Squirrel Season Opener
 

Hey guys!

Has anyone's squirrel season opened yet? Here in Georgia ours opened on August 15th. I'll tell ya one thing, with this drought going on we are really hard-pressed to find squirrels feeding on Hickory nuts and acorns. All I can find the squirrels feeding on is they are cutting pine cones here. Besides that, the weather is still terribly hot for hunting.

For those of you hunting, how does your mast crop look? Finding any acorns or hickory nuts? Finding many squirrels? Just wondering...

GB

Smack 'em where it hurts!

RE: Squirrel Season Opener
 

Our squirrel season in DE doesnt start until mid Sept but I have seen a nice amount of tree rats in the woods while deer scouting. The little b@stards are knocking the acorns and hichory's off the trees, climbling down and eating them, then repeating the process over and over. Its pretty annoying when you are listening for deer. I might have to thin the population a little in a month or so... <img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>

Any day spent huntin, is better than any day spent workin,,

Duckmastor2

RE: Squirrel Season Opener
 

Started in Missouri in July. Unfortunately, I'm presently in Maryland, and we don't start until October! They'll wait...we'll get 'em!

<font color=orange>Go #20!</font id=orange>

RE: Squirrel Season Opener
 

Ours started on Aug. 17th but I am a bit paranoid so I am waiting till it frosts. I hate warbles, make ya cut half of the meat off tree rats if they got warbles<img src=icon_smile_dissapprove.gif border=0 align=middle>

&quot;A Country Boy Can Survive&quot; </IMG>

[Deleted]
 

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RE: Squirrel Season Opener
 

Squirrels for us in VA start Mid October and I can't wait.

One thing that some people say to do is to soak the cleaned squirrel in salt water overnight in the fridge. Why salt the water, and how much salt to use? I have soaked them before to remove blood, usually changing the water once in 12 hours. But, why salt it? Is it like 1 tsp or a couple of tbsp?

Chubber

RE: Squirrel Season Opener
 

About 2 tablespoons of salt is what i use,its supposed to draw the blood out of the meat. Our season(indiana) started aug.15,Got a few in the freezer.Any suggestions on tenderizing the meat? I was told to soak them over night in coca-cola to tenderize but havent tried it yet,anyone heard of this?

RE: Squirrel Season Opener
 

our season opened aug. 15th here in indiana,found them in pig hickory mostly,killed 3 greys out of a shagbark hickory,one out of a oak also was actually cutting acorns already, so far have killed 13 squirrel on 3 outings and all were killed with a falcon/titan precompressed airrifle with headshots with the farthest being 40 yds.this gun shoots a 9 gr. .177 cal domed pellet at 937 f.p.s and will accuratley head shoot a squirrel out to 50 or 60 yds on a calm morning,a whole lot more fun than a rimfire.GOOD SHOOTING/DEAN

golden eagle

RE: Squirrel Season Opener
 

<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote<font size=1 face='Verdana, Arial, Helvetica' id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote>
About 2 tablespoons of salt is what i use,its supposed to draw the blood out of the meat. Our season(indiana) started aug.15,Got a few in the freezer.Any suggestions on tenderizing the meat? I was told to soak them over night in coca-cola to tenderize but havent tried it yet,anyone heard of this?
<hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face='Verdana, Arial, Helvetica' size=2 id=quote>TRY vinegar it works pretty well also,braks dowm the muscle fibers in the meat, i use both the salt and about half a cup of vinegar, cider or white

golden eagle

RE: Squirrel Season Opener
 

Chubber, the salt also helps to bring out the blood in the bloodshot and bruised looking areas of the meat if you'll cut into the meat some where the shot has penetrated it so theirs less waste cut off due to the bloodshot areas.

As far as tenderizing, my wife pressure cooks the squirrels done, but by trial and error you will learn how long to cook them in the pressure cooker without cooking the meat off the bone. Then she takes them out, seasons, flours, and frys e'm up. Really tender, try it sometimes. Now if they're going into a mull or into a pot of squirrel dummplins, let the pressure cooker cook them until the meat falls off the bones. This makes it alot easier to pick the bones out.

Just my 2 cents worth for alot of good lickin'

GB


Smack 'em where it hurts!