Okay, the sun has set and my backyard hunt is over, but I did good today.
I was busy most of the morning preparing 25 pounds of venison to be turned into jerky but by lunch time I was ready to start my backyard hunt. I opened one side of the bilco doors and draped the camo netting over the opening. I was ready.
About 30 minutes after I set up the camo I peered out the window and spied a starling hanging on one of my suet cages. I ran down to the basement shop, grabbed the .177 disco, loaded a CPHP and headed for the camo netting. The starling was still there feeding so I eased the barrel of the disco through one of the small openings in the netting and found the bird in the leapers 3x9x32. Crosshairs on his chest, trigger pulled and the pellet was on it's way. It slammed home with a POP and the starling flipped upside down, hung onto the suet cage with one foot for a second or two and then let go and hit the ground. I left the yellow beak where he laid hoping he'd bring in more of his kind.
An hour later I look outside and there's another starling at the suet. I Headed down to the shop but by the time I got there the starling had left. As I looked around I suddenly saw a nice sized gray squirrel working his way through the top branches of the maples and oaks in my backyard. I put the disco down and picked up my .22 Marauder which was loaded with a full clip of Kodiaks. Went back to the camo netting, looked up into the trees and saw that the nutter was still up there and he was sitting on a thick limb way up at the top of a large oak. Distance to the nutter was 30 yards. I dialed the scope to 12X, put the crosshairs on the side of his head and lightly touched the trigger. The Kodiak hit with a loud "POP" and the nutter slid off the limb and fell to the ground, hitting the thick snow and disappearing beneath the surface. I removed the camo netting and headed out to retrieve my harvest. A solid hit right near the ear that exited out the other side. I retrieved the starling along with the nutter and placed them near the bilco doors on the snow to keep them cool. I replaced the netting and waited for another target.
30 minutes later I look out and there's another nutter on the ground near the suet cakes. I found him in the scope and squeezed the trigger. The Marauder fired and the nutter leaped into the air about a foot, did a back flip and hit the snowy ground running. I watched him high tail it for the fence on the side of my yard, climb the fence and disappear into my neighbors yard. I checked the snow for any signs of a hit but it appeared that I pulled the shot just to the left of his head . The pellet may have grazed him but there was no blood of any kind and the way that he beat feet out of there I'm sure he's just fine. Oh well. I replaced the camo netting and waited for another target.
An hour later I look outside and there are 4 squirrels, 2 on the ground and 2 in the trees. I picked out one of the nutters in the trees as it proved the best shot. Distance was 25 yards. He was sitting right where a limb met the main trunk and he was all curled up into a ball, but his head was in full view. Worked the bolt on the Marauder, put the scope in between his eye and ear and touched the trigger. The pellet flew true and hit him hard. At the hit the gray rolled off the limb and plummeted to the ground. He hit the snow and just like the first one he disappeared beneath the crunchy crust. All I could see was the tip of his tail sticking out of the snow but it wasn't moving and neither was the rest of him
During the last hour of daylight I did see 3 more grays on the ground and in the trees, but the wife had come home which meant that my shooting for the day was over
I think the wife is spending a good part of tomorrow visiting with her mother so I hopefully will get some more shooting tomorrow
I took a couple of pics of the Marauder and her harvest as well as a pic of how I have the camo netting set up over the bilco doors.
I wish I would've gotten more starlings coming in today but I'm real happy with todays harvest and tomorrows always another day...
Oh, and BTW...... the jerky is coming along very nicely
Jeff
