Small Game

Sleet and snow stung my face. A foot of powder covered the ground and the wind whipped through the spruce forest.  For a moment I let my thoughts drift to the low country, where spring was on its way.  Here at 4,500 feet, however, winter showed no sign of retreat.

The bay of hounds suddenly reminded my frigid fingers why we were there. I was accompanying Bob Beahm, former school principal turned hunting guide, and his skilled beagles on a hunt for snowshoe hares.

Way back in the olden days when I first started hunting with my father, two of the older men in camp would light out at night with their hounds for a few hours to hunt raccoons.

If you take care of gamebirds bagged in the hunted field or forest, they will take care of you at the dinner table. Having the right tools and techniques for field dressing gamebirds can make the job much easier.

Quick link to "Pressing Gamebirds": in five easy steps.

One of the greatest rewards of hunting upland game birds, waterfowl and wild turkeys is the delicious dinners that result from successful hunts.

A crisp fall morning, a .22 rifle in hand and squirrels grating on nuts; what a way to spend the day in the woods!

Squirrel and other small game seasons happen throughout the country, giving hunters a chance to enjoy some of the finest opportunities for woodsmanship, fellowship and shooting skills. 

Squirrel hunting is not the national past time it once was, but it is a fun way to sharpen shooting and hunting skills well before the deluge of fall hunting seasons arrive. With the right plan, you can score heavily on summertime squirrels.

I live in Idaho so I am totally blessed. We have the best bear hunting in the world; we used to have great elk, deer and moose hunting until they smuggled in the Canadian wolf (read the book titled "The Real Wolf" by Ted Lyons). But even with all of those opportunities, one of my favorite hunts of the year is spring ground squirrel hunting. I know that probably sounds crazy, but I love it. How can you not? I'll get 400-500 shots per day on a decent day.

February is the time of year when small game hunting seasons are the sportsman's only focus — a time to join some rabbit-hunting friends in pursuit of cottontails. Beagles will chase the rabbits using their instinctive drive, and the hunters will move to cut them off. The hunt will demand an early start, and vigorous activity as sportsmen walk the land and enjoy pulse-quickening excitement when the rabbits are running.

If you're looking to extend your hunting now that deer seasons have mostly closed, consider an outing focused on the humble cottontail. In many states rabbits are open through February or later.

And contrary to what you might have heard, you don't need a pack of beagles to successfully hunt this quarry. Exciting sport can be enjoyed just working through the woods, fields and brushy areas either alone or with a friend or two.