Who else is going to be getting out to hunt squirrels this year? Or any small game for that matter? I wanna hear about it, and if your in Alabama maybe we can chase some together.
Play it safe out there fellas.

 

[Highland Lofts]

I live in Washington State, I wouldn't waste my money on a hunting license here.
When I lived back in Upstate New York I hunted the hell out of the squirrels every day from the opener September 1st until deer season.
I shout my limit of six a day on-stage of the days.
22 magnum is my choice of gun to hunt them with. An old Marlin 882.

I take my grandson back to New York for two weeks to hunt squirrels. Then I go back for four weeks for deer hunting. I hunt with my brother and a couple of friends.
A friend and his other half from Anacortes WA is going back for two weeks to go deer hunting with us.
This year we bought Pennsylvania hunting licenses. Pennsylvania'a deer season opens a week after the New York State deer season.
We have a bunch of doe tags in both states.

I like hunting squirrels in the hickory trees. It's their favorite food.
My grandson uses a 20 gauge Ithaca model 66.

 

[12Bravo20]

We have a nice long season for squirrels here in Missouri. Season pens up on the third Saturday in May and closed Feb 15th of the following year. The problem I have is all the squirrels seem to have moved to town. I see them all over the place in town but hardly see any out in the woods.

I like using my 410 Mossberg 500 or 22lr rifle for spring and summer hunting and like using my 17m2 once the leaved drop.

 

[troy fairweather]

Are season opens Sept 1st, but I prefer to wait for first frost. Love Squirrel hunting.

 

[Barbaroja]

I live in Washington State, I wouldn't waste my money on a hunting license here.
When I lived back in Upstate New York I hunted the hell out of the squirrels every day from the opener September 1st until deer season.
I shout my limit of six a day on-stage of the days.
22 magnum is my choice of gun to hunt them with. An old Marlin 882.

I take my grandson back to New York for two weeks to hunt squirrels. Then I go back for four weeks for deer hunting. I hunt with my brother and a couple of friends.
A friend and his other half from Anacortes WA is going back for two weeks to go deer hunting with us.
This year we bought Pennsylvania hunting licenses. Pennsylvania'a deer season opens a week after the New York State deer season.
We have a bunch of doe tags in both states.

I like hunting squirrels in the hickory trees. It's their favorite food.
My grandson uses a 20 gauge Ithaca model 66.

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Awesome! I’m glad to see you’ve also got your hunting as well! Make me happy to see a kid who likes it.

 

[Barbaroja]

We have a nice long season for squirrels here in Missouri. Season pens up on the third Saturday in May and closed Feb 15th of the following year. The problem I have is all the squirrels seem to have moved to town. I see them all over the place in town but hardly see any out in the woods.

I like using my 410 Mossberg 500 or 22lr rifle for spring and summer hunting and like using my 17m2 once the leaved drop.

Man I would have trouble getting anything done with squirrels open most of the year!
As to where they all went, they move around following food sources, perhaps there was “greener pastures” then where your looking. I’ve noticed that when it’s not fall and loaded with acorns the forest surrounding me seems to have way fewer squirrels around. I hunted here last October and they were so thick I got 5 in the first 2o mins of my hunt.

 

[Highland Lofts]

In my opinion the best time for hunting squirrels is from sun up until 9;30 - 10;00 o'clock.
Ther will be out through out the day but first thing in the morning I feel they are the most active.
Plus when I take my grandson back to Upstate New York we have traps set for fisher, fox & coyote so we hunt until 9;30 - 10;00 o'clock and then check traps. Last year we started trapping.

New York imported fishers decades ago and they took of like a wild fire. They really took a toll out on the small game there and on squirrels especially.
I caught two fishers last year along with two red foxes. We should do better this year. I was using the squirrel hide & guts as fisher bait. This year we will try useing beaver meat.

 

[dh1633pm]

I hunt squirrels in my back yard with a pellet gun. My politically correct neighbors would have a cow if I used a shotgun. Even though they are far enough away legally. Those pesky red ones bored a hole in my garage and I declared war. Put out a feeder to suck them in. Put out traps, live and otherwise. Easy shot from the back of the house to the feeder. Mostly leave the grays alone. I have caught fishers and nightly a fox on my cameras. I leave the remains for them to eat. They are always gone by the next morning. Don't even get me started on chipmunks.

 

[12Bravo20]

As to where they all went, they move around following food sources, perhaps there was “greener pastures” then where your looking. I’ve noticed that when it’s not fall and loaded with acorns the forest surrounding me seems to have way fewer squirrels around. I hunted here last October and they were so thick I got 5 in the first 2o mins of my hunt.

I've been hunting squirrels since I was old enough to use a 22. And yes a lot of the squirrels in the area I live in have decided to move to town. It doesn't matter what time of year, we just don't see as many in the woods any more. But them evil tree rats ar thick as thieves in town. They have easier pickings and less predators in town.

 

[22250Rem]

Got my CZ-455 .22 a few years ago with the intent of it being mainly for squirrel hunting. Only had it out a few times so far with no luck. Starting this Sept.1st, I decided it needs to harvest its first squirrel this year. It's the thumbhole stock model which I discovered is preferable for offhand shooting from irregular positions which sometimes present themselves while hunting. Planning on some actual dedicated squirrel hunting versus just bringing it along while out changing cards on trail cameras. Maybe this year it could be photographed with a squirrel versus just sitting on a trail camera out in the woods. .

 

[AK Hunter]

Squirrel season started here on the 15th but with the high price of ammo & the distance I have to travel to hunt I just can't get out yet. I bought my small game hunting license (it's gone up too) got my hunting clothes out & the rifle is sighted in but it just don't feel right yet. Maybe the weather needs to change, I never liked hunting in warm weather. I'll be shooting the .22lr this time instead of the .410 because I can't find shells anywhere at a decent price. All of this price hikes are taking the fun out of hunting.

 

[Chuck R.]

Our season in KS is 1 Jun-28 Feb.

They're one of my favorite things to hunt. I normally don't hunt them till the leaves are down and even then normally post deer season. I've got an older Ruger 77/22 with a Leupold Compact 3x9 that I've used for years. Once deer seasons done I hunt them "out back" and I have the run of my neighbors 480 acres.

I've been hunting squirrels since I was old enough to use a 22. And yes a lot of the squirrels in the area I live in have decided to move to town. It doesn't matter what time of year, we just don't see as many in the woods any more. But them evil tree rats ar thick as thieves in town. They have easier pickings and less predators in town.

They're a lot like deer in that respect, city (town around here) deer are different from country deer..

City/Town squirrels have lost all fear of humans, meanwhile their country cousins have become an extremely wary and worthy opponent.

Every day I take a lunchtime walk (3.4miles) around the golf course on post. I will see a a lot of squirrels at all hrs of the day. Hunting not so much. There's mornings I'll go out and not see a single one. Then I get home and my backyard squirrels are going to town on my squirrel feeder (repurposed deer feeder I use to keep my squirrel breeding stock fed).

Just ask Shanghai McCoy, I dragged him out last year and we didn't see a thing...until I got home.

 

[Blue Jays]

My dad used to love squirrel hunting and was fond of squirrel sandwiches.
He has tried to encourage me to eat squirrel yet just doesn’t appeal to me.

 

[Highland Lofts]

I like to put them in soup and baked with chicken shake & bake

 

[troy fairweather]

I hunt squirrels in my back yard with a pellet gun. My politically correct neighbors would have a cow if I used a shotgun. Even though they are far enough away legally. Those pesky red ones bored a hole in my garage and I declared war. Put out a feeder to suck them in. Put out traps, live and otherwise. Easy shot from the back of the house to the feeder. Mostly leave the grays alone. I have caught fishers and nightly a fox on my cameras. I leave the remains for them to eat. They are always gone by the next morning. Don't even get me started on chipmunks.

This would make for a very funny movie lol.

 

[troy fairweather]

I like doing them like chicken wings, or pretty much anything you can make rabbit out of. Dad used to make a nice spaghetti sauce that was good.

I got quite good with my rossi 62 (win 62 clone) as a kid for closer ranges, I've wanted to put together a nice scoped 22 for them the last few years. The cz have seemed to fallin a little on accuracy the last few years, so may just get a ruger American since I like them and they shot. Tho a lgs has a kimber of Oregan 22 with a nice older leupold compact for $1400.

 

[Armored farmer]

I plan on hunting for a few bushytails soon. Our season opened August 1. My dad and I hunted them every season when I was a boy. Dad is too handicapped for hunting these days but I plan to get him a couple of squirrels to eat.

I plan to use my hatsun 95 pellet rifle. It’s not as quiet as you might think but has enough power for stalking squirrels.
Another thread mentions a “stalking rifle”. I guess this is mine.

 

[Smaug]

Long and rambling I know but I’m excited. Who else is going to be getting out to hunt squirrels this year? Or any small game for that matter? I wanna hear about it, and if your in Alabama maybe we can chase some together.
Play it safe out there fellas.

I'm going to! I'll be using my pre-charged pneumatic .22 caliber air rifle. It's a AirVenturi Avenger Bullpup. With these, you spend all the money on the gun and almost nothing on ammo.

I've shot about 80 of them in my back yard already with my .177 air rifle.

I MAY take my Ruger 77/22 in 22 LR with some subsonics if I get a wild hair.

I would never hunt squirrel with a shotgun. too noisy and too many BBs to find in the meat.

An airgun piques their curiosity, so sometimes more come in as you shoot them.

 

[Barbaroja]

Wow! Great so see so many of you are also squirrel hunters. Deer and Turkey are my primary targets around my property so I plan to do most of my squirrelin’ on the public land that surrounds me. So thankful to be in the thick of it now. I was thinking about it the other day on my way back up the mountain after a trip to Birmingham. I used to leave the city to go to the mountains, now I (reluctantly) leave to mountains to go the city. I like this setup much more. Was watching 18 turkeys and 2 does mix it up down by the pond the other morning while enjoying my coffee on the porch.
Life is good.

 

[Barbaroja]

I'm going to! I'll be using my pre-charged pneumatic .22 caliber air rifle. It's a AirVenturi Avenger Bullpup. With these, you spend all the money on the gun and almost nothing on ammo.

I've shot about 80 of them in my back yard already with my .177 air rifle.

I MAY take my Ruger 77/22 in 22 LR with some subsonics if I get a wild hair.

I would never hunt squirrel with a shotgun. too noisy and too many BBs to find in the meat.

An airgun piques their curiosity, so sometimes more come in as you shoot them.

I also enjoy a .22 with subsonic hollowpoints but I’m out to get some meat. Early season when the leaves are still in the trees and forest thick, I use the shotgun. As for pellets in the meat, that is precisely why I use #5 as minimum but prefer #4s. I find they either completely pass through or are caught under the hide on the opposite side. I routinely hear pellets hitting the ground as I’m pulling back the skin. I Almost never find them in the meat. I think using anything smaller is asking for pellets in your meat. I’ve tried 6s and they killed fine but if they hit a “heavy” bone like a leg bone they wouldn’t pass through.

 

[Shanghai McCoy]

Our season in KS is 1 Jun-28 Feb.
Every day I take a lunchtime walk (3.4miles) around the golf course on post. I will see a a lot of squirrels at all hrs of the day. Hunting not so much. There's mornings I'll go out and not see a single one. Then I get home and my backyard squirrels are going to town on my squirrel feeder (repurposed deer feeder I use to keep my squirrel breeding stock fed).

Just ask Shanghai McCoy, I dragged him out last year and we didn't see a thing...until I got home.

Aww heck Chuck, I wasn't "dragged"...
Had a good time, a great breakfast and got to spend a nice morning in the woods.

 

[Smaug]

I also enjoy a .22 with subsonic hollowpoints but I’m out to get some meat. Early season when the leaves are still in the trees and forest thick, I use the shotgun. As for pellets in the meat, that is precisely why I use #5 as minimum but prefer #4s. I find they either completely pass through or are caught under the hide on the opposite side. I routinely hear pellets hitting the ground as I’m pulling back the skin. I Almost never find them in the meat. I think using anything smaller is asking for pellets in your meat. I’ve tried 6s and they killed fine but if they hit a “heavy” bone like a leg bone they wouldn’t pass through.

Why would a shotgun be preferable while leaves are still on the trees? If you can’t see your target, it doesn’t matter, really.

 

[Smaug]

I just cleaned this gal’s ears out for her with my pellet gun. Back yard pesting.



The gun is pretty sweet, if I may say so myself. I get forty good shots per fill, whisper quiet. It shoots MoA out to 50 yards, when I can do my part and it’s not windy.

You can see on the right side of it that it has a power adjuster: it has three power levels: 13 foot pounds, 18 foot pounds and 20 foot pounds. 13 is plenty at 25 yards, and it doesn’t blow holes through the fence behind when I get a pass through from a headshot.

The above was taken at 25 yards while standing and braced on the door stile.

 

[Chuck R.]

Aww heck Chuck, I wasn't "dragged"...
Had a good time, a great breakfast and got to spend a nice morning in the woods.

And we'll do it again this year!

Fixed the UTV...threw money at the problem and bought a new one. One of the benefits of wandering around Europe on Uncle Sugar's dime for 75 days

Why would a shotgun be preferable while leaves are still on the trees? If you can’t see your target, it doesn’t matter, really.

IMHO the shotgun works better in those circumstances because you might not see all of your target, meanwhile the pattern will get the rest of him. Normally with a .22LR I try for head shots or double lung, but I hunt squirrels when the leaves are down, no problem seeing all of the TGT. Putting a .22LR any place else wastes meat and makes skinning a PITA.

 

[22250Rem]

Now this thread has me thinking about squirrel hunting with my air rifle..... Managed to get one a few years ago with it as a challenge to get closer to my game before I shoot it. Got one at about 20 yards... 14.6 gr. Crosman Premier .22 cal. hunting pellet that chronographed at about 835 FPS IIRC. Right now I'm currently trying to get a nuisance red squirrel with it. There's no season on them in NY State and they can be taken at any time with no limit. But they never seem to stand still long enough for me.