Starting Small

Made it out Saturday for the small game opener.  Bagged 1 squirrel in an hour and half or so of wandering between a few of my duck spots to see if they held water--and they do, though there's a lot of mud between the bank and the edge of the water this year.  Saw a few other bushytails, but couldn't get a shot off.  I wasn't prepared for having to shoot in a brief window of opportunity when  a squirrel came into the open. 

I guess I wasn't sure what to be prepared for, seeing as I've never really hunted squirrels before.  My dad and I used to walk through the woods looking for small game of some kind, any kind,  but rarely saw it, aside from the times we stumbled on some sweet pat covers.  I did enjoy it though and want to do a lot more of it.  A lot of hunters begin their careers with squirrels and move on to larger or more technical kinds of hunting--I'm regressing to it after sampling upland and waterfowl.  Not that I'm giving up either, but I could come to very much appreciate slowly wandering through the woods mid morning, stopping here and there to listen, scanning the treetops to pinpoint the source of the rustling in the leaves or clatter of branches.  Not the adrenalin or drama of waterfowling, but I think a range of moods and timbres will enrich  in substance a hunting career that is, regrettably, foreshortened in time.

For this season, my hunting may not encompass much more than waterfowl and squirrel, or any other small game that wanders across my path.   Ran out to Waterloo last Thursday to look over the spot I was considering for a deer hunt in November.  Lots of trails running through it, but it would be hard to set up on one, especially for a complete newbie like me.  Maybe another season.  If I can become proficient with squirrels this year (and continue getting better at waterfowl), that's enough growth as a hunter to satisfy me for now.

What I wish I were doing

I'm so ready to shoot a waterfowl right now I'm calculating whether #2s or BBs would be needed to penetrate the frozen ducks at supermarket.  Reading tales like this one doesn't help.

I'm actually planning to expand my hunting this  year.  Squirrels when the season opens in a week and a half, and just possibly deer in November.  Possibly.  Shot some slugs out of the 870 at the Sharonville range on Monday and decided I might need to wait on the whitetails until I can do better than 7" groups.

Whatever happens...here's hoping for more wild meat on the table this fall.