It isn’t easy to find a hunter that didn’t get his start with squirrel hunting. We all knew somebody who enjoyed hunting and took us along when we were kids. I had several hunts with my dad growing up. It wasn’t long before he gave me my first gun and turned me loose on my own. It wasn’t long after that, I started coming home with limits to clean.
I can’t think of a better way to get a young hunter started. Squirrel hunting is difficult enough to begin to cultivate some hunting and sneaking skills. It’s a good way to start to teach kids gun safety and ethical decision-making.
I wanted to write a post to inspire you to try this and give you the beginning skill set you will need to get started.
Squirrel Hunting Gear
Luckily you won’t have to get a small loan to buy the equipment you need to start squirrel hunting. Here’s a list of anything I can think of that might help you in the squirrel woods. However, if you just have the first two items, you can go.
- Hunting License
- Gun
- Scope (Depending on the gun)
- Orange Vest with a large pouch
- Squirrel Barker Call. Get one here.
- Sharp Knife
The squirrel Gun
Most squirrel hunting enthusiasts would prefer to use a .22 Rifle. However, there are still some who prefer the shotgun. A .22 rifle is quiet and has very little recoil. These are great guns for kids to start with. The other advantage of these rifles is they only shoot one projectile. This is much easier for the hunter when it comes to cleaning and cooking.
A shotgun shoots a group of lead shot. The advantage of using a shotgun, is you have the spread of the shot to cover some mistakes in accuracy. You can basically point and shoot and most of the time hit your target. Just be prepared to chew carefully.
If you do choose to start with a shotgun for squirrel hunting, I would recommend a .410 or 20 gauge. These are smaller shotgun rounds and they do good on these small critters. Both can reach a squirrel at the top of most trees and won’t tear them up too badly.
A .22 rifle with a scope can be super accurate. Most squirrel hunters take pride in making headshots. This protects the valuable parts for good tableware. Just make sure you buy a gun that shoots .22 long rifle rounds. Some guns only shoot shorts, and these won’t do well in the treetops. Buy a gun that’s chambered properly and always buy .22 long rifle ammunition.
The Clothing
Luckily you don’t have to deck yourself out in full set of camouflage like you would for turkey hunting. Check out my Turkey hunting post here.
The only thing you need to worry about for squirrel hunting in the early season is blending in with your surroundings. I like to wear natural colors that don’t stick out like a sore thumb. During the later parts of the season, or if you’re hunting with a group you need to wear hunter orange for safety reasons. Don’t worry, if you’re quiet, this won’t ruin your hunting at all.
It is always smart to wear long pants and a good pair of boots. There will be plenty of thorns and brushy stuff to get through in the woods. The last thing you want is scuffed-up legs.
I also recommend buying a good vest to store ammunition, a possible snack, and whatever squirrels you get along the way. It’s not convenient to carry a gun and a limit of squirrels a mile back to the truck without a vest.
I often choose to wear rubber boots. There is usually a creek or two that you will need to cross.
Squirrel Hunting Tactics
The Food
Squirrels’ diets consist mostly of tree nuts. These include acorns, hickory nuts, walnuts, and many others. To understand how to use proper tactics, we need to know where to be. The food source is the best place to start.
At different times of the season, these food sources will change. This all depends on which trees are producing nuts that are ready to eat at that time. Sometimes squirrels are only cutting hickory nuts. Other times it’s all about the acorns in the oak trees. It is up to you as the hunter to figure this out early when you enter the woods.
These nuts will not be available in the winter. Therefore, squirrels will be busy during the fall cutting and storing these nuts to get them through the winter months. This will help you find them, as they are busy cutting away. You won’t have to go far before you find large amounts of fresh cuttings on the ground around a certain tree. This is where you will want to stop and wait for a while. Before you know it, you will find one cutting in the treetops, or coming down to gather what he’s cut.
If you can figure out what they’re eating, you will have success.
The skills
A huge part of squirrel hunting success is learning how to move quietly. Squirrels are very in tune with their surroundings, and they know when something is different. Remember, you’re in their world now. Make sure that you are walking in shaded areas where the ground is soft, and your footsteps are as silent as possible. Avoid stepping on and breaking sticks. This will send a squirrel to his hole or nest, and he won’t come out for what seems like forever.
Take advantage of your surroundings. If the wind suddenly picks up, take advantage of this, and make your moves while this noise is happening. If you’re near a road and a loud truck goes by, make your moves then. When the forest is silent, you need to be silent. The way to get limits of squirrels is to sharpen your hunting skills and stay quiet.
When I first enter the squirrel woods, I am immediately looking for the food source. This requires walking around until I have found the fresh cuttings. Once I have found those, I like to sit for a while and let my presence sort of diminish. After a period of silence, you will begin to hear them going to work.
Always be looking for movement in the treetops. Watch for nuts falling from the trees and raining down on the forest floor. Once you see this, you have your first squirrel.
Conclusion
This is one of my favorite hobbies and I feel like every time I go I become a kid again. I have entered a chapter in my life now, where my kids can’t wait to get after some squirrels. It has sure been fun watching them figure things out like I had to. I encourage you to pick up some gear and give this sport a try.
I plan to write a post on cooking squirrels. Keep your eye out for that one.
Good luck!
