Eastern Gray Squirrel Where to hunt

[ccman]

I am new to the forum. I am looking for a place to hunt Western Gray Squirrel with an air rifle. Ideally, it would be a private permission. But any knowledge of good hunting  on public land would also be helpful. I live in Snohomish County so travelling North or East makes the most sense to me.  Thanks
ccman

[Bill W]

I think you want to hunt Eastern gray squirrels in Western Washington.

[Moe the Sleaze]

I don't think any kind of squirrel hunting is legal in Washington is it?

[Fl0und3rz]

I think you want to hunt Eastern gray squirrels in Western Washington.

This.  There is a thread or two here.  I will see if I can dig them up.

[bobcat]

Eastern Grey Squirrels are not protected so can be hunted anytime. They are the ones you see in cities and parks. Western Greys are listed in the state as a threatened species and cannot be hunted.

[Fl0und3rz]

Here are a couple.

https://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,90214.0.html

http://www.hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php?topic=163331.0

[ccman]

I am sorry. You are correct it IS Eastern Grays I am looking to hunt.

[ccman]

I think you want to hunt Eastern gray squirrels in Western Washington.

This.  There is a thread or two here.  I will see if I can dig them up.

Much appreciated.

[ccman]

So, maybe more information is needed. It is true, Eastern Grays are what I want to hunt. No license is required for pest control on your own property. I have a passel that get fat off the seeds the birds drop from my feeders but I live in a tight residential area and can't risk even a sling shot. So, I am looking for a private land permission where I might hunt and do so safely away from houses but close enough in that I am not hunting protected species. I have done my research, I talked to Washington State Fish and Wildlife today, there is no season but a hunting license is required. I plan to use .22 cal gas piston air rifle so there is no loud boom. It actually has noise suppression technology.

ccman

[ccman]

I started a thread on squirrels today as well,  didn't see this one.

Gonna have mine deleted and ask here instead.If a squirrel does not match that of the described by W.D.F.W description does that make the squirrel unclassified?

With all due respect I would just as soon not have this thread hijacked.

[Katmai Guy]

So, maybe more information is needed. It is true, Eastern Grays are what I want to hunt. No license is required for pest control on your own property. I have a passel that get fat off the seeds the birds drop from my feeders but I live in a tight residential area and can't risk even a sling shot. So, I am looking for a private land permission where I might hunt and do so safely away from houses but close enough in that I am not hunting protected species. I have done my research, I talked to Washington State Fish and Wildlife today, there is no season but a hunting license is required. I plan to use .22 cal gas piston air rifle so there is no loud boom. It actually has noise suppression technology.

ccman

 I live in a residential area in Covington and am constantly shooting squirrels in my back yard.  I make sure they are on the ground and let'er fly.  Sounds like I might have the same P gun as you or similar.  The sound of the pellet hitting the squirrel in the ribcage is almost louder than the air rifle. 

[ccman]

 


[/quote]

 I live in a residential area in Covington and am constantly shooting squirrels in my back yard.  I make sure they are on the ground and let'er fly.  Sounds like I might have the same P gun as you or similar.  The sound of the pellet hitting the squirrel in the ribcage is almost louder than the air rifle. 
[/quote]

To be honest I have not made my purchase yet but looking at a Gamo Swarm Magnum. In a very uncharacteristic move on my part I delayed the purchase until I had a place to hunt. Question: What do you do with the squirrels after you kill them?

[lokidog]

 I live in a residential area in Covington and am constantly shooting squirrels in my back yard.  I make sure they are on the ground and let'er fly.  Sounds like I might have the same P gun as you or similar.  The sound of the pellet hitting the squirrel in the ribcage is almost louder than the air rifle. 
[/quote]

To be honest I have not made my purchase yet but looking at a Gamo Swarm Magnum. In a very uncharacteristic move on my part I delayed the purchase until I had a place to hunt. Question: What do you do with the squirrels after you kill them?
[/quote]

Eat them, they are delicious.  Slow/pressure cook, pick the meat then toss in soup or stew or whatever you would put chicken in.

I started a thread on squirrels today as well,  didn't see this one.

Gonna have mine deleted and ask here instead.If a squirrel does not match that of the described by W.D.F.W description does that make the squirrel unclassified?

With all due respect I would just as soon not have this thread hijacked.

Actually, this is valid for your question as to a place to hunt... it is pretty much impossible to tell the difference between the two in the field so, I believe, it is determined by location.  The state lists locations of Western Greys.  Don't hunt in those areas.   

I have had them eating apples from the trees in my yard, you might check any orchards in your area to see if they have a squirrel "problem".

[Fl0und3rz]

Apples, cherries, sunflowers, etc.  They are relentless and an unlimited renewable resource.

[baker5150]

Apples, cherries, sunflowers, etc.  They are relentless and an unlimited renewable resource.

 

I catch them eating my wifes grapes as well, which I found odd.

[Fl0und3rz]

Yeah, I forgot about the grapes, although possums and raccoons are the main culprits, here.  But I have only had grapes the last two years.   Oddly, they don't seem to care for blueberries and raspberries all that much. 

[TimBaleia]

I plan to use .22 cal gas piston air rifle so there is no loud boom.

Not sure if it's legal to hunt with air rifles in WA. I asked this question on my Hunting Education course and teacher found it somewhere in paperwork that its illegal to hunt with air rifle in WA. (i think if its a pest control than you fine but if you have a hunting license and about to bag them there is a bag limit and weapon requirements).

  :dunno:I might be totally wrong. 
I was hunting rabbits and boars in Portugal with 0.30 cal PCP air rifle.
And i wanted to hunt small game here with air rifle that's why i was asking this questions on Hunting Education Course.

[lokidog]

I plan to use .22 cal gas piston air rifle so there is no loud boom.

Not sure if it's legal to hunt with air rifles in WA. I asked this question on my Hunting Education course and teacher found it somewhere in paperwork that its illegal to hunt with air rifle in WA. (i think if its a pest control than you fine but if you have a hunting license and about to bag them there is a bag limit and weapon requirements).

  :dunno:I might be totally wrong. 
I was hunting rabbits and boars in Portugal with 0.30 cal PCP air rifle.
And i wanted to hunt small game here with air rifle that's why i was asking this questions on Hunting Education Course.

Eastern Gray Squirrels are unclassified so air rifle is OK as long as it is OK to shoot one in the location. I'm pretty sure anyways....   

[one more]

They also eat straw berries, blue berries, plums, pears and even tomatoes.  They can't resist running up or down a diagonal log or board into a tree or up onto a fence.

The Eastern grey squirrel  has brown fur on it's back and tail.  But follow WA FW's areas.

Diane

[Axle]

Cage traps in residential areas work great. If you have access in a city they reside in, you should be able to clean up with cages.

[smithkl42]

I used them as target practice for my bow (and eating, of course). I'd shoot 'em in my backyard, from my office window. I bought a $25 bag of feed corn, and put in a deer feeder. Between me and my boys, we took half a dozen or so before they wised up.

I think it's possible to tell the difference between Eastern and Western grays in the field (the western grays are larger, and don't have any reddish/brown tint to them like the eastern grays do). But probably the most reliable way is just not to hunt where there might be western grays around. They're fairly rare, I understand - the population in WA is down to a few thousand, mostly down around the Oregon border near I5.

https://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/gray_squirrel/

Unfortunately for your purposes, ccman, eastern grays are typically found in more suburban areas - I don't think I've seen any out in the woods where I hunt, even though it's not that far from my house. Nearly all the ones you're gonna see in the woods are Douglas squirrels, which are also protected (despite being on the very opposite end of the spectrum from endangered).

[Crunchy]

Just follow me around during my archery elk hunts.  Suckers are everywhere alerting all the elk to my presence.

[smithkl42]

Just follow me around during my archery elk hunts.  Suckers are everywhere alerting all the elk to my presence.

No kidding. Those buggers are loud and refuse to mind their own business. But they're probably Douglas squirrels rather than Eastern Grays - I don't think I've ever been chewed out by a gray squirrel but the Douglas squirrels are totally up in your business and want to let the world know about it.

[Fl0und3rz]

Eastern grays will get barking at times. But that is in suburbia.