Michigan Squirrel Hunt and Predator Encounter

By Glen Wunderlich

Small game hunting’s popularity has waned over the years, while the focus of most sportsmen in the Midwest has centered on whitetail deer. At the same time, however, there remains an under-utilized bonanza amid the woodlots and forests:  squirrels.

Pursuing these acrobatic rodents has a way of making a hunter out of anyone – even youngsters.   But, sportsmen must be able to wrap their minds around consuming them.  I’ll not attempt to persuade anyone to like their delicate, sweet meat’s flavor, and frankly, if the concept is not for you, it’ll be more for me.  So be it.

I decided rather spontaneously to visit a familiar site not far from home replete with the nutty tree dwellers. At dawn, I settled into my pre-planned location with a relatively open view of surrounding mixed hardwoods in the heavily foliaged mid-September forest with the rising sun at my back.  A lightweight chair was set up next to two trees only 30 inches apart with one forming an impromptu rest.  The ground was cleared of debris for silence afoot.

Squirrels and Coyote Taken with .22 Rimfire

Squirrels and Coyote Taken with .22 Rimfire

The full-size Marlin lever-action Original Golden model 39A in .22 rimfire caliber, complete with a Leupold fixed 4 power rimfire scope and a piggy-back movie camera, could be maneuvered into resting position in any direction. The beauty of using a tree for a rest is that the shooter’s hand can be placed anywhere naturally found to be comfortable – unlike bipods that must be carried and manipulated.

Although the seemingly never ending absence of .22 rimfire ammo is still with us, some of the high-end cartridges are readily available. The “trouble” with much of it in the eyes of some shooters is that it is sub-sonic and it costs much more than other production high velocity brands.  Some may perceive it to be inadequate for humane kills; however, because of its inherent accuracy through strict quality control, it will certainly do the job, if first the operator does his.

My choice has long been 40-grain solid Lapua Center X for one reason: consistent accuracy.  As a quick check, I weighed about 10 random cartridges and found them to be the same weight.  On the contrary, a well-known big manufacturer’s typical high-velocity product was weighed, as well, and the variance was eye opening.  Is it any wonder that sometimes there are unexplained fliers?

If standard-velocity trajectory is a concern, I have found that if sighted in at 50 yards, the difference at 25 yards is inconsequential in terms of hunting, but it’s still worth the time and effort to see how your firearm will print on paper at various ranges.

Next worth considering is the lack of noise emitted by any sub-sonic ammo. Because it does not break the sound barrier, like high or hyper velocity ammo, not only will it help to save your hearing, it will not startle surrounding wildlife to the extent faster fodder will. I’ll get to that part later.

And, as is the case with any sub-sonic ammo, the velocity of the bullet is maintained better as a percentage over distance, than its hotter cousins, which shed velocity faster after the sonic boom is created.

The setup should be such that the hunter gains some advantage of a rest. Offhand shooting should be avoided, unless one is honestly good enough.   And, that can be defined by answering in the affirmative that a given shot is a 9 out of 10 proposition.  I’ll take a rest any day, and fortunately, Mother Nature has generously placed them everywhere.

It’s not run and gun or stomping around with a scattergun. It’s sit still, be quiet and wait for things to develop.  And, if the killing power of standard-velocity target ammo is still questioned, consider the fact that it dropped an unsuspecting coyote in its tracks at 30 yards.  And, the only reason it came that close to me was because of the ammo I had used to take 3 squirrels from the same chair that morning.  Finally, I took one more bushytail that was barking its head off over the coyote incident and called it a morning at 9:05am.

Even though the .22 rimfire ammo hoarding continues, you may want to look twice at some of the top-shelf varieties, such as Eley, RWS, or my favorite, Lapua. No doubt you’ll pay more, but the higher cost is what makes it less desirable to the average shooter and there for you.

Coyote Pup Taken with Lapua Sub-Sonic .22 Ammo

Coyote Pup Taken with Lapua Sub-Sonic .22 Ammo

Leica Ultravid HD-PLUS Binos Boast Newly Engineered Glass Elements

Leica, manufacturer of legendary lenses since 1849, is excited to introduce the new benchmark for optical performance – the Ultravid HD-PLUS 42 mm binoculars. Using industry-leading glass technologies, Leica created the Ultravid HD-PLUS binoculars with new objective HD/HT glass elements to provide you with the brightest, most crystal clear images, making them perfect for game scouting and glassing before and during your hunt.

The new glass for lenses and prisms, along with new proprietary coatings, provides for a significantly increased transmission of light – up to 92 percent. This increased transmission, particularly in the blue-violet band, allows for optimum viewing during low-light conditions, which is critical for spotting prey during peak activity in the early dawn and twilight hours. Read more

Silencerco Announces Photo Contest

WHAT:
Living in the Red means being ready for anything. SilencerCo’s new photo contest represents an opportunity for you to show off your gear, assembled to get you out of a tight spot when the going gets beyond tough. What do you carry in your rig?

WHEN:
Beginning today, photos can be submitted for one month, through October 19, 2014. After the submission period is over, SilencerCo will narrow the submissions and open the best photos for public voting.

WHO:
Anyone who wants to showcase their gear for the chance to win some awesome prizes.

HOW:
Find more info and submit your photo at http://www.silencerco.com/living-in-the-red

WHY:
Being prepared for the unexpected is reason enough, but submitting a photo to the contest gives you the chance to win some great stuff.

GRAND PRIZE:
Any three SilencerCo suppressors of your choice. Be strategic – the most expensive or largest-caliber suppressors alone may not be the best for you in a survival scenario. But if you win, it’s your call.
A Goal Zero solar station valued at over $800 – the perfect setup to allow you to power necessary devices without the need for fuel.

RUNNER-UP:
One SilencerCo suppressor of your choice.
Goal Zero Nomad 7 Solar Panel in Realtree Xtra Camo

About SilencerCo:
Founded in West Valley, Utah in 2008, SilencerCo began with a belief in the fundamental premise that firearms don’t have to be loud and has now become the market leader in sound suppressors, muzzle devices, and related products. By investing in innovation, customer service, organic manufacturing, advocacy, education, and talent, SilencerCo is now focused on making firearms hearing safe for all hunting and shooting applications, introducing products that have never been made before, and improving the buying experience.

Yellowstone Plundered by Market Hunters

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK (Sept. 19, 1876) – Soon on newsstands in all 38 states, an upcoming edition of “Forest and Stream” will feature a report by editor George Bird Grinnell on a poaching crisis still plaguing Yellowstone even in its fourth year as a U.S. national park.

Grinnell, back from an expedition in the area, witnessed the sad carnage and writes, “It is estimated that during the winter of 1874-1875, not less than 3,000 buffalo and mule deer suffer even more severely than the elk, and the antelope nearly as much.”

The concerned editor is urging Congress to help stop the rampant market hunting and exploitation of wildlife, timber, geysers and other natural resources of the park.

That’s how early sportsmen might have announced the launch of a long crusade that would change the course of conservation in America.

The plight of Yellowstone and the public outcry that followed Grinnell’s articles on what he called “the park grab,” proved to be a tipping point that rallied the 1887 formation of the Boone and Crockett Club. Founder Theodore Roosevelt was resolute in establishing the fledgling outfit’s first order of business: Protect the park.

Yellowstone elk poached by Fredrick and Philip Bottler near Mammoth Hot Spring during the spring of 1875.

Today, Boone and Crockett is commemorating the 120th anniversary of the Club’s first major success, the Yellowstone Protection Act of 1894.

“The campaign to preserve Yellowstone was the first time a natural resource issue secured the popular support of both sportsmen and non-sportsmen,” said current Boone and Crockett Club President Bill Demmer. “Yellowstone thrust Boone and Crockett into the national limelight as an organization of hunters leading America’s early conservation movement.” Read more

Michigan’s Small Game Hunting Bonanza

On the third day of small game season, I sat quietly in the squirrel woods.  Within two hours, I was heading home with an unusual mixed bag.  Details will follow in a few days, but here is a photo of the results.  All taken with single shots from the venerable Marlin 39A stoked with sub-sonic target ammo.  A camera sits atop the long gun to record the action.

Squirrels and Coyote Taken with .22 Rimfire
Squirrels and Coyote Taken with .22 Rimfire

Arraignment set for Oct. 6 for Sanilac County poaching suspects

GW:  Really?  Poaching a spotted fawn?  Hang ’em.  Hang ’em high!

Three individuals are set to be arraigned Monday, Oct. 6, in 73A District Court in Sanilac County on poaching charges related to an incident on Sept. 14 in Sanilac County.

Three men and a woman were arrested after a Department of Natural Resources conservation officer working on a homeland security patrol was alerted by a U.S. Customs and Border Protection air and marine helicopter that it observed people shining deer and shooting from a vehicle in Marion Township. The incident took place at about 9 p.m. Read more

Gov. Snyder celebrates successful conservation project at Maple River State Game Area

 Gov. Rick Snyder and Department of Natural Resources Director Keith Creagh – together with Pete Albrecht, Michigan Ducks Unlimited state chairman, and Dave Brakhage, Ducks Unlimited director of the Great Lakes/Atlantic Region – today celebrated the completion of important wetland and waterfowl habitat restoration projects at Maple River State Game Area, north of St. Johns.

The event showcased a powerful partnership that included the state of Michigan, the federal government and conservation organizations such as Ducks Unlimited. The groups worked together to restore wildlife habitat in an area that will benefit natural resources throughout mid-Michigan. Read more

Michigan-based group to “monitor” Yellowstone wolf hunt

Montana has opened its 6-month rifle season for wolves but will have to contend with Rodney Coronado and his group of whackos said to be shadowing and video recording hunting activities.

Coronado, a SHAC speaker & organizer; editor, the Earth First! Journal; Animal Liberation Front arsonist jailed for 57 months for torching a university research lab; confessed fur-industry serial arsonist; recipient of $70,400 from PETA. Rodney Adam Coronado is a long-time ringleader of the Animal Liberation Front, a criminal enterprise that the FBI classifies as America’s most dangerous domestic terrorism threat. He was sentenced in 1995 to 57 months in federal prison, for the 1992 arson of a Michigan State University research laboratory. In a November 30, 2002 speech, Coronado openly confessed to at least six other arsons, all of them part of a crime spree known as “Operation Bite Back.” While the FBI was most intensely investigating Coronado, PETA gave him over $70,000 in “grants” from its tax-exempt coffers.

Details here…

Purchase Any New Full-Size, Leica Ultravid HD Binocular, Receive a Filson Medium Field Bag

Purchase a new ultra-light, but durable full-size Leica Ultravid HD from any authorized North America Leica Dealer and receive a classic and versatile Filson Medium Field Bag ($250 value). Send in your mail-in rebate form and a copy of your sales receipt for your purchase, made between Sept. 15 and Dec. 31, 2014, to Leica to receive the field bag. Read more

1 236 237 238 239 240 353