So far the opening week of hunting season 2010 has been so-so for me. Saturday was opening day, and I went with my friend Dave to Pearl River WMA. I was doubly excited about it because not only was it my first time making an opening weekend, but it was also my first time taking my new 12 ga shotgun. Now, when Dave’s dad, Dennis, and I went out to clear the trails on September 30th, we saw two pigs out there. So on Saturday, Dave and I went gunning for pigs, i.e. heavier load shells than you would really want to use on rabbits or squirrels. We ended up not seeing any pigs, but we saw a lot of squirrels right off the bat. At first I was going to let them go, because our “goal” animal was pig. But then a few minutes later I heard Dave unload on something, and I was pretty sure it was some of those squirrels. I reloaded with number 5 shot and tried for some squirrels. But wouldn’t you know it? I didn’t see another squirrel the rest of the day! Before that, they were practically frolicking right in front of me! They must know the difference in the shells…
I went back on Sunday with Dennis. The first thing I did was go back to the spot where I had seen a number of squirrels frolicking in the early hours. I was determined not to go home empty handed a second day in a row! I sat and waited. I called. Nothing. So I figured I was going to have to find another spot and start over. Of course, I decided this was a perfect opportunity to have myself a cigarette, since I was going to be moving anyway. I no sooner had lit my cigarette than a squirrel climbs out on a branch almost directly over my head! “This is it!”, I thought, “this is the start of a much better day of hunting!” So I snapped up my shotgun, sighted in, and let fly. Now, the old folks all tell me that when you shoot a squirrel, you should try to sit still for 5-10 minutes, because frequently one or two other squirrels will come over to see what all the noise was about. I made a mental note of where I thought my squirrel had landed, and sat impatiently awaiting the neighbors to come investigate. Unfortunately, either this guy had un-inquisitive neighbors, or it was a bad neighborhood and they were used to hearing gunfire periodically. So I got up to go find my prize. When I picked up the squirrel, it was completely decimated. I think it was some combination of being so close to the target, the angle (remember, I was almost directly underneath it), and not being used to hunting with the 12 ga. My squirrel was ruined and there was no way I knew of to save any of it. I didn’t see any more the rest of the day, so I had to go home dejected once again.
Which brings me to today. Dennis and I went back out to try again. I brought along 2 quarters because I’ve heard that rubbing the sides together makes a sound similar to the sound of “cutting”, when a squirrel is gnawing its way through the shell of a nut. This entices them to come see who it is that’s raiding their fridge. Well, I tried this one out today, and lo and behold, within 5 minutes I saw one working its way through the branches to see who is stealing his lunch. This time I decided to aim a little to the right side of the critter so the heavy concentration in the center of the pattern wouldn’t do too much damage. I fired, and I heard him drop. Since I had to stand up and move to get the shot, I figured there wasn’t much point in waiting to see if any neighbors would come out this time. So I went to collect my reward. I’m telling you, I looked for that thing for at least 30 minutes and couldn’t find it for anything. I had just resigned myself to going home empty handed once more, but when I turned around, it was right there behind me! I had literally walked around it to get to where I was. When I inspected it, I was relieved to find that my aiming plan had worked. This was the least damage I’ve ever seen on a squirrel that I’ve shot. When I combine him with what I already have in the freezer, I think I finally have enough to make a mess of squirrel dumplings. So look out, Mom! Tomorrow afternoon I will be invading your kitchen… and I hope you’ll try it with me.
