squirrel help!!!

[whitetailkiller]

i'm going squirrel hunting for the first time ever...this saturday morning......any tips and strategies would be greatly appreciated.......

[tedicast]

Only Strategy I can think of is to make believe you are deer hunting!! Then you are gauranteed to see tons of squirrels..LOL

[longislandhunter]

that line about make believe you're deer hunting is true,,,,, I always see tons of bushytails when I'm deer hunting, and they're usually making all kinds of noise running around and barking and such. When I do hunt squirrels I usually still hunt through the woods, or find a likely spot and sit down, wait, and do some calling. Just like deer hunting.

[Tominator]

Your season is still open?

Cool.

Yep, tedicast has got it. find a spot with nut trees like oaks, walnut, hickories, etc., even better if you can find nut hulls that the squirrels have left. Once you find a good spot, sit down and be still and quiet.

If you're hunting with a shotgun you can pretty much just shoot them out of the tree. If you're going to use a .22, you have to be a little more selective with your shots because that little .22 bullet can go quite a distance when you shoot it up into the sky.

One other strategy that is time tested is how to scare a squirrel over to your side of a tree. Lots of times if a squirrel sees you move, he'll run to the other side of a tree to hide from you. To get him to your side, throw a rock or stick up in the air, and make sure it goes over to his side. While the stick or rock is in the air, get the gun up ready to shoot. Blast the little dude when he runs to your side of the tree.

Last month a squirrel did that to me. Luckily for me, there was ice all over the north side of the tree, so I just walked to the south side of the tree, and the squirrel couldn't get a grip on the icy side, so I was able to quickly harvest that dude.

Good luck!

[whitetailkiller]

our squirrel season ends feb 28th... we will be using 410's.... i walked this land yesterday afternoon... lots and lots of squirrels and they are huge!!!!! bigger than any i have ever seen!!!!!! i saw one that was almost cat sized.. maybe it wasn't a squirrel,,but it sure looked like one and it was running around with the other squirrels!!!!!if it comes out to play saturday it will be on the grill!!!!

thanx for the tips..oh do they like beach nuts???? there are several beach trees in these woods!

[Squirrelbuster]

A squirrels preffered nuts are the White Oaks, Hickories, and Beech nuts.

As far as hunting tips for them right now, I can't give you any. Right now in New York there is way too much snow on the ground which makes the squirrels tree up most of the time and finding them can be difficult.

[Tominator]

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thanx for the tips..oh do they like beach nuts???? there are several beach trees in these woods!

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Oh yeah, beech nuts. Yes, they like beech nuts too. And yes, I've seen some pretty big Fox Squirrels over the years, what you saw probably was a squirrel.

[mathews4life]

Deck yourself out in complete blaze orange that way they will think you are deer hunting and come check you out!!!

[tedicast]

Honestly, I hunt squirrels the same way I hunt deer. Either slowly still hunting an area with a lot of oaks, or sitting. The squirrels seem to know when I'm not deer hunting though!!!...lol

[LifeNRA]

[ QUOTE ]
One other strategy that is time tested is how to scare a squirrel over to your side of a tree. Lots of times if a squirrel sees you move, he'll run to the other side of a tree to hide from you. To get him to your side, throw a rock or stick up in the air, and make sure it goes over to his side. While the stick or rock is in the air, get the gun up ready to shoot. Blast the little dude when he runs to your side of the tree.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yep did this a lot of times!!! Never ate them though? Are they any good? Do they taste like rabbit?

[lil hunter]

Squirrels are actually pretty tasty. You should try 'em sometime.


I usually just still hunt through the woods. 3 steps, stop, look, listen, 3 more steps, repeat. Works pretty well for me. You have to take shots as soon as you get them. If you wait, the squirrel will probably be gone before you can get another shot.

[David_218]

Squirrels are one of the best tasting game animals, rarely gamey. They taste more like pork with a slight nutty flavor. Very good chicken fried and simmered for about an hour.

[Tominator]

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Yep did this a lot of times!!! Never ate them though? Are they any good? Do they taste like rabbit?

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I don't care for the taste of squirrel, but there's a guy where I work that does so I give them to him. The only reason I shot the one a few weeks ago was because he was hanging out too close to my house. The last thing I need is a squirrel in my attic.

To me squirrel tastes like a nutty, slightly gamey rabbit.