Sep 27, 2014 4 min read

I have always thought it odd that I don’t shoot a .22 rimfire more often. Lord knows I shoot my centerfire rifles often enough.

Driving the short distance to my gun club, I find some form of therapy and relaxation punching holes in paper with a .270, 220 Swift or 6mm, but the .22 stays at home collecting dust.

There is one exception to that – squirrel hunting – is just three weeks away.

As far as grouse go, it could be eons until the season begins around here. Grouse are seemingly nearly extinct in this area, but there are grouse available in the northern counties. I flush them every bear season.

But squirrel are different. They seem to have maintained a steady population in our corner of the state.

There are those who carry a shotgun to hunt squirrel. But as a friend told me the other day, a rimfire rifle and squirrel hunting seem to go together like ham and eggs.

You can take nearly any .22 when hunting squirrels, but I do want one that is accurate.

One of my friends uses a Remington 541. John Dino likes his Ruger 22/22. Tom Bloom, who resides in Wellsburg, W.Va., is a regular squirrel hunter and prefers his Winchester pump. As for me, I use my old Remington 513 S.

The 513 is seldom seen. The standard target model 513 is fairly common.

The “S” stands for sporter model and it has a steel butt plate and checkered stock. The trigger is adjustable and the medium-weight barrel is 26 inches long.

As most readers know, I have been around firearms all of my life and have seen just three of this model.

The first time was when I was a teen, and my partner in rat shooting used his father’s 513s.

I also have seen one at the Arden gun show. It had a sticker for $799.

The other one rests in my gun cabinet. The darned thing shoots one-hole, five-shot groups at 50 yards with Winchester high-velocity ammo.

There are many other rifles that are capable of the accuracy required for squirrel hunting than the ones I just mentioned.

When a squirrel flattens its body against a tree branch, it does’t offer much of a target. Sometimes, the animal in that position is invisible except for one thing – it’s tail. That makes me think the squirrel has forgotten about his tail.

Most forays into the woods for these creatures is done in good weather. In fact, squirrels don’t move around much when the weather is foul.

Like most animals, they don’t like windy conditions, and a windy day is not a day to hunt them.

The greatest drawback to using a .22 for squirrel involves safety. When shooting, you need to be aware of the background.

As small as it is, a .22 flying off in the air can travel a long way.

Locating squirrel is not that difficult. Find the food, and you will find the squirrels.

Nut bearing trees, such as oak and beech, are good when the fruit is present. Often overlooked is the woodlot bordering a cornfield.

Like most wildlife, squirrel know a good meal when they spot one, and corn is definitely in the diet.

Squirrel are good to eat, but tough to skin.

• There seems to be a sharp decline in groundhog numbers this year.

The consensus among the hunters I have talked to blames this on the increase in the number of coyotes present.

One person with some inside knowledge said that it would be a mistake to invest in a varmint outfit.

If a dog can lower hog numbers, coyotes are much better hunters. Dogs get regular feedings from their owners. Coyotes depend on their hunting skills to eat.

George H. Block writes a Sunday Outdoors column for the Observer-Reporter.