Small Game, Big Men?

Me and my catch

Recently, I went on my first solo hunt. It was out in the fields and woods of a local conservation area, sneaking through the gnarled branches of Osage Orange trees and calling squirrels with empty shotgun shells. To a lot of guys, especially guys who grew up hunting deer, they may wonder why I would take the time to pursue small game. Hank Shaw, an avid hunter and cook, inspired me to not just chase the big stuff, deer, turkey, ect. As someone who didn't grow up hunting, squirrels and other little critters offer a low cost, low risk entry into the world of hunting. It's the same as when I introduce my friends to fishing. I don't take them on a trophy catfish hunt where its all or nothing. I let them catch fifteen bluegill. They don't give a rip that they didn't catch a fifty pound blue cat. They caught fish. That was the only goal.

Before I get into the details of my hunt, let's talk about the comparison game amongst men. One of the saddest things that our culture has done, has been to equate masculinity with physical strength, bag limits, and the likes. It's visible in our obsession with sports culture, the way that college athletes are worshipped or denigrated depending on the fortunes of the team. Sure, you may say that men need competition. You may say that men need to be protectors, but to reduce a person's worth to whether or not they can punch out the dude next to them is ignorant. Hunting, fishing, and life consists of so much more than physical prowess. From a sporting level, it takes curiosity, patience, and a big dose of humility to become a truly masterful outdoorsman. I'll readily admit, I'm not even close to that level.

In life, in our relationships with our wives and children, we need more than our egos, bench press, and 9-5 jobs to reach the end of our days in happiness, having really lived a life worth living. It's tragic to see these old, grizzled guys, who use hunting as an escape from their failed marriages, failed parent-child relationships, and horrible jobs. I can't help but think that somewhere along the line, they missed the point. When you're sixty-five and have diabetes and ten other chronic illnesses, you can't hunt because you're too weak, and you can't even have a conversation with your wife without getting into an argument, there's no amount of "man-up," that can fix your problems. You're not gonna lift yourself up by your bootstraps. Either you're going to humble yourself, admit that you're weak, and ask for help, or you're going to die a bitter, lonely, worn out person. Here's a tip; it takes a lot bigger man to say he needs help than it does to tough it out. Stopping up yourself till you've got a butt plug in your emotions like a hibernating bear isn't manly or strong, it's stupid.

 So, as a person who loves the outdoors, I refuse to participate in the measurement culture in hunting. I didn't start fishing because I wanted to be more manly. I started fishing because it was fascinating, because I got to explore the woods like I did as a boy, and because it connected me with a new part of my spirituality that I had let go dormant. Guess what, I wasn't any less of a man before I started hunting. I'm not any more of a man now.

That's part of why I'm so drawn to the obscure and maligned hunts. I get to participate in activities that many men think they're above, like carp fishing or squirrel hunting. Not only will I learn more about hunting and about my environment than men who only go for the trophy buck or the big gobbler, I will have the ability to introduce other people to the astonishing beauty around us by promoting those easier to access hunts. If you've ever tried targeting "trash fish," or eating "poor people's food," you know that the dudes who cruise around in their bass boats and turn their noses up to other fish are actually missing out on a ton of fun!

Anyways, let me talk you through my hunt a bit.

Basically, I walked down to where there was a mostly dried up feeder creek into one of the lakes. It's important to have the right kind of trees, especially during the winter. Look for thick clumps of oak, hickory, and osage orange trees. In this particular hunt, it was the hedge apples (osage orange) that were the ticket to success. While they aren't squirrels preferred food, they will actively forage them during the cold winter months when they've used up more ideal food sources.

It's best to get up early, just at dawn. Winter squirrels will be looking for food in the early hours and will stay to themselves more so during the day. My strategy was to walk along a tree line and scan for squirrels, stopping occasionally to make calls. You can call squirrels by tapping together the metal ends of used shotgun shells then rubbing the edge of the metal over the grooves on the other shell. This mimics the breaking and eating of nuts. If there are squirrels in the area, chance is, they'll come bounding on the treetops to get a look at the food source they think has been discovered.

A dissected hedge apple. Something has been feeding on the seeds.

Look for hedge apples that look like they've been squashed or empty nut casings that have been broken. If there are signs of active feeding, don't be afraid to camp in a spot for ten or fifteen minutes to call. It's not an effective strategy to go blundering through the forest, making a bunch of noise to chase a squirrel. They have good hearing and eyesight and will spook easily if you're making a bunch of noise. That being said, a squirrel who thinks he's going to get a meal can easily get real stupid.

One of the ones that I shot during this trip came as close to fifteen feet away and stayed, looking around for the food he thought he'd heard before I shot him. Not only that, but since I killed that squirrel, his friend didn't catch word (and wasn't apparently spooked by my 20 gauge), and came eagerly only a few minutes later when I made another call.

So, be patient, but look for the thick clumps of trees. Don't waste your time along the edges of fields where there's only a thin line of brush. They can be found there, but they're more likely to be found on the fringes of larger wooded areas.

Squirrel hunting is a blast and a great way to start learning the skills of hunting. Don't think yourself too big of a man to go after small game. Do yourself a favor. Get out there before the season ends and get yourself some bushy tails!