Today, September 15, is the opener for small game in the Great Lakes State. It's also one of my favorite days of the year. I love to hunt squirrels with a .22 early in the season and today was about as perfect of an opening day as you could want. The overnight temperature got down into the upper 50's and a thick fog set in, making the drive to my favorite squirrel woods a bit slower than usual but I was still in the woods shortly after daylight.

When I hunt squirrels early in the year, with the trees still thick with leaves, I tend to slow way down, moving slowly and quietly, using my ears more than my eyes. I'm listening for the sounds of a squirrel chewing on a nut, shells dropping through the leaves. I also key in on the sound of a squirrel jumping from branch to branch or toenails on the bark of a tree.

Today I pussy footed 75 yards into woods before setting down on an ash log to wait for the woods to wake up. The only sound was the heavy dew dripping from the trees and it didn't take long to hear the sound of a bushy tail shaking a branch above me. A few minutes later, my first squirrel of the season fell to a single .22 shot.

I eased my way to the far end of the woodlot, adjacent to a standing corn field, seeing several squirrels on the ground feeding but getting no good shots. Finally, one very feisty young squirrel decided to give me a piece of his mind, chattering and barking until my Ruger 10/22 silenced him. #2 in the game pouch and it was just 8:15 a.m.

Working my way down the edge of the cornfield, just inside the woods, I spotted another squirrel on the ground, and this one was inside of my range. I just needed him to give me a good shot, which he did a few minutes later. Shot #3, squirrel #3 and only 8:30.

I finish my 5 squirrel limit a few minutes later by pulling out my secret weapon, a Mr. Squirrel distress whistle, and giving a distress cry of a young squirrel, bring squirrels from two different directions, both falling to single shots. 8:30 a.m., 5 shots from my 10/22 and 5 squirrels in the bag.

By 9:00 I was back at the truck and cleaning the days take, skinning, gutting, washing, bagging and packing on ice. Next stop was at my 85 year old mothers house to drop off her birthday present, three nice fat squirrels for her birthday dinner on Monday. I kept two for my dinner tonight. It doesn't get much better than that!