Hunting The Stump in Hard Times ! ******* Scored Twice with Hidden Ambush !

[A.K.A. Tommy Boy]

The squirrels have gotten a lot more wary and skittish ever since I have extracted 20 of their brethren starting on Sept 16th.  I decided to hunt a spot that offers the maximum in cover and concealment.  The area to be hunted was an old tree stump with lots of undergrowth between it an a large White Oak tree. In setting up next to the stump, the stump can be used to rest the gun and steady the shot. The undergrowth is very thick around this stump but the White oak tree top and branches can be seen good enough to make an accurate shot at 25 yards or so.  In order to change up my pattern and allow the squirrels a calm morning and a sense security. I decided to hunt in the afternoon today.  I hiked in to this area around 1pm, a time frame when the squirrels are less active. I knew that their feeding activity would pick up around 2:30 until evening. I placed my hunting stool next to the stump and covered myself shawl style, with an old faded fleece blanket. This green & black blanket blends in well with the surrounding foliage.  So the wait begins. I had brought the Hatsan Vortex Edge 25cal rifle loaded with H&N 19.91gr 25cal FTT Domed Pellets. At around 3 pm I noticed some movement in the tree tops and scanned the area with my rifle scope. At mid point in the white oak tree to my front I spotted the black shape of a squirrel. I rested the rifle against the stump and patiently watched and waited for a shot opportunity. He was moving back and forth in the branches repeatedly, with out stopping. I think he may have been scanning the area below for predators. After some time of this nervous behavior he calmed down and presently offered me a frontal chest shot.  I took the shot and he staggered on the branch then fell to the ground. I could not see where he fell to because of the density of the undergrowth. I slowly and carefully moved from my hide and went to retrieve the squirrel. After considerable searching I found where he lay. He was all black and a yearling squirrel. I retrieved the squirrel and cautiously moved back to my spot at the stump and resumed my hide & seek with the squirrels. Around 25 minutes later a large grey appeared in the same tree. Once he finally stopped and offered my second chest shot, I took careful aim and fired the rifle. I thought I heard the impact of the pellet but he, did not seem to me, to twitch or move a muscle after the shot so I began to question myself, as to whether I had actually hit him or not. It occurred to me that I might have missed this time.  After what seemed a long time to me, (In reality, it was probably only about 15 or 20 seconds.) he dropped to the ground dead. He was shot thru the upper chest. I spent some time finding this one too. After I finally retrieved this one, I then decided to leave and not over-hunt this spot. With all my recent activity, looking for the squirrels, I doubted that anymore squirrels would show up.  All in all, I felt I had done well, "Hunting the Stump in Hard Times."  It was around 5 pm when I left the area.  I plan on coming back here in a few days and try this again.

My Best Wishes & Good Hunting to All          -            Tom

[dk1677]

Nice ones Tom!

[BenjiHunter]

Great shooting, Tom!!

[WolfyW]

Nice work!

[Mosin Marine]

Nice shooting tom, keep up the hunting stories!

[A.K.A. Tommy Boy]

Nice ones Tom!

Dave,   Thank You for your kind reply !        Best Wishes & Good Hunting.   -     Tom

[A.K.A. Tommy Boy]

Great shooting, Tom!!

Thank You for your kind reply, Stefan !                    Best Wishes & Get Them Dirty Rats !       -          Tom

[A.K.A. Tommy Boy]

Nice work!

Thank You Wolfy, for your kind reply !     I saw the 3 that you got with your HW 97 117cal. rifle !   That is a Very Nice Looking Rifle you have and with sub-dime sized groups it is ACCURATE TOO !         Best Wishes & Good Hunting         -        Tom

[A.K.A. Tommy Boy]

Nice shooting tom, keep up the hunting stories!

Brandon, Thank You for your kind reply !     I'll keep the stories up as long as I can continue to get the squirrels !   Only the Smart Ones are left !       

Best Wishes & Good Hunting      -       Tom

[jimmykay]

Way to get em with that .25 cal 👍

[A.K.A. Tommy Boy]

Way to get em with that .25 cal 👍

Jimmy      Thank You for your kind reply !    The Hatsan Vortex Edge 25cal, works Great in shorter yardage hunting scenarios.   

Best Wishes & Good Hunting       -         Tom